Page 69 of The Replacement Wife

Elisa could do this. She could bat back mindless conversation. Play the game and try to lure Rachel in a bit and get her to talk. “Titan and his younger sister Lulubelle.”

“Wow, that’s something.” Rachel sat down on the large round ottoman that served as a coffee table and handed Elisa a mug. “Here. Can you sip on this?”

Elisa held the mug, letting the warmth seep into her skin, but no way was she drinking that. She fought to keep her fractured focus on Nathan. “What time is it?” she asked again.

“Almost three.”

“What?”Elisa tried to do the math but her brain rebelled. “I haven’t done anything all day.”

She tried to sit up higher a second time and failed just as quickly as she’d done the first time. Moving needed to be optional today.

“Do you want to projectile vomit?” Rachel snorted. “Yeah, I thought not.”

Elisa leaned back, resting her sore and tired body on the pillows. “I don’t understand how you got stuck taking care of me, which I don’t need you to do, by the way.”

“Your skin tone is green.”

Elisa didn’t think she was kidding. “Really?”

Rachel curled her leg under her. “I mean this in the nicest way possible... you don’t look great.”

Since she winced as she said it, Elisa assumed it was true.Rachel was probably more complimentary than she should have been.

“I feel terrible.” Elisa wrapped her fingers around the mug and held on. She was too out of it, and her muscles were too weak, for her to tell if she was managing a tight hold or not.

“There’s a twenty-four-hour thing going around.”

“Please, no.” Elisa closed her eyes. “That’s me begging the universe not to let Nathan get it.”

“Yeah, that would suck. Should I move those?”

Elisa reluctantly opened her eyes and saw Rachel frowning at the cats curled together between her legs. “Fuzz and Buzz? No, they’re fine.” Rachel’s skeptical expression said a lot. “You don’t like cats?”

“I don’t really understand the whole pet thing.” Rachel looked at the cats as if they were on fire. “I’ve been trying to hide my anti-pet bias until you and Harris decide I’m not so bad. Some people are rabid about their pets. It’s weird.”

Elisa laughed and immediately regretted the jostling. “We like you just fine.”

Well, sort of. Not really. For the most part, Elisa didn’t trust Rachel. Not after the fake name and the conversation she’d overheard between Rachel and Josh. She might pretend to be friendly and step in and act like a good nurse, but she slept with Josh, and that ruined everything else.

“You still look green.” Rachel eyed the mug. “Sip only.”

Elisa continued to hold the mug. “I couldn’t chew a noddle if I had to.”

The next fifteen minutes continued with Elisa resting andRachel watching over her. Elisa opened her eyes at one point and drank without thinking. The broth revived her. The gnawing in her stomach eased and the room flipped at a much slower pace.

Maybe Rachel wasn’t as bad as Josh. Elisa really couldn’t come up with a coherent question to ask to check.Why are you staying in a dingy motel?didn’t seem like the right way to go. Every idea that came into her head sounded offensive. Nasty. She’d heard what she’d heard in Josh’s kitchen... right?... but that didn’t mean Rachel was safe with him, or just in general, and all those unknowns left Elisa more confused than ever.

“Should I thank your boss for the day off?” Elisa cringed on the inside at her lame fishing question.

“What?”

Now that she’d traveled down this road, Elisa felt obligated to see it through. It wasn’t unusual to want to know some more information about Rachel. At least Elisa hoped not.

“You’re here in the middle of the day,” Elisa said.

“Thanks to all the travel I do, my non-travel hours are pretty flexible.”

That sounded vague and didn’t give a hint about the motel, so Elisa tried again. “Since I’m sick and you feel bad for me—”

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