The Affair: Week 8 by Beth Kery Page A

She dug her fingers into his thick hair and fisted it.
    “No. I
won’t
,” she vowed shakily. She’d seen the truth there, bold and harsh and big as day on his anguished face just now.
This
was hurting him even more than she’d imagined the truth about Cristina would. She’d have to find a way to break the news to him. Better her than Vera Shaw. At least when he knew, she’d be there with him to help shield him from the pain.
    * * *
    She wasn’t sure how long they clung together like that in their desperate embrace. He did pull back after a stretched moment, however, his gaze searching her face. He palmed the back of her head gently, a tear spilling onto her cheek at the familiar, prizing gesture.
    “They said you’re going to be okay?” he asked.
    “I’m fine,” she insisted. “They’re keeping me overnight, but it’s just for routine observation. I wish I could go now . . .” she swallowed thickly as she stared into his rigid, handsome face. She hadn’t understood until now that he’d been the target of her restless anguish since awakening from the wreck. She touched his whiskered jaw, and then smoothed back his longish, finger-strewn bangs from where they’d fallen on his forehead.
    “I’m
so
glad to see you,” she whispered.
    He shook his head, his gaze narrowing on her face. “You have no idea how glad I am to see you.” He leaned down and covered her mouth with his. Her heart seemed to seize and then renew its beating, stronger and faster than before. His taste and the sensation of him filled her like an elixir, sublime and wonderful because she’d thought she’d never experience it again. Warmth suffused her. When he broke their kiss, she held him against her, forehead to forehead.
    “I’m so sorry,” she said in a pressured whisper.
    “No. I am. I know Vera said something to you to upset you. I’m sorry I was so dense when you talked about how much she hated you. I know she can be difficult at times, but I usually just disregard her fussiness and territoriality. I’ve grown used to it, even if I don’t love it. I’ve built up a layer of protection against her, I guess. I had no idea she’d purposefully try to hurt you or sabotage something because I cared. If something worse had happened to you this morning,” he said, his voice cracking slightly, his gaze glacial, “I would have held her personally responsible.”
    “No, Vanni,” Emma said. “The accident was just that: an accident. A stranger ran a red light. I know because the police officer investigating the crash told me the man who hit me had been treated at another hospital’s ER He’s not seriously hurt, and is admitting he ran the light.”
    He leaned back and peered at her closely. “So you didn’t wreck because you were upset or unfocused driving?”
    “No,” she said, sidestepping the truth a little and not feeling too guilty about it because she didn’t want to burden him further with rage. The fact of the matter was, she might have been hit whether she’d been distracted by thoughts of Vera, Cristina, and him or not. There wasn’t much you could do when someone barreled through a red light. Besides, she was going to have to tell him the truth about Cristina and how it related to Vera’s threats, she realized with a sinking sensation. He didn’t need any extra fury and helplessness in addition to that. “It was rotten luck and timing, that’s all.”
    He nodded after a moment.
    “Sit down,” she whispered, scooting over slightly on the cot. He perched his hip on the edge of the mattress. Emma curled around him, still holding his hands fast in hers, but wanting to feel him with as much of her body as she could.
    “You’re sure you feel all right?” he asked quietly.
    “I’m fine, Vanni. Please believe me,” she assured.
    “And you meant what you said earlier?” he asked cautiously.
    “About not leaving you?” she asked, squeezing his hand. “Yes. I meant it. That’s all past. I’ll