Page 48 of Not In The Contract

“What if it’s her sneaky link?” Tamera gasped. “People that hot donotstay single unless they have a beneficial friend or two.”

“You know, when you called,” I said, flopping back onto the bed, “I never imagined you’d be asking me to think about Alex’s alleged sex life.”

“Expect the unexpected, baby.”

“I’d rather stick to the expected for now,” I said, my attention drifting to the shut door again. “It’s safer and won’t get me in trouble.”

“The house is big enough that you could probably hide withouteverbeing found out.”

“You’re a terrible influence,” I hissed. “I’m hanging up.”

“Tell me what you find when you spy on her, love you, bye!!”

I chucked the phone onto the bed, glaring at it as if it had personally offended me. I couldn’t justgo downstairsto spy on Alex, no matter how much I wanted to. It was wrong and crossed so many lines.

And yet I found myself pocketing my phone and tiptoeing toward the door like a thief in the night, my hand hovering a few inches over the door handle. My morals waged an internal war, battling between what I knew was right and what I wanted. I carefully weighed my options against one another.

On one hand, Alex had specifically come up here to tell me to stay away, meaning I would be stepping over a very distinct line in the sand. On the other, I was here to observe Alex in every aspect. It might be pertinent information to my research.

I wasted precious seconds debating my life choices before the door handle gave way easily, and the door swung open silently. I took a deep, steadying breath, peeking around each corner, my ears strained for the slightest sound. Whatever it was, it came from downstairs, probably in the entrance hallway or the decorative living room that Alex never used.

I crept closer to the staircase, making sure to stay out of the line of sight should someone look up. An unfamiliar voice reached my ears, but all I could distinguish was that it definitely belonged to a woman. I frowned, not sure what I was expecting. I couldn’t tell what was being said, or even guess the tone of the discussion.

I needed to get closer.

As silently as I could, I slipped soundlessly down a few steps, my hands holding my weight steadily as I crouched down. And finally, the unfamiliar voice grew clearer.

“-just saying that you could have called if you were going to disappear on me,” the woman said, her words cutting.

“I know, and I’m sorry I didn’t.” Alex sighed, her voice slightly muffled. “Things have been a little crazy at work and my attention was needed elsewhere.”

“That’s always your excuse,” came the response. “I have to barge into your office for you to make time for me, and it’s really hurtful that you can’t do the same for me.”

“I’m sorry,” Alex said again, sounding as if she hated the words. “It was just a week, okay? My schedule got a little unmanageable but I’m fixing it. We can do lunch next week, how’s that?”

“It’s a start.” The other woman sniffed.

I frowned, distaste curling my upper lip. Manipulation in any form left traces. Whether in people’s mannerisms, habits, coping mechanisms, or even their choice of words. Whatever was going on downstairs reeked of manipulation, but I couldn’t pinpoint the source of it. I couldn’t tell if this mystery woman was the mastermind or if Alex was hiding a few red flags she hadn’t shared with me just yet. Drawn in by the strain in their voices and my own intrigue, I mindlessly crept further down the stairs.

“I can’t always drop everything to see you,” Alex continued, frustration laced through her voice. “But I want you to know that I’ll always try to make time for you.”

“It’s difficult to feel that way when you’re caught up with work stuff for weeks on end,” she retorted.

Ah, I thought. The mystery woman may be the manipulator, after all. There was a shuffle and suddenly there were footsteps heading my way. I realized too late that they were probably headed for the door and I had no time to hide.

I was trapped.

They came around the corner and I pressed my hands over my mouth to stifle the rattling breaths. All it would take was one poorly placed step for Alex to find me.

I held my breath, watching raptly as the mystery woman—a little shorter than Alex but sharing the same dark shade of auburn hair—shoved her hands in her pockets and huffed.

“Will I have to come back and bug you again the next time you forget about me?”

“No, I promise-”

My phone chimed with an incoming text and my heart fell through the bottom of my feet as Alex’s eyes lifted and pinned me to my hiding spot.

Fuck.