Page 39 of Secret Sins

Since I was right there, it was easy for Van to deepen the kiss. To press his body against mine, to hoist me closer until there was no space for air between us. His lips were soft, insistent, as he opened his mouth. Need coiled inside me, climbing desperately up my spine in its effort to explode. It had been a long ass time since I'd had sex, and I wanted nothing more than to feel his hands on me. Desire rushed through my head, pumping along my veins and pushing my blood faster through my system. My nipples scraped against the fabric of my bra, so hard and tight they ached.

Calluses had hardened the skin of his palms, and they rasped over the sensitive skin of my lower back. The ticklish sensation made me arch and moan, and he gripped me tighter to him. My breath shuddered out of my lungs, and I sucked in more air before nibbling his bottom lip.

My cell phone rang in my purse, and I ignored it. Van jerked slightly, and I settled on the balls of my feet to look up at him. "Ignore it," I whispered.

The ringing stopped, and I sighed in relief. He dipped his head toward mine again, and I grinned against his mouth.

But then my phone started up again, and I groaned in frustration. "Just give me a second to see what's going on."

I answered the phone while Van went to the kitchen for a bottle of water. The caller ID showed me it was Riley, as I had suspected.

"I thought you knew the store as well as I do by now," I said in irritation.

"That's not the problem," she responded, and I felt my head go light at her serious tone of voice.

"What's wrong?"

At my question, Van came to stand beside me, his hand resting on my back.

Her response nearly sent me to my knees. "There are police here, and they're looking for Van."

Chapter 15

Van

This was exactly the moment I'd dreaded for months now. Bailey's face was pale white as she explained there were cops at her store asking for me. If they knew to look for me there, she and I were far past intricately linked. Not that I had a choice, but nothing in the world could convince me it was a good idea to speak to law enforcement for any reason, especially not if it meant tangling the two of us up into some sort of fucked up web of lies by omission.

Bailey's voice was gentle near my ear. "Breathe, Van. It'll be okay."

I tried to obey and focused on breathing slowly in and out. "They could be looking for me because the drug runners found my location. That's not an okay scenario."

She took my hand, clasping it in her much smaller one. "I'll go with you, of course. Me and Mama will be by your side."

If only I'd been able to make her understand the last hundred times I'd said it. Our lives were in danger, hers much more so if bad people knew we were intertwined.

"If I have to leave town—if they make me leave—" I couldn't finish my sentence. Now that I'd chosen happiness with her, it could be ripped away all too easily. "I don't want that. It would be too difficult."

I let go of her hand and turned, unable to withstand looking at such deep understanding in her eyes. If she had to leave her community behind because of me, she'd only resent me in the future. Probably sooner rather than later.

"We'll figure it out one way or another."

My head pounded, and I tried to think, to be prepared for the worst-possible scenario just in case. "I'm bringing Heidi. Do you think . . . would Riley?"

"Absolutely. Mama has a fenced yard overlooking the bay. She and Jay would look after your girl in a heartbeat."

Walking back to the store was like walking that last, long mile to the death chamber. My newfound peace could come crashing down today, ripping Bailey from my grasp. I did my best to push those thoughts aside so I didn't have a public meltdown. Bailey matched my pace the entire time, and soon we were standing in the open doorway of Bookish.

A female officer stood near the checkout counter chatting with Riley. A customer roamed the aisle visible from the front doors, and another officer helped himself to the snickerdoodles. Part of me wanted to scream at him to back off because the cookies weren't for him, but that stemmed from my innate dislike for cops.

As we stepped inside, Bailey spoke first. "Afternoon, everyone. This is Van Davies. Van, this is Officer Kaylee White, and that's Deputy Eric Chung. How are you both?"

The female officer greeted Bailey as an old friend. "I'm great, Bailey, how about you?"

"Can't complain, except we're a bit confused about your visit."

Dumbfounded, I listened to them acting so casually as Heidi plopped her butt near my foot, waiting for her next instructions. Vastly opposed to my personal interactions with the police back home, I couldn't imagine why Bailey was so cordial with these two. Then again, I was a criminal in my hometown, and she knew everyone here by name.

Officer White answered, "Oh, we're hoping to collect statements about Larry and Andrea."