Page 137 of Ruthless Intent

We’d been at the beach, fooling around in the caves when he shouted. He was standing shin deep in a rock pool, clutching something between his fingers.

“Pirate treasure!” He’d held it up, with a grin, and Louisa and I had gathered around to examine the coin. He stood by his insistence that it belonged to pirates when we laughed, and had it turned into a necklace, claiming it was lucky.

Her fingers brush over the back of my neck, smooth over my shoulder, and then she’s in front of me. Her eyes are full of tears.

I cup her face. Her hands come up to cover mine.

“I know,” she whispers. “I miss him too.”

I lower my head so I can press my forehead against hers. “I won’t stop until we know who did it.”

She squeezes my fingers. “You need to live your life, Zain. Don’t waste it trying to find answers that aren’t there.”

“They’re there. We just have to know where to look.” I press a kiss to her forehead. “Thank you. I'll always keep it close to my heart.”

I look over the top of her head at my mom.

“I told Marissa that Ashley is here.”

“I have nothing against Ashley,” Jason’s mom says. “Other than her being part of you being taken away from us all.”

“It’s a little more complicated than it seemed. I need you all to trust me.” I keep my gaze on my mom. “I know what I’m doing.” Dropping my hands, I walk around Marissa. “Did Peter take Ashley into Dad’s office?”

At my mom’s nod, I leave the kitchen and walk down to the study. I don’t bother knocking, open the door, and walk in.

“—at all times.” Peter looks up. “Ahh, Zain. I was just explaining to Ashley that she needs to act like she’s happy to be by your side at all times. And if she’s asked, she realized her testimony was wrong after seeing the footage of your interrogation and her interview.”

“I don’t need to be there. They’re here to see Zain.” She doesn’t look at me.

“And when they walk in and discover you here, they’re going to want to talk to you.” I take the seat beside her.

“Then I’ll stay upstairs, and no one will know I’m here.”

I snort. “You really think they haven’t found out we’re married? It’s public record, Ashley. They’ll know.”

Her cheeks turn pink, and her head turns slowly so she can look at me.

“Is that why you rushed it, instead of waiting until the weekend?”

“Something like that.”

There’s a tap on the door, and then mom’s head appears around it. “MO-TV is here early. I suggested they set up outside beside the pool. It’s nice out there.”

I stand up, and hold out one hand. “Ready?”

“No.”

I take her hand and pull her out of her seat. “Well, you better get ready, and fast. These people are going to be looking for anything that looks off.” I have to fight against the urge to tug her closer and kiss her.

“I’m not an actress, Zain. I work in the administration department of a hospital.”

“And you’ve been pretending to be in a happy relationship for how long? Just pretend I’m Scott. You must have been putting on a great performance, since everyone thought you were in love with him.”

CHAPTER SEVENTY-SIX

ASHLEY

His words cut deep. He knows nothing about my relationship with Scott, only what he’s decided it was.

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