Page 195 of Hidden Ties

“You weren’t the only one Livvy called. She found out about the affair, said she forgave him, then told him she wanted to redecorate their home. Gail also told him she wanted the money from selling what she wanted to pay for new furniture.

“And Garrett believed her?”

“You might have noticed when you worked at Hollingsworth that Garrett isn’t the best lawyer there.”

Sage looked at him. “So, who is the best lawyer?”

“Me, of course.”

“Of course.” She’d laughed.

For three months, she hadn’t been able to bring herself to touch the piano. She loved it, had never dreamed of having one of its caliber, yet she couldn’t touch a single key. She couldn’t bring herself to touch it because, deep down, she hadn’t forgiven Creed for Livvy. She needed to know in her heart that Creed truly loved her, that he would never cheat on her again. Until she had no doubts about their relationship, she wouldn’t allow herself to touch the piano. If she did, she would believeit was hers, give her soul to the music she would play on the instrument wholeheartedly. Until then, she didn’t enter the room, supervising Tayla when it was dusted and not letting Colby or Tinsley play it.

After playfully chasing the girls into the kitchen, she let them help carry their dishes from the table, then placed a detergent tablet into the dishwasher and was filling their sippy cups when the phone rang.

Picking up her cell, she saw Tayla was calling.

“Hey, Tayla, how are you this morning?”

“Sage, can you please come over and help me?” Tayla asked with a quivering voice.

“Are you all right?” Concerned, she set the juice bottle down on the counter.

“No … I fell getting out of the shower. I need help getting up, and Link isn’t answering his phone.” Tayla gave a crying hiccup.

“Of course. Stay still. I’ll be right over.”

She rushed the girls to Glory’s room and asked Allie to watch them, explaining where she was going. Allie’s agreement had her hurrying back to the kitchen to grab her car keys out of the drawer she kept them in.

She was already driving away from the gate when she realized she had forgotten her cell phone and hadn’t called Creed that she needed to leave. He was going to be furious that she hadn’t called so he could have a member of their security team accompany her.

“I’ll be back before he finds out,” she told herself, not wanting to turn around to get her phone to call him. She didn’t want Tayla lying in pain any longer than necessary.

Thankfully, traffic was light, and she was pulling up to her former apartment building in less time than she had expected it would take. As she got out of her car, another car pulled in behind hers. When she turned her head to make sure she had leftenough space, she was surprised to find Creed getting out of his SUV.

“What are you doing here?” Trying to play it off as if she hadn’t done anything wrong, she pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.

His glower told her he wasn’t buying what she was trying to sell.

“The security company called and told me you took off out of the house like a bat of hell.” Grim-faced, he moved her away from the side of the car to the sidewalk. “I tried calling; you didn’t answer.”

“I’m sorry. I forgot my phone at home. Tayla called and told me she fell in the shower and asked if I could come and help her.”

“Why didn’t she call her husband?”

“He didn’t answer.”

“It must be contagious this morning.”

“I know you’re angry”—pleadingly, she pressed a hand to his chest—“but can we please talk about this later, after I take care of Tayla?”

“Okay, but I’m coming up with you.”

“That works. You can wait in the living room. She’s in the bathroom. If I need you, I’ll yell for you. Just give me time to find something to cover her.”

He agreed, and they went to Tayla’s apartment.

Knowing Tayla was helpless on the bathroom floor, Sage didn’t bother knocking before she reached for the doorknob.