Page 54 of Never Say Never

"How are you feeling, Mr. Washington?" Shelly asked. She moved closer to the bed, placing her hand on York's arm.

You're dead. Get away from him.

My reaction was volatile. If it wasn't for the girls being next to me, I would have sprinted over to his side and ripped her hand away from him. How dare she touch him.

He was mine.

York smiled at her. It was tense but it only added fuel to the burning fire under my skin. "Thank you, Shelly, for always taking care of the girls."

She beamed at the praise. "Of course. They’re like daughters."

Fuck, I wanted to bash her brains in. No, that would be too quick. Maybe I'd start on her ankles and work my way up. Force her to feel every bone shatter in her petite body.

York removed his arm just in time. I was barely holding back my murderous intent.

"Could you give me and Paul another second? There is a cafeteria on the second floor," York said.

Shelly's smile dimmed a little, and I had the sudden urge to punch the air in joy.

"Aw, but we want to stay," Navy whined.

I gave both girls a fist bump. "Working on the ice cream pitch still," I whispered to them.

They giggled and nodded. "We will be right back," Navy promised.

Nyra ran over to her father and hugged him before jumping down off the bed and following Shelly out of the room. The moment the door closed, the tension thickened instantly.

"Paul, you're a good agent, and I haven't known you to ignore protocols or withhold valuable information."

"That isn't what's happening either. Fuck, you're acting like you don't know me at all."

York stared at me and as the silence built between us, pain settled in the middle of my chest.

"Ouch." I rubbed at my chest not sure why I cared. This wasn't my real life, but I couldn't ignore the ache that was taking over.

"What I heard and saw leaves a lot of suspicion. With everything that is going on..."

"So, what, now I'm a suspect?"

York attempted to sit up, wincing the moment he moved. I was across the room in seconds helping him up without thought. He settled against the pillow and looked more like he was at the office than in the hospital.

"Everyone is a suspect."

"That doesn't give the amount of reassurance you think it does." Fuck, this conversation was hurting more then it should. He was right. I wasn't on the FBI’s side and I never was. I wasn't a good man, fuck, I wasn't even an innocent man. I killed and relished in it. Crime ran in my DNA. Playing at being a good human being was eating at my soul. But right now, as York stared at me as if he didn't know me, I was filled with unease. Not because I thought I'd be caught and have to leave the FBI, but because I'd have to walk away from York and whatever was happening between us. I wasn't ready to stop just yet.

"Paul, things are complicated. This incident has only made things worse.”

I nodded, backing up a bit. "What can I do to get you to understand? I wouldn't betray you."

"Who were you talking to?" Paul asked.

"I can’t give you that. One of the reasons he speaks to me is because I swore not to disclose his name to any operatives."

"Paul."

I raised a hand. "I know it sounds shady, but we both know no government agency is ever clear of mob influence. His name will never show up on any documents. All it takes is one whiff of a rat and they will send the hounds to hunt."

York's shoulders dropped, and I almost asked about his own snitch. Hunter was a mess this morning and I could only fathom what it was about. Marianna was their only way in and she was no longer an option.