Harlequin Romantic Suspense April 2021 Karen Whiddon (best fiction books to read TXT) 📖

She headed to the Water Street District, where they planned to have dinner. “How’d you do it?” she asked her sister.

“How’d I do what?”

“How’d you learn to trust Kevin?”

She and Erica had grown up with a father who cheated and a mother who was good at pushing everyone away. Unlike what Erica had built with Kevin, the household she and Connie grew up in wasn’t a happy one. Their father left when she was ten, and her mother hooked up with one man after another.

As an adult, Connie struggled to make meaningful connections, especially with men. Then a betrayal like nothing she had ever experienced before had rocked her to the core. Unlucky in love, she was tired of trying to weed through the BS, which was why she was taking a break from dating.

“It didn’t take me long to trust Kevin. Probably because he never gave me a reason to not trust him. You can’t assume that every relationship will turn out like Mom and Dad’s. Not that I’m excusing either of them and how they behaved, but they were so young when they married.”

“That’s no excuse to cheat on her,” Connie said.

“I know, I’m not saying that it is, but it’s one reason their marriage was so rocky from the start. Then it didn’t help that they started having kids right away.”

“Is that why you and Kevin waited so long before having Nakia?”

“No. We wanted time to enjoy each other. Looking back and considering how things turned out, I wish we would’ve had more sooner. I never wanted Nakia to grow up an only child.”

“It’s not too late. You can still have more children.” Erica was two years older and, at thirty-two, still in her prime.

“I know, but I can’t see myself marrying again. Kevin was my soul mate. Isn’t there some type of saying that you only have one?”

“I’ve never heard that, and whether it’s true or not, I hope you don’t rule out finding love again and remarrying.”

Erica turned in her seat and Connie could almost feel her sister’s glare boring into her. “Excuse me? At least I gave it a try. You won’t let a man get close enough to see if marriage is a possibility.”

Connie sighed and found a parking space near the restaurant. “I know” was all she could say. She wanted to get married and have a family one day, but first she had to start trusting again.

Easier said than done.

* * *

A couple of hours later, after dropping Erica at home, Connie headed back to the city. Traffic increased as she neared downtown Las Vegas, which wasn’t a surprise since it was Friday night. Like so many others, she should be out taking in a show or maybe having drinks with friends. Instead, she was heading home to her quiet house, hoping to sleep better than she had the night before. What she wasn’t looking forward to was being alone with her thoughts.

Needing fresh air, Connie turned off the air conditioner and lowered her window a bit. The sounds of highway traffic with tires thumping over pavement, cars whizzing by and horns blowing was almost soothing. The calm of a peaceful ride seeped into her soul and a smile graced her lips.

All is well in my world, she thought. Alive and healthy. Connie couldn’t ask for much more than that these days. She just needed to act like a person who still had her whole life ahead of her.

“Then why am I going home? I should be out doing something fun.”

She was a mile from her house and immediately thought about ice cream. Nothing said “I’m alive and happy” like two scoops of anything that included chocolate.

Twenty minutes later, she exited the ice-cream parlor feeling like a kid on Christmas morning. Apparently, she hadn’t been the only one looking for a sweet treat. There were no available tables inside, and the four cast-iron tables sitting out front were occupied.

She couldn’t much blame everyone—it was the perfect balmy night for a sweet treat. At eighty degrees, it was still warm, considering it was after nine, but the light breeze made it comfortable.

Connie dragged her tongue around the two scoops of the day’s special—chocolate fudge brownie. The delightful brownie chunks melting on her tongue were worth every single calorie. For the last couple of days, her sweet tooth had gotten the best of her. What made it even worse was that she hadn’t worked out for two days.

“Tomorrow. I’ll go to the gym tomorrow.”

Connie quickly slid her tongue along the side of the waffle cone, catching the melting ice cream. Seemed the faster she licked, the quicker it melted. Eventually, she had cleaned off the sides of the cone and went back to licking the scoops.

Her cell phone rang, and she reached into her back pocket, where she had stored it. When she glanced at the screen, an involuntary smile spread across her lips at the sight of Trace’s name. It was the first time that she had heard from him all day.

“Hello,” she answered.

“Where are you?” he asked, his deep voice washing over her like a gentle caress despite his blunt question.

“So, what? You can’t say hello?”

“I’m sorry. Hi.”

“Hi, yourself. Since when do you call and ask where I’m at?”

“The bank robbery was an inside job. One of the tellers was working with the robbers. Do you remember the name of the person who helped you?”

“I have no idea, but what does it matter?”

He huffed out a long breath as if he’d been holding it forever. “Where are you?”

“Getting ready to leave the ice-cream parlor. Why?”

“The one by your house?”

“Yes. Why? Are you planning another surprise visit?”

“Connie, this may not be anything we should be concerned about, but I just saw a news report and the authorities are looking for that bank teller. I’m calling because... Heck, I don’t know. I guess I’m just worried about your safety. The idea of you being alone while her and the robbers are running