Page 16 of The Redemption of Remy St. Claire

“Yet something went wrong.”

“My wife was injured a while back. She’s never improved, and our marriage has never recovered.”

“That must be devastating.”

Was he? He was more numb than anything else these days. “I still struggle. I don’t think our marriage will survive this.” He paused, then pushed on. “I was thinking about her when you saw me. I didn’t realize how sad I looked... I worry my stress will affect Mira.”

Olivia met his gaze, her expression betraying nothing. “Does Mira see her mother?”

Again, the insightfulness disconcerted. “No, Sissy has no place in our lives.”

For a very good reason.

“Well, I’m sure you’re doing what’s best for Mira.”

At that moment, Bianca looked up at them. The yellow lab’s beautiful brown eyes begged for a reprieve.

Olivia knelt by the group. “You ladies have been taking very good care of Bianca, but she and I have to go see some other kids who need her.”

Mira grinned. “Okay.”

Calleigh, who held the dog’s neck, silently removed her grasp. She didn’t meet Olivia’s gaze.

“Thank you, ladies.”

“We’re not ladies.” Mira’s placed her hands on her hips. “My name is Mira Stevens.”

Olivia laughed.

What a nice sound. One he didn’t hear often enough.

Did Remy laugh? She seemed so serious. Her job probably didn’t lend itself to lighter moments, although maybe they used levity to hold on to their sanity. He could never work around rapists, wife-beaters, and murderers—even if his job was to send them to prison. He never understood the compulsion. Women were a gift in the world. They deserved to be revered. Even after everything that had happened with Sissy, he still loved her. Love wasn’t a spigot turned on and off at a whim. He hated things his wife had done, but he hadn’t stopped loving her.

“Bianca, it’s time to head home.” Olivia snapped on the leash, then she and the dog departed, leaving the two girls making sandcastles. Or what passed as sandcastles.

Eventually, Mira stood, offering her hand.

Calleigh rose as well. Her eyes were downcast, but she took his proffered hand.

That was something.

Chapter five

“Youshouldgohome.”

Remy glanced up from the brief she was reviewing. Her very handsome—and very single—boss gazed at her with intense scrutiny.Do I have food stuck in my teeth?

Uh, her mouth wasn’t open.

Don’t squirm.She’d cultivated a reputation as unflappable, and it’d be a shame to do something to damage that image. “I’m fine, Zach, I have a few more files to review.”

“It’s five o’clock. Don’t you have to get home to Calleigh?”

A moment of panic engulfed her, followed by a moment of relief. Calleigh was with Rusty. Calleigh was safe. And then it hit her. She’d made the correct decision in hiring him. She’d made it through an eight-hour day without obsessing about how she’d care for a three-year-old and had also put aside her crippling grief. Work might be her salvation, and she’d been right she’d needed to get back to it.

Her boss still watched her.

“I hired a nanny yesterday. Calleigh’s fine.”

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