Page 72 of Falling for the Enemy

Not ten feet away, Olivia stood, shopping bags hanging at her sides, and a cold, blank stare on her face.

Every bit of warmth sapped from her body as their stares clashed. Understanding exploded between them, the detonation enough to push Jocelyn back from Soren, as if she were breaking some unspoken set of rules.

The other woman looked at her as if she had no right to touch him. Survival instincts pushed Jocelyn back another step as the blonde’s eyes narrowed.

“Soren, what are you doing?”

“Olivia…” Something akin to guilt flashed in his eyes, and it was enough to convince Jocelyn she shouldn’t be there.

Turning on her heel, she rushed toward her car.

Soren cursed and yelled her name, but there was nothing he could say to call her back now.

CHAPTER 9

“COME ON, TRY A LITTLE. NOTHING IS FOREVER. THERE’S GOT TO BE SOMETHING BETTER THAN IN THE MIDDLE.”

Gravel spewed from under Soren’s tires as he pulled into Jocelyn’s driveway. Her car wasn’t there, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t inside. Finding the door locked, he retrieved the hidden key from under the planter and let himself in.

“Jocelyn?”

Cordelia came charging out of the kitchen like a rabid, frothing dust bunny prepared to disembowel him on the spot for crossing the threshold without an invitation.

“Hush, you!” Ignoring the dog, he searched downstairs. “Jocelyn?”

When he checked for her upstairs, the feral gremlin spawn snapped at his ankles the entire way.

“Will you stop it! Where is your mother?”

The ugly little rat just growled at him through missing teeth in that absurd sweater that only made its strange blonde mohawk seem more ridiculous.

“Fuck.” He went to the back porch, locking the guard-rat inside, and waited for Jocelyn to come home. After ten minutes, he texted her.

I’m on your porch. Where are you?

Then he remembered she didn’t have his number.

It’s Soren.

He called her several times since she took off, but she never picked up. After another ten minutes, he sent her another text, asking her to please call him. Cordelia barked for thirty solid minutes until the thing finally tired itself out.

Of all the places for Olivia to show up, she had to choose the Chowder House at that exact moment. Her timing was impeccable.

He owed her nothing. They made no promises to each other, and Soren hadn’t done anything wrong. But according to both women’s faces, you’d think the opposite.

He texted Jocelyn again.

When the sun started to set behind the trees, he really started to worry. He considered driving around to look for her, but figured she’d have to come home eventually.

Where could she be?

He thought of all the places she might possibly go, thinking the strongest possibility was Wren’s, but in the slight chance she wasn’t there, he didn’t want to alert her best friend that he’d already messed things up with Jocelyn.

He already had one pocket-sized terror trying to kill him. He didn’t need two.

Trying to play it sly, he called his brother, who picked up on the first ring.

“Grey, have, uh, you seen Jocelyn?”