“Lake,” Q growled. He gripped me by my arms and shook me. “You need to get out of here. Now,” he added when I didn’t move.

“Me? What about you?”

“I’ll take care of everything.”

“What about Keiran?” It was a struggle to maintain eye contact, but I managed. His stare was invasive and cold.

“What about him?”

“Are you going to tell him a—about this?”

I could see the internal struggle as his eyes shifted. I was asking him to lie to his best friend. It wouldn’t be easy to convince him but he had to know Keiran finding out about this would be bad for everyone.

“I’m an accomplice to your lie now. The last thing I want to do is make an enemy out of him. He saved my life.”

God, I felt like such an asshole. I had tainted their friendship and created an invisible rift between them.

“You need to go. Don’t make me say it again.”

He nudged me to the door, but I couldn’t convince my feet to move. I took one last look at Mitch, who stared right back and winked.

“Okay,” I whispered.

* * *

PRESENT

I asked to make a phone call, knowing I needed a lawyer and fast, but was answered with an angry glare. That had been twelve hours ago and still no phone call. Today was Sunday so I knew I wouldn’t be before a court until tomorrow, which meant another night in this place. I had already been interrogated twice. The second round had been a string of angry threats and accusations.

They knew I was there when Mitch was killed.

I was a murderer.

I’d spend the rest of my life in jail.

They’d even gone as far as to taunt me with the possibility of Keiran breaking up with me over the loss of his father. It took everything I had not to snort at that one. He would be angry that I lied and put myself at risk, but he wouldn’t mourn a single second over the loss of his father.

“Monroe.” Hearing my name called with hostility brought me back to a time when I was afraid of my own shadow. I reminded myself that girl was gone and met the officer’s stare. “Your lawyer is here. You’re free to go.”

“My lawyer? Are you sure?”

He didn’t bother to answer and placed the cuffs around my wrist through the space built into the bars before releasing me from my bacteria infested confines. For the hours I spent caged inside, I had more than enough time to conjure up all manner of grime that likely infiltrated my skin by now.

My heart rate accelerated with each step. The guard released me from my cuffs and I collected my clothes in a clear ziplock bag, changed, and was signed out in less than fifteen minutes. I remained stunned and silent through it all.

“Fourteen minutes and thirty-eight seconds. Good job, boys. You get to keep your jobs after all.” A large man with salt and pepper hair and an exceptionally white smile hurried to my side. When he extended a hand, the cuff of his jacket pushed back, revealing a large Rolex. This man was money, which meant he meant business. “Hello, Miss Monroe. I hope you are well.”

“How—who are you?” I looked around waiting for the punch line.

“Thompson of Thompson & Bain. I’ll be taking your case.”

“Who hired you?”

“Keiran Masters. I’m a friend of a friend of a friend.”

“Meaning?”

“I represent Richard Simon’s legal matters.”

My shoulders relaxed. Willow must have called her dad. “Where is everyone?”

“Outside. They thought it would be best to wait outside. Just in case things didn’t go as planned,” he added at my look of confusion. I knew what he wasn’t saying. We all knew it was better to keep Keiran as far away from police as possible.

Take a deep breath.

Release.

Before leaving the precinct, Thompson instructed me to appear in court by nine sharp and not to leave town. It was a condition of my unusual release.

“Ok. Let’s go.” I was eager to get this over with. I wasn’t going to run away from Keiran this time. I stuck my hand in my pockets to keep them from shaking and pushed the door open with my hip. I’d forgotten I hadn’t seen daylight for almost twenty-four hours and immediately, used one of my hands to shield my eyes from the sun.

“Damn, man. That was quick,” I heard Dash speak from my right. My eyes were still adjusting, but my body had already sensed Keiran. I felt him move closer. The heat of his body scorched me faster than the sun.

When my eyes were finally adjusted, I witnessed the emotionless set of his face. His eyes were the exact opposite. I was completely enthralled by the storm raging inside.