Page 66 of Shattered Hearts

Stella frowns.

“Zane and Stella want to get married. Can you set that up?” I listen, holding up a hand when Stella draws in a breath to object.

“A marriage license. Right...prenup? Zane wouldn’t ask her to sign something like that, but check with him to be sure...he’ll want to protect their children. Schedule an appointment at the courthouse for next week. Right. That should be enough time to get everything done...Gage Davenport and I will be witnesses. They don’t want a honeymoon yet, but dinner after?” I look at Stella and she nods. “And reserve theHoneymoon Suite at the Crowne for three nights.” It all started there. Maybe it should end there too.

“No, Zarah—”

I move the phone away from my mouth. “Gage will let me stay at his place. Don’t worry about it.”

She sighs.

“Yes, that should be it. Thanks, Peggy!” I disconnect and shove my phone into my purse. “There. No reason to wait. Put the poor boy out of his misery already.”

“He’s going to go crazy.”

“Stella, I see him look at you. He’s already there.”

Planning Stella and Zane’s small ceremony makes the rest of the time at Black Enterprises almost bearable. I hate walking around Ash’s suite, all dark wood and gaudy splashes of red. Memories of him shoving me up against the wall, a hand to my throat, threatening me if I didn’t do what he said, flash through my mind and pain bursts at the back of my head as if it just happened.

It’s stupid, but when he was done threatening me, he would hold me, kiss me, and dry my tears. Promise it would be just one more time, one more job, then we would go away and he would love and take care of me forever. I never believed it, but he could change from devil to angel so fast it seemed I imagined the threats and the violence.

Stella shows me where she worked, the locks on the doors and the bars on the windows. This high up she wouldn’t have been able use the window to escape, and I ask why.

“So I couldn’t try to break it and kill myself jumping.”

The desk is empty, but the place where a computer sat is stained into the wood.

“I planned my escape here. I kept track of everyone’s schedules and noted every single detail in this building. Business lunches, meetings. Who worked weekends, who attended whichparties. It seemed important. Like I was doing something meaningful, digging through information, risking my life to find evidence that Clayton killed your mom and dad. Do you know how heartbreaking it was to know the only reason I escaped was because Willow was having an affair?”

“You had a plan. You would have gotten away even if she hadn’t let you go, but if you hadn’t seen her, we never would have found out Rourke’s involved in all this.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“I know I am. We need to figure outhowhe’s involved. What was he doing, Stella? Sleeping with Willow, owning Quiet Meadows. He’s Max’s dad. Maybe Max wasn’t helping you because he thought Clayton was a murderer. Maybe he was helping his dad, and it was his way of spying. Looking for information. Maybe he didn’t love me. Maybe he got close to me to see if I could tell him anything. I was an easy target back then.”

“Don’t do that. You don’t remember Max the way we do. He wasn’t working for Rourke.”

“How can you be sure?”

“I can’t, but I don’t want to believe anything bad about him unless we have proof. His memory deserves more.”

She’s right, and I feel guilty for jumping to conclusions. I don’t remember Max well. The more time I spend on “this side” of the lower dosages of drugs I’m taking, the murkier and hazier “the other side” is. Not Quiet Meadows or Ash’s jobs, those memories are suppressed not only by drugs, but because I want them to be. Maybe that’s what Gage was getting at this morning, and why Stella brought me here to face her own nightmares. If I can remember something from the past that can help, then it’s worth it to make the future a better place.

While she wanders around a bit more, her fingers trailing over the surfaces of everything she can touch, I text Gage.Are you at your office?

It’s near lunchtime now, and I can pick up some food, talk to him about going to Quiet Meadows, and possibly ask him what he thinks of Rourke asking Max to spy on us. Now that I thought it, I can’t get it out of my head, even if it upset Stella.

Hi, sweetheart. Yep. Me and Pop. Are you in the city?

Yes.I answer.I can bring lunch. Can we talk?

Sure. I’ll be waiting. Zarah . . .

He types out my name, all serious, and I smile.

I love you.I’m sorry about this morning.

I love you, too. Don’t be. See you soon. <3

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