Free Secret Obsession by Kimberla Lawson Roby Page B

you will be able to sit down and figure this all out.”
    Camille exhaled deeply. “I sure hope so.”
    Yeah right. You can hope all you want, but sweetheart, your marriage is over.

Chapter 14
    I t was a chilly yet bright and sunny day in October, and Paige simply couldn’t be happier. It was true that Pierce had eventually come home shortly after midnight, but the good news was that he’d slept in the other guest bedroom, and as far as she knew, he hadn’t said a word to Camille. Not even this morning when he’d gotten dressed and spent a little time chatting with the children or right before he’d driven off to work. He was still outraged, and Paige couldn’t have felt more satisfied or tickled. Things were certainly going her way, and later today she would call her brother-in-law to see how he was doing. She’d make sure he knew she’d always be there for him, the same as he’d been there for her over the last two weeks.
    Paige contacted a couple of her clients and then called her good friend Derrick at his office. Derrick owned a private insurance agency, and since he was his own boss, he could talk anytime he wanted.
    “Nelson Insurance Agency,” the woman said.
    “Hey, Ava. It’s Paige. How are you?”
    “I’m well. And you?”
    “I’m good. Is he in?”
    “Sure. Hold on a minute.”
    “Hey stranger,” he said after picking up the call.
    “Hey yourself, and how are you?”
    “With the exception of the few scratches you left on my chest—which thankfully Andrea can’t see because of all the hair I have—I’m fine. But it’s you I’ve been pretty worried about.”
    “I’m doing wonderfully, my friend, and remember we agreed we wouldn’t contact each other for a while. You know, so things would have a chance to settle down.”
    “Well, have they?”
    “Pretty much. They found your DNA, but they have no idea who it belongs to. Oh, and for the record,” she said, chuckling, “had you not worn a V-neck, there wouldn’t have been any scratches at all. Especially since I was careful not to touch your face and neck.”
    “You are one crazy lady. And I still can’t believe you wanted me to beat you with that gun the way I did. It just killed me to have to do that.”
    “Well, you did a great job, and it was very necessary. I needed the incident to look convincing, and it did. The police bought it, and so did my sister and brother-in-law.”
    “I guess. But it’s like I told you when you first thought up this far-fetched scheme of yours, you must really want Pierce pretty badly.”
    “I do. I love him, Derrick, and I deserve him.”
    “Well, I hope you know what you’re doing. And by the way,” he said, sounding slightly comical, “you do realize that the man you’re in love with is your sister’s husband, right?”
    Paige raised her eyebrows and didn’t find his sarcasm very amusing. “Yeah. And?”
    “ And I think you’re playing in dangerous territory. Not to mention you’re staying at their house.”
    “Everything’ll be fine. You’ll see. This was all meant to be, and it was only a matter of time before Pierce and I got together, anyway.”
    “But what about your sister and how hurt she’ll be?”
    “What about your wife and how hurt she would be if she knew about all those affairs you’ve had?”
    “Touché,” he said, chuckling.
    Paige laughed, too. “Touché indeed.”
    “Well, all I know is that I hope you never ask me to do anything like this again.”
    “I won’t. Because once Pierce and I are married, I won’t need favors from anyone.”
    “Really now? Well, I sure hope you don’t think everything is going to be perfect and that you’ll never have any problems.”
    “We won’t. Pierce is a good man, and I plan to do everything I can to keep him happy.”
    “Well, I’m a good man, too, and though my wife has tried making me happy, it’s not working.”
    “Then why won’t you just leave her?”
    “Well, for one thing, I don’t love any of