Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 76717 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76717 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
The whole thing makes me feel like invisible little legs are crawling all over me.
I squirm on the couch. Tillie’s warm body is a mild comfort in the midst of my growing unease.
I need to study, to distract myself from the pit of worry that’s taking root in my stomach, but I can’t seem to tear my thoughts away from Jason and this mysterious R. Lyon.
With a sigh, I grab my anatomy textbook, hoping its pages will provide an adequate distraction. But even as I begin to read about the intricacies of the human circulatory system, all I can think about is how Jason’s heart must have shattered into a million pieces when he lost Lindsay and Julia.
My phone buzzes on the coffee table, snapping me out of my thoughts. My heart jolts when Jason’s name flashes across the screen.
“Hey,” I say as soon as I answer, trying hard to keep my voice steady.
“Angie,” he says. “Can I come over?”
My heart leaps. “Of course. Are you home?”
“Yeah. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
Five minutes later, he’s knocking on the door. I open it, shuffling Tillie back.
God, he’s so gorgeous.
But his beautiful green eyes are distraught.
He doesn’t know I know about Lindsay and Julia. It’s probably not something he talks about.
In fact, he’s never mentioned them. Not once.
“Can I get you something to drink?” I ask, closing the door behind him and gesturing toward my living room. The anatomy textbook lies open on the couch where I left it, a reminder of what I should be doing.
“No.” His gaze on me is intense. Not angry, but…off. “I need to ask you something.”
“Yeah, of course.”
He takes a deep breath, swallows. “I need to know if you sent an email to Richard in HR about us.”
I nearly drop my jaw to the ground. Not what I was expecting at all. I figured he was going to ask about Switzerland, wanting my answer.
Then again…Ralph did say he was escorted away from his office by a man and woman.
Was one of them this Richard he’s talking about?
“Of course not, Jason,” I say, trying to keep an edge of resentment out of my tone. “I’d never do that.”
He sighs. “I didn’t think you did for a minute, but I had to ask.”
“Why? Does this have something to do with those people who took you away from your office this morning?”
“You know about that?”
I bite my lip. “Ralph mentioned it.”
He raises an eyebrow. “Ralph?”
“From anatomy lab. He’s Elijah’s lab partner.”
“How would he know about HR?” Jason asks.
“I don’t know. I was heading toward your office this morning, and he was coming the other way.”
He narrows his eyes. “What exactly did he say to you?”
“That you were escorted away from your office by a man and a woman.”
He blinks. “He used the word escorted?”
“Yeah. I thought it was weird too. My first thought was—” I stop abruptly.
He stares me down. “Your first thought was what, Angie?”
I sigh. “That it was security. Or the police or something.”
“Why would—” This time he stops.
“What?”
“Fuck.” He rakes his fingers through his hair. “Fuck it all.”
Then he grabs me and kisses me.
Hard.
Chapter Four
Jason
My head is spinning, my thoughts a fucked-up mass of confusion and despair. The feel of Angie, the taste of her, does nothing to subdue my unease. Instead, it only amplifies it—makes everything more real, more desperate.
Which only fuels my need for her.
I deepen the kiss, tangling my tongue with hers.
She tastes like sunshine and something that’s uniquely hers. I wrap my arms around her waist and pull her closer, desperately needing to feel the warmth of her body against mine.
We kiss and we kiss and we kiss…until she breaks away to inhale a sharp breath.
“Jason,” she whispers.
The sound of my name on her lips sends me reeling, and my need grows, blooms.
I press my lips to hers again, losing myself in her. She clutches at my shirt, first pushing but then pulling, bringing us even closer.
God, I could so easily lose myself completely in her body, in her soul.
But reality is a harsh anchor.
HR.
Lindsay.
The note.
I break away. I can’t let those thoughts intervene when I’m kissing Angie.
“Jason.” Her forehead is wrinkled, her eyes concerned. “What’s wrong?”
I stare at her for a moment, grappling with the words I need to say. Lindsay. Julia. The note.
My wife.
Perhaps she didn’t kill herself?
Or at least… She didn’t write that suicide note.
But then my phone buzzes.
The reminder I set.
I have to go.
Dinner with Barry and Lisa Davis, my former in-laws. Tonight I’ll face the two people who produced my wife, muddle through their mementos to find samples of their daughter’s handwriting. All while trying to keep them from bursting into tears.
“I’m sorry, Angie.” I pull away and reach for my phone. “I need to go.”
Disappointment clouds her beautiful face. “What? Now?”
“Yes,” I reply. “I have dinner plans with some…old friends.”