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"Who’s Simon?"

I spun toward the bed "Where did you hear that?"

Adam tested his head on one palm, his face shuttered "From you"

"I never told you about him"

"Not told, no You said de na with me, I want to knoho he is"

Had I dreaood or bad? If I hadn’t, what the hell?

I glanced at the , but the handprint was gone Had it ever been there in the first place?

"Who is he?

Adah clenched teeth When aze returned to his, I saw that he was

"Simon’s my husband"

A flicker of violence passed over his face "You didn’t think you should s, but I try not to fuck another man’s wife if I can help it"

"No I’m not - I mean we’re not - He isn’t - "

Adaot out of the bed and crossed the floor so fast I barely had tirabbed rip hurt, but I was too bewildered to protest

"He isn’t what?’

"Alive"

Or at least I didn’t think so

Adam released me as if I were a hot potato; I would have fallen if I hadn’t had the wall to hold h his hair

I wasn’t sure if he was apologizing for Si er In fact, his fury at the idea I was ht

Adae vows, to take to heart theabout that, I’d been wrong about him Which only confused et it"

"You haven’t forgotten"

"No"

"You still love him I could tell by de way you said his name"

I wanted to ask how he knew so much about love, but I didn’t The conversation only eers, and I wanted to keep it that way

"I’ll always love Sie what I feel"

He stared athe wanted to open my head and peek inside, find out what made me tick "How did he die?"

I didn’t want to talk about this, especially naked, so I yanked the sheet off the bed and headed for the bathrooht the tail end and held on

"You dream of him," he whispered

I wasn’t so sure it had been a dream, but I couldn’t tell Adam I’d seen my dead husband outside his

"I saolf," I blurted instead

"Dreams aren’t real"

I wasn’t so sure any, black, eird blue eyes"

If Adam hadn’t been nude, I wouldn’t have noticed hiaze nickered to theand back Nevertheless, I was distracted by the ripple ofhis abdo river

"There was no wolf, cher"

"What about the howls in the swamp? The deaths? The tracks?"

"What about the even the possibility that there’s a wolf or ten out here?"

"Because there isn’t"

I gave a frustrated little shriek and resisted the urge to kick hiht I take you I know this swa here that doesn’t belong I’d have seen it"

Unless he was hiding soht that he was Maybe I shouldn’t go tripping off ht never be heard froain

Be safe, Siarou? Fros? Or frooing to fulfill my vow, I needed help And the only help available was the only man who’d made me feel alive since my whole world died

Life certainly was a vicious bitch

I blinked as another thought occurred to , I collapsed on the bed "I’ood at this"

Sex required responsibility Protection My celibate lifestyle had keptboth aand an idiot

The bed dipped as Adam sat beside me His hip brushed rateful When he touched me I couldn’t think

Obviously

"You’re pretty good at this, if you’re askin’up very ith the conversation

"You said you were no daood, but you are"

I smiled before I could stop myself "Thanks But I meant at technicalities" His blank stare made me continue "Protection We didn’t use any"

I saw the understanding spread across his face I waited for the horror, the panic, the escape, but it didn’t come

"You don’t have to worry"

"I think I do"

"You wanna ask ed My lame-ass equivalent of "Hell, yes!"

"Once I fucked tike rabbit, "

"He thought so"

Noould be the tiain, what did it matter hohen, or why Ruelle Senior had died?