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“What happened?” she whispered.
“It’s not my place to tell you his story any more than it’s my place to share yours. From what I’ve learned so far, he doesn’t know about the affair.” I couldn’t say another word without betraying Holden’s trust.
“Okay. I’ll talk to him,” Brynn said.
I squeezed her hand in appreciation, then led us into my new office.
“Babe, you need to tell Brynn.” I stood rooted to the floor as his head snapped my way, eyes open wide and filled with caution.
He pinned me with troubled eyes. “River, I trusted you not to repeat—”
“This girl is tight-lipped as hell, Holden. Calm down. This has to do with what I shared with her earlier today.”
Holden’s attention bounced between us. I sat at my new desk while Brynn remained near the door.
“I don’t know what you said to River,” she continued, “but I told her Tim wasn’t who he said he was. From the information I heard, it seems like he’s a very dangerous illegal arms dealer.”
Respect for Brynn’s courage welled up inside of me. She took me at face value and trusted me during a difficult situation.
Holden’s mouth gaped. “You know? River, why didn’t you tell me when I brought it up?”
“I made River swear she would take that information to her grave, but I also wanted her to be able to protect you both,” Brynn explained.
“I’m sorry. It was a fucked-up situation to be in,” I added. “Two people I love more than anything in this world confided in me, making me promise I wouldn’t talk. Holden, once you told me about Tim tonight, I knew I had to bring Brynn in. Maybe we can figure this out together.”
“That had to have been tough, babe.” Holden’s gentle gaze landed on me.
“I want to protect you, Holden. I’ll do anything necessary.” We stared at each other in silence, communicating how much we loved each other.
Brynn smoothed her boyfriend jeans, then sat down in a chair, appearing less stressed. “Are you willing to tell me what you shared with River?” She crossed her legs, then swung one slightly.
I listened as Holden shared what he’d learned with Brynn.
“Where’s his computer now?” she asked.
“It’s where I found it. All I did was send Sutton the files. That way if he came home to get his laptop, there wouldn’t be any suspicions.”
I slumped back into my chair, relieved.
“And that’s what we have to do as well,” I said.
Holden shot me a questioning look. “What do you mean?”
“If we change anything or sleep somewhere else, it will indicate that we know something. We’ll raise suspicions with your mom and at some point, she and Tim will have to talk. Plus, he’s going to want his shit back. Tim knows what’s on his computer.”
“Goddammit.” Holden massaged his neck. “You’re right. I can’t leave Mom on her own, either. Not until I make sure the house is secure. She’s not safe from that monster, but I can’t tell her what I know. She’ll go straight to him.”
“I’ll help as much as I can, but please keep me out of it,” Brynn said.
“Brynn, I would never betray you like that. You trusted us, and I’ll make sure you’re not pulled into it.”
“Thanks.”
Holden stood, his attention landing on me. “We should get back home. I want to talk to Mom first thing in the morning about updating the security system. I’ll also install an eye scanner on our room. If he comes home in the middle of the night, you’ll be safe. I’ll call Pierce tomorrow and see if he can assign Zayne and Vaughn to us full time. That way you’re free to leave the house and club whenever you wish.”
If the situation hadn’t been so serious, I would have wiggled my brows at Brynn, but it wasn’t a matter to be taken lightly. At least we could enjoy the eye candy more often.
“River, I have an extra taser and mace, but you should start carrying a purse,” Brynn said.
