Need Me (Dark Obsession 3)

But now he knows.

She shrugged out of the coat and put it across Ethan’s desk.

“How did Jeremy Smith get the video?” Devlin’s voice sounded far too calm to her ears.

She and Ethan shared a quick glance.

“No lies,” Devlin warned. “Just the truth.”

“That night,” Ethan said quietly, “I was interested in getting Carly out of that place. I…I called a friend to help with clean up.” He smiled bitterly. “You might know that friend—Daniel Duvato.” He rubbed at the scar on his right cheek. “He’s the bastard who went psycho and tried to kill me. It seemed he’d been keeping that little video, waiting for the perfect moment to burn me with it. When Jeremy’s security guy came sniffing around a while back, Daniel gave it to him…for a price.”

“Let me guess.” A muscle flexed in Devlin’s jaw. “Was that security guy named Ray Holliwell?”

Ethan nodded. “That would be the bastard.”

Oh, Dear God…Julianna hadn’t realized—the man who’d been murdered had been so mixed up in all the madness. She tried to think, to plan, to look for a way out of this mess. “Ethan wasn’t the only one who’d get burned if that video is given to the cops,” Julianna said, trying to make Devlin understand. “Carly would, too. I wasn’t there for her before. I didn’t help her. I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again.”

Devlin swore. “You know what this is, right?”

She held her breath, waiting.

“This is fucking motive, Julianna. It’s the perfect motive for you to kill. Not because that sick bastard was hurting you—not that defense anymore. Shit, this is motive because you wanted to stop him from exposing your sister. It’s a motive for you to kill him and Ray Holliwell.”

She knew what it looked like. “What are you going to do?” Because that was what mattered. Would he turn the flash drive over to the police?

“I don’t fucking know.” He marched around the desk. He grabbed the coat and put it around her shoulders again. “For now, we’re getting the hell out of here. I have to think.”

Ethan stepped in their path. “I know you want to burn me.” A muscle flexed in his jaw. “You and VJS all think I’m scum. I get it. You’re wrong, but fuck that.” He exhaled roughly. “If you turn in that flash drive, you’re burning them. Julianna doesn’t deserve that. Neither does Carly.”

Devlin stepped toe-to-toe with him. “Your enemies stretch for miles, and they just keep coming.”

“I’m popular that way.”

“You ever stop to think that one of those enemies may be after Julianna? Maybe someone knew her husband had that flash drive, knew that it would implicate you, and that person is doing anything necessary to get his hands on the damn thing. Even if that anything includes killing Jeremy Smith and putting a bomb in Julianna’s car.” He shook his head in disgust. “Why do others have a way of getting hurt around you? Gwen, Sophie—”

She saw Ethan’s face harden, and she knew that Devlin’s words were hitting their mark.

No. “Stop it.” Julianna pushed between the two men. And she directed her growing fury at Devlin. For too long, she’d had to guard her emotions. She’d had to walk on freaking egg shells until she thought she’d break with Jeremy. But he was gone and she was free. She’d take her life back now. “Ethan’s my friend, and you don’t talk to him that way.”

Surprise flashed on Devlin’s face.

“You can be angry. You can be pissed because you think I misled you.”

“You did mislead me,” Devlin muttered.

“But Ethan was trying to help my sister. No one else was there for her. Not even me.” That hurt so much to admit. “And Sophie will be the first to tell you…Ethan is a good man.” She glanced over her shoulder at him. “Even if he doesn’t always think so.”

Devlin swore.

Ethan looked away from her. “You should go with the bodyguard, Julianna.” Then he pulled her close and pressed a kiss to her brow. “And you stay safe.”

She nodded.

He eased away from her and bumped lightly into Devlin. His hand brushed over Devlin’s side, a would-be aggressive move. “You keep her alive, or you’ll see just how dangerous I can truly be. I’m not some punk kid anymore.”

“Save your threats for someone who gives a damn.”

“Stop it,” Julianna gritted again, driven to the edge. “We have to focus on what matters right now.”

Devlin glanced at her. “You’re right.” He pulled her closer. “You matter.”

He…well…

“You matter,” Devlin said again.

Then he was guiding her away from Ethan. She didn’t look back. She knew exactly what Ethan had done a moment before, and really, it was for the best, wasn’t it?

One nightmare over. Only a few dozen more to face.

Devlin took her outside. He led her to his SUV. She couldn’t help but tense when she drew closer to it. She wasn’t going to be looking at cars the same way for a very long time. The last few times she’d gotten into a vehicle, her stomach had knotted and she’d remembered the lance of fire on her skin.

Devlin stopped her before she’d gotten too close to his SUV, and he lifted his remote, cranking the car with the press of a button. It growled to life—and, wonderfully—didn’t explode.

Her relieved breath slid out.

“I know,” Devlin said as he brushed the snow off her cheek. “I know what the jerk did back there.”

Her head tilted as she stared up at him.

“Is Ethan the one who taught you how to pick poc

kets?” Devlin asked her.

She pressed her lips together, then admitted, “He and Carly were close when we were younger. When mom and I lived in the area…yes, he taught me.” Ethan had always known such interesting things.

“You’re better than he is,’ Devlin said as his fingers lingered near her cheek. “I didn’t even feel it when you took the drive.”

His hand started to fall away.

She caught it. Held tight. “His life is on the line, too. He doesn’t—”

“Trust me?”

She nodded. The snow fell down onto them. It had started to fall heavily while they were in Wicked.

“What about you?” Devlin shifted ever closer. “You told me the truth. Does that mean that you trust me? How do you feel, Julianna? How do you feel about me?”

“I…” Was she supposed to trust him? So soon? Probably not. Another mistake. She’d thought that she knew Jeremy and she’d been dead wrong on that score. She’d sworn never to be blinded again, but…

Devlin had deserved the truth in Wicked. He was working to protect her.

He…

“You don’t trust me, not fully, not yet.” He didn’t sound angry. In fact, his voice was tender. Warm in the cold. “That’s okay, baby. I can wait.”

She stared into his eyes, not understanding him at all.

“I can wait as long as you need.”

That was nice. Maybe the nicest thing she’d heard in a very long time.

But then his gaze slid away from hers. He frowned as he looked over her shoulder. “Someone’s watching us.”

Her muscles locked.

“In a blue SUV, sitting at the curb. Tinted windows.”

If the windows were tinted, how could he be sure they were being watched?

“The vehicle isn’t covered in snow…it’s warm. Running. Someone is in it right now.”

She spun around, looking for that vehicle. She found it—and saw the tinted window rolling down. Down…

“Gun!” Devlin roared and he locked his arm around her stomach and yanked her to the side, hurtling her down behind his vehicle.