Free The Prettiest One: A Thriller by James Hankins Page A

to explain it to me, and pretty damn quick.”
    “Josh?” Caitlin said.
    The muscles of his jaw bunched. Finally, he nodded. He obviously didn’t like it any more than she did, but at least he seemed to understand what was happening.
    “Katie,” the other man said, softly this time, “who is this guy really?”
    She turned to him and took a deep breath. “My name is Caitlin. And this is my husband, Josh.”
    The man said nothing for a moment. He scratched at the stubble on his chin. Then he nodded, almost to himself, as though this had confirmed something in his mind. “Is he the one you were running from?”
    “The one I was . . . what?” Caitlin said.
    “Look, I’m no fool. I meet a pretty girl in a bar, she comes home with me, dyes her hair the next day, doesn’t want to answer personal questions, chooses not to leave . . . it was obvious you were trying to get away from someone. I figured that part out. And I didn’t care who you were running from. I was just glad you ran to me,” he added sincerely.
    “She wasn’t running from me,” Josh said. He was still grinding away at his teeth, the knots of muscle at the top of his jaw bubbling under his skin. Caitlin knew this had to be terribly difficult for him to hear. Heck, it wasn’t easy for her to hear. If this man was to be believed, she’d lived with him for months. That meant they had no doubt been intimate. The thought made Caitlin’s cheeks feel warm. She hoped the men didn’t notice her blushing.
    “I guess it was his rings you sold?” the guy said.
    “I what?” she asked. “I sold them?”
    “Of course you did,” he said. “Don’t tell me you don’t remember?”
    “It’s hard to explain, but no, I don’t.”
    If he thought that was odd, he didn’t say so. Instead, he said, “I figured you had an ex-husband somewhere. It honestly didn’t occur to me that he wasn’t exactly an ex. It probably should have.”
    “That’s what happened to your rings?” Josh asked. “You sold them?”
    The man answered for her. “Sorry to break the news. She got almost a thousand bucks for them, though. Tell him, Katie.”
    “A thousand? Seriously?” Josh said. “They cost ten times that.”
    “I’m sorry,” Caitlin said. “I don’t remember doing it.” She felt terrible. She loved those rings.
    Josh sighed. “I know. Sorry. It’s just . . . Don’t worry about it. When we can afford it, we’ll get you new ones.”
    Caitlin nodded, absentmindedly rubbing her empty ring finger, which felt utterly naked. She let her eyes wander around the apartment again.
    “I lived here?” she asked.
    “You live here,” he said. “And why are you asking me? You know as well as I do. And how can you not remember selling those rings? It was just a few months ago. And why the hell is this guy saying that he’ll get you new rings? What’s going on here?”
    “For how long?” she asked.
    “What?” the man said.
    “How long did I live here?”
    He squinted at her. “Just what the hell is this? I don’t get what you’re up to here, Katie. Is this some kind of scam you and this guy are pulling? Is that what this is? Some kind of weird setup? Because I just don’t see the angle.”
    Caitlin thought he looked hurt but was too manly to let it show.
    “How long did she live here?” Josh asked.
    “None of your business, brother,” the man said.
    “The hell it’s not, brother ,” Josh said. “So answer the damn question.”
    The man gave Josh a hard glare that reminded Caitlin of a sharp-edged weapon.
    “Listen,” she said, jumping in, “would you please humor me? I’ll explain everything. I promise. Okay?”
    The man shifted his gaze over to Caitlin, and the edge on it dulled a bit. He shrugged.
    “Okay,” Caitlin said. “First of all, what’s your name?”
    “You gotta be shitting me,” the guy said.
    “Please, just tell me your name. I promise we’ll explain everything.”
    The man let loose a soft chuckle that was clearly