Lawless (12 page)

His friend didn't catch on to his change in
temperament.  "I can try, but there's no telling what might come out of my
mouth once I have a few beers in me."

Ariana closed her eyes.  This was why she shouldn't
have let herself be seen by anyone.  It had been a critical mistake.

"We'll be there."

She met Milo's gaze with surprise.

"Great."  Scott beamed.  "I knew I
could convince you.  If you could round up some firewood, that would be great. 
Party starts at seven."

Each second that passed until Scott said goodbye
tied another knot in Ariana's nerves.  By the time Milo closed the door behind
him, she was a tangled mess.  She watched him with a wary gaze as he turned
toward her.

He stared at her, not a trace left of the friendliness
he'd shared with Scott.

"Married?" she whispered, afraid to say
more.

He released a long, slow breath as though he
needed the time to gain control over his words.  "It was the only thing I
could think of, being blindsided like I was.  Trust me.  I'll pay more than you
ever will for making that up."

"I'm sorry, Milo.  I only went to the river
like we'd done the day before.  I thought it was safe."

He raised his brows.  "Why do I still feel
like this is all a game to you?  Do you not understand how vitally important it
is to keep your identity hidden?"

She breathed past the large dose of regret that
threatened to choke her and met his hard gaze.  "I understand better than
anyone how lethal my father's men are.  That's why I'm testifying."  She
didn't need that lecture.  "I'm sorry I didn't mention meeting Scott and
Luke.  That was the day I'd run home, and you'd thought someone was after me. 
Then everything went to hell between us and…"  She dropped her gaze to her
hands, holding her palms up.  She intertwined her fingers and clasped her hands
to keep them from shaking.  Never in a millions years had she dreamed her life
would become so difficult.  She looked up.  "I apologize.  I know you're
only trying to do your job, and I'm complicating things.  It's not my
intention."

He released a drawn out breath, shaking his head. 
"Damn.  It's hard to stay mad at you."

"Should I call Quinn?"

He scrunched his brows together.  "What for?"

 "To come get me?  To tell
him I'm leaving?  If he could get me some money, I think I could lose myself in
the outskirts of Salt Lake for a couple of weeks without drawing attention."

Milo stepped closer to her, his
bare chest and intense eyes spiking her pulse.  "Number one, since you've
officially left the program, there are no funds Quinn can access on your behalf. 
That is no longer a viable option.  Number two, there's no way in hell I'm
letting you walk out of here alone.  Did that once, and it ended badly."

Ariana widened her eyes.  She'd really backed
herself into a dark corner this time.  "Then what are we going to do?  My
cover has been blown."  She'd allowed her self-pity to rule her emotions
and decisions far too often lately, and now she'd destroyed her best
opportunity to stay alive.  "I can't stay here."

"Your cover might be compromised, but it hasn't
been blown."

He couldn't be right.  "What about Scott?  You
know he's going to tell Luke at the very least. Then Luke will tell someone.  It's
only a matter of time before everyone knows."  Cold fingers of despair
wrapped around her.

"Think about it, Ariana.  What exactly does
Scott know?"  He took her hand and held it.  She soaked up the comfort.  "I
know you're worried, and you damn well should be.  Ultimately, being seen could
be a costly mistake, but right now, the town is talking about their favorite
deputy sheriff and the shooting at the hospital.  As soon as Scott starts
talking, the gossip will be about me bringing home some stranger I married in
Vegas.  They're talking about long, dark-haired Anna, not blond-haired Ariana
Trasatti.  Finding a person of notoriety in their midst is the last thing on
their minds.  They'll be wondering if you've cast some evil spell and now
control me.  They probably think you're after my money, not that you're running
from the mob.  Why do you think I came up with that outlandish story?"

"I didn't consider that.  Smart thinking." 
She certainly wasn't going to suggest he'd voiced a fantasy of spending their
lives getting to know each other, even if she'd toyed with those thoughts.  She
knew two people couldn't know enough about each other after this length of time
to commit to anything, but waking up in the quiet solitude of Aspen every
morning with a man like Milo greatly appealed to her at the moment.  "What
do we do about the party?  They're expecting us."

