“I never understood why Claire killed herself. She seemed a little depressed because we moved so often. I-”
“That was years ago. What about Tyler? Would your wife want you to treat him like this?”
“She loved Tyler. Her suicide note said, ‘Love him for me.’ I just couldn’t-still can’t-be around him without thinking of her.”
“Get over it. Life goes on. I’m betting Tyler and Holly get married soon and have children. Don’t you want to be part of their lives?”
“Yes, but I’m not sure I know how to act. I guess I could try. Invite them to dinner or something.”
“That’s a start.” Adam reached over and picked up the telephone. He dialed Tyler’s cell number, then handed Quinten Foley the receiver.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
WHITNEY CLIMBED THE stairs to the white silk bedroom overlooking the ocean. The sun had dropped into the sea, leaving behind a faint glow of tangerine light that would quickly be consumed by darkness. She was dead tired but she didn’t want to go to sleep until she’d spoken to Adam. As soon as she left the vet’s, she’d tried to call him, but his cell phone’s voice mail immediately picked up.
She’d swung by Calvin Hunter’s home, thinking Adam might have shut off his phone and gone to bed early. He had to be even more tired than she was. He’d worked while she’d napped on Miranda’s sofa.
Adam hadn’t been there. She left him notes in several places so he couldn’t miss the message. She’d been afraid to put in writing what she found. The notes said to call her-it was an emergency.
Whitney could have left Jasper there for Adam, but she told him in each note that she had the dog. She doubted anyone else knew the Chinese crested was carrying such valuable information, but she wasn’t taking any chances. Jasper was safer with her.
Earlier she’d deposited two soft-sided suitcases containing her clothes just outside the double walk-in closets in the master bedroom. Jasper and Lexi followed her when she inspected the closets and found one was empty. She placed her suitcases on the floor inside the empty closet, but didn’t have the energy to unpack what little she had.
Whitney thought a dip in the pool might refresh her and keep her awake until Adam called. She put on the swimsuit she’d hurriedly bought to go to Cancún and had never worn. She smiled inwardly, remembering the man from Adam’s security company. Adam had insisted the man should go along to guard her. He’d been more than a little embarrassed to be hanging around Skinny Dip while she tried on suits.
Now that she looked back on it, Whitney decided she was stronger than she sometimes believed. Instinct had launched her at the fence. That quick action had saved her life. She shouldn’t have allowed the incident to cause an emotional meltdown. After the way she’d freaked out, no wonder Adam hadn’t wanted to tell her about his uncle. She could almost forgive him.
Almost.
If only he’d revealed Ashley’s part in Lexi’s disappearance, Whitney might have been more forgiving. But he hadn’t. It said a lot about his character, she reminded herself. It told her even more about their relationship.
“Come on, gang,” she said to Jasper and Lexi. “It’s chow time.”
They scampered behind her as she went down the sweeping staircase. After stopping to leave the notes for Adam, she’d swung by the supermarket and charged some necessities. While the dogs ate, she unpacked the groceries and put them away.
Inside the walk-in pantry, she froze. What was that? It sounded like a thump. The nearest house was too far for her to hear anything. She listened, attempting to detect something else over the crunching sounds of the dogs eating. Her hand shook when she eased the pantry door back so she could have a better look. She peeked out and saw the dogs with their noses in the fancy dishes that she was using for their bowls. Obviously, they hadn’t heard a thing.
What a sniveling display of shredded nerves you are.
Every house had its own special sounds, she assured herself. She would just have to get used to this one. She could put on the alarm, but Adam might drop by without calling. She scribbled a note, saying she was in the pool, and taped it to the front door.
When she returned to the kitchen, the dogs had finished eating. “Come on,” she told them, and they followed her out to the pool. Since the area was new to them, the dogs engaged in a sniff-fest. By the way they were hovering around the low-hanging bushes, Whitney guessed another dog had been out here recently.
“Stay away from the rock,” Whitney told Lexi even though the dog wasn’t anywhere near the obsidian sculpture.
It was dark now and the lights around the pool unexpectedly snapped on. Her limbs locked in place. Fortunately for Whitney, her brain was still functioning. The lights must be on an automatic timer.
Dozens of low-voltage exterior lights now artfully highlighted the plants and the house. Brighter lights on the rafters of the open-air overhang were aimed at the water. Like most pools, this one had a light at the bottom of the deep end. The rest of the yard was dark shadows.
When would she get over being so jumpy? she asked herself. A disturbing chill enveloped her. There was cause for concern. Calvin Hunter had gone to a lot of trouble to hide the information on a microchip and plant it under his dog’s skin. But the people after the info didn’t know Jasper had it-and couldn’t possibly find her if they did.
What she was experiencing was the psychological aftershock of the fire followed by the scare with the car. Get a grip! Taking a deep, calming breath, she tamped down the wave of anxiety. If she didn’t confront her fears, they would get the better of her.
She had a toe in the water when she remembered her cell phone was on the counter in the kitchen. Adam had the number of this house, but he might call her on the cell. She went inside and retrieved it. Returning to the pool area where the dogs were waiting, tails wagging, she again had the eerie sensation someone was watching her.
Get over it.
She put the cell phone down on a small table near the middle of the pool where she could get to it easily no matter where she was in the water. Lexi barked excitedly. Whitney whirled around and saw a big dark shadow blocking the light. A man.
The hulking shape moved and the lights trained on the pool hit her in the eyes, blinding her for a moment. He walked closer and a scream almost ripped from her throat. In the next breath, she realized it was Ryan. Whitney released a pent-up sigh of relief.
Ryan was dressed in a polo shirt, pressed jeans and a lightweight bomber-style jacket. As always he wore loafers that could have passed for new. Lexi scampered up to him, but Jasper scooted under a chaise.
“Ryan, what are you doing here?”
He looked around the dark yard. “Have you seen Ashley?”
“N-no, of course not.” His question surprised her. Why on earth would he think Ashley was here?
Ryan walked closer and Whitney instinctively backed up, but not too far. She was already near the edge of the pool.
“Have you heard from her?”
She’d lived with this man long enough to recognize stress and anxiety in his overwrought voice. “No. Why would she call me?”
“To explain about the clothes.”
She didn’t like what she saw in his eyes. Something had happened with Ashley and he clearly blamed her.
“She’s not here, and I have no idea where she is.” In her toughest voice, she added, “You’d better leave now.”
“I will.” He ground out the words. “But your nine lives are up.”
His unanticipated anger directed at her was like a slap in the face. “What do you mean?”
“You’ll see.”
Now there was a deadly calm about him, in spite of the lethal tone of voice. Whitney suddenly became disturbingly aware of her situation. She was standing-as good as naked-at the edge of the pool without a weapon of any kind. She didn’t need a weapon, Whitney told herself. She was panicking again for no good reason. She’d been married to this man. “Ryan, what’s wrong?”