Harlequin Intrigue April 2020--Box Set 2 of 2 by Rita Herron

Author:Rita Herron
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2020-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

When Nina woke up she was achy. Not just from the stitched-up wound in her stomach, but all over. Her neck throbbed along with a pain at the base of her skull. When she slid out of bed, she nearly collapsed at the pain in her knees and feet.

She managed to steady herself and glanced at Cody in the dim light of the room. It had to be morning, but he needed his sleep. The white bandages had spots of blood bleeding through, and his complexion was so waxen.

Brady had assured her he’d come through, but it was hard to believe looking at him like this.

So she couldn’t. She slid out of the room and headed for the kitchen. She’d get some coffee hopefully, try to remind herself of all she’d fought for and would continue to, and when she returned to Cody’s side she’d be ready to have a determined outlook.

Nina stopped abruptly at the sight of the woman in the kitchen. She didn’t know what to make of Shay or the way Cody talked to her.

Or how the similarities between them made even her uncomfortable. Same color blond hair, same color blue eyes. Shay was taller, but they had the same kind of build.

“Morning,” Shay offered. “Coffee’s on. Help yourself.”

“Thank you.”

“And ibuprofen,” Shay added with a small smile, pushing a bottle toward the coffeepot.

“Bless you.” Nina fought off discomfort and moved into the kitchen. Shay shoved something into a big duffel bag and then hefted the strap onto her shoulder.

“You’re leaving?” Nina asked, surprised and maybe a little afraid they were losing this woman who seemed so sure of everything.

“I have to get back. North Star controls my life, and this was a blip they’re not going to easily forgive. I’ve got some major groveling to do.”

“But you helped us. You saved us.”

Shay’s lips twisted wryly. “It wasn’t part of the mission I was supposed to be involved with.”

“Then why did you help us?”

The woman shrugged. “Cody’s a good guy.”

Something uncomfortable turned in Nina’s stomach, but she didn’t have a right to that, so she tried to push it away. “I…”

“I’m going to go out on a limb and guess he’s been pretty tight-lipped about everything, but nothing ever happened between us.”

“Oh. Right. I didn’t…” It was none of her business. She hadn’t been with Cody. She had absolutely no hold on him those seven years she’d been hiding. Jealousy was dumb, feeling relieved by Shay’s words was worse. Shay seeming to read her thoughts was embarrassing. Still, it didn’t seem to shut her up. “Why not?”

“We would have gotten kicked out of the group.” Shay raised her shoulder as if that was that. “Neither of us could afford to lose North Star.”

“Then you didn’t want each other very much.” At the look Shay gave her, Nina turned a deep shade of red. “It’s none of my business. I’m sorry.”

“No, you’re right. I suppose we didn’t. Never really thought of it that way. Anyway, I’ve got to go or I’m canned for nothing.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.