“I don’t know,” Tucker said evenly. “And neither do you. Because you haven’t talked to him.”
A tiny ember of hope lit inside her. Could she be wrong?
No. He didn’t love her. Didn’t want to be with her. What was it he’d said? She wasn’t who he thought she was. Why else would he have suddenly turned into a complete workaholic, keeping hours where he barely saw her at all, the moment they returned from their honeymoon?
Someone rang the doorbell, an insistent peal of bell.
“That’ll be Myles.”
“Did you call him?” Piper demanded.
“No. But by now he’s realized you’re gone. In his shoes, I’d be going all over town to every one of your friends trying to track you down.”
“I can’t face him yet, Tucker. Please.”
He sighed. “Fine. I’ll give you tonight. But you have to talk to him tomorrow.”
Tucker left the door to downstairs open as he went to answer the door.
Piper rose to follow, pressing herself against the wall and out of sight.
“You look like shit,” Tucker said.
“Is she here?” Myles sounded...rattled.
“Yes.”
Myles’ breath wheezed out. “Thank God.”
He must’ve tried to push past and come up because Tucker said, “She doesn’t want to see you.”
“I need to talk to her.”
“And she needs to talk to you. But it’s not happening tonight. Go home. Give her some space.”
“You really think I can just go home and wait this out? I don’t even know what the hell is wrong. How can I fix it if she won’t talk to me?”
What was there to fix? He was the one who wanted out.
“Look, she’s here, she’s safe. Right now, that’s all you absolutely need to know. Just let her be.”
“Tucker.” Frustration and pleading filled every syllable.
“She’ll come to you when she’s ready.”
Myles’ sigh was heavy enough that she heard it from the top of the stairs. “Okay. Just...take care of her.”
“Always have.”
“Thank you.”
A minute later, the door shut and Tucker came back upstairs. His face was grave. “That was not a man who looked ready to divorce his wife. He was just about crazed with worry.”
A trickle of guilt worked its way through the rest of her anxiety. “He’s not a bad guy. I should’ve let him know I was okay. Or at least that I wasn’t dead in a ditch somewhere.”
It hadn’t even occurred to her to turn her phone back on.
“Look, this is obviously your decision, but as your friend, as your legal counsel, I’m telling you to talk to your husband. Find out for sure what’s going on. I’m positive there’s more to this than you think.”