“Arrest me?” His tone is deep but cutting. “I’m no threat to you, Vi.”
I’m not sure if it’s fear rattling around in my chest or the shock of hearing my name on his tongue after so long. It’s been too long. “But you are.” I inhale slowly, filling my lungs with the strength I know I’ll need to get through this conversation. “You know too much.”
His brows bunch together as he takes in my words. “Like I said, I’m not a threat. Whatever I know stays with me.”
“How can I be sure?”
Jamison’s glare darkens, amusement slipping through. “You’ll just have to trust me, I suppose.”
“Can I trust you?”
His angry eyes search mine. “I guess you’ll have to find out.”
I can’t get over the demeanor of this man. He admits to following me, yet he glares back at me with such animosity that it makes no sense.
He tilts his head. “What is it you’re worried about, exactly? What is it you don’t want anyone else to know? That you dance? That you work at a strip club? Perhaps if you could be more specific, I would know better how to address your request.”
I blow out a frustrated breath. It feels like he’s torturing me. Toying with me to say exactly what I’m trying to avoid.
I look around, ensuring no one else is within earshot. Living on a group of islands off the coast of Washington makes it difficult to keep secrets, but I’ve managed to keep mine for the past year. I can’t take any risks.
“No one can know what you saw that night.” I shake my head, the strength in my tone quickly losing its sail. “No one can know that I—”
“Dance?” Jami’s lips tilt slightly, causing my heart to squeeze in response. “Suddenly you’re ashamed of your dancing?”
My chest heats. “We both know that I was doing more than dancing that night.”
“Is that so?” His glare hardens with his sarcasm. “I didn’t realize.”
I straighten my posture, my fuse short. “So you’re here to judge me now?”
He shakes his head slowly, his sharp eyes never leaving mine. “No, Violet. It’s you who approached me. I’m not here to cause you any trouble. All thoughts and judgements of you ended years ago.”
His words are a sharp blade that swings at my heart. “Then why are you following me?”
He shrugs, his nonchalance yet another swing at me. “Curiosity, I suppose.”
I search his eyes, knowing there’s no chance he could ever forgive me for the past, but perhaps he can look past our history and lend me some lenience. Jami was always a fair man. Then again, it’s been a long time since I’ve known him. Who knows what he’s become. If there was ever a revengeful bone in his body, now would be his chance to use this information against me.
“I’m serious, Jami. No one can know. Not even your brothers. Please.”
He must hear the panic in my voice because his eyes finally soften, and he blinks as if lifting from some trance. “Like I said, I saw nothing.”
I blow out a breath. He owes me nothing, but I believe him. Jamison never lied to me. I have no reason to believe he would now. “Thank you.”
For the first time since I confronted him, he looks genuinely ashamed. “For the record, I wasn’t stalking you. I was working up the nerve to talk to you.”
I tilt my head, my heart racing with far too much hope than I deserve. “Why?”
He frowns like the answer is obvious. “To see how you’ve been.” He takes a step toward me, his hand falling from the rail. “To make sure you’re okay.”
For some reason, his answer only angers me. “I’m not ashamed of what I do.”
He raises his brows in a challenge. “Then why the secrecy?”
My flair up of anger dissolves some. Jami has no idea what my life has been like for the last seven years. He has no idea how much I stand to lose if Trevor finds out about my side hustles. My ex knowing that I work at the bar right next to a gentlemen’s club is enough for him to come check on me more often than I’d like. But there’s nothing he can do with that information to keep me from my child. Learning that I strip for men at private events might not afford me the same safety. Even if a judge were to look past my chosen jobs, nothing would stop Trevor from telling our son what his mother does for her money. And I wouldn’t put it past him to do just that.
Just then the horn blares with a warning that the ferry is about to take off. I jump back, preparing to run. “I need to go.”
Jami’s face goes through an array of emotions. Surprise, panic, fear. “What? Wait. You didn’t answer my question.”
My heart latches on to his words so quickly that it takes a great deal of strength to back away. “Goodbye, Jami. Thank you for keeping my secret.”
Chapter Four
JAMISON
It’s been four days since Violet confronted me on that ferry. An entire weekend since I sought her out and she made me promise to keep her secret. Too many torturous hours of fighting the urge to seek her out again. Instead, I kept busy, running the unnamed saloon my brother built and trying to forget her.
Impossible.
So much buildup went into finally facing my past that when the confrontation was over, all I was left with was crushing disappointment. She hadn’t looked at me like a woman with remorse for her actions. She looked and spoke to me like I was nothing more than a hindrance. An obstacle in the way of her happiness.
Anderson sits on a stool opposite me at the bar. “You should stay.” He’s swirling a tumbler of whiskey in one hand while eyeing me like he’s testing my reaction.
I sigh and shake my head. “When are you going to give it up? I don’t mind the weekly commute, but I can’t move back. My home is in Seattle.”
My brother sets down his glass so gingerly I know it’s because he doesn’t want to scare me away. “I know that, but I don’t know what I would have done without you these past few weeks. With Cayson and with the saloon. The response to the grand reopening was better than I could have imagined. I wasn’t prepared. Especially on weekends as crazy as this last one.”
My big brother has lived on the island for far too long if he thinks this was a crazy weekend. There were two big parties of ten, which led to some long nights, but nothing that couldn’t be managed. “You give me far too much credit.”
“Now that we got the alcohol license for the bar and paved a path to the dock, I just know we’re going to be slammed with local boaters along with our guests. Jami, the saloon was your idea.”
“When I was fifteen.” My words come with a laugh because my brother is still such a dreamer while I’ve become the opposite. “Look. I told you I’ll help you find a good bar crew and a good manager. I’ve already started the process. My first set of interviews are next weekend. You and Hope will be set.” I lean over and clap him on the shoulder. “Until then, I won’t abandon you, brother.”
Anderson’s face relaxes some. “I appreciate it more than you know. But it’s not just that.”
My gut swirls with dread at the looming statement. I already know what he’s going to say.