Page 387 of The Sinner: James

I freeze.

And then thoughts bounce around my head.

Oh.

This is not only about Ed and Thea.

Things will be different for us too.

Hiding my expression behind my glass of wine, I observe James.

He must feel my stare, yet he doesn’t look at me, this little detail telling me there’s more to the story.

We move on from the news and focus on other topics, the evening unfolding quickly.

Later, we’re enjoying our desserts when Ed’s phone rings.

He picks it up, smiling.

“Hey, baby. We were talking about you,” he says before Thea’s voice echoes at the other end of the phone line.

She asks him something, and his eyes go around the table.

“James and Rain. Eve…”

She talks again, and then he speaks.

“Uh-huh. Eve is Rain’s friend. Okay... How do you feel? Did you have any food this evening?”

His words become a distant hum as I tear my gaze away from him, push my chair back, and rise from my seat.

“If you’ll excuse me... I need to go to the ladies' room,” I say, not looking at anyone in particular.

“I need to go too,” Eve says, pushing her chair back as well.

James' hand lands on my arm, prompting me to shift my eyes to him.

Our eyes lock.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

But he knows me better than that.

“We’ll be right back,” I say, smiling wryly.

Eve and I pull away.

We navigate the room, sliding past tables occupied by the guests of the hotel and crossing paths with an army of servers, sommeliers, and the Maitre D.

A few minutes later, we are in the restroom alone.

“What about that?” Eve mutters faintly. “I sure didn’t expect something like that. Did you know about it?”

“Had no clue,” I say, checking my makeup in the mirror and running my fingers through my hair.

Sighing, I pivot to her.

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