Page 56 of I'm Watching You

Lindsay rose, then squatted in front of Nicole’s chair and laid her hand on her arms. ‘I’d love to think this is just the flu. But you’ve been sleeping a lot and you’ve been nauseous too often to ignore it any longer. I know you don’t like the idea of carrying Richard’s child, but the possibility exists, doesn’t it?’

Defiance burned in Nicole’s blue eyes. ‘It was only just one time that he completely surprised me and I wasn’t able to take precautions.’

‘When?’

‘May.’

The timing would be right. ‘Once is all it takes, honey.’

Nicole pressed trembling hands to her cheeks. ‘I can’t have Richard’s baby. Ican’t.’

‘Hey, hey, don’t panic or borrow trouble. Just pick up a pregnancy test tonight. They have to be taken in the morning. By this time tomorrow, you’ll know where you stand.’

Nicole’s voice was a hoarse whisper. Her gaze reflected fear. ‘Lindsay, what if Iampregnant?’

‘Honey, let’s just do the test first. Then we’ll figure out what the next step is.’

Nicole offered a weak smile, but her eyes still looked panicked. ‘You’re right. One step at a time. You’ve been saying that since I arrived here.’

Lindsay admired Nicole’s strength. With only the clothes on her back, she had left a very powerful, very vengeful man. ‘Do yourself a favor and get out of the house today. Go see some of the city. Put that new camera of yours to work.’ Photography would give Nicole something positive to focus on temporarily.

A sigh shuddered through Nicole’s body. ‘I have been itching to try out the vintage Leica I found at the flea market last week.’

‘Perfect. This apartment could use some real photographic art on the walls.’

A clock in the hallway chimed eight times. ‘Now, I’ve got to get my act together. And my car is still at the shelter, so I’ll have to call a cab.’

‘Why is your car at the shelter?’

She shrugged. ‘Long story.’

Nicole rose, shaking her head. ‘You don’t want to tell me.’

Lindsay smiled. ‘Not right now.’

‘I get that we all have things we don’t like to talk about. Okay, I’ll drive you. Give me fifteen and I’ll be ready to go.’

Lindsay touched Nicole’s shoulder. ‘It’s going to be okay, baby or no.’It’s going to be okay. She was trying to reassure herself as well.

Nicole straightened her shoulders. ‘I know.’

Both smiled.

But neither believed the other.

Minutes before seven, Zack arrived in the lobby of the Public Safety building. The modern building, located in the west end of the county, housed the homicide division and sat adjacent to the police training facility.

Zack headed past the guard at Reception and, instead of taking the elevator, climbed the steps to his second-floor office. In deference to the heat, he’d skipped the suit today and dressed in khakis and a white collared shirt. The way he figured it, he and Warwick would be doing a lot of legwork on the Turner case.

The homicide division consisted of five small offices, one for each detective, and a conference room with a long table that sat twenty. Fluorescent light made the industrial-blue carpet look gray and the ivory walls washed out.

His eyes itched with fatigue. Dreams of Lindsay had invaded him and kept him awake half the night.

Last night’s dreams were different from the others he’d had this past year. They weren’t a replay of the fights they’d had during the last days they’d lived together. Thesedreams had been purely sexual. Until yesterday, he’d almost forgotten how good the sex could be between them. When he’d awoken, a restless energy had been churned up. He’d gone for a long run, taken a cold shower, but neither had been enough to banish Lindsay.

‘Damn.’ He grabbed a cup of coffee from the break room and headed to Warwick’s office.

Warwick glanced up from his desk. ‘You look like shit.’

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