Page 161 of Somebody's Watching Me
But his brother wasn’t doing it for Samuel.
“You’re going to love her as much as I do,” Rowan said, stifling a chuckle as Annabeth rolled to her back, sleeping with her mouth wide open. “Everyone will.”
They said their goodbyes, and Rowan stripped naked to get into bed. He had no intention of waking Annabeth for another round of sex but needed to feel her soft skin against his.
“Rowan?”
“I’m here, sweetheart.” He cradled her against his chest, and the little noise of contentment she made over having him near was as good as an I love you as far as he was concerned. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Chapter 34
“The victim in yesterday’s attack was Evangeline Fairweather, wife of Samuel Fairweather, acting head of Fairweather Holdings.”
“Why do they keep using that same old picture of Evie?” Abe asked as they watched the local news broadcast on his phone. “She was all snotty and nasty at Toby’s trial. Why haven’t you guys provided an approved one?”
“I want them to use those photos.” Jamison rolled her sore shoulders. When sleep finally hit, it hit hard. “They build sympathy.”
“The attack is said to be linked to The Zanmi Society. However, there is no proof of such accusations.”
“You said she had the mark.” Annabeth stopped fluffing her eggs and joined them at the kitchen island to watch. “Do you think you were mistaken?”
“Jamison wasn’t mistaken.” Simone exited her bedroom, dressed and ready to leave. She paused at the back door to watch two Hollingsdale officers wandering around the pool. “She’s just very good at her job.”
A sense of pride hummed in Jamison’s chest. “While Liam dealt with the police yesterday, I worked on spinning the details to the media. The wrong gossip in the right ear will always turn a lie into a truth.”
Abe remained confused. “So, you purposely made it seem like Zanmi could be responsible, but then had the media say the opposite?”
“There was an attempted kidnapping of a pregnant woman directly outside of her doctor’s office. According to statistics, that’s pretty common.”
“Common?” Annabeth mumbled. “How lovely.”
“It’s also pretty common for the attempts to be made by employees in the field,” Jamison went on. “Since it happened in a small community, people will be on edge if they assume it’s a non-targeted crime. The concern will linger, and as everyone watches their neighbors with suspicion, it’ll slow the roll of the news hitting the national stage by a day or two. Maybe even a week.”
“Giving Liam time to work,” Abe concluded. “Yeah, maybe you are pretty awesome.”
Annabeth nudged her shoulder. “Yeah, she is.”
“Why do you two sound so surprised?” Jamison leaned in and squinted at Annabeth’s full face of makeup. “And are you wearing lip gloss?”
Turning away, Annabeth busied herself at the stove. “Leave me alone.”
“Is it flavored?” Jamison teased. “I hear Rowan likes strawberries.”
“I’m actually a cherry kind of guy.” Rowan strolled in from the main hall and, without giving anyone else a second glance, went straight to Annabeth. “Good morning.”
“Morning,” Annabeth mumbled, already busy with the frittata she was making. “Since we all slept in, I’m cook—“
Rowan’s lips cut her off. Spinning Annabeth around, he laid a solid kiss on her mouth, not at all shy at tasting the gloss with a swipe of his tongue.
“Frittatas.” The word came out of Annabeth on a whoosh of air once Rowan was finished with her. “My mother is right there, Rowan.”
Rowan cradled Annabeth’s crimson face with his large hands, smug over her reaction. “And how are you today, Simone?”
Jamison grinned while Abe rolled his eyes.
“Still a little sore.” Simone slipped into the pantry to gather supplies to take to Evie and Samuel’s place, not at all bothered by the display they had witnessed. “But other than that, I’m peachy keen.”
“Excellent.” He dropped another quick kiss on Annabeth’s mouth. “Maybe I am a strawberry kind of guy, after all.”
