Betrayal - Fern Michaels [68]
“We’ll get through this, Alex. I want you to focus on you, don’t let this temporary setback worry you. I can take care of myself. I have Gertie if I need her. She’ll come and stay with me if I ask her to. I’m going to look for an apartment here in Florida. I’ll go to Orlando; that way we’ll be close to one another.”
“Kate, I don’t want you moving to Florida, I don’t care how temporary the situation. You go back to Asheville where you belong. You can write letters just as easily from there as you could in Florida. I mean this, Kate. I don’t want you living here alone. Hell, I don’t want you in the same state as the Winters. Who knows what they might do next? I won’t take no for an answer on this. I hate to sound like a bastard, but I insist you go home.”
“Alex! I don’t want to leave you here,” Kate cried. “This isn’t how it’s supposed to be!”
“I don’t want to be here either, trust me. But this is what we’ve been dealt. We have to take the punches as they come. Coleman seems to know the ropes. If I can hang tight for a few months, you can, too. Please, Kate, do this for me?”
She nodded. How could she not? It was her Alex locked behind these walls, not her. If he wanted her to go home, she would go even though it broke her heart. She felt like she was leaving him to rot in jail.
Sara and her parents should be there. They lied, they broke the law. Someday, Kate would exact her revenge. For now, she’d live one day at a time.
“Of course, Alex. I’ll do anything you ask. I love you.”
Alex splayed his hand on the glass. She matched her palm to his.
“I love you, too. Always, Kate. No matter what happens, remember that.”
“I will, Alex. I promise.”
Chapter 20
Asheville, North Carolina
Three months later ...
For the first time since her return home, Kate was excited. She was leaving for Florida later in the day. Alex had been sent to Dade Correctional Center in Florida, close to Miami. She’d reserved a hotel for the upcoming weekend. She would be permitted to see Alex both Saturday and Sunday for a full eight hours each day. Coleman had called her the night before with the good news.
Gertie, ever the trouper, continued to care for the dogs, though she hadn’t bred any new pups. She told Kate they’d wait for Alex to come home. Kate agreed, telling her it was something for them to look forward to.
She’d been as outraged as Kate when Kate told her the verdict. They spent a few evenings together drinking away their sorrows, then Gertie went back to her cottage. She didn’t leave, except to feed the dogs. Kate spent most of her days writing letters to Alex. She told him everything was fine, when in reality, it wasn’t. She’d left Chloe’s for good. She hadn’t been inside her studio since the day she’d cleaned up after Sara’s vandalism. She ate when she could no longer stand the pain in her stomach. She drank at least a bottle of wine daily. She’d let herself go. Her clothes hung on her. Her cheekbones jutted out in sharp angles. She couldn’t recall the last time she’d shaved her legs. There was no reason to. Alex was gone, and she was miserable. She never let on in her letters, but now she would see him face-to-face. He’d know she wasn’t happy. She’d promise him that she’d be happy when he came home. Until then, she was only existing.
She asked Gertie to come along. A few weeks ago, she’d hired a young girl to help out at the kennels. Kate was sure Lauren would be fine if left alone for a weekend. Gertie wouldn’t hear of it. She’d insisted Kate go alone, telling her that she and Alex needed as much time by themselves as possible. Kate silently agreed, but hadn’t wanted to hurt Gertie’s feelings by not including her in the invitation.
She’d hired a limo to drive her to the airport. She was flying commercial. She didn’t think she could bear to see the looks of pity on the faces of Joe and his flight