Creep - Jennifer Hillier [39]
Softening slightly, he finally came to her, pulling her close. She clung to him like a drowning rat, which she pretty much was.
“I know you’re sorry. I do,” he whispered, kissing the top of her head just once.
“Tell me we’re going to be okay,” Sheila said into the soft wool of his overcoat. “Tell me we can get past this.”
Morris broke away. He didn’t answer, but his jaw was working tightly. Finally he sighed. “I don’t know. Give me a few days.”
A glimmer of hope blossomed in her heart, so small she thought it might dissolve if she took another breath. She nodded before he could take it back. “Whatever you need.”
“I’ll be back from Japan on Sunday morning and we can talk again then. I don’t . . .” He paused, and his face showed a sudden tenderness that killed her. “I don’t want to make any hasty decisions. Because I do think it says something that you told me after all. You didn’t have to. You could have waited till after the wedding, or not told me ever. Truth be told, I wish . . .” His voice trailed off and he sighed again, the weight of it all bearing down on him.
The sentence hung in the air. Sheila didn’t ask him to finish it.
“We have an appointment at the Fairmont on Sunday at two,” she said quietly. “To finalize arrangements for the reception. Should I cancel?”
Morris ran a hand over his face. “No. Wait till I get back from Japan and then we’ll decide. In fact, let’s meet there, at the Fairmont on Sunday. At noon. We’ll have lunch, talk, decide what we want to do. If we decide to postpone, at least we’re there to tell the caterer in person. We’d lose a lot of money, though,” he said with a grimace.
“I’ll pay you back. I will.”
She felt almost dizzy with relief. He’d said postpone, not cancel, and if we decide, not if I decide, and that meant things might still be okay. Things weren’t irreparably broken if he was using those words. Morris would never say anything to her he didn’t mean.
Another tear fell freely down her cheek. He reached out and wiped it away. She grabbed his hand and kissed it.
“I do love you.” His smile was faint and sad. “Maybe it’s not enough.”
“Morris—”
He pulled his hand away. “I gotta go,” he said, the words catching in his throat. “Sorry about your wall.”
He didn’t look at her as he stepped past her into the chilly afternoon air.
Sheila watched him get him into his car and drive away. She had no idea whether she’d done the right thing. Maybe all she’d done was transfer her terrible burden over to Morris.
But, incredibly, it wasn’t over yet. There was still a chance she and Morris could work this out. Sunday at noon at the Fairmont. There was still hope.
Her BlackBerry pinged from the floor where she’d dropped her purse. Reaching down to pull it out, she checked and saw that she had one new e-mail, sent to her personal account. She halfheartedly clicked on it. Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw whom it was from. The message was simple.
Subject: (None)
Dr. Tao—I’m told you are looking for me?
Randall Gardener
Sheila’s heart leapt and she smiled for the first time in days. She might not be able to fix her relationship with Morris right now, but she might be able to help him out with his son. That she could definitely do.
She headed down the hallway to her study and opened her e-mail program. She had a lot to tell Randall Gardener.
CHAPTER : 12
Kidnapping Sheila, Ethan knew from experience, would be the easy part. It was what came after that was always difficult. There were so many ways to get caught—DNA, trace evidence, eyewitnesses . . .
The mind-fucking was officially over. It had been fun while it lasted. It was time to get to work.
He stood naked in front of the full-length mirror inside his walk-in closet, wearing only a nylon skullcap. His face, neck, and shoulders had been dusted with talcum powder, an absolute necessity for keeping his skin dry under the silicone mask.
The inner