Love Loyal and True (Must Love Diamonds 2)

So very well.

Realizing she was staring and in danger of drooling, she murmured, “The goodness of the suit is getting to you.”

“Actually, there is a debate as to whether Batman is good, or if he’s really a villain.”

“Seeing you in that costume a week ago, I’d have said villain.” Her lips quirked as she lifted her gaze back to his. “Now, I’m not so sure.”

“The same argument is had for Catwoman.”

Roxanna tilted her head in surprise. “I would not have pegged you for a comics guy.”

“Not so much now, but I read the hell out of them when I was a kid. I don’t imagine the argument has changed much in fifteen or twenty years.”

A trio of loud party-goers walking to a nearby vehicle drew their attention. In the silence between them, she was hyper-aware of the man beside her, and marveled at their civil—almost friendly—exchange. She wasn’t quite sure what to make of it considering how they’d parted Monday morning. Recalling the moment she’d shut the door in his face triggered a wave of remorse.

He reached up to pull his mask off and dropped it on the bench. Lifting both hands, he scrubbed his fingers through his flattened hair, then did one casual swipe to smooth it into his regular style. Kind of. After sneaking a sideways peek beneath her lashes, it took everything she had not to reach over to arrange the remaining errant strands just so.

“There is good and bad in all of us,” she said, referring back to whether the characters they’d dressed as were heroes or villains.

“True.”

He shifted slightly while rubbing his palms up and down on his thighs. Almost as if he was nervous—which was a very odd look for the oldest Diamond sibling. One of the things she’d always admired about him—secretly, of course—was his self-assurance. Even if most times he was an ass about it.

She realized how messed up that was, but ignored it anyway as she monitored his movements from the corner of her eye.

When his hands went still and he took a deep breath, she bit back a mystified smile. Definitely nervous—but why?

“I know I’ve been somewhat…ah…cynical of what you do. And I—”

Her snort of disbelief cut him off. “Somewhat?”

“Okay, a lot,” he conceded. “I’ve been a lot cynical of your profession, and—”

“Cynical isn’t the right word, either.”

He frowned. “May I talk?”

“Go for it. Just get it right.”

“I’m trying to apologize here.”

That should’ve shut her up, but the words kept coming. “Mocking is the word you’re looking for. Contemptuous. Disparaging. Hostile. Any of those would do, too.”

“Or, I don’t have to apologize at all.”

“I just want to make sure you understand how you’ve come across the past six years.”

“I do understand.” Exasperation stiffened his tone. “Why the hell do you think I’m apologizing? Or trying to.”

Her neck ached from having her head turned to look at him, so she swiveled her body to face him while drawing her leg up to rest sideways on the bench. With her own mask grasped between her linked fingers, she met his gaze. “Go ahead.”

“I have not been very…” With the hesitation, his gaze lowered as he clearly searched for his words. Then he sighed, and the corner of his mouth quirked in resignation when he shifted his gaze once more. “Yeah, okay, I’ve been hostile to you when I should not have been. I know you didn’t have anything to do with that psychic hotline that blew up my last engagement, but I still blamed you for it.”

Guilt dropped her gaze to her lap. Even if she hadn’t knowingly contributed to the scam, did she carry culpability?

“Are you still in love with her?” Her heart skipped at the question, dreading his answer.

“With Lisa? God no. Truth be told, those thieves probably saved me years of unhappiness and a ton of money in alimony. I was with her for all the wrong reasons, but I had blinders on. I was too focused on the career ladder I was climbing to realize it.”