Page 128 of Fraud
SOMEHOW,IMADE IT HOME, clutching my battered and bruised heart in my shaky hands. It felt as if someone had ripped it from my body, barely beating from the betrayal, and tossed it to me as proof that my pain was real.
And it hurt.
It hurt so much.
Every corner of my apartment reminded me of Killian.
From the kitchen where he’d spent hours simmering sauces and chopping vegetables as he spoke of his mother, to the bedroom where we’d spent hours consumed with each other.
Maybe he’d consumed all of me in that room.
Because, now, it felt as though there was nothing left.
Kate, Laura…it didn’t matter anymore.
Sometime after I stumbled my way inside my home, the tiny voice of reason that still remained reared its ugly head.
No matter how much it hurt, I still had a very big situation to deal with.
My secret was no longer safe.
Picking up my phone, I dialed, waiting for that familiar voice to answer.
“If you’re calling to gloat about that hot piece of ass you have living with you, I don’t want to hear it. Seriously, it’s just not fair,” Jane said immediately, not bothering to say hello.
“He knows,” I said, trying to remain composed.
“You told him?”
I shook my head before realizing she couldn’t see me. “He knew all along.”
“I’ll be there in the morning. Don’t talk to anyone. Got it?”
“Yes,” I answered.
“And, Kate?”
I couldn’t make my mouth move anymore without the tears breaking free. So, I just whimpered, knowing she’d understand.
“It’s going to be okay.”
I nodded once again, and we said good-bye.
But even I knew that Jane had lied through her teeth.
Nothing was okay. Not even close.
Keeping her word, Jane arrived at my doorstep, looking fresh and ready to bust a few heads.
“I’ll never understand how you can take an six-hour red-eye and manage to still look like you just stepped off a runway.”
“It’s one of my superpowers.” She shrugged, stepping inside, carrying a bag of fresh bagels along with a carrier filled with cups of hot coffee.
“I’ve sent out some feelers with a few press contacts I have, and so far, I think we’re safe. No one seems to know any more than they already did, which is basically nothing.”
I let out a breath of relief.
Placing everything on the coffee table, she took a seat on my sofa, her concerned face turned up toward mine. “Can you talk about it?” she asked.