"We go."

She pulled her hand from his and took a step back,
shaking her head.  "I can't go.  That's more exposure."

"We don't have much choice at this point. 
Not showing will cause more speculation.  The best thing we can do right now is
act natural.  If you hide, they'll start searching the web for info on you.  If
you go, they'll take one look at you and understand why I was smitten."

Smitten?  Did he mean that or was he acting the
part?  "That makes sense."

"It's all we have to work with right now.  I'm
going to shower.  Do what you need to get ready."  He walked past her and
down the hall.  "Our next move will be to introduce you to your new
mother-in-law."  He stopped at the bathroom door.  "She'll kill me if
she hears this from someone else first."

Ariana let her head fall backward as she released a
quiet groan.

Milo parked in front of a small, maroon-brick house and
killed the engine on his Dodge.  Silence infused the vehicle.  Ariana couldn't
bring herself to open the door and get out, and Milo didn't seem to be in any
hurry, either.

"She's a nice lady.  I think you'll like
her."

Ariana expelled a restrained breath.  "I'm
sure I will."  Why did this feel so much like the real thing?  She'd taken
extra care with her hair and makeup that morning, needing to impress the woman
who'd raised the remarkable man sitting next to her.  When Milo still didn't
make an attempt to exit the vehicle, she shifted her gaze toward him.

A smile played with the corners of his mouth,
but he seemed more nervous than happy.  "I have something for you." 
He dug in his pocket.  "Give me your hand."

She held out her fingers.

"Other hand."

A rush of energy flooded her chest, crowding
her lungs, making it harder to breathe.  Was he doing what she thought he was
doing?  She raised a brow, a frisson of shivers radiating through her body as
she switched hands.

He grasped her fingertips, singling out her
ring finger.  He slid on a gorgeous diamond ring.  He didn't release her, but
studied the ring instead, cradling her in his tanned, rough hand.  The silver
setting held a large, round diamond surrounded by tiny, crusted diamonds and
intricate detailing.  "My grandmother left this for me to give to the
woman who steals my heart."

Ariana couldn't speak.

He released her hand, and she ached to reach
out to him.

"Of course, it's just for show."

"Of course," she forced through
tightened vocal cords.

"But my mother will know something's up if
you're not wearing it."

"Of course," she repeated, unable to
locate any other words.

He exhaled.  "Let's do this."

She admired his strong, sure gait as he walked
around the front of the truck to open her door.  As they started down the short
cement walk to the front porch, he folded a strong hand around hers and didn't
let go.

Damned if this didn't feel like the real
thing.  Damned if she didn't want it to be.

He released her hand long enough to open the
door and let her enter, but then quickly claimed her again.  It was almost as
if he needed her support as much as she needed his.  How could she not admire a
man so dedicated to protecting her that he'd lie to his mother?  And look how
she'd treated him.

No longer.

She'd behave herself if it killed her.  She
wouldn't flirt or tease him.  She certainly wouldn't leave the house without
him again.

Ariana glanced around the homey living room,
loving the overstuffed tan couch complete with varying shades of rusty red
pillows.  Photos featuring Milo at every stage of life crowded a sofa table sitting
against the wall.

"Mom?" Milo called out.

A scuffling of pans echoed from the kitchen,
followed by the appearance of a slender, fiftyish woman with long blond hair
cut in a fashionable style.  "Milo."  Her voice radiated the same
affection that shone on her face.  Her gaze quickly jumped from her son, to
Ariana, to their connected hands.  "Looks like you brought company."

"I did."  He tugged her forward until
they were firmly ensconced in his mother's personal space.  "Mom, I'd like
you to meet Anna.  Anna, this is my mother, Nancy Sykes."

"Mrs. Sykes."  Ariana extended her
hand, and Milo's mom shook it with a surprisingly firm grip.

"It's nice to meet you, Anna.  Please,
call me Nancy."

The warm energy emanating off the older woman
flooded Ariana's nerves, relaxing her and coaxing a smile.  "Thank you. 
It's very nice to meet you, too."

