Page 229 of Between Secrets and Obsession

“You better have something awesome planned.” She taps her pointer finger into my chest with a smirk.

“I thought I’d just dick you down all night,” I quip.

Maddie rolls her eyes, but I don’t miss the smirk painted on her face.

“You were gonna do that anyway.”

She drops a tea bag in her cup to seep before glancing over her shoulder and biting her lip. That fucking taunts me, and if we both didn’t have to leave in a few minutes, I’d be bending her over the kitchen island.

“Don’t worry, it’ll blow your panties right off. Guaranteed.”

“Guess that means I better be wearing some?” She waggles her brows.

This time, I really am two seconds from throwing her over my shoulder caveman-style and returning to her bed. She has that look in her eye, the one that says she wants me right now.

I glance at the clock on the stove and groan, knowing I can’t. “Damn. There’s never enough time in the day to spend with you.”

Maddie steps toward me, closing the space between us, then wraps her arms around my neck, pulling my lips to hers. “We have forever, Liam.”

Lifting her chin, I brush my mouth against hers again and growl. “Forever isn’t enough. I want aneternity.”

She flashes me a bright smile, and reluctantly, we break apart and finish getting ready, then go our separate ways.

For the next eight hours, I stake outside of an empty warehouse on the other side of town waiting for a guy to deliver stolen vehicles. He’s been arrested and bailed out a handful of times but decided last month to skip his court date. All day, I wait and never run into the guy or really anyone.

By the time I make it home, I’m frustrated, but this sometimes happens when the people I’m tracking know they have a warrant out for their arrest. As soon as I grab a beer and sit on the couch, Maddie comes bolting through the door. She’s a golden ray of sunshine, and I perk up when I see her.

With a plop, she kicks off her shoes, tuckers her legs under her body and leans against me. “Missed you. How was work?”

“Sucked.” I shrug. “Tomorrow will be better, though. How was school?”

“I should’ve stayed home and fucked you all day,” she tells me, throwing her head back with a laugh. “Seriously, though. Nothing monumental about it. We’ve started preparing for our senior recital, and I’m not as in it as I thought I would be. Maybe after a few weeks when I have the choreography memorized.”

Just as I’m about to respond, my phone vibrates in my pocket. It’s an unknown number, but I answer it anyway.

“Liam.” Tyler’s distraught.

“Hey man, what’s up?” The line is silent for a few seconds.

I’m about to ask why he’s calling me from a different number when Tyler lets out a ragged breath. “I got arrested. I’m in jail and completely fucked.”

My body goes into full alert, and Maddie notices my demeanor change. She stares at me, searching my face.

I put my phone on speaker. “What did they arrest you on?”

Maddie’s eyes widen. “What happened?”

“Victoria set me up. Loaded the bed of my truck with pounds of drugs, guns with the serial numbers scratched off, and bricks of money. It looks like I was hauling this shit across the US. They booked me for possession with intent to distribute and sell.”

“Fuck,” I bark out loudly, running my fingers through my hair. “I thought this was over. She fucking promised she would stop and leave the people I love alone. She just unleashed the door to hell.” I’m seething, already planning what I’m going to say to her when I track her down and choke her. I still have all those photos of her and Mickey, and even if she’s not afraid of what her dad will do, I imagine the DeFranco family won’t be as forgiving, especially after JJ’s stunt.

“Did she know Tyler was your friend?” Maddie asks me. “Or that he was the mole in getting me out?”

“She saw me at the fight with you, so she knows,” Tyler says. “Wouldn’t have taken her long to put everything together, especially with the people in her circle. Eric probably told her what I did too. She had more than one reason to get back at me,” he explains.

“Goddammit,” I hiss, balling my hands into fists. My heart races, and I’m seconds away from planning a full-on rage-revenge.

“I shouldn’t be as shocked as I am, but she went to the extreme, making sure I’ll be fighting like hell to prove I didn’t do it.”