Darkness was gathering. Nicole felt worse as time wore on. Her parents were beginning to worry about her. They'd checked on her several times. She finally plugged her earbuds into her ears and just sat near the window with the music turned up loud. Wanted by Hunter Hayes was about halfway done when she saw someone coming. Two someones, she realized. As they drew nearer, she was able to see Ashton with Ella riding on his shoulders.

She yanked the earbuds out and jumped up. With an urgency she hadn't realized she had, she rushed to open the door. Ashton was grinning at her, though it may have had more to do with the girl eating what looked like a Popsicle over his head. It was dripping on his hair. Nicole giggled. "Trying a new styling gel?"

He shook his head at her. "You wouldn't be laughing if she was dripping on you."

"But you're laughing," she pointed out.

"Hmm." He reached up and lifted Ella off his shoulders and sat her down. "You're right. I am." He got down to Ella's level. "Go find Miss Downs." He kissed her cheek and patted her back as she ran off into the house before standing and looking at Nicole, eyes expectant.

"I'm going to sit on the patio with Ashton," she called back into the house. She closed the door and led him around to the patio. Once they were seated next to each other on the loveseat, knees touching, she leaned into him, burying her face in his chest. He held her to him as she cried. She cried for Ella. She cried over losing him. She cried about her guilt. She cried for herself. She cried with hope she wouldn't have to bring that stuff to Clive. She cried out of sheer hopelessness and helplessness.

She had no idea how to get Ashton out of his situation, and she wasn't sure she'd ever figure it out. If she couldn't, this may be the last time he could hold her like this. Just the thought of that made her lonely even though he was still here.

It took what felt to her like hours, but finally the sobs stopped racking her body and the tears stopped. Ashton had alternated between rubbing her back and stroking her hair. He'd rocked her gently while she cried and made comforting sounds. Now that she'd stopped, she didn't want to move. She felt tired.

"Nicole," he murmured as he nuzzled the top of her head. She shivered. "Please, don't make me say I won't try to make you feel better."

She looked up at him. "Ash, this is my fault," she said, voice thick and strained.

He shook his head and ran his thumb over her cheek. "It's also my fault. I should have left you out of it all. That way you wouldn't be in this position. Do you think you're the only feeling out of your depth? I passed that marker a long time ago." He hesitated. "Not just with this stuff, but with you." He gave her one of his genuine smiles. Her heart melted. "I passed the point a long time ago where I knew what I was doing and now I'm deep into uncharted territory." He kissed her nose. "But I wouldn't go back for anything. Not with you."

"I don't want to go back with you, either. But if I could go back and stop Clive from killing that girl, I would."

"We both would. Trust me." His look was so tender and loving she needed to look away, but couldn't. "I love you."

There was no doubt in her that he meant it. "I love you."

After a moment, his look shifted, and she could tell his mood changed. "I have something to talk to you about." He moved his hand from her face and sat back, still holding her to him, though his grip had slackened. "It's about Trisha. I went to see her today. I wanted to talk to her." Nicole became worried. "I just felt that she had a right to know that I'm probably going to be arrested because I was framed by Dad. I left you out of it totally, and I was a little vague. You should have seen her, Nicole." He shook his head. "It was like my friend was gone. She would have been worried. I would have seen the tells. It would have surprised her, too, but she wasn't. It was like she knew."

Nicole thought about this. "We can link her to the crime scene, remember?"

He nodded. "I've been trying to forget," he admitted. "We've been best friends. I hate thinking that it would have been her and my dad doing all of this. How could she be mixed up in it, anyway? What is her link to my dad?"

Nicole chewed her lip and rested her head on his chest. That was a good question. She thought back to the man circling her in the cell. He'd known what he wanted. Was he doing that with her? Could she have been forced into it, maybe through blackmail? What could he have blackmailed her about? "Ash, has Trisha done anything that you've found questionable before?"

To his credit, he thought about it instead of jumping to her defense. "Other than have a crush on my dad at one point, no, not that I remember. Why?"

Maybe that was it. Nicole frowned as she sat up and looked at him. "Ashton, is it far-fetched to think your dad is cheating on your mom?"

He made a face. "No, but that's not something I want to think about." Then his eyes widened. "Wait. I think I get it. You think he's having an affair with Trisha?" She nodded. He abruptly shook his head. "It is possible, but I don't think so. When you and I walked into the store she was crying. It seemed so real. She was in love with me last summer, and when I tried to talk to her that day, she told me to get lost and started crying."

Nicole nodded. "Reasonable reaction."

He rolled his eyes. "Girls."

