The Wife He Chose

The self-conscious way she asked about them suggested that the only topic that would ever be truly important or significant to her was the kids and how they were. Was that true? But one look at her face told him it was. She was deeply uneasy, which told him how worried she still was about Beau’s reaction to her yesterday.

“They’re fine. Playing on the patio with Connie when I left.” He paused when he saw that she was alert to his mention of a stranger’s name. “She’s the nanny.”

Colleen glanced away and gave a stiff nod. “Did you have a chance to talk to Beau?”

Now he heard the faint tremor in her voice and he was blunt to spare her further suspense. “Craig convinced Beau that Sharon’s death hurt them all, Beau and Amy most. Beau was never saying that you did him or Amy any physical harm.”

Colleen’s gaze veered back to his and held. The hope he saw in her now touched him, so he told her the rest. “Craig was bitter when Sharon left and then went crazy when she was killed. You were handy to blame.”

He felt a pinprick of disloyalty to Craig, as if he’d switched sides to stand with an outsider. And a female outsider at that. But the truth was, Colleen James was one female who deserved to have someone on her side. He hoped he was right, but God help her if he wasn’t.