Page 86 of Somebody's Watching Me
“Tell me what you’re thinking.” She dropped the phone into her robe pocket. “It’ll make me feel better to hear your theories.”
Sadness edged around his eyes. “Once upon a time, you didn’t have to ask.”
No, she hadn’t. Once upon a time, their life had been perfect, and she would have known what he was thinking without much effort. “I guess the fairy tale is over.”
He grabbed the bottle of wine to top off their glasses. “We were never a fairy tale, Jamison.”
“Could’ve fooled me.”
“Fairy tales involve women waiting to be saved by Prince Charming.” Corking the bottle, he set it aside. “I’m no Prince Charming, nor are you some damsel in distress.”
“Careful.” She smiled as she chewed. “I can hear your inner Bernie coming out.”
Before her attack, Bernie Cohen worked as a family therapist, specializing in marriage counseling. She would often watch them interact together, saying how happy she was that her son had fallen for a woman who had the ability to speak her mind.
“I’ll tell her that the nagging stuck.”
“But really, what’s the next step?” She nudged his shoulder with hers. “What should we expect?”
“As I said, I need to draw him out again.”
“How?”
Leaning in close, he placed his lips next to her ear. “By using an enticing piece of bait.”
Her head snapped around. “I love that you think I’m going to help,” she said sarcastically. “Once was enough, thanks.”
“And I love that when I say an enticing piece of bait, you naturally assume I’m talking about you.”
Finished eating, she took her plate to the sink. “Because you are.”
“Yeah, I am,” he said, the heat of his stare following her as she cleaned up. “So, what outfit are you wearing to Annabeth’s party? Something sexy?”
“It’s a costume party.”
He snickered. “Please tell me you brought the Mad Hatter costume.”
Laughing at him over her shoulder, she really did feel better. The food, the wine, and time alone with him was exactly what she needed to recenter. “Maybe.”
“It’ll draw Sinclair out for sure.”
She paused in her washing, the hot water scorching the back of her hand. “I thought you said he was playing at something and didn’t have so-called feelings for me.”
“Sometimes, I’m wrong.”
Not knowing how to think, she set the dish down and shut off the faucet. “And you’re serious about using me?”
When he didn’t reply, she turned around, her heart sinking. “You are.”
“The only link we have to him is you. Sinclair and Zanmi together isn’t a plausible combination, but Sinclair using them because he wants you is a theory I can get behind.” Going to the garbage can, Liam scraped the remains of his food into the trash. He hadn’t eaten much, but she would save her nagging for later. “Obsessing over you is something I’m well acquainted with, so I know how to use that mindset—”
“Oh, stop.” Snatching a dishtowel off the counter, she slapped his bicep with it. “None of the stuff he said was true!”
Bringing his plate over to clean in the sink, he sighed when she crossed her arms and wouldn’t let him pass. “It wasn’t true, Liam.”
“A majority of it was, so what’s to say that the rest of it wasn’t?” He popped his jaw and gently pushed her out of the way to place his dirty dishes in the sink. “But hey, if you’re up for it, we can review the phone call right now and dissect each part.”
“Liam.”
