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Looking sick, her brother said, “I slept with his daughter.”
Cold chills raced up her spine. “Zach.”
“What else?” Matt snapped.
“She’s pregnant.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Matt scowled at Delilah’s brother. “There’s nothing more you can do for Randy. You can, however, protect your sister. Pay off your debt immediately. If Delilah gets so much as a tiny scratch on her body from Petrelli’s goons and I find out you’re to blame, I’ll take you apart with my bare hands.”
What little color Zach had in his cheeks drained away at Matt’s threat. “Are you serious?”
“Try me.”
“Yeah, all right. I’ll take care of it right away.” Zach looked at Delilah. “You okay, Dee?”
“It’s a tossup as to whether I’m more angry or afraid. Other than that, I’m peachy.”
A small smile tugged at her brother’s lips. “I can see that.”
“I sent a text to the cousins about Randy. Should we wait here for them to arrive?”
“They aren’t coming. Evan and Shane tolerated Randy, but there was no love lost between them. Do what you need to do, Dee.” He turned to leave and stopped. “Will you let me know when you’re leaving town?”
“Sure.”
“Zach.” Matt waited until Delilah’s brother focused on him. “Get help for that gambling addiction, for your sake and Delilah’s. If Petrelli stays after you because of his daughter and the baby, let me know. I’ll see what I can do.”
With a nod, Zach strode away, hands shoved into his front pockets.
“I need to tell the nurse the arrangements for Randy.”
“Have the hospital release the body to the same funeral home your mother chose. The funeral home will wait for your instructions. In the meantime, the lawyer may be able to shed some light on whether or not Randy had relatives. Besides, since Randy’s death was a homicide, the ME won’t be releasing the body immediately.”
He threaded his fingers through hers and walked with Delilah to the nurses’ desk. After conveying the necessary information, they left the hospital. On the way to O’Shea’s, Matt called the detective and reported Holloway’s death. “The hospital has Holloway’s personal items. Make sure you confiscate the check Delilah wrote. I don’t want that floating around.”
“I’ll take care of it. Holloway’s girlfriend arrived a few minutes ago. She’s understandably upset and says Holloway didn’t have an enemy in the world.”
“Does she know if he has any family members we should notify?”
“I’ll ask her and leave a message with Fortress.”
When Matt parked in front of O’Shea’s, he caught Delilah’s hand and kissed her palm. “Choose whatever you want.”
She looked skeptical. “Why don’t I choose several that I like, and you make the final selection? That way, you can balance my tastes against your bank account. I don’t want to cause you hardship.”
“I’m not as wealthy as you are, but I do pretty well for myself. Brent Maddox is a generous employer. What we do is dangerous and he compensates us accordingly. I can afford the ring you want, sweetheart.”
Delilah froze with her hand on the door latch. “Will Mom’s money be a problem between us?”
“No, ma’am. I like the fact my future wife has a bundle of money at her disposal. Makes me happy that you can have some fun and lose the stress about keeping Wicks afloat.”
The stiffness left her shoulders. She flashed him a bright smile and opened the door.
Matt escorted her inside the store. The sales assistants greeted them, the male staring at Delilah with a puzzled expression.
“I’m sorry, but do I know you from somewhere? You look familiar.”
