Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 68594 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68594 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
I set Abby on the bed, watching as Quinn efficiently tucked her in, arranged the doll and teddy, then bent and brushed a kiss to Abby’s forehead. “Night, baby,” she whispered. “I’ll leave the light on.”
We tiptoed back to the living room, the night-light casting stars and shimmering moons on the ceiling.
“Will she wake up?”
“No, usually once she’s down, that’s it. Unless there is another loud storm.”
“I think it’s passed.”
“Good.”
I sat on the sofa, pulling Quinn close. She snuggled beside me, her head on my shoulder.
“You okay?” I asked.
“I’m good. Having you here really helped.”
I pressed a kiss to her head. “Good, but I meant about earlier. Sharing your story with me.”
“Yes. I feel…I don’t know, lighter, having shared it.”
“That’s always a positive.”
She was quiet then looked up at me. “That day when you stopped to help me with my tire, you said something.”
“I said a lot of stupid things.”
“No, I meant you said something that stuck with me. About someone flirting with a stranger and it not being the first time.”
“Ah, that.”
“That happened to you?” she whispered.
“Yeah. My ex.”
She turned, taking my hand. “I’ll listen if you want.”
I ran my knuckles down her cheek, not really wanting to talk about my past, but knowing she deserved to know my story too.
I blew out a long breath. “I’ll keep this short since I don’t like thinking about it, never mind talking.”
“You don’t have to,” she offered.
I hunched closer and kissed her. “Yeah, this time, I do.”
Maybe I’d feel lighter too.
12
JOHN
Ipaused, gathering my thoughts. She didn’t rush me or ask questions, simply waiting for me to be ready.
“I met Moira at an equipment auction. She was a sales rep, and we talked. I found her attractive, smart. When I was leaving, we bumped into each other, and she gave me her number. I called and asked her out. She lived in Wells, which is another little town close to here.”
“I looked there. Not as nice as Richton.”
I smiled at her words. I had to agree with her.
“She traveled a lot with her job. Always on the go. She was a no-nonsense person. A real go-getter.” I snorted, thinking about it. “A user.”
“What happened?”
“She supposedly lived with a friend. I only saw her place once—she liked to come here. She’d be here, then gone, come back, stay a bit, then off she’d go. I understood because I thought it was what she did. I didn’t particularly like it, but I knew what I was getting into. Or so I thought.”
I scrubbed my hand over my face. “Before I knew it, she was basically living here. Lots of her things were at the farmhouse. When she was around, we hung around Richton. She worked remotely, and I managed the farm. Things seemed great, and the truth was, I was falling hard for her.”
Quinn shifted a little, and I squeezed her leg. “I’m trying to be honest. Does it upset you?”
“No, I have a feeling where this is going, and I don’t like it.”
“Laura didn’t like her, which caused a few issues. Laura saw things I either didn’t see or refused to see. Things that didn’t make sense. A few times, her story didn’t line up. I noticed she had more than one phone. She insisted one was work and one was personal, and I accepted that. But she was lying about that and a whole lot more.”
“She was married?” Quinn guessed.
“Yep. And playing me well.” I had to get up and walk. I kissed Quinn’s hand and paced the room. “She had a husband and another life a few towns over. Wells was her base—her friend knew what she was doing and didn’t care. She lived two lives. I found out her goal with me was to get at my money, drain as much as she could, and disappear. Go back to her other life until she found another idiot. Rinse and repeat.”
“How awful.”
“She used people. Any way she could, the whole time acting like a good person and fooling everyone. She said all the right things. Acted the way she thought I wanted her to act.”
“Laura saw through her.”
“Yep.”
I sat down beside her. “I was stupidly thinking she was the one. I even started to think about marrying her one day.”
She grasped my hand. “Oh, John.” She worried her bottom lip. “How did you find out?”
“It was a fluke. I was helping Bob again. I went to Wells to pick up something for him. I was sitting in my truck, and I saw Moira with another man, getting into a car. She was supposed to be on a business trip, and instantly, I knew something was really wrong. I followed them to a house a few towns away, and I took down the address. I gave it to a friend I know who does some investigation work, and he found out a whole lot of information. She was married. There had been others like me. Findlay was her maiden name. She liked to pick her ‘boyfriends’ from her job.” I laughed without humor. “She had access to my personal profile. My banking. Anyone who was looking to be part of the auctions her company ran. She picked out the best prospects. Or at least, that was what she told me when I confronted her.”