Page 70 of Forbidden Whispers

“Would you give us a bit of time to just be alone together before...everything changes? I promise we won’t run off.”

Maggie could sense the sincerity in the young man’s eyes, but Valentina’s face remained hidden against Eric’s shoulder.

“What about you, Valentina?” Maggie whispered.

Valentina took a deep breath and lifted her head, turning to face them. “I—I promise, too. I swear on my mother’s grave, we won’t run.”

Maggie and Noah exchanged a look, an unspoken agreement passed between them.

“All right,” Noah said. “We can do that. How much time do you need?”

Now it was Eric and Valentina who exchanged a look. Then Valentina said, “Just a day.”

“How about if we contact you tomorrow evening at some point, as soon as we’re ready to put your plan in motion?” Eric said.

“That works,” Noah said.

Noah and Eric exchanged cell phone numbers, then Noah, Maggie, and Boon got ready to leave.

“I really am sorry about all of this, Noah,” Valentina said; her gaze was now steady, her expression determined. “You have to understand that I grew up in a very different world from the rest of you. But with this man at my side,” here she nudged Eric with her shoulder and gave him a small smile, “maybe there’s hope that he can make a good woman of me yet.”

Eric looked down at her, smiling tenderly. Then he lifted her left hand and kissed the spot just beneath where the ring glittered on her third finger. “You’re already a good woman, Tina,” he said. “You just needed me to remind you of that.”

Chapter 20

In the pouring rain, Noah and Maggie dashed back to the car with Boon. They all clambered inside and Noah started the engine, but he didn’t put it in gear. He pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to her. She smiled at the old-fashioned gesture, but gratefully mopped off her wet face and then used it to squeeze the rain out of her dripping hair. Afterward, Maggie rested back in her seat, her eyes closed, mind whirling.

She was so happy to know that Valentina was alive that she wanted to dance. She knew the path before them was not going to be an easy one, but now, at least, Noah was going to be safe. There would be no murder charge against him, and it was a relief to have a solid plan in place.

But now that they were alone again, some of the underlying peace she’d just experienced dissipated as her thoughts flipped back to earlier that evening.

She and Noah had kissed. A really, really good kiss.

The thrill of that memory swept over her like a Lake Michigan wave, making her heart race. But coming right along in its wake was a feeling of dread. The love she had for Noah Riley that had begun blossoming in high school was now in full bloom. But she felt her throat grow tight as she thought about the fact that he didn’t feel the same way about her, and she swallowed past the hard lump that had formed there. How could she possibly go back to trying to find the perfect match for Noah in light of her feelings toward him? The answer was, she couldn’t.

Noah’s voice broke into the turmoil of her thoughts. “Can you believe all this?”

---