Sinner's Revenge(70)

Her eyes widen a little at my words, but she covers it quick. “Still . . . I don’t want to ride that thing. Especially in a dress.”

“Look,” I say, pulling her closer to the bike. “I’ll go slow. Nobody will see what’s beneath that little red dress. Trust me,” I growl, already wanting to kill at just the thought of someone trying to sneak a peek. “You’ll like it. I promise. And if it makes you feel better, this is Dirk’s bike.”

Hearing that, she observes the bike a little more closely. Her eyes move reverently over the recently rebuilt handlebars, motor, seat, and tires. Finally she nods. “Okay. I’ll give it a try.” I get on, then hold her hand while she clambers on the bike in a not-so-ladylike way. “I already feel like I’m going to fall off.”

“Well, if you don’t hold on, you will.” She says something, but the sound of the pipes drowns her out as her arms tighten around me.





23


KEEPING GOOD ON my word, I ride slow, letting her take everything in. I feel her relax a little behind me, but she tenses every time I take a curve. I feel like I’m sitting still at fifty, but I slow down to forty just to ease her mind. The tension seems to leave her body the moment we turn down Dirk’s driveway. The white, wood-frame house sits a good way back, but is still visible from the road. It really is a beautiful place, especially now that it’s cleaned up.

I cut the engine and help her off. Her smile is big when she looks at me. She doesn’t even know where we are, but it makes her happy. I smile back because this place makes me happy too. “This was Dirk’s house,” I say, watching her smile fade as the realization starts to sink in. I almost feel guilty that I didn’t tell her it was mine now. Especially since she was so happy only moments ago.

We walk to the front of the house, both of us looking up at it and letting everything sink in. It seems different without Dirk and Saylor around. But still charming and welcoming. I walk up the stairs and take a seat on the porch.

“Who lives here now?” Diem asks, running her hand over the railing. She stays on the steps, almost like she’s afraid to come any closer.

I light a cigarette, blowing out a large cloud of smoke before answering. “I do.”

Her head jerks up and that smile she wore earlier returns. “Really? It’s beautiful.”

“Yeah it is. Dirk would have wanted you to feel at home here,” I say, my voice thick. I clear my throat and take another drag, wishing I had something a little stronger.

Diem climbs the steps, taking a seat next to me. Reaching over, she grabs my cigarette. Her hand is shaky as she pulls it to her lips, taking a drag before handing it back to me. “I didn’t know about Dirk until two days ago,” she starts, fidgeting with her hands in her lap. She tries to fight through the emotion, but I can tell she’s struggling.

“When Dorian told me, the first thing I felt was hate. I wanted to kill him for keeping my brother from me. But I knew I couldn’t, so I saved my anger for Cyrus. I stayed up all day and night going over every detail of Dirk and Saylor’s story, well, what I had of it. I didn’t think I’d make it through that meeting. But then . . .” She looks at me, her eyes shining. “I saw you.”

“Did you know about me?” I ask when she doesn’t continue.

She shakes her head. “No. Not until I got there. And when I found out you were the infamous Shady, I didn’t know what I was going to do.” The flash of horror on her face at the reminder confuses me.

“What do you mean?” I ask, already knowing I’m not going to like the answer.

Unable to look at me, she stares out across the yard. “Because I was supposed to kill you.”

Even though it’s not funny, I can’t help but laugh at the irony. She cuts her eyes, looking at me like I’ve lost my mind. “That’s funny to you?”

“A little.” I smirk, lighting another cigarette. For some reason, my adrenaline spikes and I feel anxious. “I woke up knowing I was going to die. But I didn’t care. All I could think about was leaving you. So don’t you find it the least bit humorous that you were actually the one who was going to kill me?”

“No. I don’t find it humorous at all,” she answers, deadpan. “Lucky for you, you don’t know when to keep your mouth shut. The only thing that saved you was telling Dorian what nobody else had the guts to say. He appreciates a man with steel in his spine.”

I’m still smiling, but then I realize what she’s really saying. “So you would have killed me?”