"You think she would have hidden any physical evidence at the house? She seems pretty hell bent on taking whatever she knows to the grave." He winced at his own choice of words, then shook his head.
"She strikes me as the kind of woman who would have insurance policies. Backup. Whether that's at the house or not is anyone's guess. But I think somewhere out there Sandra is keeping some hardcopy information about the Guild. And whatever she's got, it's important enough for someone to threaten her."
Lucas pondered that for a few moments. "I don't know if I agree, but there's no harm in looking."
I squeezed his fingers. "But we should be quick. I've got something for you at home." Or rather, it’d been Cass's idea, but Zed and I were also claiming credit, seeing as we'd missed Lucas's birthday a week earlier and Cass had needed our help to sort it out.
Lucas gave me a curious look, but when I mimed zipping my mouth shut, he just gave a laugh and continued driving. Goddamn, he looked hot with his cap backward, a shadow of stubble dusting his jaw, and his strong hand wrapped around the Shelby's steering wheel. I needed to let him drive more often so I could admire that image.
The ride to Lucas's house was only about half an hour from Sunshine Estate, and when we pulled into the driveway, I scanned the house with a fresh perspective.
It was perfectly nondescript, looking exactly like every other house in the neighborhood. There was no excessive security—other than what I'd had my guys install—and nothing to ever suggest this was anything more than a middle-class suburban home. Lucas's uncle had been posing as an accountant, and that's exactly what his house presented as. A flawless cover identity.
"I don't have my keys," Lucas said, hesitating after we got out of the car.
I continued up the steps of the front porch. "Rio changed the locks over; there should be a passcode entry." Taking an informed guess, I gave the whole handle plate a firm push to the side, revealing a digital number display. "See?"
Lucas's brows hitched as he inspected the new lock. "That's cool."
I keyed in the generic code that worked on all the locks I got Rio to install so I always had access to Timberwolf properties, and the lock clicked open audibly. With a smile to Lucas, I closed the panel and turned the handle to open the door.
"It's practical, more than anything," I told him, standing aside to let him enter first. "For one thing, no one can steal your keys. For another, there is a digital record of anyone who enters, and it takes a picture of anyone activating the keypad."
Lucas nodded his understanding. "Makes sense. Thank you." He paused in the foyer, looking around at the subtle improvements my team had made to his house. Doorways had been widened to allow his mom's wheelchair through easier, ramps placed over any uneven floor joins, and of course the elevator installed that had led to us discovering the basement in the first place.
"You really didn't have to do all this, Hayden." He shifted his weight from foot to foot as he pulled his cap off and fluffed his hair. "This had to have cost a fortune."
I snorted a short laugh, closed the front door, then moved over to where he stood. "I owed you," I said softly, rising up on my toes to kiss him gently. "Come on; let's get searching."
Before I could spin away, he caught me with his arms around my waist, pulling me back against him as his lips found mine once more. This time it was no quick peck, it was a soul-deep promise. I kissed him back with equal intensity and moaned as he spun us around to press me into the door and slipped his hands under my shirt.
"Let's get something straight," he murmured against my lips, his palms sliding up my ribcage, pushing my shirt up as he went. "You owe me nothing. I'm with you because I'm completely, irrevocably in love, so there is absolutely nothing I regret. I'll wear these scars proudly to the end of my days because they're a part of my new life. With you."
A rush of affection surged through me so hard my knees weakened, and I sagged against his grip. "Lucas," I whispered, "that's not healthy. You almost died because of me."
"Almost," he replied, kissing my neck, "but I didn't. And what doesn't