Harlequin Desire July 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 by Adriana Herrera

Author:Adriana Herrera
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2021-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

EIGHT

Roman was a widower.

Sable allowed the revelation to sink in while the spring sun warmed her bare calves. Birds chirped in the trees overhead. Sunbeams glittered on the Hudson River below them. But the happy bloom of oblivious nature no longer gave the day the same glow that she’d felt earlier. Now she understood why Roman’s skin had felt cold to the touch while they were inside the dim Gothic chapel.

He grieved for a woman he’d loved. A woman he clearly loved still.

“I’m—” Stunned you never mentioned a previous marriage. But this wasn’t about her. She could see for herself how much he mourned his wife. “I’m so sorry, Roman.”

She didn’t trust herself to say much more until she’d wrapped her head around this new disclosure. Her hand remained on top of his, and she stared down at it now, feeling self-conscious about the gesture. Feeling like an intruder in his grief when she wasn’t the woman who held his heart. Giving his hand a last squeeze, she let go and tucked her palms between her knees.

“I should have told you about Annette before. I almost did when we talked about your ex. But we ended up talking about the miscarriage and my thoughts shifted to the baby. And worry about you.” The raw honesty of the words pulled at her, forcing her out of her own thoughts to focus on him.

“Tell me about her.” She needed to know more. After that night she’d had dinner with him, she’d sensed he’d been holding back from her—keeping secrets. Now she understood this was it.

If he’d been holding his marriage close and not sharing with her, she suspected there was a reason for that. And it wasn’t that he just hadn’t found a way to introduce the topic.

Beside her, Roman draped his wrists over his knees, shoulders dropping.

“We met when she was still in college. I’d already graduated, but I went back to campus to speak at the invitation of one of my finance professors. Annette was one of his star students, on track for a big career after interning at a prestigious equity firm. She asked to speak with me about the industry and we—” He broke off, shaking his head as if he didn’t want to reveal intimate details.

Sable’s throat burned. She wouldn’t allow herself to feel jealousy for a dead woman. But the sight of Roman’s obvious all-encompassing love for someone else hurt far more than it should have. What room would he have left in his emotions for anyone else?

“You said she needed a heart transplant?” she ventured, trying to give him a way out of whatever he was remembering right now.

Nodding, he took a long breath. “She was born with a heart problem that required a transplant when she was just two years old. Transplanted organs have a shelf life, and although she’d done well with hers, she understood that there would come a time she’d need another one.” His head dipped as he paused, lines carving into his forehead while he seemed to gather his thoughts.

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