There was no point in lying. “I did,” she admitted on a
hiccup. Snake’s face didn’t change. He didn’t show any
emotion. He just found the car, held the door open for her, and
let her in. “They won’t say anything,” she whispered. “They
would never hurt me. They’re my best friends.”
“I hope so,” he responded. “None of that would go well if it
became public. For anyone.”
“Yeah,” she agreed as Snake drove out of the parkade, way
too fast. It was kind of thrilling. She could tell he was feeling
something by the way he drove. He never drove too fast or
recklessly. “I know. They wouldn’t. I trust them beyond
anyone.”
“Good.”
Haley waited a few minutes, until Snake’s driving resumed
its normal, careful pace. “Are you going to tell Claire?”
He nodded, and that was it. Haley tried not to squirm the
rest of the way home. Snake drank her smoothie like he wasn’t
troubled in the least. He knew it wasn’t his ass on the line,
even though he’d slipped up and let her out of his sight.
He had more faith in Claire’s magnanimity than Haley did.
Chapter 7
Claire
Claire was annoyed at the interruption to her work, but
when Snake confessed the morning’s incident to her, she saw
red. She saw red all the way up the stairs to Haley’s room. She
barely stopped herself from pounding on the door like a
demon. She was still seeing red when the door opened, and
Haley’s face appeared. She took one look at Claire and
stumbled back, searching for a retreat, a hiding place. She
wasn’t so bold and clever now.