He knows my name isn’t Amelia—he found the shoe box that holds reminders of my past lives; he found out that I am a lying piece of garbage. He opened up to me, something that’s extremely hard for him to do, and I betrayed him. I’ve been lying to him while he’s been completely honest and transparent with me. He was so incredibly hurt when he found out that my entire identity is a lie. The look on his face, that flash of realization that I had been lying, loops around my mind like a car on a racetrack—his complete disbelief and betrayal.
But he understood. He wasn’t mad and he kissed me. He said that he’s all in—so I’m not going anywhere until he’s released. Because I’m all in, too, no matter what happens.
“What do you think he’s thinking about?” I ask, trying to distract myself from my thoughts.
“Probably his brothers,” Mason answers.
“He loves Jason and Jackson more than anything.”
“Do you think Ryan found out about his dad?”
“I don’t know. But I’m completely certain that this is only going to make the hatred Ryan holds for Aiden so much stronger.”
“You don’t think—” Mason pauses, hesitating like he can’t even say the words out loud. “You don’t think Ryan had something to do with this?”
Mason and I catch each other’s eyes for a second, letting the suggestion sink in, before shaking our heads to dismiss that notion.
“No way,” I say. “Why would Ryan kill his own father at Aiden’s house to frame him? Even he’s not that psychotic.”
“You’re right. Ryan might be crazy, but he’s not murder my own dad just to frame my archnemesis crazy.”
Slinking down into my seat, I lean my head on Mason’s shoulder, his familiar cologne giving me some semblance of peace. I’m glad Mason decided to wait here with me. There’s got to be an explanation for what happened. And none of us will stop until we know who really killed Greg.
2
When Brian finally strides back into the waiting room with the officers and lawyer he’d left with, Mason and I sit up with hope. But our hopes are dashed as he disappears almost immediately into the back with barely a glance at us.
Forever passes until Brian comes back out, alone, and sits with me and Mason. We’ve been here for hours now—it’s just past midnight. I’m exhausted, still paranoid every time an officer looks at me as they walk by, my head is pounding from the phones ringing shrilly, and my ass is numb from this stupid chair. If it was up to me, I’d ban this chair from every retailer across America—they’re literally torture.
“What’s going on?” Mason asks. “Where’s Aiden?”
Brian grimaces. “It’s all more complicated than we thought.”
Mason and I share a look. More complicated?
“When Aiden was arrested, they contacted his legal guardian,” Brian continues, “which was Greg’s wife, Paula, who informed them that she hasn’t seen Aiden in who knows how long now, and wants nothing to do with him. She painted an awful picture of Aiden, saying he stole from her, did drugs, ran away from home with his brothers, and so on.”
Liar. Sure, she wants nothing to do with him, but she absolutely wants something to do with the government’s child support checks.
“That obviously led to the question of where Jason and Jackson are, which Aiden refused to answer.”
And risk them going into foster care? I didn’t blame him. Every minute that goes by means that we’re closer to the police calling social services, if they haven’t already.
“Not only did my friend Alan have to get Aiden off a murder charge, but also a kidnapping charge.”
Mason and I must have matching panicked looks on our faces, because Brian quickly adds, “Don’t worry! It’s all been sorted out. Aiden’s been cleared of murder.”
I breathe for the first time since Brian started talking. The weight that’s been on my chest since Aiden was arrested lifts and my heart no longer feels heavy. He’s not going to jail for killing Greg!
Brian doesn’t wait for us to bombard him with questions, but just starts explaining. “His alibi checks out. He’s with Alan back there signing release papers and stuff.”
“What about the kidnapping charges?” I ask.
“Alan talked Paula into relinquishing legal custody, something about getting her charged with child endangerment for not reporting the twins missing since she said Aiden kidnapped them. I’ve agreed to be the legal guardian for all three Parker boys until Aiden turns eighteen in a few weeks and can file for guardianship over his brothers. Social workers are going to be checking up on us, though.”
Mason throws himself at his father and wraps his arms around him. “Oh my God, Dad. You’re the coolest.”
Brian pats Mason’s back before they pull away. “I wish Aiden hadn’t felt the need to shoulder all of this alone. If we had known before about the custody situation, Vince or I would’ve stepped in sooner.”
Mason and Julian’s dads are such good people. It makes me wonder what my dad would’ve done in this situation if he hadn’t died. It gives me comfort to think that before the fighting with my mom and the drinking started, he would’ve done the same thing.
“How long will the paperwork take? Is Aiden almost done?”
Brian doesn’t need to answer me, because Mason abruptly stands up, focused on the hallway ahead of us, a giant grin on his face.
I practically jump out of my chair, and am beside Mason in an instant. Aiden, in all his intense, tall, confident, broad-shouldered glory, is being led toward us by an officer, Alan the lawyer following them. Even though he’s spent a large chunk of the night in jail, Aiden looks irresistibly gorgeous, and my breath stops when his piercing gray eyes meet my hazel ones, his facial expression giving nothing away. Seeing him now, it feels like it’s been ages since I’ve seen him, even though our kiss was only a few hours ago. They stop just behind the reception desk, where the officer says something to Aiden, who still hasn’t broken eye contact with me, and the officer gestures that he’s free to go.
Aiden takes a few steps toward us and is barely able to rub his wrists where the handcuffs must have been before I launch myself at him. A feeling deep down takes over, demanding I hold him, to make sure that he’s actually here and okay. He doesn’t hesitate and wraps his strong arms around me, pulling me close. With my head against his muscled chest, listening to the calming sound of his steady heartbeat, I assure myself that he’s actually here.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
He releases me and gently tucks a piece of my hair behind my ear. “Of course I am. Why are you guys still here? I told you all to go home and not worry.”
He and Mason do their bro hug. “We couldn’t just leave you here, man,” Mason says. “Everyone else was waiting, too, but in their defense, they were kind of forced to go home.”
“You guys didn’t need to come. No one needs to worry about me.”
This must be weird for Aiden. He’s the one who’s there for everyone else, making sure that they’re okay and taken care of. He’s the strong one, the one who holds everything together; having other people worry about him is something I’m sure he’s not used to.