Page 85 of Between the Lies

He turned before Nina could raise her eyebrows at him. Knowing the importance of secrecy, she ordered the wee flutterings in her heart to stop. This was not a romantic getaway.

The woman behind the counter smiled at Nina then widened her eyes when she took in the state Nina was in. Nina shrugged. ‘I was in an accident. My h-husband thought it would be a great idea to take a little R&R break.’

The receptionist peeped outside. ‘Your husband is a jewel of a man.’

That Robert definitely was – a beautiful, muscled, kind-hearted man. And nothing showcased his personality better than the scene in front of her. Robert had just walked in holding her backpack, a weekend bag that likely held their clothes and another large portfolio bag of sorts. Underneath the weight of the bags and that thin T-shirt, his muscles were in easy view for both women to drool over.

Nina’s chest tightened. When the receptionist leaned over and trailed her eyes down Robert’s body like Nina had, an angry ball of lava boiled in Nina’s belly…

Before she could school her features, Nina’s legs carried her to Robert. She raised herself onto her tiptoes and laid a kiss him. She’d meant to press a quick peck, but when her lips fused to his, all conscious thought fled. Their bags crashed to the floor, and instead of grabbing them, Robert’s arms snaked around Nina.

He cocked his head to gain better access to her lips. And then said two simple words: ‘Upstairs. Now!’

The receptionist was red in the face when she handed them the keys and waved them off, but Nina paid her little attention as they disappeared up the stairs. Despite her cuts and bruises, her body was on fire. And she used the false serenity offered by her pain medication to hurry up the stairs. Robert was just a step behind her, running with the bags.

The moment the door shut behind them, those bags once again fell to the floor, and Nina found herself cocooned in Robert’s arms, with her back to his front. He kissed her neck and shoulders then tightened his grip on her.

Nina groaned. ‘I like that.’

Robert froze, then let out a curse. ‘You should take a nap.’

Nina’s shoulders deflated. Had he changed his mind about them? By the way his hand continued to trace her torso, Nina didn’t believe that. Yet he’d pulled away until their bodies no longer pressed into each other. And worse of all, he’d stopped kissing her neck!

‘I don’t want to hurt you,’ Robert whispered against her skin. ‘The person who killed Shah could’ve got to you.’

Ah!

Nina turned in Robert’s arms and slipped her own around him. ‘Hey, I’m fine.’

Robert kissed her – not passionately but slowly, like she might combust at any moment. His light kisses and gentle hands, coupled with the medication, pulled at Nina’s heart. A tear streaked down her face.

It’s salty taste was all it took for Robert to back away from her again. ‘I hurt you.’

She tightened her grip on him. ‘It’s been a long time since someone’s held me so tenderly and taken care of me. And I am a bit loopy.’ She intertwined their hands. ‘Stay with me? We can just nap.’

Robert helped her get changed and snuggle under the sheets. He followed suit… in his boxers.

Nina grinned at him. ‘Are you trying to tempt me?’

‘You need to recover.’ He slipped an arm around her, so she could rest her head against his chest. ‘And I… need to confess something.’

Nina slung an arm across his torso and traced the lines of his muscles. She ran her palm along the smattering of hair on his chest, then followed the trail downward.

‘I don’t think I knew my wife.’

Nina paused her wanderings. ‘Robert?—’

‘I thought about it – everything you said. I really did. Her working as a receptionist at the law office. Our entire time together, the accident/murder and now this. I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that the place Anne kept her documents is owned by Shah.’

Robert’s fingers had been tracing Nina’s shoulders, but now they found her hair and combed through the strands. For such a large man, he had a gentleness to him, especially when he held her like this.

‘There are too many pieces of evidence that point to Anne. And I’m not going to turn a blind eye. We have to investigate her.’

Nina kissed his chest and could almost feel the thundering beat of his heart. This wouldn’t be easy for him. ‘Robert, I appreciate you’d do it, but if we find something… you don’t want that to stick with you. You want to remember the good times.’

‘We hadn’t had those in a while. And I want the truth. Darling, you were framed for two murders. And now our chief suspect is dead, killed in front of you. And you… you are the only person who was there that night, apart from the real killer, who is still…’

‘Alive.’ Nina completed the sentence. ‘Whoever committed the original murders is still alive. And it doesn’t help that I’m suffering from amnesia.’

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