Page 9
“I exist. That seems to be enough to piss off my family.”
“Same.”
Livia leaned forward to close her laptop and scooped up her phone. There was no way she was going to concentrate after that ugly little scene. Reaching beneath her desk, she grabbed her purse.
“I’m going to take off early. I need some fresh air,” she said, waving her hand in front of her face. Her aunt had left behind a cloud of expensive perfume. Like a fog of gloom.
“I’ll lock up.”
“Thanks, Marcel.”
Walking toward the door, she stopped to give her friend a quick hug, shocking both of them. She wasn’t a touchy-feely person, but today she needed to remember that there was someone in her world who actually liked her.
Pulling away, she awkwardly hurried out of the building and jumped into her car. She turned out of the lot, intending to head home. Delilah’s arrival was a reminder that she hadn’t even started to pack, and now she had to shop for new evening clothes. Celeste’s unwelcomed engagement meant she couldn’t hide in her rooms once she got to the Willows. The snobbish Benoits would insist on putting on a show for the guests who were bound to come and congratulate the happy couple. If she had to be there, she wasn’t going to wear her one cocktail gown over and over.
She had some pride.
Lost in the dread of her upcoming trip to the Willows, Livia drove straight past the street to her house. But she didn’t turn around. Instead, she continued through the thick city traffic, not really sure where she was going until she saw the exit for the airport.
Whipping the car in the turnoff lane, Livia ignored the blast of a horn from behind her and veered off the ramp. Then she veered off again, entering the parking lot of an extended-stay motel. The motel wasn’t shabby, but it was far from new, and it’d been a shock to discover Jacob was staying there the first time she stopped by to pick him up. He’d explained that he was only there until he could buy a house, and he liked the fact that it was close to the airport. She’d accepted his explanation, in the same way she’d accepted everything else about him. Without question.
She slowly drove to the far end of the lot, her gaze scanning the vehicles parked in front of the one-story building with a line of metal doors. The dents suggested someone had kicked and potentially shot at them more than once.
Reaching the end of the building, Livia impulsively pressed on the brake as someone pulled open the last door. A large, middle-aged man stepped out and headed toward a nearby utility truck.
Not giving herself the chance to consider the danger, she rolled down her window a couple of inches and called out.
“Hi! Excuse me.”
The man turned with a frown and strolled toward her. He was wearing a uniform with an insignia that matched the utility truck, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be a serial killer. Still, her car door was locked and it was broad daylight. It wasn’t that much of a risk, and she had to satisfy her gnawing curiosity.
The man reached the car and peered through the window. “Yes?”
“I’m looking for Jacob Pearson. Is he inside the room?” She nodded toward the door he’d just closed.
“Don’t know him.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” She silently cursed in frustration. She was too late. “He was staying in that room last week.”
“Naw. Not in that room,” the man said. “I’ve been here for over a month. You’ve made a mistake.”
“You’re sure?”
“I think I know where I’ve been staying.”
“Right. Sorry.”
Rolling up her window, Livia drove away with a numb sense of disbelief. She’d only been to the hotel a couple of times to pick up Jacob, and he’d been standing in front of the door when she’d pulled into the lot. She’d assumed that he didn’t want her waiting around in such a sketchy location. Now she realized that she’d never actually seen him coming in or out of the room.
Because he’d never stayed there.
It’d been another lie.
Who the hell was Jacob Pearson? And why had he been in her life?
CHAPTER 3
Rushville, LA
