“You’re right.  We don’t have time for this.” I glance at the clock on the wall.  “It’ll be time to close soon.  I’ll have to bring Olivia back and fill her in on some of what’s going on.”

“Do you think that’s really the smart thing to do?” Nash snaps.

“Yes, as a matter of fact I do.  She needs to know.  She has a right to know.  Her life is in danger because of me.  Because of us.  Hell yeah, I think it’s the smart thing.  The more cooperative she is, the better.”

Nash rolls his eyes and shakes his head.  Obviously he disagrees.  But, again, I couldn’t care less.  He doesn’t have to agree with me; he just has to give me what I need to make sure Olivia’s safe. Permanently.  Then I don’t give a rat’s ass what he does.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Olivia

Strange huge men keep disappearing into Cash’s office, so when the bar closes, I’m a little nervous about going back there.  But I go.  I don’t really have much of a choice. I’m in way over my head.

As I reach beneath the bar and grab my purse, I hear the door to the office open.  A sliver of light pours out onto the floor and I hear voices.  Low, deep voices.  My stomach curls into a tight knot.

The door opens further and Cash’s big body blocks most of the light.  His eyes lock onto mine immediately.  “Are you done?”

I nod.

He turns back and speaks to someone behind him then emerges to walk across the room and lock the front doors.  I watch him, afraid to move.  Without my work and all the customers in the bar, the tension is sliceable.

How did I get myself into this mess?

Before I can formulate some kind of answer, Cash is walking toward me, his face hard and intense.  “Let’s go back to my office. There are some things I need to tell you.”

My pulse picks up and dread runs through my veins like ice water.  Cash meets me at the cut-out at the end of the bar.  When I step out in front of him, he puts his hand at the small of my back and guides me to his office.  I can feel the warmth of his palm through my shirt and it comforts me.

I ease through the door to find Gavin in Cash’s chair behind the desk and the tall stranger with the pony tail sitting in the chair across from him, his back to me.  Gavin looks up and smiles.

“There she is.”

I smile in return, although I’m sure it’s tight. My face feels like it might crack from the tension.  In just a few short hours, Cash will be going to get Marissa.  Who knows what will happen then?

Acid sloshes in my belly and saliva pours into my mouth.  I close my eyes and take a slow, deep breath.

When I open them, the stranger is standing to his feet.  He turns toward me, leaning back against the desk and crossing his arms over his wide chest.  He’s taken his glasses off.  And it makes all the difference in the world.

My heart skips a beat as I look into the familiar black-brown of Cash’s eyes.  Only they’re not on Cash.  Not exactly.

Cash steps around in front of me to stand beside the stranger.  As I look from one to the other, I don’t need to ask who the stranger is, but I do need someone to explain to me how he’s here, how he’s standing in front of me when he’s supposed to be dead.

Sweet hell!  This is even worse than I thought!

“Nash,” I say quietly, trying to sound calm when I feel anything but.

He smiles, a gesture that doesn’t quite reach his eyes.  “Very good.”  He looks to Cash.  “At least this one has a brain.”

I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean, but I can’t worry about it right now.  I just want to find out what’s going on, what’s expected of me and how we can all get safely out of this crazy and surprisingly dangerous dilemma.  Everything else will just have to wait.

“You look pretty good for a dead guy.”

“My brother’s done a great job of keeping me alive, don’t you think?”

There’s no mistaking the bitterness in his tone.

“I suppose so.  You don’t seem too happy about that.”

“Why would I be happy that someone is pretending to be me?”

Temper flashes in his eyes.  It gives me pause, but only a little bit.  For some reason, with Cash close, I’m not afraid of him.  I might be otherwise, but right now, I feel brave.

“Why would you not be?  You got off easy.  You have a law degree that you didn’t have to study for, a job you didn’t have to work for and a life you didn’t have to earn.  Sounds like Cash has done the hard part.”

I glance at Cash. He’s watching me.  He smiles. It’s wide and pleased.  Smug almost.  He winks one twinkling eye at me and I feel the heat rush to my face.  He must be happy that I’m taking up for him.

Nash straightens and takes one step forward.  My first inclination is to back up, even though he’s not that close to me.  But I don’t. I hold my ground. “That might be true, especially if you don’t have a damn clue about what my life was like.  Like if you didn’t know that I had to give up my entire identity and go to work for criminals on a smuggling boat.  Or if you didn’t know that I could only come to shore once every few months.  Or if you didn’t know that I had to sneak into town wearing a disguise, only to see my brother living a great life.  My life.  Yeah, I can see where you’d think I’d be grateful.”

Guilt washes through me.  I don’t know what to say. I look to Cash who is watching Nash, his face set in hard lines.  I glance at Gavin who seems bored with the whole conversation.  Then I glance back to Nash who suddenly looks broken and bereaved behind his stony mask.

“I’m so sorry,” I confess sincerely.  “I- I didn’t know.  I just assumed…”

Nash’s laugh is a short snap.  “Yeah, well you know what they say about assuming.”

He steps back to resume his position against the desk. I don’t take any offense at his words.  He has every right to them.  Both he and Cash have gotten the shaft and I feel incredibly sorry for both of them, for what they’ve suffered and what they’ve lost, for what they’ve had to go through for a man who made all the wrong decisions.

“Maybe after this, you won’t have to hide anymore,” I say softly.

Nash stares into my eyes. I can see that he wants to believe that’s true and my heart squeezes painfully.  “Maybe.  Maybe one day I can have the freedom, the job, the life.  The girl.”

I don’t know if he means me per se, but his look is so intense, it makes me blush anyway.

Holy wow!  He’s so much like his brother.

Cash moves to stand at my side. When he speaks, his voice is strained.  “If we do this right, maybe we can both have our lives back. And you can find your own job and life and girl.”

Cash slides an arm around my waist. I want to smile at the possessive gesture.  Men and their silly posturing!

Obviously, the conversation needs a new direction.  The tension is killing me!

“So, have you figured out what to do about tomorrow?”