"Mom, I have something to tell you." 
He squeezed Ariana's hand so hard, she wondered if she'd loose circulation.  "You
might want to sit down."

The woman glanced at Ariana, a touch of
wariness now in her eyes, before turning her gaze to her son.  "I prefer
to stand," she said with a fake smile.

"I met Anna in Vegas, and—" he blew
out a deep breath, "—we got married."

The color drained from his mother's face.  She
didn't say a word, only stared intently at her son as though they somehow had
the capability to communicate through silence.

Tension rolled off Milo, clinging to Ariana,
making her stomach churn.  She couldn't let him put his mother through this
kind of drama.  "This is my fault."

Milo tightened the vice grip around her hand.  "No—"

"Don't make excuses for my son." 
Gone was the friendly, small-town warmth.

Ariana swallowed her next words, sensing it was
better to remain silent for the moment.

Nancy seemed appeased with Ariana's reaction
and turned her attention to Milo.  "I want to know why you
ever
thought it would be okay to exclude me from your wedding.  My God.  I saw your
grandmother's ring on her hand and thought you'd gotten engaged, which was bad
enough since you've never brought her around before.  But you went and married
this pretty young thing?  You are my only child, my only chance to see my child
wed.  How could you take that from me?"

Several long seconds of silence roared through the
small living room.

Agony etched stress lines across Milo's
features.  "I'm sorry, Mom.  I didn't consider that."

"Of course you didn't."  She threw
the words at him.  "You're just as dense as your father was."

Although Milo had great intentions, this was
wrong.  She would not allow her mistakes to drive a wedge between these people who
obviously cared a great deal about each other.  "I can't do this."

Milo and his mother both turned to her with
incredulous looks on their faces. 

"I don't care how messed up my life is.  I'm
not going to let it ruin yours, too."  She switched her glance from Milo
to Nancy.  "We're not really married."

"Shit."  Milo folded his arms and
glared at her.

His mother blinked a few times before dropping to
the couch.  She took a deep breath.  "Someone better start explaining."

"Damn it, Ariana.  How the hell are we
going to make this work if you can't follow orders?"

"Ariana?"  His mom looked at Milo.  "Orders?" 
She turned to Ariana.

"I don't care, Milo.  I'm not going to
make it work if it's going to hurt people like this.  My father has already
done enough damage to far too many lives."  Ariana took a seat at the
opposite end of the couch.

The older woman shifted a wary gaze toward her.

"I apologize for the upset, Mrs. Sykes.  Milo
has been guarding me until I testify at my father's trial.  I was supposed to stay
out of sight, but a couple of Milo's friends saw me.  Milo came up with this
story as a cover.  But I can see now, it's never going to work."

"It would work just fine if you'd do what
I ask," Milo threw back at her.

His mother turned a questioning brow to her
son.  "I thought you'd left the Marshals Service.  Is there something else
you need to tell me?  And since when is it okay to lie to your mother?"

"Her life is in danger, Mom.  I have to do
whatever it takes."  He sat in a chair opposite them.  "Quinn was out
of options where Ariana is concerned and asked me to help out."

His mom nodded as though she was finally
connecting the pieces.  "Ariana…would that be Ariana Trasatti?"

Milo cursed.  "See Ariana?  Now two people
in Aspen know your identity.  Soon it will be four, then eight—"

"Excuse me, young man.  I take offense to
that.  I am quite capable of keeping a secret."

"Yeah?  What about Sue?  You tell her
everything.  Do you really think she's going to keep quiet?"

So much for helping the two of them reconcile.

"You know for a fact I don't tell her
everything.  I didn't say anything about—"  She stopped, flicking a glance
at Ariana.  "I can keep things to myself.  Don't you dare insinuate that I
can't."

Milo rested his elbows on his knees and dropped
his face into his upturned palms.  A half-growl, half-groan rumbled from deep
in his chest.  He sat up, giving Ariana a pointed look.  "Short of burying
you in an underground cave, Aspen is still our safest bet.  We're going to
continue with this charade, and you
will not
tell another soul.  Do you
understand?  I don't care how bad you feel for them.  These are
my
relationships to worry about, not yours."