Page 106 of Faith
Frannie ushered Nina inside and led her to the living room.
Nina sat on the couch and grabbed a pillow, holding it over her stomach and hugging it tight.
“How is Zeke? I’m guessing he’s busy chasing down something for you to need a place to stay for the day,” Frannie said. Her smile was bright and happy, like she was sharing a secret.
“I don’t know.”
Frannie’s smile faded. “What do you mean? You two have been attached at the hip since you came back. I thought you were together.”
Nina shook her head. “It was a fling. Temporary. Casual, I guess. It’s over now.”
Frannie drew back in shock. “Wow, I never thought you’d turn him down. The way you two looked at each other, I thought you loved him as much as he loves you.”
“He doesn’t love me. He’s the one that left.”
Frannie laughed. “Oh, honey, you don’t believe that, do you?”
“Um, yeah. He walked out. Didn’t even tell me he was leaving.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about. He’s in love with you. Hands down, head over heels, totally gone.”
Nina shook her head. “No. No, he loves me, but it’s not like that. I’m like his sister.”
Frannie choked. “Sorry, but no brother should look at his sister the way that man looks at you.”
“Not like a real sister. He just… He loves me because he’s known me forever. But it’s not romantic love. It’s comfortable, familiar.”
“Is that how you feel about him?”
Nina picked at her nail. “It doesn’t matter how I feel about him.”
“It might matter to him. Because you can tell yourself he doesn’t love you, but you’re wrong.”
“You don’t even know us.”
Frannie laughed. “Nina, I’ve watched people come through those doors for years. A lot of years. I’ve seen what love really looks like. I’ve seen a lot of the manipulation and danger that comes with control and possession, but I’ve seen love, too. I’ve watched Stacey and Wray find their way back to each other. I was there as Jessica and Braden admitted they weren’t justfriends. I saw Karli and Cade fall in love. Mackenzie and Holden knew each other long before I met them, but when she finally let him in, he was all in. Raina and Adam were the same, but she knew he was one of the good ones from day one. Edie and Pryce were the hardest ones because she had so much pain and he didn’t trust very easily, but their love is solid. Dawn and Gage almost didn’t survive, but their love held them together. And Lorelei and Vinnie? Those two went through the worst of it with her memory loss, but he was there every step of the way for her. All those couples know what love is. They know it’s not sticking around for the good times, but being there for the bad ones, too.”
“Then that proves I’m right because as soon as things went bad, Zeke took off.”
Frannie shook her head. “I don’t believe that. I think maybe he’s hurting for some reason. He doesn’t trust that you feel the same way he does, and he needs a break. To protect his heart after a month of loving you and thinking he’s going to lose you.”
“I thought of another place Gwendolyn could be, and I didn’t tell him.”
Frannie sucked in a sharp breath. “And the body…”
Nina nodded. “Joyce.”
“So he feels betrayed.”
“It wasn’t about him.”
“No, honey, it’s about you. He’s terrified of losing you for good. There’s a threat out there, a very real one, and you didn’t share information that could have stopped Gwennie. He might be mad, but I think it’s more likely he’s scared and doesn’t know how to handle that. Men like him, men who are so capable and strong, they fall hard. And when they do, the woman they love is everything to them. Give him time. He’ll come back to you soon. He won’t be able to stay away, even if he knows it’ll destroy him to be near you when you don’t feel the same way he does.”
Nina sucked in a breath. Tears dripped down her cheeks.
“Unless you do feel the same,” Frannie said.
Nina nodded.
