Page 12 of Kiss Marry Kill

We fell silent, and then Royce said, “I ran into Mrs. Numi today by chance.”

“Did you?”

“Yep. I asked her when River purchased the land. She said it was right around the time of the fire.”

I stared up at the ceiling, fixating on a small crack in the plaster. “I still don’t get why River didn’t just mention the purchase to me. He doesn’t strike me as a coward. Even if I didn’t like him being my landlord, I’d have thought River would enjoy telling me he was.”

“I think the only way to know if he’s truly scheming is to move forward and see what happens.”

“Sure, but this situation has me wondering if I should rebuild after all.”

He tensed and glanced over quickly. “What?” he asked sharply.

Grimacing, I said, “I… I just mean it has me questioning if I should rebuild inthatspot.”

“Oh.” There was obvious relief in his voice.

“There are other places for lease. I could just rebuild in another location. Maybe.”

“What about your lease?”

I shrugged. “I could buy out the remainder of the lease. It might be worth it in the long run. I’ll have to renegotiate a new lease in about eight months or so anyway. There’s always the possibility River won’t give me a new lease or that he’ll ask for unreasonable terms. Maybe it would be smarter just to move locations and start fresh with a landlord I trust.”

“Huh. If you feel like that’s a better option for you, sure. Why not?”

I sighed. “But I’d miss my pool.”

He smiled. “Yeah, that’s definitely a perk.”

I turned my head to meet his gaze. “It was convenient living in the same spot I worked. It made life simple. I could go for a swim after a long day of seeing patients and then just go to bed.”

He nodded. “That does sound mighty convenient.”

“If I pick a new spot for the clinic, I’ll have to find a house too. Most business spaces aren’t zoned for living in them. Not to mention, the odds of me finding something that suits me that also has a pool is slim.”

“Definitely.”

Something about his tone caught my attention. He sounded distracted. Was he bored with the conversation? Perhaps he was tired of always talking about my problems. Or maybe he was just hungry. We never had eaten dinner. I sat up. “Shall I make the soup now?”

“Sure.” His smile was affectionate, and he patted my leg. “I’m just going to take a quick shower first.”

“Okay.” He seemed his usual self now, so I decided I was overthinking things as usual. I got off the bed, dressed quickly, and went out to the kitchen. I heard the shower start, and just about the time the soup was boiling, Royce joined me.

We ate and talked about our day. I didn’t have much to share since my day at the clinic had been uneventful. I’d examined a toddler with an ear infection and done some routine annual examinations, but nothing had happened that made for titillating dinner conversation. Maybe if River had been there during the day, I’d have had something more interesting to share.

By the way, I strangled River today.

Oh, did you?

Yep!

I’ll have to arrest you now, Maxwell.

Worth it!

After dinner, we watched a little TV, but we both seemed tired. By the time we went to bed, Royce had that same distracted look on his face from earlier. I tried not to let it bother me, but I was a worrier by nature. Was he tired of having me around all the time? I knew I wasn’t the easiest person to live with. Maybe he was really looking forward to the day when I got my own place again.

However, once in bed, he pulled me into his arms and held me close. I felt reassured by how tenderly he held me, and I decided I was seeing things that weren’t there.