The Life You Stole (Life Duet 2)

“Don’t be ridiculous.” She tugged on my arm until I stumbled a few steps toward her. “I’m right here. I have no family. No plans. I won’t take no for an answer. Let’s go.”

Bad ideas usually came with good reasons. Maybe she’d drop me off at the end of my drive.

“Oh, sorry.” She laughed, reaching over the console as I opened the passenger door to her red BMW. “Casper is my baby. His toys end up spread throughout my house and my car.” She tossed several dog toys into the backseat. “But I can’t complain. He’s the best dog.”

I slid into the seat and shut the door. “What breed of dog?”

“Bernese Mountain Dog.”

“That’s a large dog.”

She laughed. “Yes. He’s huge. A gentle giant.” Backing out of the parking spot, she shot me a playful wink.

“I’d love to get a dog for the kids.”

“Oh! You should get one from the breeder where I got Casper. She only has one litter a year. It’s not a business, just a passion. They are well cared for and very healthy.”

“I’ll think about it. It’s been a while since I suggested it to Evelyn. I brought it up before her mom died, but we decided to wait. And we just haven’t talked about it again.”

“I didn’t know her mom died. I’m sorry.”

I nodded several times. “Thank you.”

“My mother has been battling cancer for the last year, so I’ve been slowly preparing for the possibility of losing her.”

“Oh, I … I didn’t know.”

She shrugged. “I don’t tell that many people, probably because I don’t have any friends.”

What was I supposed to say? Before I had a chance to think of something, she said it herself.

“It’s hard to make and keep friends when people think I’m after their husbands. You don’t know how much it means to me that Evelyn isn’t that way. Clearly, she feels secure in your marriage. I hope you never do anything to break her trust in you.”

I glanced at her, but she kept her head forward, both hands white-knuckled on the steering wheel. Someone broke Adrianne, which sent her down a path of destruction, obliterating the lives of innocent and some probably not-so-innocent victims. She never shared specific details in the group, but resentment dripped from her words—the grinding of her teeth, the sharp release of her breath.

“Trust is hard. It comes in many forms. We trust the people we love to be honest, but we also trust them to protect us. What happens when the two are at odds?”

“Depends.” Adrianne’s deep red lips twisted to the side. “You have to be sure your intentions are true … pure. If you lie to someone you love to protect them, it better be completely for them.”

“Have you ever lied to selflessly protect someone?”

“No.” She smirked. “I did it for money and revenge, but I never disguised it as love.”

I shook my head, glancing out the window as we approached the road to my house. Before I had a chance to say anything, she turned right.

Taking a thick swallow, I scraped my teeth along my bottom lip. “Should I be worried that you know where I live?” Inching my gaze back to her, I waited for a response. Anything to explain how she knew where to go.

Her expression fell flat as if she didn’t hear me. I didn’t mumble or whisper. The radio was off. The road had been smooth. She heard me.

“Toby’s story irritated me tonight. I didn’t buy a word he said. I can’t believe Mike didn’t call him out on it. Seriously … who blames their addiction on their fifteen-year-old daughter?”

Toby’s fifteen-year-old daughter ran him over on purpose with an ATV. He got addicted to opioids. Adrianne must have caught something in the story that I didn’t. The guy had half a leg amputated, and his wife left him because she just couldn’t handle being married to a “cripple.” And his daughter got off scot-free because Toby told the police it was an accident.

I loved my kids right down to my soul, but I wondered if even that kind of eternal love could be severed if one of them chased me down for nearly a mile, weaving in and out of trees until I tripped, allowing them to run over me multiple times like roadkill.

So, while I didn’t completely understand Toby lying for his daughter, I also didn’t understand Adrianne being so critical of his moment of honesty earlier. I mean … he broke down in tears, feeling like a failure, wondering what he did wrong. Apparently, taking away a child’s cellphone after catching her with two naked guys in the back of the family minivan was what old Toby did wrong.

Note to self: Don’t give Franz and Anya cellphones—ever.

But really, screw Toby, his psycho daughter, and his heartless wife … I had bigger issues. Adrianne made it to my driveway without asking me for my address or assistance in navigating. And when I asked her about it … she brought up TOBY!