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Working together, they carefully pulled the branch free and tossed it on the ground in front of the cabin. Then t
hey both walked inside to wait for the cleanup crew to arrive.
“So it wasn’t an accident,” he said softly.
“Nope,” she replied.
He nodded, as though this confirmed a private suspicion. “I thought it was strange. There haven’t been any storms, and I didn’t hear a gust of wind that might have caused the branch to tear free.”
“I have seen some downed branches by the running trail,” Ainsley said. “Whoever did this probably picked one up there.” Given the forest nearby, pieces of wood weren’t hard to find. And it was an ideal tool for vandalism—after all, any reasonable person would assume the branch had fallen from one of the trees close to the house.
It was a mistake they’d made at first, until she’d realized things didn’t quite add up.
But...who would do this? And why?
Another thought came swiftly, making her skin crawl with revulsion; how long had someone been standing outside, watching them?
Santiago placed his hand on her arm. “Your face—what is it?”
She shuddered. “I just realized, whoever did this was probably standing outside the window, watching us kiss.”
A shadow crossed his face. “Yes,” he said shortly.
That safe feeling she’d had after assuming this had all been an accident evaporated, leaving her exposed and vulnerable. What other private moments had this person seen? How long had they been spying?
Santiago drew her close once more, wrapping his arms loosely around her. “It’s okay,” he said, dropping his mouth to her ear. “Whoever did this, they won’t hurt you. I won’t let them.”
She hadn’t started to worry about her personal safety yet, but Santiago’s assurance helped soothe her nerves. “Should we say something? When help arrives?”
She felt his head move against her hair. “I don’t think so,” he said. “It’s not like we can trust them, you know?”
“Yeah.” Brett’s face flashed through her mind, and she tightened her grip around Santiago’s waist. She’d been thinking Steve had done this, or perhaps one of the other spouses trying to intimidate them. But what if it was an employee? Maybe the Woodses had figured out she and Santiago weren’t really married at all? Perhaps this was the start of a campaign to get them to leave, or worse still, they’d uncovered Ainsley and Santiago’s investigation and wanted to scare them into dropping it.
She said as much to Santiago. He stroked one hand down the valley of her spine; she focused on his touch, drawing comfort from the gesture. “That’s possible,” he said. He was quiet for a few seconds, then spoke again. “What do you want to do?”
Ainsley pulled back to look up at him. “What do you mean?”
His green eyes were clear. “I’m not going to ask you to risk yourself for this project.” He reached up to brush a strand of hair behind her ear. “And I don’t want you to spend the remainder of the week living in fear that someone is spying on us or going to hurt us. If you want to leave, we can.”
His consideration was like a warm balm on her soul, spreading over her and making her feel cherished. She knew how much this investigation meant to him, how passionate he was about helping his sister and the other people who had been conned. The fact that he was willing to walk away just so she wouldn’t be scared showed how much he cared about her.
Even as she appreciated his concern, a small part of her heart ached. Santiago still thought highly of her, that much was clear. But did it really matter? All the affection in the world hadn’t stopped him from leaving five years ago.
Ainsley slowly extracted herself from his embrace, being careful not to make it seem like she was rejecting him. That would only raise questions, and she didn’t want to let him know that her heart was still bleeding from his actions.
“I’m fine,” she said decisively. “I want to finish this. I’m not going to let some coward with a tree branch scare me away from doing the right thing.”
Santiago nodded, a smile tugging the corners of his mouth. “I figured you’d be stubborn. But don’t be afraid to change your mind—if you decide you’re done, we’ll leave. No questions asked.”
“I won’t. I’m going to see this through to the end.” She owed him that much, since he was helping Ace. Besides, if she was to walk away now, part of her would always wonder if these stolen kisses and subtle touches would have led to something more. Her heart was already fluttering with the idea of a second chance for both of them. No, staying here would prove those encounters were nothing but blips, moments of weakness brought on by stress and worry. They weren’t the beginning of something new, they were a maladaptive coping strategy she had to shake off.
Her brain understood there was no future for the two of them. Santiago had made that clear five years ago, and nothing had changed.
Ainsley just had to make sure her heart got the message.
* * *
Santiago flipped his pillow over with a sigh that night, punching it into the shape he liked before flopping back down on the bed.
