Surrender

Paul huffed. “I guess we should be going, cherie. I have an early morning. Trial tests start before the sun comes up.”

They rose from the loveseat. “Thank you again, Kate. It was a wonderful dinner.” Aubrey leaned over to kiss me on both cheeks.

Vaughn and Paul shook hands and we walked them to the door.

Aubrey gave me another quick hug. “Thank you.”

“Of course. Thanks for coming.”

The door closed and they were gone.

Vaughn’s eyes were dark.

“Say something, Em.”

I walked into the kitchen. I started washing plates and collecting bowls and platters.

Vaughn reached across me and turned off the faucet. The water dripped into the center of a pile of bubbles.

“You need to tell me what in the hell that was about.” The look in his eyes was powerful. Heated.

I didn’t want to break away. My heart hammered in my chest. The alcohol swirled in my head. This conversation had been festering all night. Lingering between us. Building.

And now things were going to explode.

Chapter Eight

The water dripped. One. Two. Three. Four.

Vaughn slammed his hand on the counter. “What was that, Em? What?”

“That was me trying to help you.” I threw a kitchen towel on the other side of the sink and spun on my heels. “Didn’t you like the roasted chicken?”

He growled. “I don’t care about the menu. I want to know how and why.” He shook his head. “Why was Paul Auclair in our apartment? How do you even know him? When did you meet Aubrey?”

“Why didn’t you tell me who Eloise really was?” I fired back, ignoring all his questions.

He stopped. “This was Eloise? The whole thing was her?”

“Yes.”

He hung his head. “What did she say? What did she tell you exactly?”

“That’s your response?” I pulled the high heels from my feet and tossed them in a heap near the couch. “You introduced me to her like she was a normal person. A French person. You lied to me when you said she was our realtor. She is clearly not a realtor.”

“It was her lie, not mine.”

“You went along with it.” I put my hands on my hips. “You let me believe she was something she wasn’t. You pretended you didn’t know her. Instead, the entire time, she was evaluating me. Watching me. Analyzing us. How could you let that happen?”

“It wasn’t my call.”

“You said we’d be honest with each other. You swore there wouldn’t be any more secrets. Eloise was a secret. Living in the same building as Paul was a secret. Where you work. What you’re doing. They are all secrets.”

“It’s my job,” he roared.

I stepped backward before I said something horrible. “Today, Blackwing gave me a job and I took it. For you. You think I sought them out? You think I wanted this?”

“No. I don’t want you anywhere near them. If they ask again, the answer is no. It’s always no.”