Chapter 12
Twelve
Sabine
It’s two in the morning when we arrive at the beach house. In a matter of hours, it feels like I’ve gone from one foreign planet to another. From the blue-collar swamps in Louisiana to mansions on the majestic northern California shoreline. It’s also about twenty degrees cooler here.
What Astor’s beach house lacks in size is made up for in the surrounding property. Though the home is on a cliff, it’s surrounded by pristine forest and a garden that extends from the side of the house to the back. The cottage is warm and inviting, reminding me of an ideal romantic retreat, which is ironic, considering I’m arriving as Astor’s mistress while his bed-ridden wife lies inside.
What are we doing? This is ridiculous. There’s no way it can work. Right?
Astor shoves the car into park, pulling me from my spinning thoughts.
“Whose vehicles are those?” I ask.
“One is Cillian’s—though he’s supposed to be in New York handling business. The other is Leo’s. Do you remember him?”
“Yes, the shy, robotic house manager who resembles Chris Hemsworth.”
Astor cocks a brow.
“Don’t worry. You’re much hotter—and richer.”
“Phew,” he mocks.
I wink, then, “what are they doing here?”
“When I’m visiting you, I have Cillian stay to keep an eye on Valerie, and Leo has been hired to look after the property full-time.”
“Security detail?”
“Right.”
“Valerie doesn’t have an in-home nurse?”
“Yes, her name is Jackie, she comes during the days . . . although we’ve talked about extending her duties to stay overnight.”
“That’s a lot of people for a small house.”
“Tell me about it.” He looks at me, his face shadowed by the dark night. “You okay?”
I wring my hands on my lap. “I think so. Remind me of the plan again? We’re going with ‘housekeeper’?”
“I’ll take any other ideas you have, Sabine.”
We talked about it ad nauseam on the plane ride over, and decided that the live-in housekeeper was the easiest and most believable story.
“And I’m sleeping in the guest bedroom and you are . . . sleeping where?”
“I usually sleep on the couch, but I don’t really sleep. But with you here,” he wiggles his brows, “I’ll definitely be spending more time in the guest room.”
“What are we going to tell Leo and Cillian? They’ll recognize me.”
“Cillian knows everything and Leo is paid well enough to look the other way, trust me.”
“Money for loyalty?”
“Something like that.”
“What will you do during the days while I’m,” I air-quote, “cleaning?”
“Working.” He looks down, the first sign of stress I’ve seen on his face. “Cillian has stepped up to handle my job while I figure things out, but I’m still involved in most everything. And . . . I’m behind on things.”
“Because of me?”
“Yes. And you are completely worth it, Sabine.”
“You are completely out of your mind, Astor.”
“Just shut up and kiss me.”
“Wait,” I pull back, nibbling on my lower lip. “What if I can’t do it? What if I hate it here? What if it’s all too weird?”
“Then we’ll go to a hotel, and I’ll figure it out.”
“No, you need to stay.”
He threads his fingers through mine. “Sabine, I am taking this one hour at a time. We are together right now and that’s all that matters. Now kiss me.”
I lean in and take the intoxicating hit that is Astor Stone, and like the beautiful drug he is, just like that, my worry dissolves.
A cobblestone pathway leads to a rounded front door with a beveled window. The door opens to sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean. Though the cottage is small it’s been remodeled to Astor’s grandiose standards, with plush leather furniture, expansive rugs, and upscale amenities.
I’m just about to tell Astor how beautiful it is when I notice he’s stilled next to me with a concerned look on his face.
“What’s wrong?”
“Cillian is usually sitting right here, or in the kitchen. He always greets me. Something’s going on.”
Astor grabs my hand, pulling me through the house.
“Cillian!” He calls out, checking the kitchen. I’m pulled down a short hallway to the master bedroom, which is vacant. The bed is unmade and the sheets have been pulled back.
“I’m assuming this is Valerie’s room?”
“Yes. And she’s not here.”
“And I’m assuming that’s not good . . .”
We hurry back through the house and push out the back door to the garden, awash in silver moonlight.
It takes me a second to understand what I’m looking at. There are two people on the ground. Leo is kneeled next to Valerie and appears to be consoling her as she sits on the dirt in a stained white nightgown. She’s hugging her knees to her chest and rocking back and forth. She doesn’t appear to be responding to Leo, or even aware that he’s next to her, for that matter.
She looks ghostly.
Cillian is on his cell phone, pacing by the side of the house. He looks just as concerned as Astor.
Astor drops my hand and jogs across the dirt. The moment Cillian sees us, he hangs up the phone and hurries over. He nods to me in greeting, obviously having been apprised of my arrival ahead of time.
I keep my distance, lingering behind them, my stomach swimming with nerves.
Leo turns to Astor as he approaches. His face is ashen.
“She’s been like this for two hours. We can’t get her into the house. We attempted lifting her, but she fought us off.”
“Fought you off?” Astor gapes.
“Yes.” Leo notices me and frowns. Unlike Cillian, he was definitely not aware that I was coming.
Astor kneels down beside his wife, says something in her ear. She stops rocking. I can’t tell what she’s looking at. A bush, a flower, nothing? Whatever it is, it has her complete focus.
“Jackie’s on her way,” Cillian says.
“No. Call her back. I’ll handle it tonight. What are you doing here? I thought you left for New York this morning?”
“Valerie’s health declined soon after you left. She actually called out for you. It was . . . disconcerting. I didn’t feel comfortable leaving her.”
“You should have told me.”
“I knew you had things to attend to.” His gaze flickers to me.
“Tell Jackie I’ll call her tomorrow morning and we’ll regroup. I’m sure the doctor will want to adjust her meds. I’ll make an appointment as soon?—”
Just then, Valerie turns her head. Her eyes meet mine and she immediately stops rocking.
“Who’s that?” She asks Astor.
Everyone freezes in place, shocked to hear her speak.
“She’s going to be helping us around the house, Valerie. Come on, let’s get you inside.”