Claire got up from her desk. Her neck cramped and she
reached up to rub at the sore spot. She’d been bent over for
hours, doing nothing at all except reliving stuff that wasn’t
worth her time to think about. That damn seafood. If only
she’d decided on something else. Taken a closer look. Smelled
it. Tasted it.
The laughter came again, ringing through the house, jarring
Claire’s nerves. It had to belong to Haley. No one she knew
laughed like that. Like they were young and carefree again.
She herself had probably never laughed that way in her life.
Jenny was probably puttering around the grounds, doing
something in the yard. She liked being outside, and when they
were here, Claire didn’t require her to be breathing down her
neck or glued to her side. Jenny had once said about herself
that she was a bit like a wild animal, and Claire didn’t want to
cage her indoors.
She would make sure Haley didn’t leave. Claire hadn’t told
Jenny to supervise their new guest’s every move. She had no
one to blame but herself for that laughter.
Laughter that got under her skin with every passing
footstep. She swore she could smell Haley’s lingering
freshness and sweetness the further she went down the hall.
That sound of happiness in the face of what should have been
a terrible, silent day for Haley made Claire’s throat ache. It
made her stomach clench.
What would Haley’s pretty face look like as she was bent
over Claire’s desk, her ass painted red with handprints? Would
she squirm and weep for it and grow wetter and wetter?
Fuck. What’s wrong with you? You made a promise.
Claire hadn’t been the least bit interested in ruining Haley