The Cradle Files

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Garrett shook his head. “My brother won’t do anything to hurt us.”

“Maybe not intentionally.”

Since that was the truth, Garrett decided it was a good time to finish his coffee. Unfortunately, it was cold and had seemingly turned to gasoline. But because his head was still pounding, he forced himself to drink it.

Lexie sank onto the sofa with a heavy sigh and leaned her head against the cushion. “Why does your brother hate me?”

Garrett hadn’t been prepared for her question. “Who said he hates you?”

“I did. I could tell by the way he looked at me.”

And here he thought his brother had the ultimate poker face. “It has to do with what happened when your boss, Billy Avery, was on trial.”

“Oh. He thinks I helped Billy commit those crimes.” But then she hesitated. “No. What your brother feels for me is personal, isn’t it?”

Because of the headache, the fatigue, and because this was a subject he didn’t really want to discuss, Garrett nearly pulled a silent act. But this was bound to come up sometime or another, and he wanted her to hear it from him. Or rather, he wanted her to hear the sanitized version.

“Brayden doesn’t like you because when you unofficially left my protective custody, you officially put me in a really bad place with my boss and just about everyone in the D.A.’s office.”

She lifted her head, studied him. “I see.”

“The D.A. was lucky to get a conviction without the rest of your testimony.” And Garrett hadn’t wanted to think just how bad things could have gotten for him if Avery hadn’t been convicted. If he’d walked, the D.A. would have looked for someone to hang, and Garrett would have been the one they’d come after.

With reason.

He’d failed to do his job, by allowing a material witness to escape custody. Of course, he’d also failed to do his job by having sex with that witness. In this case, two wrongs definitely didn’t make a right.

“Your brother knows what happened between us?” Lexie asked.

“He knows.”

She stared at him. “And you still think he’ll be willing to help me?”

“I know he will.” But what Garrett didn’t know was the form that help might take. Brayden wasn’t the sort of cop to keep things under the table, but Garrett was hoping his brother would do it this time.

The door opened and Brayden came back in.

“Well?” Garrett immediately asked.

He frowned. “I chose my words carefully.”

Garrett didn’t know whose sigh of relief was bigger—his or Lexie’s. But there was no hint of relief in Brayden’s expression.

“Lieutenant Dillard knows that Lexie has some issues to be worked out. Personal issues that he’s agreed to let me handle at my discretion.”

That brought Lexie off the sofa. “You?”

“Me,” Brayden enunciated. “Because Lieutenant Dillard insisted that Garrett not have any official contact with you.” He held up his hand, cutting off the protest that Garrett was about to make. “Dillard is right. You can’t be involved in this, Garrett. Because if this—whatever this is—ends up going to the D.A., then it could cost you your badge. The D.A. hasn’t forgotten what happened the last time you were involved with Lexie.”