Page 42 of Run for Her Life
Lisa considered it when her hand felt something soft in the hamper. She yanked it out without thinking and froze. A scarf. It was red with a blue border. And it definitely wasn’t hers.
Ethan was still babbling on the phone, but it slipped from Lisa’s grip. She sank to her knees, her hands shaking and her breath tearing in her chest. It was right in front of her—the evidence. The signs were always there—his disinterest in her fertility treatments, him spending most of his time in front of a screen, always getting himself checked out.
He was having an affair.
Only one bar in Pineview Falls was open at two in the morning. It was one of the town’s three bars, where nothing ever changed but nothing ever went unnoticed either.
Zoe was plopped on a barstool and stuffing fries into her mouth. Her stomach was queasy and the latest riddle had sent both hot and cold sensations through her body. She glanced at the handful of patrons hunched over their drinks, their eyes fixed on the game playing from a half-buzzing TV mounted in the corner. It was the highlights of high school football. Lakemore’s Sharks playing against the Ravens.
“I never got the appeal of sports.” Simon slid next to her and ordered a whiskey. “It’s too brutal.”
“There’s darts over there. More to your speed,” she said dryly, pointing at the dartboard hanging on the far wall.
He suppressed a smile. “I think sometimes you forget I’m your boss.”
“I think sometimesyouforget that,” she said, instantly regretting it.
Silence descended over them—the air thick with the cloying scent of old wood, spilled beer, and a faint trace of cigarette smoke that clung to the walls. The jukebox hummed low in the background, playing some old country song that no one seemed to be enjoying but no one bothered to change.
When Zoe couldn’t take it anymore, she asked, “Why are you here, Simon? And don’t give me your bullshit that you had work in the area this late.”
“I didn’t know where to go.” He drank his whiskey. “Nancy wants to talk.”
“That’s good, right? She wants to get back together with you?” It wasn’t long ago when Nancy had accused Zoe of meddling in her marriage, but her only crime was being in the orbit of a man who still harbored feelings for her.
He took another swig and winced at the bitter taste. “It’s complicated. I love Nancy. I really do, Z. She’s really amazing but…” He paused and bit his lip. “How do you force yourself to fall in love with someone?”
“You didn’t think of that when you married her? Seriously?”
“No.” He traced the rim of the glass with his ring finger. He still wore the wedding band. “I didn’t need to. I wasthere. Now I’m not. It’s like something wore off.”
“It could just be the seven-year itch. I don’t know why you’ve come to me.”
His eyes searched hers pleading, desperate. “Do you think we made a mistake breaking up all those years ago?”
Zoe’s throat went dry. She blinked, trying to pluck words from the air. Memories of them together burst behind her eyes. “It fizzled out.”
“But we were happy. It’s more than what most people get.”
“You like theideaof us, Simon. Your marriage with Nancy is growing stale and you are glorifying us.”
“Spending all that time with Wesley is making you a shrink too, huh?” He didn’t bother trying to hide his distaste.
“If you don’t like Aiden, why do you put him on cases?”
His smirk didn’t reach his eyes as he rubbed his chin. “I like the guy. He had it rough when his wife died. He used to smile a lot more back then.”
Zoe’s chest tightened. “He’s a widower?”
“He didn’t tell you? Sorry. I figured he had, with all the time you spend together.”
She didn’t know what to think. She thought his emotional map was clean while she had drawn hers with smoke, blood, and tears. “He didn’t. I guess we don’t get that personal.”
“I have to say that’s a relief,” he confessed, his eyes boring into hers. She noticed the whiskey in the glass was almost gone. “I was a little jealous.”
“Simon—”
“I’m separated, Z. Have been for months now.” There was a beat of silence. Zoe felt the air between them turn electric. When was the last time Zoe felt wanted? She was happy, bobbing through life like a buoy. But there was a glaring hole in her otherwise full life. At the end of the day, she came home to an empty house, drank that glass of wine alone, and slept in an empty bed.
