Page 76 of Stealing Chances

“She knows that you know she steals your espresso, right?” Samantha asked with an affectionate laugh.

“Oh, I’m sure,” I muttered, head bobbing quickly as I forced myself to calm my racing heart and clear my thoughts. “It’s just a game we play where we pretend she doesn’t do it.”

“Such a brat,” Samantha said in that same gentle affection, then blew out a quick, determined breath. “Okay, so what—”

“Do you think LT could be the one who broke into my house?” I asked before she could finish speaking, then looked over to see her eyes widen in shock.

“What?” she finally asked, choking over the word. “LT. My cousin, Litany. That’s who we’re talking about right now?”

My shoulders sagged with a heaving breath as I turned to face her fully. “I didn’t want to say anything, really, but—”

“Wait, wait,” she hurried over me, voice still somehow managing to keep that endless calm she encompassed. “You’vebeenthinking this?”

“Please don’t be mad,” I begged as I stepped toward her. “I didn’t at first—she never even crossed my mind. No one did. But then Chase said something...” I gave her a helpless look and walked over to one of the large exercise balls.

With a sigh, I roughly fell to it and told her what the police had said about the likelihood of it being someone Chase was seeing and how Chase had remembered Litany. His guilt when he’d seen her and thatsensehe’d described about needing to stay away from her.

“And now,” I went on, lifting a hand to gesture to where Litany always parked, “I can’t stop dissecting everything she says. She asked about him three different times today. If he’d remembered anything new. If he was home. If we’d learned anything new about the break-in and what Chase thought about it...” I trailed off meaningfully and lifted an eyebrow.

“So, I don’t know,” I muttered. “Before all this, I would’ve never believed Chase would cheat on me, and I still don’t. And I don’twantto think LT would do anything, but I realized I’d given her a key at some point. And I just...well, I wanted to see what you thought.”

Throughout it all, Samantha had stood there. Listening as mixtures of shock, concern, and sadness flitted across her face.

“If I thought Chase might have cheated on you, or if I think he could’ve cheated on you with LT?” she asked softly, then hurried to add, “Or if I think she’s the one behind what happened last week?”

I thought for a while before shrugging. “I guess all of it.”

Samantha’s head moved in slow shakes before she reasoned, “LT has her moments, but she isn’t crazy. She isn’t going to come into someone’s house and steal things or leaveburned pictures.”

A shamed breath left me as I dropped my face into my hands. “You’re right.”

“And Chase...Chase has mentioned in front of me that he can’t stand her.”

“He has,” I acknowledged with chagrin, then looked at her again. “But what about him remembering her and all that?”

“I don’t know,” she said after a moment, shrugging as she did. “It could’ve meant so many different things.”

“That’s what I told Chase.” I straightened on the exercise ball and asked, “Do you hate me for even considering it?”

“Of course not,” she said with a scoffing laugh. “I think you’ve been going through something really difficult, even before someone left a super scary message in your bedroom. I’d be suspicious of everyone.”

“Even me?” I asked, twisting the question into a playful tease.

“Especially you,” she tossed back with a wink.

Grabbing one of the rubber bands near my feet, I flung it at her. “Brat,” left me on a huff just as a familiar Jeep pulled onto the driveway.

“And there he is,” Samantha murmured. “Guess that’s my cue to leave.”

“You don’t have to,” I assured her as I tore my stare from where Chase was saying something to Brandon as he climbed out of the idling Jeep.

“Except I do,” she said with a sigh. But just as she began stepping away, she turned toward me again. “I don’t know him well, but from all the things you’ve told me about Brandon, he’s this loyal, trustworthy, incredible guy.”

“Brandon?” I asked on a laugh, my stare darting to the Jeep again for only a moment before snapping back to her. “You know he’s married, right?”

But Samantha just waved a hand through the air, dismissing my question. “If this conversation had been about someone like him, I’m sure there would be no doubts. From you, from him, from any of us. But it’s Chase, Scarlet. Youwantto believe him, but have you ever really been able to trust him?”

My eyebrows knitted together as I stood. “What?”

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