Treacherous by L.L Hunter

caress my skin while my conscience fought a
battle inside my head. One side wanted to still be with Frankie,
and wanted to deny anything was wrong or dangerous about him. But
the other half was screaming at me to run, and for me to realise
that Nathan might be the right guy. As I tormented myself by
thinking of both guys, someone stood outside my door.
     
    Nathan
     
    After the party, and
after I made sure Levi had left, I had to see Charli, to make sure
she was okay. I knew she had overheard what had been said in her
father’s office, and I also knew she had been hurt by the news. The
fact was, Charli now knew or at least, suspected something, and I
didn’t know what to do. If I revealed myself to her, what would she
think? Would she think of me as a liar like the man she called
Frankie? Technically, I was using an alias, a fake profile of a
college student, and I felt I had to let Charli know that I wasn’t
the bad guy. I needed to let her know she could trust me. I stood
at the base of the staircase, staring up towards Charli’s bedroom
door when Stephen came up behind me.
    “ Nathan, did you catch
everything?”
    “ Yes, sir. I
did.”
    “ You know what you
have to do now. Don’t you, son?”
    “ I… I think so.” I
turned around to face the older man. “I’m scared,
Stephen.”
    “ I know, son. So am
I.” Stephen placed a hand on my shoulder and gave it a reassuring
pat.
    “ I want Charli to know
who to trust. How can I do that when we’re all lying to
her?”
    Stephen lowered his head. “Not yet. She
can’t know yet.”
    I let out an exasperated sigh. “It’s
confirmed. My suspect is Levi. I want to go after him, arrest him
but I know it’s not time yet.”
    “ Yeah, I know.
Almost.”
    “ But I also want to go
to her,” I said, nodding towards the top of the stairs. “She’s
pretty shaken up.”
    Then Stephen smiled at me. “You’ve
fallen for her.” He sighed. He sounded tired, and I knew it wasn’t
just fatigue. He wanted it all to end. So did I.
    “ Go home, Nathan, and
wait until this is over. You will know when it’s time.”
    I hung my head,
because I knew he was right. I had to wait. I was never a patient
person. I hated waiting.
    “ Alright. But at least
let me say goodnight.”
     
    Charli
     
    I wondered who would be outside my door
wanting me at this hour. Probably one of my parents, I thought. I
wrapped my dressing gown around me and walked to open my door. The
person waiting for me was not who I was expecting. Well, maybe it
was deep down. My stomach did a somersault.
    “ Nathan.” His name
barely escaped my lips. “What are you doing here?”
    “ That’s the second
time you’ve said that to me tonight.”
    “ And before you said
my parents invited you.”
    “ That’s
true.”
    “ So, how do you know
my parents?” I leaned against the doorframe and crossed my arms
over my chest.
    “ I used to work at the
courthouse.”
    “ Oh? Doing
what?”
    “ I used to be a
bailiff.”
    My eyes widened. “No way!”
    “ Yeah.” He scratched
his head, and I noticed he changed the subject quite quickly. “So I
came to check on you, to see if you were okay.”
    “ I’m fine. Just a
little shaken up.”
    “ I know. Look, what
you heard…”
    “ How do you know what
I heard?”
    “ I… I heard it,
too.”
    I paused and looked down at my hands.
“What do you think it meant, Nathan? Frankie was arguing with my
dad. They know each other.”
    “ Yeah, I know. But
it’s probably because your father has helped him in the past.” When
my shocked expression became apparent, he corrected himself.
“Legally, I mean. Your dad is an attorney.”
    “ You’re right. I
wonder what happened?”
    “ That’s not for us to
know.” He placed a hand on my arm, and I looked up and met his
eyes. There was something in them that made me want to reach out
and pull him into me, to hold him close. I couldn’t deny the way he
made me feel. As if sharing my emotions, he stepped