Page 49 of Love Over Time

She gave me one of her sexy moans, so familiar now, so intimate. When she recovered, she met my gaze. “All thecomesin the world won’t let me forget why I’m here. I won’t stop until…”

“Lisa.” I suppressed a smile.

She slapped my hand. “I know my own sister’s name.”

“You paused. I figured—”

“Fuck off.” She pushed me and stomped upstairs.

She was so damn stubborn. I sat on the sofa, leaned back, and shut my eyes. When it came to Nikki, I couldn’t see straight. I wanted her to be happy. I wanted to keep her safe. But where Nikki was concerned, she couldn’t have one without sacrificing the other.

I peeked at my watch; it was three in the afternoon. Good enough for me. I sauntered to the cooler behind the bar to grab a beer. After a couple of long swigs, I spotted Nikki’s purse by the door. I set the bottle on the counter and went to pick up the bag. When I dumped all the contents on the coffee table, Nikki’s phone skipped across the top, followed by the manila folders, stacks of money, and Mom’s jewelry. She had close to half a million dollars in cash. Why did she keep this in her personal security box? Everything about Mom’s actions seemed paradoxical at best. Hadshekilled Dad? Was that why Jonathan kept her prisoner? But why had he taken her out to dinner as if they were old friends? Was it all a ruse to throw me off?

“What are you doing?” Nikki stood, looming over our loot. She was in her pajamas—white skimpy shorts and a tank top in that oh-so-thin fabric.

“You’re not mad at me anymore?”

She sidestepped the coffee table, braced her arms on the back of the sofa, and let those long legs of hers straddle me. I hadn’t recovered yet from our last round, too soon, but my cock stood at attention anyway. She rubbed against me, and I fell back, chest pounding. We could give it a shot.

“You can sex me up anyway you want, Henry,” she said in my ear. Her whisper vibrated inside my pants. I gripped her hips, hard for her again. “But that won’t stop me from doing whatever it takes to help Lisa. You have to accept that. Now be a darling and order us a pizza. I’m starving.” She plopped herself next to me and grabbed a manila folder off the table.

I unbuttoned my jeans.Christ. “I’m sorry, okay?”

She shrugged, her eyes roaming the papers she placed on her lap.

“Maybe later you can tie me up and have your way with me. Would that make us even?” A guy could dream.

She stared at my chest and then moved down to my abs, making my mouth go dry. “Maybe.” She smiled.

Adjusting my pants, I went back to the bar and grabbed my phone. I called the pizzeria on First Street and placed an order. It was late for lunch and too early for dinner, but they took my order anyway. Nikki and I were on our own timetable, our own world.

“Anything?” I offered her a beer.

She shook her head. “No. There’s an insurance policy here for you with Tessa as the beneficiary, though.”

I took the folder from her. “So what now? My mom is trying to kill me to get even more money? This is ridiculous.”

“Don’t jump to conclusions.” She picked up another folder. “Here’s another insurance policy for her, withyouas the beneficiary. Look at all this. This is pretty much everything I keep in my getaway bag.”

“You keep a getaway bag?”

“I’m a thief, Henry.” She paused, her eyes full of meaning. “Today was a good example of what a normal day looks like for me.” I winced, and she placed her hand on mine. “I have to be ready for whatever comes at me. And I’m a hundred percent sure that’s exactly what Tessa’s been doing all these years.”

I rubbed my chest. I wanted to believe Mom was innocent. It hurt less to think my dad’s brother was to blame. “If she’s so innocent, why did she leave the restaurant with Jonathan? The bartender saw them.”

Nikki frowned, rubbing her temple, staring at the coffee table as if the answers were written on it. “I remember this necklace.” She picked up a sapphire pendant on a platinum chain and let it hang from her fingers. It swirled several times, catching the light with every turn. “I can’t tell how many times your mom let me play with her jewelry. I liked touching sparkly things.” She laughed. “She used to comb my hair while I played when I was supposed to be cleaning her room. She didn’t care.”

I swallowed tears, ducking my gaze. Nikki believed in Mom. In her mind, there was no doubt Mom was yet another one of Jonathan’s victims. I wanted to believe that too.

“Here. Put it on. It matches your eyes.” I took the necklace from her. She grinned, facing away from me as she put her hair up. I clasped the chain and kissed the nape of her neck before she let her hair fall back in place.

She turned toward me, her fingers wrapped around the stone, a deep scowl on her forehead. “It’s lighter than I remember.”

“You had smaller hands then.”

“True.” She met my gaze.

A loud knock on the door made her flinch. Her pupils got big, eyes on full alert. Yeah, Nikki was a thief. And I was no longer a poor construction worker. How would that change the way she felt about me? I scraped a hand over my face. I was an asshole for even thinking that.

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