Chapter 2

With Krista curled tight, back to me, on the far side of the mattress, it was an endless night. When she woke, I lay motionless until her sleek silhouette left the room. Long after the aroma of fresh coffee arrived, which would’ve had me stumbling downstairs, I rolled out of bed.

Once on the bottom floor, I gave her a quick glance. Still in the oversized T-shirt she’d slept in, vice an abandoned negligee, she stood in the kitchen. Back against a counter with shapely legs crossed at the ankles, she was staring over the sink out the window at our backyard. Her brows were tight and when she noticed me, she didn’t move. Not even a twitch.

“Good morning,” I muttered while filling a mug.

Still nothing. Well, there was a tiny exhale, but no words. If anything, she became more fixed on the trees swaying at the far end of the lawn. At one point, a pool, along with a nice swing set for the kids, had been in my plans.

But that fucking horse had snapped its leg. Sure thing—not.

In the glass, I caught her reflection. My chest tightened; I’d seen that expression. As angry and disappointed as she was, her mind was calculating.

Of course, she’d never admit it, but when we met, it wasn’t solely the attraction to older boys she claimed. After a great run in Vegas during spring break, I’d been flush with cash. Given her past, she had an affinity for the finer things in life.

Oh, don’t get me wrong, we’d fallen hard for each other, but the teaching gig had always been her back-up plan. Also, something she’d never confess: neither of us expected her to work for long. Especially once the children arrived. That had been the cost of my earlier “sure things.”

All of which meant that one more look at her screamed not to waste my time trying to explain. She’d been correct; I’d promised her never again. But inside info and the chance to get free of our entire debt had ... Well, done what it had always done to me. Classic. It had been too good to be true. And, surprise, it wasn’t.

“So, to be clear,” she uttered in a chilly monotone at last. “We owe half a million dollars or somebody is going to take this house?”

“Yes.”

“And what is your plan, Tom?”

Somehow, her not calling me “Tommy” was worse. After a slow gulp, I leaned next to her. But she eased away, keeping her gaze fixed on the distance.

“Um, well. The house is worth about half that, you’re right.” When those icy pools flicked to me, I jolted. “Okay, okay. I’ll find a way. I promise. There’s a few places ... Not all the banks have, uh, turned me down.”

“And if you don’t pay?” As those eyes narrowed, boring into me, my ribs clutched tighter.

All kinds of possibilities flashed into my mind. Most of them painful. The rest were worse. The laser-eyed, hulking Russian guy who’d loaned me the funds, Yuri, had been pretty damned clear about the options. At my silence, the first tear left her blinking eyelashes.