That seemed to bother Ford, the look on his face shifting to one of fear. “You know what I don’t get?” Conor continued. “How a guy like you, smooth, sophisticated, well-read, a guy with real manners, could hang Olivia Farrell out to dry? She didn’t do anything to you except trust you. You were her friend. And now she’s got Keenan’s men shooting at her. She’ll testify, and her testimony will probably put both you and Keenan away for a long time. But she’ll spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder.”
Ford hung his head, his attention fixed on his folded hands. “I didn’t mean to get her involved.” He glanced up and, in that single moment, Conor saw the truth, all laid out in front of him. Kevin Ford was in love with Olivia Farrell!
“Why did you do it?” Conor asked, his jaw tight. “Off the record.”
“I bought the shop on Charles Street. The mortgage was killing me, I made a few bad buys and suddenly I was on the verge of losing it all. I couldn’t let her down, so when Keenan came to me, I took him up on his offer. At first it was just supposed to be a short-term deal. But then once I was in, I couldn’t get out.”
Conor almost felt sorry for the guy. Hell, he knew how Olivia could twist a man’s heart a million different ways, and how Keenan could take advantage of any vulnerability. “You said a cop came to talk to you about Keenan?” Ford nodded. This was the break he needed, a way to extract Olivia from this mess and still send Keenan to prison. “What if I found a way for you to testify against Keenan, to put him in jail for the next twenty years?”
“I’m not going to testify,” Ford insisted.
“What if you didn’t have to do any time? I could make that happen,” Conor said.
“My lawyer says I might not do any time anyway,” Ford replied.
“Your lawyer is overly optimistic. Olivia’s testimony will put you in jail. And I’d wager you’re not the kind of guy who’ll do well in prison. Even if it’s only a few years, those years won’t be kind.”
Ford’s shoulders slumped further. “Why do you care about me?” he asked.
“I don’t care about you,” Conor said. “I care about Olivia.”
They exchanged a long look and Conor knew they understood each other perfectly. They’d both fallen for the same woman, both shared an instinct to protect her. “If you can guarantee that I’ll stay out of jail, then I’ll testify against Keenan.”
Conor pushed to his feet. “Don’t tell anyone about this, not even your lawyer. I’m going to send a detective to talk to you. His name is Danny Wright and he works for the good guys. He’ll set this up for you. You can trust him.”
Conor strode to the door, then hammered his fist on the window. The officer waiting outside unlocked the door and Conor stepped out. Anxious not to be seen, he hurried down the corridor and past the desk, not stopping to talk to anyone. When he got outside, he stood on the street, breathing deeply and running the plan through his mind.
Until that moment, staring into Ford’s eyes, he hadn’t recognized his feelings for Olivia, hadn’t believed they could have a future together. But now he knew. He was in love with Olivia Farrell. He’d known her for three days and already he knew he wanted them to spend a lifetime together.
But it wasn’t as easy as it all looked. Even if he wanted Olivia in his future, he didn’t know if he even had a future to offer her. Hell, he wasn’t sure how this would all turn out. Even if Ford made the deal, Conor was still facing some pretty serious accusations, so serious that they could cost him his job. And without a job, how could he possibly plan a future for them?
“Quinn!”
Conor spun around. Danny Wright was jogging down the sidewalk toward him. He waited for his partner, then pointed down the street where he’d parked his car.
“What are you doing here?” Danny asked, breathless.
“I was visiting Kevin Ford,” Conor admitted.
Danny stopped short on the sidewalk and shook his head in disbelief. “You talked to Ford? Aw, man, this is bad. I don’t mean to question your procedures, but everyone at the station is talking. First, you disappear with a witness-a beautiful, female witness-and now, you’re sneaking around, talking to the perp.”
Conor chuckled at Danny’s police slang. “How’d you know I was here?”
“Mullaney called me at the station house. He told me to come down here and pick up my stuff. It took a while, but I figured that he meant you.”
“Well, talk all you want,” Conor said. “Because right now I’m not listening. I’ve got other things on my mind.” Olivia. He had Olivia on his mind and all the things he had to do to make this work for them both.
Conor turned to Danny. “Keenan has a guy on the inside. That’s how they keep getting to us. And Kevin Ford knows who he is. I told Ford you’d be visiting him. I want you to find out all you can, then take it to Internal Affairs. They’ll offer Ford a deal in exchange for the dirty cops. And Olivia won’t have to testify.”
Danny frowned. “But what if-”
“Just do it,” Conor said. “And watch your back.”
Danny nodded, then Conor slapped him on the shoulder and smiled. “You’re a damn good detective, Wright.” A smile broke across his partner’s face and Conor took that as his cue to leave. He grabbed the car door, pulled it open, then hopped inside. And as he drove off down the street, he let out a tightly held breath.
“This has to work,” he murmured to himself. It was the only way he could be sure that Olivia stayed safe for the rest of her life. And right now the only thing in the world he cared for-the only thing that made any difference in his life at all-was Olivia Farrell.
As for their future together, he’d have to think about that later. “One step at a time,” he said softly.
7
SHE’D BEEN CAUGHT in the middle of a wonderful dream. Everything was so warm and comfortable, the sun, the water, like a little Jamaican vacation in her sleep. Olivia smiled and snuggled down beneath the quilt she’d pulled from the bed. The television glowed in the darkened living room, a travel show softly playing in the background.
For a long time, she drifted in and out of the dream, spinning images in her brain of her and Conor, lying on the sand, swimming naked in the ocean, making love in a hammock. After this was all over and she was safe again, maybe she’d ask him to take a little vacation. She had some money saved and she probably wouldn’t have to worry about her business since there wouldn’t be much left to worry about.
It would be fun, a chance to really get to know each other. She turned the notion around and around in her mind. But before she’d imagined the most perfect vacation with the perfect man, she heard the sound of the door opening. Olivia opened her eyes, then pushed up on her elbow and watched Conor slip into the condo. He’d been gone for most of the day and into the evening and, though she really hadn’t worried about him, she was curious about what had occupied his time.
In truth, she was also a bit jealous that he could go out and walk around without worrying about his safety and she was stuck inside for the entire day playing the responsible witness. So she’d made the best of the situation and spent a lazy hour in the bathtub. After that, she lounged around the condo, watching soap operas and painting her toenails.
“You’re home,” she murmured, running her fingers through her tangled hair.
Startled, Conor turned and peered into the dim living room. Then he shrugged out of his jacket, tossed it on a chair and slowly walked over to her. “Were you sleeping?” he asked.
Olivia smiled and stretched her arms over her head. “I’ve been a lazybones all day long. It felt good to finally relax. We’ve been kind of busy lately.”
He sank down on the end of the sofa, far enough away from her that she couldn’t give him the hug she wanted to. In truth, he didn’t seem in a very huggable mood. He tipped his head back and stretched his legs out in front of him. “Yeah, we have. It takes a lot of energy to dodge those bullets.”
Olivia scrambled to her knees, reminded again of his injury. She settled beside him. “How are you feeling? Does your side hurt?”
Conor winced as he shifted his weight. “It’s not bad. Most times I don’t notice it.”
“Why don’t you let me get you some dinner?” she said, crawling off the couch. She picked up his feet from the