She slugged his arm playfully. "Hey, watch it." She gave him a mock glare and he laughed. "Anyway, she could still be hurt, even if she turned to your dad already." She shrugged.

He made another face. "If she is with my dad, that's beyond disgusting."

She kissed his chin – the closest part of his face. "We'll have to nail them both. You know what this means."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "What?"

She smiled at him. "We can add to your file."

For a second, he looked confused, but then he smiled back. "You're right." After a moment, he looked at her intently, his hands on her face. "Nicole, I want you to bring that stuff in the morning. When they come get me, remember something: That file is all you need. With it, you could force him into anything because if everyone finds out about it, he's screwed so bad he would not only be chased out of town, he will also end up in federal prison. Hold it over his head. Steal all his files if you need to. Do what it takes to get evidence to back it up. I'll even write out all of his codes and passwords for you."

She swallowed but nodded. "I'll go get your notebook."

"Bring me the letter, too. I want to finish it for you." He kissed her forehead and smiled at her.

She got up and went inside. Once she'd found his notebook, a pen, and pulled his letter out of her bedside table drawer where she'd forgotten she'd left it, she rushed back out to him. He put the letter in his jeans pocket and wrote out several words and lines of numbers. After nearly a full five minutes he studied it. Finally, he nodded and said, "That's all of them. I'm positive." He handed it and the pen over and she sat them on the patio table.

"Ashton?"

"Hmm?"

She felt tears coming, but she blinked them away. "What if I can't get you out? What then? Do I just lose you?"

He held her hands in his. "Don't think that way, okay?" He leaned forward until his forehead was on hers. "You'll get me out and we'll be together, and Clive will go to jail, and everything will be perfect. Keep repeating that to yourself when doubt creeps in."

"I need you," she whispered. Even with her eyes closed, she knew he was smiling.

He rubbed her nose with his. "Nikki, just try to think of what I would do or say, and you'll make it. You know me well enough to know exactly what it would be."

She knew he was right. "You know what I meant."

He pulled her closer. "I do know." His nose rubbed her cheek. "I want you just as much as you want me." After a long moment, he pulled away enough to look at her. "Nicole, would you come have lunch with me tomorrow? At my place?"

"What time?"

"Since I don't know when they'll come, I'm planning on 11:30."

"Okay."

He nodded and kissed her cheek. He let her go and stood. "I need to get Ella and leave. She needs to go to bed soon."

She stood. "Okay."

---

She was tired as she trekked through the woods to get her bag. All night she'd been kept awake by thoughts of why Ashton asked her to have lunch with him at his house. In all, she'd barely slept any. It was why she'd bothered putting on any makeup. She didn't want Ashton to see the bags under her eyes.

Too soon she reached the bag. Her heart sank when she saw it still sat where she left it, even though she knew it would. With a deep sigh, she picked it up. She walked into town, going slower than she should have. Since every step drew her closer to where she never wanted to go, her feet felt like lead.

Finally, she stood at Clive's desk. His eyes glinted with pleasure as she quickly pulled out everything and sat it on his desk. Once she'd sat the final item on the desk, she glared at him. He ran a hand over his mouth quickly to hide his smile.

"Thank you, Nicole. You've been a big help to me."

It was getting harder and harder not to cry. But it was also getting harder and harder not to choke him. Which helped press back the tears. She stood her ground. "I don't know what your game is."

His eyebrows raised. "You can go now."

She sat down. "What's your game?"

He was getting mad. "I said you can go."

"You didn't answer my question."

He gave her a scorching glare. "You're testing my patience. Why won't you leave?"

"I'll leave once you answer my question. What's your game?"

"Why are you even asking me that?"

She gave him a look that said 'come on.' "Did you really think I wouldn't notice things just appearing in Ashton's house? Or that you keep wincing every once in a while when you move your left arm?"

His eyes widened. "What the-"

"If you'd been any more obvious," she began, cutting him off, voice rising, "I think everyone would notice." She stood. "Don't worry though – other than Ashton, there's really no one to tell, is there? No one would do anything. I mean, after you beat Ashton like that, you shouldn't have gotten off, so I assume that your friends are the people that matter. The mayor, maybe? Can't get much higher than that." She waved her hand in a shooing gesture. "I honestly won't tell. It wouldn't do any good anyway. It'd just be a waste of breath." She turned and left him staring after her. She just hoped he wouldn't come for her now too.

But then, once she'd thought about it, she decided that that wouldn't be all bad. She would welcome a nice fight with him. He'd go to jail, she'd be with Ashton, and everything would be right with the world. Or it would feel that way, at least.

If only she could make herself stop feeling like Judas Iscariot.