Long Way Down (Fallen Angels MC) by Laura Day Read Free Book Online

laughed. He hugged her close, then, and there was an intensity to it that she hadn’t felt in all their sex. And then he stepped away, kissing her lightly on the corner of her mouth, and smiled. “I do mean it, though. You’ve shown me what’s going on. It’s up to me to sort it out from here.”
     
    “I’m going to make a suggestion you’re going to hate,” she said.
     
    He nodded. “The cops?”
     
    “Yeah.”
     
    “I was thinking about it. Weighing the risks.” Mason sat down on the couch in the living room, and Caroline followed him. He was relaxed against the arm of the couch, staring off into the distance. She wanted to curl up into his shoulder, relax against him, but that was something she’d never permitted herself to do before. To be supported by someone else.
     
    She didn’t know if he saw the desire in her eyes, but he put his arm up on the back of the couch and shifted to make himself more comfortable for her. She took the invitation for what it was and let him draw her in, snuggling close to him. Just for now , she thought. Just for today. She could enjoy this while it lasted, and then let it go when she needed to.
     
    “If I got to the cops,” he said, his arm tightening around her, “There’s a lot of possibilities. They could take my word that someone’s setting me up and investigate. Or they might not look past it. Someone who thought this far might have put other things in place. Made it look like I was the one who got her social security number to set up a bank account. And if they don’t do that, if they do investigate, and they do see through whatever smoke is in place, then a lot of good men and women who are just doing what they can to get by are going to be in trouble. I don’t want to do that. Not just because they’re my brothers and sisters, but because they’re good people.” He pressed his lips to her hair, and she almost purred. “I have to do my best to deal with this on my own. Going to the police is the last possible option.”
     
    “That makes sense.”
     
    “Does it really?”
     
    She took a deep breath and told the truth. “I don’t know if I’d be strong enough to do it, in your shoes. But yeah, it does make sense. I get why you’d do it that way. So how are you going to find out who’s doing all this?”
     
    Another kiss on her hair, and her eyes were closing. “That’s why we’re going to lunch, and then I’m leaving. Whatever I do, it’s going to be dangerous, and I don’t want anyone involved in it who doesn’t have to be.”

     
    CHAPTER NINE
     
    She mumbled a protest, but even she knew it didn’t make sense. He stroked her hair back from her face and shifted again, making her more comfortable. She felt something fall over her back and shoulder, and knew he’d pulled the blanket off the back of the couch and tucked it around her.
     
    She woke up, and she knew he was gone before she even opened her eyes. Her head was on a pillow, and her legs were weighed down by the dog, but what told her she was alone was how quiet the house was.
     
    It shocked her, how much that hurt.
     
    He’d said he’d leave, to keep her safe, but she hadn’t thought he’d just disappear. She thought maybe he’d at least give her a goodbye kiss. But no. Guys like that— they weren’t big on commitment. He’d told her as much himself. And it was just as well that he hadn’t seen the puddle of drool under her cheek when she woke up. She blinked rapidly, wiping at her eyes. Allergies. Bad this year.
     
    And then there came a knocking on her door. Her heartbeat kicked up into a rumba. She hadn’t been kidding when she said that the person behind all of this could be dangerous, and there was a reason he’d left. But if he was gone, and there was someone dangerous at the door, would she be able to defend herself?
     
    Before she had to debate on grabbing the cast iron frying pan from the kitchen, she heard Mason’s voice on the other side of the