Free Epiphany (Legacy of Payne) by Christina Jean Michaels Page A

that had kept me up at night. Still, something had drawn me to the place, and I was beginning to think it was Aidan.
    He leaned forward and invaded my space in a way that unsettled, yet left me tingling with awareness. “And?”
    “And . . . it was as good a place as any to get away to.” I folded my arms as a sudden chill went through me. “I never imagined I’d find out my mom’s been lying to me all my life.” Effortlessly, the words tumbled out. I hadn’t really talked to anyone—other than Six—about what I’d discovered, but talking to Aidan was becoming easier each time I saw him. “Turns out the man I thought was my father . . . wasn’t.”
    “I’m sorry,” he said. “You must’ve been stunned. Are you an only child?”
    I shook my head. “I have two brothers and a sister.” I paused and let out a burst of bitter laughter. “And believe it or not, turns out Christie is my sister.”
    His eyebrows shot up. “Are you talking about who I think you are?”
    “Judd’s girlfriend? Yeah, and she hates my guts.”
    “No doubt. She’s spoiled, rich, and you’ve come into town poaching on her territory. So, Will Beckmeyer was your father?”
    I regarded him closely. “So I’ve been told. You sound like you know the Beckmeyers.”
    “Sort of. I know of them. My mother is from here too.”
    That tidbit of information surprised me. “But you’re just ‘passing through’? You know, I recognize evasion when I see it. Why are you really in town? Because according to creepy tattooed guy from last night, you’re trouble.”
    “That part he’s right about.” He brushed an errant strand of hair from my brow, and his touch completely unhinged me. “You should heed his warning.”
    “Aidan—”
    “Let it drop.” He rose from the couch and pointed at my plate of forgotten food. “Eat and get some rest. Worrying about Six isn’t going to help you right now. If you want to find her, you need to take care of yourself.”
    I halfheartedly glanced at the breakfast. Thanks to our conversation, I’d lost my appetite. But he was right; I needed to eat. Besides, it had been sweet of him to cook for me. Not many strangers were so thoughtful.
    Maybe that was my problem; Aidan was far from a stranger in my mind.
    He headed for the door. “I’ll come by later and walk you to work. If you don’t mind,” he added, making me think he’d picked up on my independent streak. “I want you to be safe is all.”
    “I don’t mind.”
    The door creaked open, and he stood on the threshold for a few moments. Behind his silhouette, dark clouds roiled with a vengeance, a dreary canvas for the gangly trees swaying in the breeze.
    “I should probably tell you . . .” He hesitated and stuck his hands into his pockets. “I followed you last night. I wanted to make sure you got home safely. What you told me about Chloe’s boyfriend worried me.”
    “I don’t know whether to thank you or run in the other direction,” I said.
    “You can thank me by being more careful. You shouldn’t be out walking the streets at night by yourself.”
    “What aren’t you telling me?”
    His jaw twitched. “Try not to worry about Six,” he said, completely sidestepping my question. “We’ll find her. I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
    “Thank you.”
    “I’ll see you later,” he said. “Don’t forget to latch the deadbolt.” He turned the lock on the handle and pulled the door closed. I forked up another bite of cold eggs, and only then realized that he’d never explained how he just happened to see me break into Six’s apartment.
    Despite the endless questions I had, sleep came easily. So easily in fact that I passed out on my sofa and dreamed of Six’s murder again. Unlike the first time, this dream was so detailed it played out like a horror film. The way he brutalized her body, how he dragged her through the woods naked, pulling her by the noose around her neck. Scene by scene, I watched my friend die. Worse