Chapter 20 #2
Silence stretched between them again as he stared down at the cushions on the floor, his features pinched. “I don’t see how that can be.”
Ava chewed her lower lip, her shoulders slumping as she glanced up at Alex. “Can you give me a minute?”
“Are you sure?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
She offered him a reassuring smile, though her insides twisted into a knot. “Yeah. Just a minute, okay?”
Alex flicked his gaze to Chris before he nodded. “Sure. I’ll just…be in the kitchen.”
“Thanks.” She waited for him to leave before she heaved a sigh, her eyes finding the rolling sea outside the window as she spoke. “I know this looks bad.”
Chris huffed out a sharp laugh. “You aren’t kidding.”
“I didn’t know he posted those pictures. I’m sorry you found out that way.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? What was the big secret?”
“I just…didn’t think it made sense to tell you who he was. Or that I’d be staying with him.” She inched closer, reaching for his hand. “I didn’t think you’d understand.”
“I don’t,” he answered, his fingers still lingering on hers.
“Alex and I are…best friends. We have been since college. And that’s…threatening to a lot of people. With the bombshell I dropped, I figured you’d take it the wrong way. So, I just let you believe it was some random guy, and I was on a commercial flight, and staying at a hotel.”
He lifted his eyes to hers, searching them. “So, there’s nothing going on between you two? You haven’t…rekindled anything?”
“No,” she said with a shake of her head, despite the voice whispering in her mind about the last few days.
“We never were romantic…ever. We’re just…
really good friends. And I would do anything to help him, so when he said he had some issues with StoneCorp, I came out to help and figured I’d just get the divorce then. ”
Chris finally pulled his hand away from hers, scrubbing his face. “I’m sorry, this is all just…”
“I know. It’s a lot. But there’s nothing going on so…why don’t you just…go home?” She hated the way that sounded coming out of her mouth, but there wasn’t a reason for him to stay.
He offered her an incredulous glance. “Go home? Are you serious? Just want me to…walk away and leave you here with your husband, wearing his ring, working with him at his company, and be okay with it?”
“In theory, that was what I said, yeah,” she answered with a wince.
“No,” he answered with a shake of his head. “Either you’re coming home with me or I’m staying here. I’m not leaving you here with your so-called husband and a murderer on the loose and heading home like nothing’s going on.”
She sucked in a breath, crossing her arms. “Okay, well, I’m not going home until this is settled. Someone tried to break in here two nights ago, and now someone has been murdered. I’m not leaving Alex.”
“Then, I’m staying, too. If you’re staying with him, I’m not leaving you.”
She smiled at the sentiment, still uncomfortable with the idea of him staying in the Hamptons for a reason she couldn’t place. “Okay. Well, then you can stay. It could be like a nice vacation, right? And you can work from here if you want. It’ll be fine. It’ll be great.”
“Fine. Let’s grab your stuff and go, then. We’ll find a hotel.” He took a step toward the doorway as he waved his hand.
She shook her head. “No. I’m not leaving. Chris, someone tried to break in here the other night. I’m not leaving Alex alone.”
“Ava, he’s a grown man with what looks to be a state-of-the-art security system. He’ll be fine.”
“I’m not leaving.”
“So, you want me to go to a hotel while you stay here with your soon-to-be ex-husband?”
She swallowed hard, regretting the words she was about to say even before she said them. “No. You…could stay here. With us. With Alex. At Alex’s house.”
She slid her eyes closed trying to stop her babbling. When she opened them, she found him staring at her.
“Here? With your husband.”
She shrugged. “Well, then you could see there’s nothing going on. And…it’s a nice place. Right on the beach.”
She offered him a nervous smile.
“You sure your husband’s going to be okay with that?”
“Oh, yeah,” she said with too many nods, “yes. He will be totally fine with it. In fact, we’ll ask him. Alex?”
Alex shuffled back into the room, his hands shoved into the pockets of his sea-themed pajamas. “Everything okay?”
“Great,” Ava said with a fake grin as she shot him a pleading glance. “Good news. Chris is going to stay with us for a little bit until we get everything sorted out. That’s okay, right?”
Alex looked anything but sure as he slid his eyes sideways to Chris. “Yeah. Totally cool. I’ll hook you up with my best guest bedroom.”
“Oh, well, surely Ava has that, right?” Chris said, narrowing his eyes at the man.
“Actually, I had this house built with two master suites, so Ava has her own room here.”
Chris stared blankly at him for a moment. Ava wrung her hands, certain the detail that he’d included her staying here in the house’s design wasn’t sitting well.
“Whatever,” Chris said with a shake of his head. “I’ll grab my stuff.”
Ava smiled and nodded as he left the room with Alex following to turn off the security system. She shuffled behind them, wiping at the beads of sweat that had formed on her brow in the tense confrontation.
She stood in the foyer as Chris slipped out the door, desperately wanting to reach out to Alex to both thank him and for comfort, but she kept herself firmly planted in her spot, crossing her arms so she wouldn’t reach for him. “Thanks.”
“Yeah, of course. I take it things are…okay?”
“They are…as good as they’re going to be right now. But it’ll get better. And now, you two can get to know each other.” She forced another smile onto her features, hoping it sounded better than it did in her head.
He slid an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer. Her head thudded as though she was doing something wrong, especially when she slipped her arm around his waist. “Thank you for staying with me.”
“Of course, Ace. I’m not leaving you in this mess. We’re in this together.”
He offered her a tentative smile, his upset with the situation obvious, but before he could speak Chris entered with his suitcase and a bag swinging from his shoulder. He glanced at the two of them, his features turning stony as he cleared his throat.
“Right upstairs, my good man,” Alex said with an awkward smile as he released his grip on Ava.
After they’d shown Chris to a room, Ava feigned tiredness. “Well, it’s probably a good idea to head to bed. It’s been a day.”
“Right,” Chris said as he crossed to her, giving Alex a sideways glance before he kissed her. “Well, good night. Uh…see you in the morning.”
“Good night,” she answered, her cheeks burning.
“Oh, uh, sorry,” Alex answered, shifting his weight from foot to foot. “I’ll leave you alone so you can…talk or…whatever. Good night, Avs.”
She offered him a polite smile before she glanced at Chris as Alex slipped from the room. “Well, umm, there should be towels and uh…extra blankets…”
“Ava,” Chris interrupted as she clutched her hands together in front of her, her eyes darting around the room, “I’m…sorry. I’m sorry for not trusting you.”
She swallowed hard, wondering if he’d been right to question her. “It’s okay. It’s…complicated. Anyway, umm, you’re probably tired from the long drive. So, I’ll leave you to get some sleep.”
He puffed out a breath. “I’m beat. I’ll see you in the morning?”
“Yes,” she said with a smile before she offered him a good night kiss and left the room behind.
With a heavy sigh, she shuffled to her bedroom and climbed into bed. Her mind raced with a tangle of thoughts as she tossed and turned. After an hour, she climbed from her bed to stare out the window at the moonlit sea.
Her shoulders slumped as she realized she’d never sleep. Not without resolving a few things first. Everything had been so stilted. She hated the tension.
And while she was certain it would continue, she needed to put a few things to rest. She needed to see him.
It couldn’t wait until morning.
With a resolve that belied her inner uncertainty, she left the confines of her room behind and shuffled through the halls to the closed door. Her hand hovered in the air, hesitant to knock, but she knew she needed to despite the doubt whispering in her ear.
With her lips pressed together and her heart drumming out a frenetic beat, she rapped her knuckles against the door and waited, her emotions a mix of hope and dread.