Page 64 of Bitter Lies

“I’ve got her.” Aiden tightens his hold. “You focus on driving.”

“What happened?” Ryan asks again, this time in a calmer voice.

“What do you think happened, arsehole? Take us back to my place. She needs to rest before we return to hospital,” Aiden snaps, his hand moving gently up and down my back. “Shh… I’ve got you. It’s okay. You did good. That is never easy.”

I nod, clinging to his warmth like a lifeline in a drowning sea of despair. I knew that would be hard, but I didn’t expect it to rip my heart from my chest and leave me bleeding out.

Tilting my head back, I glance up at him, anger building inside me. “Find the person responsible, and then kill him.”

Aiden’s shoulders tense, but he nods. “I give you my word. I’ll track down whoever did this.”

“Promise me.” Sitting up, I shift my body until I’m straddling him. “Promise me you’ll hunt this person down and kill him.”

He doesn’t. Instead, he grips the back of my head and pulls me forward, pressing his lips to mine. “Shh. Let’s focus on finding who did this first. One step at a time.”

He’s keeping something from me. His eyes betray his hesitation. He knows more than he’s letting on. It’s why he refuses to promise me. He knows he might break it.

“Aiden?”

“Shh.” He moves me off his lap and plops me in the seat beside him. “One step at a time. I’m not saying no.”

Fastening my seatbelt, I lean my head against his shoulder. “But you aren’t saying yes. I thought big, bad criminals lived for this revenge shit. Are you a softy?”

I can’t see his smile, but I feel it creep onto his face as he kisses my forehead. “Shut up. When the time comes, I’ll do what needs to be done. I promise.”

I’ll take it. Even if I don’t understand what he means.

Chapter 24

Aiden

Isabel is fast asleep in my bed, with Bear curled up next to her. I stay long enough to make sure she’s out, then leave with a plan to camp out in my office until she wakes.

There is too much shit that needs to be dealt with.

Easing the door shut behind me, I make sure it doesn’t click. The last thing I want to do is wake her.

Bear doesn’t move. Lucky bastard.

By the time I reach my office, the weight of everything hits me hard. The call I received earlier put me on edge. I need to figure out how to balance my work responsibilities while keeping Izzy safe.

Trent only calls when something needs my immediate attention.

I’m his fixer. The man who cleans up the messy aftermath when someone else fucks up.

This time is no different.

I drag a hand down my face while I work through how to handle this. Trent’s request will force me to lie to Izzy. It sucks, but unless I want to put a target on our backs by pissing off the Irish mob, I don’t have a choice.

My jaw tightens as I brace my hands on the desk and stare at nothing.

If I don’t, Drake will. That thought makes my stomach churn with unease. I don’t trust him. Ever since Trent put me in charge, he’s been gunning for me. In his mind, this job—the one Trent decided was mine—should’ve been his. He feels cheated. Believes the position should be his after years of loyalty to the family.

Drake’s only objective will be to prove he’s better. Make me look incompetent. Prove Trent made a mistake. He won’t care about finding the truth about who’s behind Rico’s murder. Until I know what the hell Trent is after, I can’t risk Drake getting involved and fucking shit up.

Which is why I have to do this. No matter the cost.

I scrub a hand over my face and reach for my laptop, pulling up what I’ve got so far.