Page 22 of My Stupid Heart

That’s when he put her out of her misery and chuckled, pulling her tight to him.“Relax, woman.I’m kidding.God and I parted ways a long time ago.Don’t give a shit what he thinks of me anymore.If anything, living in sin sounds hotter.”

She reared back and slapped his chest, but it wasn’t hard with her dainty little hand.He caught her hand and intertwined their fingers before taking her mouth.

“I thought it would feel like a heart’s betrayal,” he murmured after they came up for air.“Like I was turning on Brendan.”

She shook her head.“I know.At first, I thought the same thing, but over the years, I realized that Brendan wouldn’t want me to be alone.He wouldn’t want you to be alone, either.I think he’s happy that we found our way to each other.”

He nodded.“I hope so.”Then he went in for another kiss, but their lip lock was interrupted a minute later by a harsh knock at the door.

“I got it,” he said, squeezing her hipbone then heading to the foyer.He peered through the peephole to see Susannah standing on the welcome mat.Checking his watch and seeing that it was nearly midnight, he glanced at Molly, who stood in the kitchen.“It’s Susannah.”

“Really?”Molly approached him, a curious look on her face.“Well, let her in.She lives in the same gated community as Kate and Olivia, so maybe she knows something.”

A frisson of unease skittered down Ryker’s spine and he did a mental double-check that he had a few weapons on him.His gun, of course, was in his room, but he still had his garrote and his switchblade in his pocket.

Reaching into his left pocket, he wrapped his fingers around the garrote cord, then opened the door with his right hand.“Susannah!”he greeted.“What brings you by so late?”

“Do you know what’s going on at Olivia’s house?”Susannah asked, stepping inside the house before Ryker or Molly could invite her.

“No,” Molly replied.“What?”

“I don’t know.There are like three cop cars.It’s crazy.”

“Why would you think I would know?”Molly asked.“You live closer to her than I do.”

“Oh, haha.”Susannah laughed.“I don’t know.You always seem to know what’s going on.Always have the latest gossip.”

“No, I don’t,” Molly said slowly.“I hate gossip and you know that.”

Susannah laughed again and her eyes shifted across their faces in a suspicious way.She had her hair in a ponytail, unlike earlier that night when it’d been down and covering her ears.The same teardrop earring that Officer Linden found on the side of the house hung from her left lobe, but the right lobe was naked.

That frisson of unease intensified, spreading from Ryker’s spine into his limbs.His fingers tightened around the garotte cord.Kate and Susannah had the same earrings.

“I uh … I just wanted to come check on things.I hate how Kate and Olivia treated you earlier tonight, and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”Something about Susannah’s smile and the way she kept swallowing, while also refusing to meet Molly or Ryker in the eye, sent up blinding red flags.

“I’m okay,” Molly confirmed.She seemed nearly as suspicious of Susannah as Ryker was.“You could have texted, though.It’s pretty late.Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” Susannah dismissed.“Just fine.”She smacked her lips together a few times.“Actually, do you think I could have a glass of water?”

“Sure,” Molly said slowly, heading into the kitchen to grab a glass from the cupboard.Ryker had kept the door open and stepped just onto the welcome mat to see where Susannah parked her car.Her red Honda CR-V was in the driveway behind Ryker’s rental truck.

A quick scan of the neighborhood and the wooded area beyond the dead-end proved unsuspicious, so he headed back inside, closing the door behind him.

“Ryker,” Molly called, panic in her voice and sending his entire body into attack mode.He rounded the corner into the kitchen to find Molly standing behind the island with her hands up while Susannah pointed a gun at her.

Susannah inched herself around the kitchen enough that she could see Ryker while keeping the gun on Molly.“What’s going on?”he asked slowly, his eyes moving from Susannah’s freaked out face to the Glock in her hand.

“I really liked you,” Susannah said, her voice quavering.“I considered you a friend.”

“We are friends,” Molly agreed.“Good friends.You’re the only one who knew about Adrian and Sasha’s cat.You’re the only one who knows how my husband died.I’ve trusted you with secrets I haven’t trusted anyone else with, even though we haven’t known each other as long as I’ve known some of the others.We just … had the right kind of connection.So … what’s going on?”

Susannah’s top lip curled into a sneer.“Adrian loves me.Not you.Not Kate.He lovesme.”

Molly glanced at Ryker.

“You’re the ex that cheated on Adrian to make him go all jealous and snoop into Molly’s phone,” Ryker said, putting the pieces together.

“It was a mistake.It happened once when I went home to Indianapolis to visit my parents.I ran into my high school crush.I’d just lost seventy pounds and gotten my new boobs.Ethan flirted with me.He never even knew I existed in high school.But then he saw me and … I was drunk and it was a mistake.”

---