“I don’t have a problem in that area, sweetheart. Apparently, you can’t figure out what the fuck you want. Do some self-reflection then get back to me…or don’t. Step off the boat.” He clasped her shoulders, turned her around and gently guided her to the steps. “There you go. Bye-bye.”
She spun on him. “I’m not talking about you and me, Egan. I’m talking about ShyAnne Langley.”
He stared at her. Her lips were drawn into a straight line of anger and her thin brows were scrunched. She wore little make up, but the smoky brown shadow seemed to make her eyes stand out more than usual. “What?”
“Don’t ‘what’ me!” She crossed her arms over her chest but because the water was a little choppy from the wind, she almost lost her balance.
Catching her in a light grip, he smirked. “Watch yourself there, sea legs.” She pulled away in a huff and he laughed. “Once a spitfire always a spitfire, I guess. Yet, the difference is, we’re no longer married, and I’m no longer obligated to tolerate the attitude.” He turned his back to her hoping she’d give up and leave the way she came, but no such luck.
“You’re sleeping with her! Aren’t you?”
Egan was already mentally two paces ahead of her and had forgotten what they were talking about. “Sleeping with whom?”
“ShyAnne.”
“What are you on?” He bent close to examine her pupils.
“Oh you’re real cute. That’s just like you to find a way to turn this around.”
Novah should know he’d never dip his stick in the boss’s wife, or any married woman for that matter. He dragged up a wall, not feeling like he owed her anything. “You’re crazy.”
“Am I really? Why was her perfume, and lipstick, on your shirt last night?”
He blinked. He’d only just met ShyAnne yesterday in the library. How the hell…and then he remembered that she’d brushed against him while fixing his collar and tie. It was almost laughable, and then it wasn’t, not when he’d given Novah a hard time over Langley. “Don’t quit your day job to become a detective, sweetheart. Anyway, it’s none of your business.”
“Like hell it’s not any of my business! If you get caught sleeping with her, you’ll lose your job.” The boat shook, and he grabbed the handrail. She bounced against him and groaned, peeling herself off his chest and leaning into the rail for support.
“This has nothing to do with you. Now, last warning. Get off the boat.”
She acted like she hadn’t even heard him. “Do you think it’d be very hard for someone to find out that you and I were married?”
With a sigh, he continued with his business. He was done with the conversation and pushed the button to start the engine. “Prepare yourself, sweetheart.”
She gasped, “What are you doing?”
“What does it look like I’m doing?” He removed the thick rope securing the boat to the dock. “I warned you to get off.” He moved the boat forward out of the slip and spun the wheel.
“How dare you! I need off.” She stared in incredulity as inch by inch expanded between the boat and dock.
“It’s not too late to swim.” He grinned as he advanced the throttle.
“Stop the boat. I want off.”
“You should have thought about that before.”
She lost her balance and fell back onto one of the cushioned seats. She jumped up, fuming. “You did this on purpose!”
“Is that right? I forced you to come onto the boat, did I?”
“Where are we going?” she demanded.
“Across the lake.”
Several seconds passed and he thought some of her rage had subsided until she muttered, “Now I know the reason why you took this job.”
Surpassing his patience level, he turned off the engine then gave her his undivided attention. “You have no clue what you’re talking about.”
“Oh, really? Let’s see, is it just a coincidence that you and ShyAnne wear the same perfume then.” Thankfully, her face softened some and one corner of her mouth lifted. “But we know you hate any perfume except for vanilla.”
He took a step forward and she took one too. “You’re jealous.” He stared down on her.
“Real funny! Why would I be jealous?” She laughed but her bottom lip trembled and her gaze darkened.
“Hell if I know. Hell if I know anything that’s going on inside your head these days. You’re scorching one second and an ice statue the next.” He took another step, lessening the space between them.
“I don’t care what you do in your free time.” She faced him, her strength showing in her expression.
“Now you don’t care. What changed in the last five seconds? By the way, you’re still cute when you get angry.”
“You’re insufferable. I was wrong to think I could speak to you about this. Just like with our marriage. You never wanted to take anything seriously,” she snapped.
“Why would I when you covered all the bases on being uptight,” he ground out.
Her gaze emptied. “Someone had to be the adult in the relationship because you certainly couldn’t manage it.”
Damn, he didn’t even recognize the grit he saw in the stubborn tilt of her jaw and hollow eyes. The awful feeling inside his body returned—the same feeling that he’d felt in their marriage, like no matter what he did he couldn’t please her. He’d been a disappointment, never able to be the man she wanted. Never stacking up. “Who put me in that position? You had everything under control, didn’t you, sweetheart? When I was gone you had the whole thing the way you wanted and when I was home, well, I was a stranger who had to ask permission to get a drink from the refrigerator like a kid.”
“That’s not true!” she sputtered.
He lifted a brow and her cheeks flushed.
“You were gone all the
