I knew I needed to tell Dane, but time and time again, the words got stuck in my throat, and I couldn’t get them out. It felt like I’d tried to tell him a million times over in these last fifteen minutes, and couldn’t manage it. Yet now? There was no option but to come clean. “My life...it got complicated after we split up—and it still is.”

“Because you’re working for the FBI?” Dane pinned me with a stare that was filled with anger—and I couldn’t blame him. Not one bit.

I swallowed down the lump in my throat, unable to meet his gaze. “I wanted to tell you, Dane. I just couldn’t risk it.”

“Couldn’t risk what? Because you were happy enough to risk my life and that of my family.” His look turned to one of disgust and disbelief as he shook his head. “That’s just fucking precious, Avery.”

“I swear, you’ve got it all wrong. I did it to keep you and your family safe. I know it doesn’t seem that way—and yes, there was still some risk—but this way, Stubbs and his men will all go away for a long time. They won’t be able to bother you again. Because if you think he wouldn’t come back and blackmail you again, you’re mistaken.” He had to know that. It was only a matter of time before Stubbs tried to pull him into yet another job and threaten him if he didn’t comply. And things would only escalate from there.

“Don’t you think I fucking know that? But I have leverage to avoid that sort of situation—without running the risk of having Stubbs put one of my brothers in an early grave.” He threw back what remained of his whiskey, looking ready to throw his glass at the wall. “Do you know what Stubbs will do if he finds that tracker?”

“He won’t.” The FBI had planted a tracker—and then I’d spent the morning modifying it further so that it would be nearly impossible to detect. Except, of course, that I was dealing with Dane, and he wasn’t just brilliant, but he also knew my work, which meant he’d likely spotted my code, despite it being well hidden.

“You don’t fucking know that, Avery—and it’s me and my family that you’re taking chances with. I’ve done everything in power to keep them safe—and you’ve just sabotaged that. And for what? So the Feds can have the pleasure of locking up Stubbs?” He shook his head and got up to pace, his pups looking anxious.

“I swear, I did this because I thought this would keep you safe long-term. You know I love your family. I’d never want them to come to harm.” The thought of anything happening to them had my eyes burning with tears as I swallowed down the lump in my throat, shifting in my seat to face him with the hope he’d spare me a glance so he could see I truly meant what I was saying. “I’m sorry, Dane. I should have spoken to you about it first.”

“You did speak to me—and I told you it wasn’t a good idea. But that didn’t matter, now did it? Instead, you went behind my back and did it anyway.” He looked at me with such disappointment and anger that it crushed me. “I think you should go. I really can’t deal with you right now.”

His words were like a knife to my heart. Not that I could blame him. I got to my feet, my legs shaky under my weight. Yet before going, there was more he needed to know. “Stubbs is handing off the plans to the buyer tomorrow. It’ll all be over after that.”

Dane scoffed at me, looking at me like I was nothing but a fool. “That’s where you’re mistaken, Avery. Because Stubbs will find a way around this—and even if he personally can’t get to us, it doesn’t mean we won’t still be in danger—you included, since you’ve now involved yourself. His brothers are just as dangerous.”

I was so frustrated and hurt, I wanted to grab him and shake him. “We’re not going to just go in and grab Stubbs and the buyer—we’re going to take down their whole organization. We already have the warrants ready to go. It’s going to give us access to all his accounts, all his files, all the evidence he’s got squirreled away. There’ll be no one left to carry out his threats, Dane. I wouldn’t have agreed to help the FBI otherwise. Not that any of that matters to you, when you finally have a valid reason to break things off between us and you can blame me this time around.”

I knew I’d fucked up, but still. I’d only been trying to keep him and his family safe, even if I could understand why he’d see it differently. And if he couldn’t see that and still wanted to end things, then I had to believe that he’d never truly been serious about us getting back together. After all, there was a reason he’d cheated on me in the first place, and it sure as shit wasn’t because he’d wanted me to stick around.

“Damn it, Avery.” He grabbed my arms, looking ready to shake me until he made me see sense, his grip tight around my biceps. “This isn’t some excuse. I have every right to be angry with you at the moment.”

“There’s a difference between being angry and walking away. The one you choose is up to you.” I locked eyes with his, my heart hammering inside my chest as I waited for him to give me some sort of indication as to where we stood. Because at this point, I didn’t have a clue—and it was tearing me apart.

I’d never stopped loving this man—and I didn’t know if I ever would. I just wasn’t sure if having him in my life was an option. I wanted it to be, more than anything. But I was starting to wonder if I was kidding myself.

Maybe we were too different. Maybe this thing between us just wasn’t meant to be, though I hated to think it. We could be so perfect together. Except that something always seemed to get in the way—and we fucking let it. Whether it was him trying to push me away and deciding that cheating on me was the way to go about it, or me going behind his back and working with the Feds.

He all but growled out his words. “It’s not as simple as that and you damn well know it. And right now, I’ve got bigger problems, thanks to you and the Feds going behind my back. I can’t deal with you when I need to make sure my family’s safe.”

That was it then.

I showed myself to the door, pausing one last moment to look at him, though he hadn’t bothered to stop me or even bothered to say anything more. And why should he when there was clearly nothing more to say?

I swallowed down the lump in my throat, ignoring the tears that slipped down my cheeks. “Good-bye, Dane.”

I let the brisk, cold air of the night engulf me, trying to ignore my breaking heart as I drove home in a complete daze, feeling gutted, my world shattering once again. I couldn’t believe this was happening—and yet at the same time, I should have known better than to think that we’d be able to get a fresh start together. How could we when we both had baggage and problems constantly getting in our way?

As I let myself in, a part of me was hoping Huck was already asleep or had gotten called in to take a shift, not wanting him to see me like this. He wouldn’t say “I told you so,” but he wouldn’t have to. I knew well enough that he had warned me that things wouldn’t end well—and here we were.

Of course, he was home, grabbing himself a late-night snack while padding around the kitchen barefoot, wearing nothing but a pair of sweatpants, his elaborate tats on display as they adorned his muscular form. The moment he spotted me, he stopped everything he was doing, his brow furrowed as he crossed to my side. “I’m going to fucking kill the bastard.”

I shook my head no, letting him pull me into his arms, his chest warm against my cheek. “It’s my fault, Huck. I screwed up by going behind his back with the Feds.”

He tightened his hold on me, kissing the top of my head as I fought to get control of my tears and emotions. “I’m sure you were only trying to help...trying to do what was right. And if he can’t see that, then fuck him. He’s never deserved you anyway.”

I looked up at him, not caring if he saw that I was a mess, since he no doubt had seen me in far worse shape. “I was the one who fucked up this time—not him. He was just trying to keep his family safe, and I thought I was helping out, but...I just should have spoken to him first.”

He cupped my face in his hand and wiped away my tears, his touch gentle. “Avery...do you really think this relationship would have survived the next bump in the road if he can’t even see that you meant well, and he’s holding it against you? I know you love him, but the two of you...you haven’t exactly been good for each other.”

Maybe Huck was right. Maybe Dane and I had been doomed from the start, and one way or another, we’d find a way to screw things up between us.

Yet I couldn’t believe that. I refused to. Because when things had been good between us, they’d been really good. We’d been happy. Truly happy. Even if we’d had some difficulties.

“All I can do is hope he’ll come around.”

Except that I knew him...and chances were good he wouldn’t. Whatever we had was likely over.