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She could see the strain on his face. Any other time she’d rush to take care of him, to make him feel better. She couldn’t call up the will.
“I don’t know what that means.” She pulled out of his hold and went to the sink. Needing to keep her hands busy and mind occupied, she started making tea.
“This dinner—”
“I’ll behave.” Now she got it. He could skip the lecture. Actually, he could shove all his lectures. She forced herself to look at him. “That’s your concern, right?”
He frowned. “What? No. Of course not.”
“I’m guessing you’re worried that I’ll say something to upset Josh and Rachel. Well, I won’t. We’ll have a nice dinner without any problems from me.”
His mouth hung open. “Okay, this isn’t what I want.”
“Obedience?” Probably not fair but she didn’t care. He’d struck out at her and now she’d returned the favor.
He glanced at Nathan, who was perched on a chair, staring out the family room window, then swore under his breath. “When did I ever ask for that?”
Every damn day.Maybe not in words, but if her disagreeing or questioning led to this, then they were on very different sides. She feared they’d never breach the gap again.
She called up a reservoir of control. “Forget I said anything.”
“I don’t want it—us—to be like this.”
Tough shit. The words flew through her mind but she never got the chance to say them. The front door opened and chaos descended. There were welcomes and raves about the rings. Josh and Rachel talked about the wedding.
They slid from predinner talk to dinner to dessert with relative ease. Through it all, Elisa moved food around on her plate and smiled when anyone glanced in her direction. She’d even managed not to flinch when Josh stood up to get more drinks during dinner and stopped to give her a quick hug.
Elisa only made it through the two hours thanks to Nathan. He was nonstop chatter. He wanted to know about Las Vegas. He’d read about a show with tigers and had about a hundred questions on that topic.
After the meal everyone lounged in the family room. Elisa used the opportunity to sneak into the kitchen alone, thinking to get a few minutes of breathing room, but Rachel followed her. She hovered, not talking at first, then she joined Elisa at the sink.
“Are you okay?” Rachel sounded concerned.
Elisa had to concentrate on not calling her Nina. The name stuck in her mind and was right there on her lips, but she managed not to mess up... yet. “Sure. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Elisa, you’re upset. It’s noticeable,” Rachel whispered as she snuck peeks into the family room where the men and Nathan sat. “Did you two fight?”
Over you!“Harris was upset he missed his brother’s wedding.”
Rachel swore under her breath. “I’m sorry. It happened so fast.”
She sounded genuine and concerned. Nothing about her or how she looked had changed, except for the impressive diamond on her finger, but Elisa saw a different person. Someone who lied and schemed and fooled her. Until she knew Rachel’s endgame she’d be careful.
“Why did it happen at all?” Elisa asked.
She’d stepped into a disturbing game of cat and mouse. Round and round they went. Rachel acting concerned while being Concerned. She had to know Elisa would react to the revelation, that she’d draw conclusions and go searching. Not that the real name of Nina Robinson had been all that easy for Shelby to find... yet it wasn’t exactly hidden either.
Rachel’s expression and demeanor stayed the same—unreadable. “You need to know I have all of this handled.”
Now they’d entered thedoes she know I knowphase of the game.
Every minute in a room with Rachel and Josh sapped Elisa’s strength. She felt the energy drain out of her. There wasn’t any tension at this point because Elisa couldn’t feel anything but blank.
Elisa understood Rachel’s code on one level but the parts that remained mysterious scared the hell out of her. “What are you talking about?”
Rachel’s eyes widened. “You heard what I said before we left for vacation, right? About... Concerned.”
The remaining doubts, small as they were, about whether she’d created that conversation disappeared from Elisa’s mind. She’d heard correctly. She wasn’t losing it. Rachel wasnot who she claimed to be, and she’d stopped the act between them.
