Page 14 of The Billionaire's Wife

“Does that happen a lot?”

“Not really.” He shrugged and flipped open the folder he’d been referring to off and on for most of the afternoon. “Doesn’t mean it won’t.”

“Right. And it would be horrible if someone knew I existed?”

He looked up, eyebrows drawn together. “You’re hiding from the Ortegas.”

“And your admin is an informant? And your friends?” I held my hands out palms up. “You’re being seriously overcautious.”

“Sure. And your sense of caution and self-preservation is why you’re here.”

“Wow.” I blew out a breath. “I did a darn good job for fourteen years.”

“You did. And then you didn’t.”

I couldn’t even fight him on it. It was true. If I’d sensed the trap sooner, then I wouldn’t have had to run. I would have found a way to turn down the work and relocate without it being a big deal. I’d done it before.

I closed my eyes and counted to ten slowly. I couldn’t afford to fire off the retort that hovered on the tip of my tongue. I needed Tristan. And he did not need me. Which meant I was the one who had to suck it up.

“Maybe I should just stay in the condo. Your admin has to be wondering why you’re being weird.”

Tristan frowned.

“You know I’m right.”

He grunted. “I wouldn’t go that far. But she might have made a comment or two.”

“Uh-huh.” I wanted to point at him and sing “I told you so” but I held it in. “So maybe you can accept that I don’t need a babysitter?”

Tristan was silent.

I fought a sigh. “Look. I promise I won’t disappear.”

“Your track record with promises isn’t stellar.” Tristan’s gaze met mine.

My face burned as the memory of standing with him in front of a judge flashed to mind. I could almost feel the warmth of his hands holding mine as he promised to love, honor, and cherish me. I could hear myself echoing the words to him.

He nodded once.

I looked away.

“Come on. Let’s head out. We need to make a stop.”

Questions raced through my mind, but it was pretty obvious that he wouldn’t answer them, so I kept quiet. I went out of his office and waited while he turned off lights and locked doors. We crossed the front room in silence and stepped out into the cool evening air.

Tristan locked the main door and tried the handle. He gestured for me to go ahead.

My stomach rumbled. Hopefully the stop would be dinner. But I couldn’t imagine he was going to take me out to eat in a restaurant where people might see us. Which meant what?

The lights on his car flashed and it beeped as Tristan unlocked the doors. I went around to the passenger side and climbed in.

He used to make a big deal of holding doors for me. I’d lost that privilege now. Which was fine. Good, even. It wasn’t like I expected that kind of treatment. I was perfectly capable of opening my own doors.

I pulled the door closed with a tad more force than strictly necessary, fastened my seat belt, and crossed my arms.

Tristan clicked his seat belt into place and glanced over. “Feel better?”

Oh sure. Sound smug. I wanted to growl. The problem was, I knew I was acting the fool. I didn’t need him rubbing my face in it. “Not yet.”

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