Husband By The Hour

She made him work for every point. God, he adored her. “I know about the divorce, but that’s not information you want spread around, right?”

She rolled her eyes. “Be serious, Nick. You’re supposed to be my first and only husband. You know I was adopted, that I’m a cop. What else is there?”

“How about some information about your childhood? Your adoptive parents. Anything about them?”

She stared out the window. “I was too young to remember much. I don’t want to talk about them.”

“Okay. School. Your favorite subject.”

“I don’t remember. I don’t think I had one. When I was moved around to different foster homes, I also had to change schools. I don’t think this is necessary. It’s not as if Louise is going to have a quiz after dinner and want you to recite details from my past.”

He knew some of her crankiness came from nerves, but the rest of it was because they were treading close to dangerous territory. He knew all about the child welfare system. Some kids got lucky. Others, like Hannah, got passed around from place to place. He knew about growing up lonely and scared, too. He’d had one parent at home—his father. At times, he thought it would have been better if the old man had just kicked him out and let him make his own way.

Hannah twisted her hands together. Nick wanted to reach out to her, but sensed she wasn’t in any mood to accept comfort She was prickly, but the shell had to be hard to protect a soft heart. While the thought of her actually caring about him was terrifying, he could easily be concerned about her. It was safe because there wasn’t a chance of it becoming real.

“You grew up in Los Angeles?” he asked.

“Orange County.”

“College?”

“Yes, I went.”

He smiled. “What did you major in?”

“Nick, none of this is important” She crossed and uncrossed her legs.

With a flash of insight, Nick figured it out. Hannah regretted confessing as much as she had to him. She wasn’t used to sharing her life with anyone, let alone a man like him. She was afraid he would use the information against her. He wished he could reassure her, but doubted she would believe him. Besides, what was he supposed to say?

“I’m twenty-seven,” she said. “A communications officer with the Southport Beach Police Department I have brown hair and brown eyes. I think that’s more than enough personal stuff, don’t you?”

“Yeah. And I want to thank you for that revealing glance into your private life. We’re going to be a completely believable couple.”

She stared at him, wide-eyed. “Of course we will be. All you have to do is follow my lead. I’m a trained police officer. I know how to handle difficult situations. You’re a professional con artist, used to thinking on your feet. This is going to be simple. The easiest scam you’ve ever pulled.”

He knew what he was pretending to be. Her assumptions about him proved that his cover had been successful. Still, the remarks stung. As he concentrated on the road, he told himself he was getting too old for this line of work. When the job was finished, he was going to have to rethink his life.

* * *

Welcome To Glenwood.

Hannah stared at the sign and wondered if she was going to throw up. Her stomach, which had calmed down considerably in the afternoon, started acting up again. This time, it wasn’t from the aftereffects of alcohol. It was nerves…and fear.

Nick pulled to the side of the road and turned off the engine. “What do you want to do? Find a hotel or find your mother?”

Her throat closed. She couldn’t speak. Worse, she couldn’t think. She opened her mouth. “I…” She drew in a breath and tried again. “The drive should have taken longer.”

He brushed a finger against the side of her cheek. “I know. Sorry.”

She shook her head. “It’s not your fault.” She’d had a turn at the wheel and discovered that his luxury car did make it amazingly easy to speed. “Give me a minute here. I’m not sure what to do.” Her voice trembled. What had she been thinking when she decided to come up here? This was all a mistake.

Thoughts tumbled over and over in her mind. What to do? She glanced at Nick. He sat patiently waiting for her to decide. He’d been nice to her all day, even though she’d been difficult. She held back a sigh. She didn’t mean to be callous and uncaring. Or so private it came across as paranoid. Even though it had been a lot of years, she had trouble letting go of the past. Trusting people was hard. Trusting someone like him was nearly impossible. But she must have, at least a little, or she wouldn’t have brought him with her.

She rubbed her temples. She was putting off the inevitable. “Let’s see if we can find my mother’s street. If not, we’ll check into a hotel and start again in the morning.”

“No problem.” He started the car and pulled back out on the main road.

Louise had sent directions to where she lived. Hannah pulled out her letter and clicked on the map light. “She rents a room,” she said. “I’m guessing it’s some kind of nursing home or retirement center. I don’t know if that’s going to be in a residential area or not.”

“Depends on the zoning,” Nick said.

She told him where to turn. They drove past a large park. In the twilight, she could just make out a pond with white ducks. Several families had come down to the sloping banks to enjoy the balmy May evening.

Families. Hannah felt a twinge in her chest. She’d been alone most of her life. That’s what she was used to. Not depending on anyone. Now she had a mother. Would that change everything?

She spied a street sign. “Make a right here.”

The residential area looked like something out of a television movie. Two-story houses with wide porches. Mini-vans in the driveways, bikes left on lawns. Shouts of laughter drifted into the car. Hannah felt her throat tighten. When Nick gave her hand a squeeze, she didn’t push him away. Without wanting to admit it, even to herself, she took comfort in his presence.

They made another turn. The street got wider, the houses farther apart. Two-stories became three.

“Someone has money,” she said.

“Maybe it’s your mom.” He grinned.

She smiled back. “Wouldn’t you like that? You could get her involved in one of your land deals.”

“Hey, people have made lots of money with me.”

“Sure.”

“I would never hurt your mother.”

Oddly, she believed him.

“This is the street.” Hannah stared at the houses, sure something must be wrong. Louise couldn’t live here, could she? It didn’t make sense for one person. Maybe a large residence had been converted into apartments or something. “The address is 2301.”

The car slowed to a crawl. “That one,” Nick said, pointing to an especially large house.

In the gathering dusk, Hannah could just make out the shape of the peaked roof and wide porch. “It looks Victorian.”

“Probably is. I think railroad barons first settled this part of the state. The houses might be restored.”

There were so many cars in the driveway, there wasn’t room for theirs. He pulled up to the curb.

Hannah stared at the structure. Her heart pounded rapidly, her palms were sweaty, and she felt as if she was going to be sick.

“What did you tell her about your arrival?” Nick asked quietly.