Page 52 of Colin (The Doherty Mafia)
His eyes narrowed. For a moment it seemed like he didn’t know what I was talking about, and then he drew in a deep breath.
“Get in the car, you have some explaining to do,” he said.
I knew I wasn’t going anywhere.
If I had my weapon, would I have used it on him at that moment?
Probably not.
No matter what Colin was about to do to me next, I wouldn’t have been able to bring myself to harm him. It was only now that I was facing him that I began to realize how much I actually cared about him.
It was ridiculous.
“Marley, just get in the fuckin’ car, I’m not going to tell you again,” he commanded.
He waited, glaring at me with his deep bloodshot eyes.
I knew I had to do what I was told. There was no way out of this now.
I went to the car. He’d left the door open and I got in, scooting over to the passenger side.
Through the windscreen I watched him rake a hand through his hair in frustration before he joined me in the car.
My first instinct was to throw myself at him. It was like my body was desperate for his touch. I needed to feel his warmth.
But I figured he probably hated me now, and I had no choice but to hold back.
The engine was turned off, but he gripped the steering wheel like he was about to drive off. He switched off the headlights and we were shrouded in darkness.
“Where did you think you were going to go? Whose car were you planning on getting into in the middle of the night? Were you really that desperate to get away from me?”
“I just wanted to leave. I didn’t want you to find me.”
“Why the fuck not?” he shouted. It felt like the car shook just from the force of his voice.
I couldn’t say anything. I couldn’t get a single word out.
“Because of the shit we said to each other in the morning? Because I hurt your feelings? I was fuckin’ mad. What do you want me to say? I’m sorry?”
What was going on?
I expected him to rip into me by now. Didn’t he know what I’d done? Hadn’t Aldo told him who I was? Wasn’t he there to punish me?
I stared at him in surprise and Colin looked even more confused now. He searched my eyes, waiting for me to say something while I tried my best to figure it out.
“I was convinced you were dead by now. Aldo Baron…he called me. You don’t know him. He’s a fuckin’ asshole, an enemy of the family, and he made me think he had something to do with your disappearance.”
“I know him…” I squeaked, interrupting him.
Colin’s brows furrowed.
“Aldo Baron. I know who he is.”
“Did he touch you? Did he hurt you? What did he do to you?”
I shook my head.
Of course I had felt threatened by Aldo, but not in the way that Colin thought.
“He didn’t hurt me. He…”
“What did he want from you then?”
“He wanted to work with me.”
Colin fell silent. He didn’t know what question to ask next because he had no idea what I was about to tell him.
“I’m a police detective, Colin. And I know exactly who you are.”
As the words came out of my mouth, I was completely aware of the mistake I made by confessing to him. By revealing my true identity—telling him exactly what I was doing in New York.
Whatever chance I had of getting away with it and coming out of this in one piece was gone.
But I couldn’t hold it in any longer. I couldn’t lie to him.
A part of me sincerely believed I was married to him. That those legal papers we signed meant something. That the rings on our fingers were somehow magical.
It was that part of me which was stupid.
“You’re a detective?”
“In Las Vegas. And I lied to you when I said I used to be a data analyst. I’m not.”
“So you haven’t lost your job?”
I shook my head.
“At least not yet, but I’m guessing I’m not too far from it. The people I work with…I’m the only female in the precinct. And the youngest. So they have automatically assumed I’m shit at my job, so I spend all day and night trying to prove myself to them. And I don’t think they’re going to want to keep me around for too long.”
Colin was speechless, and I was desperate to fill the silence. My nerves were killing me and it seemed like I had no control over my thoughts or my tongue any more.
“That’s exactly the reason why I’m here right now. Trying to prove myself to them. My chief. Nobody knows about us. Or that I’m even in New York. I thought I would single handedly…” At this point my voice trailed off. I couldn’t say the actual words.
