Fear of Falling by Catherine Lanigan

Author:Catherine Lanigan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2016-08-23T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

SINCE THE SECOND Rowan crossed the finish line, Olivia had gone back and forth between what her eyes told her and what her camera had captured so many times that her head was pounding. She hadn’t had time to inspect every single photograph but she’d uploaded the most important ones to her computer and reviewed the slow-motion footage before coming to the barbecue. And she’d seen the proof.

To make the situation even graver, in two days she would have to present copies of all her photographs of the race to the officials. They had hired her. The photographs would be examined by both amateur and eventually professional race judges. They could even be published, Howard had told her. Mr. Blue’s owners had the right to demand a retraction if they found evidence that supported his win. At that time, it would officially go on the books that Rowan had lost.

Olivia couldn’t imagine how devastated Rafe would be. The last thing she wanted was for him to find out from an investigative board or a published article that his victory was being rescinded.

She raised her eyes to his crestfallen face.

“What are you talking about?” he demanded.

Olivia’s mouth had gone dry, but the tears that had welled in her eyes burned like acid. “I saw it from the judge’s tower.” The rest of her explanation died on her lips. She swallowed hard and tried to wet her lips. Looking into Rafe’s confused eyes, she saw a new pain there: betrayal.

Olivia knew now she’d made the wrong decision. She shouldn’t have come here, and she should have never brought the truth to Rafe’s attention.

She strove daily to prove she was not her father’s child. She would never keep the truth from anyone she loved. Though she didn’t believe she was in love with Rafe, she cared about him. Maybe it was infatuation. Maybe it was friendship. But if she wanted any kind of a relationship with Rafe in the future—which she did, with all her heart—then they had to start with honesty. At least, that was what she’d convinced herself until the words Rowan didn’t win the race crossed her lips.

In the end, I’m just like my father. Destroying lives. Killing dreams.

“It doesn’t matter what you think you saw. The judge declared him a winner. Besides, I thought you were supplying the camera that took the pictures to prove it.”

“I...I did. Two of them. My digital camera showed he won. That’s the one that Howard checked.”

“Then it’s settled. It was the official call.”

She nailed him with a penetrating gaze. “That’s what I’m trying to tell you. I brought two cameras. The second one was a slow-motion digital that I could amp up to nearly ten thousand frames per second. He never saw those shots because— Well, he just didn’t. After I left the fairgrounds, I went over it all at home. It’s only by half a nose, but Mr. Blue was the winner.”

Rafe stared at her. She could tell he was processing the information.

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