Page 4 of Lust & Lies

Unlike me. I felt like a fractured version of a person, like something had been stripped from me, leaving only the barest outline of who I was supposed to be. And even that outline was drawn crooked.

I exhaled and returned my gaze to the window, watching as the city blurred past. These streets and landmarks didn’t spark any recognition within me. They were more like set pieces on a stage I was being forced to perform on.

Only, I’d forgotten my lines, and the script I was given was in a language I didn’t understand. Perhaps I was on the wrong set. But there was no one here to point me in the right direction.

We drove for a long time. So long that I dozed off for a moment, lulled to sleep by the silence. When I opened my eyes, the first thing I noticed was the change of scenery. We were no longer in the city.

The buildings and restaurants had been replaced with endless green foliage, tall trees, and the hush of Aiden’s tires against the pavement. I turned my head slightly, my gaze drifting to Aiden.

He looked calm. Focused. His left hand remained on the wheel, the other still resting on the console between us like he hadn’t moved at all since we left. My gaze dropped to the car’s clock.

Damn! I’d been asleep for an hour. It hadn’t felt like I’d been out for that long. Wait. That meant we’d been driving for over an hour! My eyes jerked to Aiden.

“Is this the way home?” I asked, curious, nervous.

He didn’t look at me. Just nodded once, eyes still on the road.

“This is the way to one of our homes,” he told me. “One of the newer ones.”

That answer did nothing for my nerves. How many homes did we have?

He finally glanced my way. “I’m taking you to our country estate,” he continued, his tone light. “Away from the noise of the city. Somewhere peaceful where you can rest without being disturbed.”

I didn’t say anything. But I was spiraling on the inside.

A country estate? Far from the city. Far from people.

No traffic. No neighbors. Just the two of us.

Alone. Together. I turned back toward the window.

The trees were thicker now, clustered on both sides of the road like a wall closing in on me.

Though my heart was racing, I kept my breathing calm, hoping he wouldn’t notice just how much I was freaking out. A moment passed before he spoke again, his voice softer now, lower.

“It’ll just be me and you out here, baby,” he told me.

I looked his way to find him smiling at me. A full, warm smile like he’d just promised me the world, a single dimple appearing in his left cheek. I didn’t smile back. I didn’t feel like he was giving me the world.

This didn’t feel like protection. It felt like isolation. It was more like he was separating me from the world. This felt intentional. His words settled over me, sending a sliver of cold dread down my spine.

It’ll just be me and you out here, baby.

Just me, him, and all these damn trees. You could bury a body out here and no one would ever find it. You could keep a woman captive out here for years, and no one would ever find her. Especially if she was alone in the world with no one to search for her. I swallowed.

“Why the country estate?” I asked, hating the slight tremble in my voice.

“The doctor said you needed a calm environment,” he told me.

Calm. Not secluded.

“Out here in the country, you’ll get some peace and quiet. The main reason we got this house was because you wanted to start a vegetable garden.”

A vegetable garden? Why did that feel... right? Like something I’d actually enjoy. I could almost feel myself sliding my gloves on. Feel myself pouring water over my seedlings. I could almost smell the cucumbers and tomatoes.

“There’s that smile I missed,” Aiden muttered.

Smile? Was I smiling? I placed my fingers to my lips, lowering them when he chuckled.

“You have a beautiful smile. I miss it,” he told me.

His compliment, like all the others, left me feeling uncomfortable.

“Gardening sounds right to you, huh?” he asked.

I nodded, an awkward feeling settling over me.

“Maybe we can start on it in a few days. We can go to town and pick out everything we need.”

We? I looked his way. “You’re going to help?” I asked.

He nodded, facing me, smile still in place.

“I’m going to work from home for a while,” he added before returning his attention to the road. “We can start on your garden after you’ve rested for a couple of days. As long as you promise to take it slow and let me do all the heavy lifting. How does that sound?”

I nodded slowly, but said nothing. That actually sounded really nice. This was the first thing I’d felt truly comfortable about since waking up. And I wouldn’t have this feeling if it weren’t for Aiden and him knowing that I wanted to garden.

Was I overthinking things? Was I seeing a villain in the place of a hero? In place of my husband? I didn’t know. And I wasn’t completely sold on this whole married notion. However, I found myself relaxing in my seat a bit as I stared out the window.

I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the side mirror. I was doing it again. I was smiling. I think this was the first time I’d seen myself smile since I’d woken up in the hospital.

Perhaps coming to the country estate wasn’t such a bad idea.