Page 100 of Wicked Games

Sighing, he rubs his lips against mine.

I smile, and for the first time in four months, it’s not so hard. “It’s okay. We have plenty of time. Come on. I’m not the only one who loves you.” I take his hand and we walk through the house to the front door. Violet’s leaning against her car’s fender, the wind blowing her hair around. She stares at Seth like she can’t believe he’s okay, and uncertain, she steps toward us.

Seth pauses and glances at me, but I only push on his shoulder and nod. He meets her at the bottom of the steps, and sobbing, she throws herself against him.

It’s been a difficult few months, but all we can hope for is that time will ease the pain. We’ll need a lot of it. Time, that is. And love.

As a woman, I can understand Brooke’s anger and jealousy. Watching Seth wipe the tears off Violet’s cheeks while she laughs in relief. There’s tenderness in his touch because he cares about her, but what he told me is true. If there had been something between them, they would have done something about it long ago, and that was Brooke’s problem. She didn’t believe it, or maybe she didn’t know Seth as well as she should have. He married her and gave her a baby, but she didn’t value those things or believe the emotions that went with them. She had power in their marriage, but she didn’t use it. It’s quite possible she didn’t know she had it, and it drove her to desperation. Maybe she didn’t love Rowan, like he didn’t love her, only used him as a tool like he used her for Seth’s money.

We’ll never know the answers to those questions, but we can learn from past mistakes.

“Let’s go,” I say to him, wrinkling my nose. “You need a gallon of water and a shower.”

Violet sniffles and rubs her finger under her nose. “I should get home and tell Walker what Detective LaSalle told us.”

“Come to my apartment instead,” I say, and her eyes widen. “Invite Walker and we’ll eat dinner and catch up together.”

“Okay. If you’re sure. I’m not used to . . .”

Seth winces, but I give her a hug. “I’m sure. Things will be different now.”

Leaning away, she asks tentatively, “See you in an hour?”

“See you in an hour. Drive carefully.”

She studies my face, but honestly, I doubt she sees anything but exhaustion. The past two days have been hard on everyone, and I will never admit it, but there was a tiny sliver of fear that Seth had meant what he said at the cemetery. That’s my weakness I’ll have to work on because I’ll never let history repeat itself.

Lifting a hand, she backs her car out onto the street, and we stand alone in the middle of Seth’s driveway. I turn and rest my head against his chest. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

He wraps his arms around me and kisses the top of my head. “I almost wasn’t. But you know that.”

“Yeah. I know,” I say quietly. “Come on. Let’s go.”

“I need to pack a few things.”

“I didn’t get rid of your stuff,” I say, but I step toward his house anyway. He doesn’t have his phone or wallet or keys, and he doesn’t have shoes on.

He stops me, and I meet his eyes. “How did you know?”

I sigh. “Do you really want to know how I knew you were lying?”

“Yeah. I really do.”

“Because you would have chosen something different to say. I told you to fuck off once for insulting my writing. We’d already done that, and you apologized. It was the first thing you thought of, and deep down, you knew I’d know it was bullshit. And no matter how serious you were about breaking up with me, you never would have told me to go back to Darren. That’s how I knew you were lying.”

He crowds me against his truck and presses his body against mine. “I love you, Avery McKay.” Scowling, he continues, “I hate saying that. Avery Lockwood sounds much better. You’re still going to marry me, aren’t you?”

There are shadows in his eyes, and there will be for a long time, but a smile plays on his lips. I brush my fingers over it, so relieved and happy it can be there. “Yes, I will. Let’s go now, or Violet will beat us to my apartment.”

“Thank you for that. I never realized how hard my marriage was on our friendship.”

I follow him into the house. “Because you didn’t want to see it, and she was a good enough friend she stepped aside and let it happen.”

He sighs and tips his head back. “Yeah. I get it now. I see a lot of things I didn’t see before.” Looking around the foyer, he says, “God, I hate this house.”

I cuddle into his side and wrap my arms around him. “You made good memories in this house, and you shouldn’t forget them. We’ll build something new with your money because I don’t have any,” I say, teasing him, “and we’ll make some more. How does that sound?”

“In some strange way, I feel like this is the end, and I don’t want it to end. Despite all the shit, I don’t want it to end.”