Smoked & Mirrored: A Marriage of Convenience Romantic Suspense (Seasons in Snowhaven Book 3) by Nellie K. Neves

Author:Nellie K. Neves [Neves, Nellie K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2022-11-29T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 19

The Nightmare

Ivy

We opened the floodgates, so to speak. At least when it came to talking. We didn’t stop the whole drive back to the manor. Likes and dislikes, memories from college, things we had in common and things we just didn’t get about each other. It felt like we talked about everything on that long drive.

Everything but that mini-makeout session we’d shared under the oak tree.

That was off limits.

Taped off with caution tape and boarded up, never to be discussed again.

It wasn’t his call, it was mine. And thankfully, I didn’t even have to voice it. Deacon seemed to sense that it wouldn’t be a good idea, and he left it alone. I don’t even know what happened. Was it the rush of the moment? The way he’d caught me like a prince from a fairytale? Maybe momentary psychosis brought on by romance and his dashing good looks? I couldn’t pinpoint it, but the whole thing left me confused. This wasn’t supposed to be permanent. If I got attached, I’d want to stay, and the whole point of this arrangement was to give me the freedom to leave.

We didn’t get back to the manor until well after dark. Deacon had work in the morning, so I let him have our room first so he could get to sleep sooner. I found a book and read for an hour in the downstairs study, hoping to distract my mind with a fictional world. Instead, I found myself reviewing the day.

As much as I’d enjoyed my time with Deacon at the end, the rest of it stuck with me like the sap from the tree. I’d learned in one of my classes that the brain was better at hanging onto the negative moments than the positive. That explained why I couldn’t forget my blunders at the party and kept rehashing them in my mind. Every now and then, I swore I could smell that cologne, the bergamot and patchouli, like it had followed me home.

Like he’d followed me home.

I set my book aside and started up the stairs to get ready for bed. Sounds echoed through the entryway. My skin prickled with goosebumps. This big house felt haunted at night. Too many sounds I didn’t recognize. Too many shadows to hide secrets. My feet quickened as I thought about Victor and his connection to my past. If he talked, how long would it take before I was in danger? A week? A month? Was he already a threat to my safety?

I slipped into the bedroom and didn’t exhale until the door clicked shut. In the darkness, I wasn’t sure I was alone. Bracing myself, I moved silently toward the nightstand. My padding feet made very little sound on the plush carpet. The click of the lamp triggered a soft glow. Eyes darting from one corner to the next, my mind created phantoms where nothing waited. I pinched the bridge of my nose and took three deep breaths. I had to stop. I was going to drive myself crazy.

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