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get caught up with him?”
    Ellie’s voice lifted in panic and she found herself backing away from her brother. It was bad enough to think that he was in trouble but trouble with Grey Mattheson? She turned and moved into the main area of the diner. The darkness swallowing her up as she fought to stifle her sobs with her hand.
    How could he have been so stupid?
    Ellie’s legs buckled beneath her, her back slamming into the tall counter as she slid to the floor. Ricky knew that getting involved with Grey was a bad idea.
    Grey lacked a conscience and he had the money to back him up. He practically owned the town and whatever he wanted he got, nothing was off limits to him…
    Ellie shook her head and buried her face in her hands, an image of her father’s smiling face popping into her mind. The only man in town to stand up to Grey’s bullying tactics. He’d believed that his friendship with Grey’s father would mean something to the young playboy, but he’d been wrong and he’d paid for that mistake with his life…
    Strong hands wrapped around Ellie’s wrists, pulling her hands away from her face.
    “Ellie, please don’t cry, I won’t let him get to me, I promise I won’t end up like Father.”
    Ellie’s temper got the better of her and she lashed out with her hands. She caught Ricky by surprise, her open handed slap landing him back on the floor on his ass.
    “Dad thought he was doing the right thing, he thought he could stop Grey from turning this entire town into his own personal playground. You on the other hand did something stupid, despite knowing what Grey was capable of, you still got involved with him!”
    “I didn’t do any of this on purpose, Ellie, despite what you might think I didn’t draw him on me deliberately. He set me up…”
    Ellie shook her head. She wouldn’t listen to him. Ricky was an adult now and it was time he started behaving like one. She couldn’t always be there for him, bailing him out whenever he got in over his head.
    “Don’t lie to me. What happened, Ricky? What did you do?”
    There was a girl, Melanie, and…”
    Ellie snorted in derision and pushed herself up from the floor.
    “Of course, I should have known a girl would be at the heart of this.”
    Ricky followed her, the look in his eyes wild. He grabbed Ellie’s arm, halting her progress and swinging her back towards him.
    “Ellie, please, it’s not what you think. I thought she really liked me but she was using me to get back at Grey… She stole something and now he thinks I helped…”
    “How could you be so stupid?”
    Ellie scrubbed her hands across her eyes.
    “Did you steal from him, Ricky? And I want the truth.”
    He released Ellie’s arm as though the merest touch of her skin burned him.
    “You think that little of me? You think I’d draw Grey’s attention back on our family?”
    The look in his eyes was one of disappointment and hurt. Anger drained from Ellie, leaving her feeling limp and she sagged back against the counter.
    “I didn’t mean that…”
    He cut her off.
    “Don’t, Ellie, don’t bother. I thought you of all people would understand how easy it is to get caught by Grey. At the end of the day, you were the reason Father had to go against Grey, and you’re the reason he’s…”
    “Don’t, Ricky, don’t you dare say it.”
    Ellie’s voice trembled with emotion, and the guilt she had carried since the day her father had turned up dead crushed over her. The last thing she needed was Ricky to confirm what she had felt all these years.
    Ricky shot her a look of disgust before he strode from the diner and back out through the kitchen. She started to follow him but by the time she made it out into the kitchen the backdoor to the diner stood open and there was no sign of her brother.
    Tears started to trickle from Ellie’s eyes, her vision slowly blurring as she stared at the open door.
    Ricky was right of course. She was the reason their father was dead. If she had just kept