Trust Me (Last Stand #1)(95)
Author: Brenda Novak

“I need money if I’m going to buy lunch,” he said aloud, reminding himself, keeping himself on track.

He went back to the bedroom to retrieve his wallet. And that was when it hit him. This morning had been no dream. Jane and Noah were really dead. And he’d killed them. He’d dragged their bodies to the bed. The knife was still lying on the floor.

Picking it up, Oliver cleaned it off very carefully. His brother and his wife were gone. But it wasn’t his fault. He never would’ve done this if they hadn’t betrayed him. And they never would’ve betrayed him if it wasn’t for Skye. Skye was to blame for everything. She appeared in his journal more than anyone else, didn’t she? It was her, always her….

Taking the piece of paper with her address from the pants he’d already put in the hamper, he folded it meticulously and slipped it into his wallet. She’d forced him to kill the only people who’d stuck by him. How evil and destructive was that? She deserved to die. He’d known it all along.

So why was she still alive?

Too bad the knife he’d originally used was at the bottom of the American River. Having it now would’ve provided such satisfaction, such poetic justice.

It was time to pay her back—for everything.

Skye was at the office when David finally called. She’d been attempting to work—she’d spoken to Jonathan about the discovery of Sean’s body and he’d assured her there’d be no problem proving it was Tasha and her boyfriend—but she’d been nervously awaiting word from David ever since she’d left his apartment.

“So what’s going on?” she asked.

“I’m taking Jeremy to San José. I think he should be with his grandparents for a few days while we…sort everything out.”

With Jeremy in the car, David couldn’t really talk. Skye felt his reluctance to say anything too revealing. But what he’d told her was enough. If he was taking Jeremy someplace safe, away from Lynnette, what Skye had suspected was true.

Considering the implications, it wasn’t going to be an easy few days. “Did she confess?”

“More or less.”

Regardless of what David felt about his ex-wife, he had to be heartbroken for Jeremy. “I’m so sorry,” she said.

“I know.” His voice lowered meaningfully. “That’s part of the reason I love you.”

Skye caught her breath. Those words had fallen so suddenly, so surprisingly. But he’d meant them. She could tell. “Even during all this?”

“Before, during and after. She must’ve known it even before I did.”

“She wanted me gone.”

“She can’t do anything now. Tiny—Detective Wyman—” he corrected, “has her in custody.”

“You mean he already arrested her?”

“Yes. And he’s staying with her, helping her through the process.”

Leaning back, Skye rested her head on her chair. “What can I do?”

“Just keep yourself safe until I get back.”

“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about anything.” She thought of the baby and, for the first time, felt a wild, reckless urge to tell him. Somehow it felt right, maybe because it offered hope amid the confusion and sadness.

“David?”

“What?”

Her fingernails curved into her palms. “Remember when you asked me if I was sure I wasn’t pregnant?”

“Y-e-s?” he said, drawling the word.

She was in too far to back out, but the fear that he wouldn’t be happy about the baby suddenly reasserted itself. “I wasn’t really sure. I—I hadn’t actually taken a test.”

“So what are you saying?” he asked, his voice cautiously neutral. “That there’s still a possibility?”

Pressing a hand to her chest to slow the hammering of her heart, she took a deep breath. “Um…more than a possibility.”

Silence.

“David?”

“I’m here.”

“I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to feel obligated. I just… I’m excited,” she admitted. “I want this baby even if you don’t. I’m willing to raise it on my own.”

“Where does that leave me?”

“Wherever you want to be. It doesn’t change anything.”

No response. She bit her lip until it hurt, regretting the fact that she’d told him. “Are you upset?”

“No…I… It’s a surprise, that’s all. But I’m not unhappy. As far as I’m concerned, it was just a matter of time, anyway.”

“Is it too soon?”

He laughed. “It’s too soon. But it’ll be okay. There’s one problem, though.”

She swallowed hard. “What’s that?”

“I’d want any—” he lowered his voice “—you-know-what of mine to bear my name.”

She knew what he was getting at and couldn’t help smiling. “That means I’d have to bear your name, too.”

“Exactly. Am I going to get any complaints in that department?”

Were they really talking about marriage? After denying what they’d felt for so long? “I don’t know. I wouldn’t want you to make that kind of commitment just because of the baby.”

“Obviously, you don’t understand how I feel about you.”

That’s part of the reason I love you…. “What about Jeremy?”

“It’ll mean a lot of changes.”

“I know. I feel bad about that.”

“Fortunately, I think this’ll be a good distraction for him. Nothing wrong with having a couple of extra people to love.”

He was saying all the right things. She could only hope he truly meant them. “When are you going to tell him?”

“We’ll do it together, in a month or two. Once we’ve all had a chance to know each other better and everything else has been…resolved.”

Skye couldn’t believe it. She’d gone from trusting no one to being willing to take the biggest leap of her life. Which proved she did trust someone. She trusted him.

The only thing that gave her pause was her job. She glanced around her office, heard Sheridan talking on the phone in her own office and realized she loved The Last Stand, too. She felt she needed to continue her work, at least in some capacity, but she was pretty sure David wouldn’t like the risks involved. In any case, they had enough to deal with at the moment. They could discuss it later.