Page 141 of Blue Moon

LUNA

The smells coming from the kitchen were good, but when Mark Antony slid a plate of pastries in front of me, I regarded them with suspicion.

“Did you put anything on these? GHB? A roofie?”

Monday morning, and I’d missed two shows at the Palace. Frank must have lost his mind by now. All those refunds… Didn’t this cheese puff realise my professional reputation was at stake here?

“There’s nothing on them, I promise. The roofie was a means to an end.”

“How much did the waitress at the hotel charge you?”

He laughed heartily. “Oh, Nola didn’t do it for money. She did it for love.”

“Love? She…loves you?”

What about the whole “wife” thing? Yesterday over a dinner of venison, mashed potatoes, and honey-roasted carrots, Mark had asked why I hadn’t worn the jewellery he’d gifted me, and I’d had to bluff my way through the conversation. Better to tell him the cuff and earrings were safely tucked up in the hotel safe than admit one present was in an evidence locker and the other had been lost by a school kid. Then he’d presented me with a ring. He hadn’t said it was an engagement ring, not in so many words, but he’d slid it onto that finger. Then cursed under his breath when it got stuck at the knuckle. My hands were bigger than he thought, he said.

The awkwardness had continued after dinner when he tried to kiss me. It was a situation I’d faced a hundred times—the unwanted attention—and I knew to wait until the last second to turn my head so his lips landed on my cheek instead. Then I braced for anger, but what I got was…hurt.

“Is everything okay?” he’d asked, further proof that he was totally oblivious to regular human emotions.

“I just…” I just felt as if slugs were crawling over the inside of my skin. “I just think we’re moving too fast. I mean, I understand our souls are joined on a deeper level, but we’re still basically strangers, aren’t we?”

“Yes, I suppose that’s true.”

“So we should get to know each other. Why miss out on the best part of the relationship?”

“The…courting?”

“The slow exploration of each other’s psyches. Creating special moments. The delicious sense of anticipation.” Dammit, he didn’t look convinced. “Also, it’s that time of the month, so I feel a bit squicky right now.”

He’d blanched. “Uh, right. Yes, yes, I do understand. There are, uh, products in the bathroom. Kacie insisted I buy them.”

“You’re a good man, Mark.” Gag. “The best.”

“So how long does that usually…you know, last?”

“Like, a week? Do you have Tylenol? And I could really use a hot-water bottle or one of those wheat bags you put in the microwave.”

The one Ryder had bought for me was shaped like a piglet. It was possibly the sweetest gift I’d ever received.

“I’ll have to pick one up in town.”

I cringed as I reached across the table and squeezed Mark Antony’s hand. “I’d appreciate that.”

Phew. I’d bought a week. A week before my captor would try to touch me down there. Now Ryder had to do his part and get me the hell out of this place. And he would. I’d only been here for two days, and he had to be hot on the trail.

All I had to do was keep pretending.

No biggie.

Which was why on the morning of day three, I smiled and sipped the cup of coffee Mark Antony had poured for me.

“No need to worry, dimidium. Nola and I aren’t involved.” He seemed to find the idea amusing. “She loves her son, not me.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I’m sorry the photographers bothered you so much. It was me who spotted one of them trying to sneak backstage, did you know that? When I radioed through, a colleague caught him and escorted him out of the hotel.” A colleague? Mark Antony worked at the Nile Palace? “The photographer had stolen a staff pass.” He shook his head. “Unbelievable.”

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