Page 42 of By His Side
“The phrase pot and kettle comes to mind. I can think of one big secret you didn’t share with me.”
“That was different.”
“How?”
“You were Levi’s probation officer. You were honor bound to tell him that shagging his employer wasn’t a good idea, and I didn’t want you doing that in case he listened.”
Darien laughed. “You really thought Levi would listen?”
“I didn’t know him that well then.”
Their voices dropped to a lower timbre, and I decided I’d heard enough, retreating up the stairs as quietly as I could. Back in the bedroom, I put more clothes on, pacing as I tried to work out how I was going to play this.He’s innocent.The words played like a broken record in my head, each remembrance setting off a chain reaction that had my heart quickening and something light coalescing in my chest. Admitting that I’d heard what Darien had said meant confessing to having eavesdropped on the conversation with his brother. But to not question him on it would be like having a splinter under my skin and not removing it.
When Darien finally returned to the bedroom, it was with a heavy sigh. “Well, that was intense. He’s gone, by the way, in case you were worried he might come up here and threaten you. Try not to be too upset with him. He’s just doing what every protective brother does. It’s infuriating, and it’s irritating, but…” A ghost of a smile appeared on his lips. “Well… I guess it’s also sweet.”
“It must be nice to know you always have someone looking out for you.”
I couldn’t keep a note of bitterness out of my voice. Darien immediately understood the point I was making, that I’d never had that, and grimaced. “Yeah, it is. Most of the time.” His gaze raked over me, taking in my clothed state. “You’re dressed.”
“I didn’t think you’d be in the mood to go back to bed after your showdown with your brother.”
Darien laughed. “Yeah, probably not.” His gaze sharpened. “Are you alright?”
No, I wasn’t. Not even close. “Do you really believe I’m innocent?” So much for keeping it to myself.
He rocked back on his heels. “You heard that?”
“Yeah… Sorry. I don’t know your brother. I didn’t know how bad he’d get, so I wanted to be close in case you needed me…” My words trailed off. Any excuse I gave for listening outside a door wouldn’t be that convincing, so it was best not to dig the hole too deep and stick to the principal topic of discussion. “You probably just told him that to get him off your back, right? There’s nothing wrong with that. I probably would have done the same in your position. You don’t even need to answer. It was a stupid question to ask.”
“Come here.” Darien’s words were soft, but no less steely for them.
“I should go shopping. Get us something to eat for dinner. What do you fancy? How about chili? How hot do you like your food? Mouth burning, or something milder?”
“Come. Here.” I went this time, Darien pulling me down on the edge of the bed so we sat facing each other. “I don’t give a shit about dinner.”
“I’m glad you told me that before I cooked it and not after.” Talking about dinner reminded me about Julian, or more specifically, what Darien had told his brother about mine and Julian’s relationship. It seemed I wasn’t as good at hiding stuff as I’d thought I was.
Darien cleared his throat. “I think we’ve been letting our bodies do too much of the talking recently and it’s about time we let our brains get a word in edgeways.”
I laughed at the way he’d phrased it. He made us sound like a pair of sexual deviants who’d done nothing but shag for the last couple of weeks. Which… might have been the case if it wasn’t for Darien’s job getting in the way.
Darien belted his robe more tightly, the fabric slipping loose as robes were prone to do. A few seconds passed, Darien seeming to have an argument with himself before he lifted his head, his blue eyesmeeting mine without blinking. “Yes, I meant it when I told Hayden you’re innocent.”
A punch to the gut couldn’t have knocked the air out of me more than Darien’s quietly spoken statement did. “I…”
“You don’t have to say anything.”
“No one’s ever believed me before, and I mean no one. Not my defense lawyer. None of my cellmates. Not even my mother.”
Darien grimaced. “Yeah, I kind of picked up on that when things were so awkward between you.”
“She didn’t want me there.”
“But… she let you stay.”
“Until I brought trouble to her doorstep. I haven’t heard from her,” I admitted. “Not since the day she told me to leave. I thought she would at least phone to see where I was staying, but nothing. It’s like she’d rather pretend I don’t exist, that she has no children at all.”
“It must hurt.”
