Page 31 of Fortune's Control
Determined to forget about him, I returned to my Internet search. The same thought occurred to me every time I checked on this case.What if?
I pulled up news sites from different metro areas in Georgia, but found no results, before remembering I had moved to a different state. Miami claimed its share of crime, but none of it matched my criteria. Tampa, Orlando, and Jacksonville were the same. Relieved, I almost gave up before remembering Gainesville existed.
With a relieved sigh, my search ended.
11-Shane
Lilah sat in the backyard, with a laptop on her knees and a phone in her hand.
“You ready?” Aiden asked.
I regretted agreeing to come with him. “In a minute.”
“Is she still not talking to you?”
Lilah lifted her sunglasses and looked towards the kitchen window, as if she sensed our conversation and felt us spying on her.
Every person in town knew I took Lilah to the Creekside Diner a few days ago. My friends also noticed that she hadn’t stopped by Aiden’s remodeling job since then and had switched from quizzing me about our strange marriage to badgering me about what I had done wrong. I didn’t answer their questions, while also not disputing that I was the one at fault.
“How do you apologize to a woman?” I asked.
Aiden joined me at the kitchen window so we both spied on her. “As a general rule, I don’t. Ideally, you leave before that stage arrives, but if I were, probably with flowers and a bent knee.”
“That sounds like a marriage proposal.”
He gripped my shoulder. “Oh, man, you won’t believe this because I have the perfect story for you. So, there’s this guy, right? He does something idiotic, and then he makes it worse.” Aiden slapped his chest, amused at his bad joke. “Look, youcan grovel now or you can grovel when we get back; it doesn’t matter to me. I have an appointment in Miami to pick up two cars, so we need to go. Grovel when we get back. That suits my timeline much better.”
I spent the night lusting after her, and for one moment, lost control and broke my self-imposed rule. I lay awake for most of that night, arguing with myself over which action was correct.
She avoided me since then, and the hurt in her voice when she called my name settled the argument. I was at fault and unsure how to correct it. Lack of practice will do that.
“Tell the customer that your idiot friend needed to fix things with his wife first,” I said.
“Oh, are we calling her that now? This is a fresh development. I still don’t know why you did it, and now, I’m confused why you two haven’t divorced yet.”
Because she walked past a window, and I followed her. That’s why.
*****
“Lilah?”
She pulled her sunglasses up on her forehead, so her eyes were level with my cock. They moved up my body, appraising every part of me. She dropped her sunglasses back in place before I could see her judgment.
“Emma, he’s here.” Silence. “Sure, I’ll call you back in a few minutes.” She ended the call and glared with pinched lips. “What is it?” Her laptop snapped shut like she didn’t want me to see the screen’s contents.
Too late.
“I’ll be out of town until late tomorrow nightwith Aiden. We’re headed to Miami to pick up cars from one of his customers.”
“Okay. Enjoy yourself.” She gave a curt wave.
Was that sarcasm or a genuine wish? I was afraid to ask. “I asked Jack and Dean to check up on you. Dean is Aiden’s brother. You met him that night when we…”
“I know who he is. That won’t be necessary.” She removed her sunglasses, setting them on the wide armchair. “I’m safe here.”
That was an odd choice of words, reminding me of Lilah’s moment several days ago, on our walk back from the cemetery. She believed someone followed her, despite the empty street. That fear was the secret reason she came to Fortune’s Creek. She didn’t spill her reasons for it before, and was less likely to do so now, which meant I’d need to solve the mystery another way.
“Jack’s our closest neighbor, and he’s two acres away. I’d feel better knowing my friends were looking after you. Help yourself to the house. I put a key under the back door’s floor mat for you.”
