“Walk away? Michael, what are you saying?”
Sonny rose from the bed and grabbed a pair of silk boxers from the dresser. “I think maybe it's best we end this.” He would not look at her.
Dara pulled the covers up about her. “Where is this coming from, Michael?”
“I've been thinking about it for a while. It was fun while it lasted…”
Sonny heard the pained sound she made and could not continue. He returned to the bed and sat opposite her. “Okay, the truth.” He seemed lost in his thoughts for a moment. “I got a call yesterday from my guy inside the FBI. They're investigating me.”
Dara did not pretend ignorance of her lover's profession. They had worked out an unspoken agreement not to discuss Michael's business. That did not mean she was not aware of it. “How serious is it?”
“I don't know. And I don't really care.” Sonny leaned toward her, his dark eyes intense. “What matters to me is that in the next few weeks, they're gonna start investigating you for possible connections to me; wiretaps, surveillance, the whole thing. If you get out now, your life and career won't be ruined because of me.” He said the words calmly, but the pain of them was evident in his face.
Dara reached for his hands. “I have been careful in the past, Michael. There is no trail to tie the two of us together.” She continued, “And there couldn't be a hint of impropriety regarding my position as Assistant District Attorney. I made ridiculously sure that I was nowhere near any case or piece of evidence that might be tied to you or your business.”
“Never?”
“Not if I could help it,” Dara admitted. “Those times that I had no choice, I made sure that every move I made was seen by a neutral witness. So let the FBI investigate me. Even if they do tie the two of us together, we've done nothing wrong.” She bit the inside of her lip. “We both know that I don't know anything about your…business.”
“None of your precautions matter. None of your witnesses will matter.” Sonny absently smoothed his thumb back and forth along the warm flesh of her hand. “Everyone in the DA's office has secrets they want to hide. If the FBI manages to bring me to trial, my lawyer is gonna use those secrets to bloody the prosecution up.”
It was Dara's turn to move away from her lover's touch. “Is that really necessary?”
Sonny shrugged. “I didn't make up this stuff about your coworkers,” he said. “My people, they just dug it up.”
Dara gnawed at the inside of her cheek. “Maybe things won't get that far.”
“I hope it doesn't,” Sonny declared softly. “But I'm not gonna take that chance.” He held Dara's gaze. “I can live through anything, including prison.” His face grew hard at the thought of being enclosed within a cell. Sonny was extremely claustrophobic. “What I couldn't survive is having your testimony be the thing that sends me away from you for good. I know you, Counselor,” he added, wryly. “You'd find a way to blame yourself for what happened.”
“Michael…”
“No, Dara! We're over!”
Dara took a steadying breath. “We don't have to be,” she offered shakily. “There's another option.”
