Her Heart's Divide Read Online Free PDF

always a spying career waiting for you.”
    He snickered at me. “It’s not my fault if you were making enough noise to drown out a marching band.”
    “I thought you were going to be gone all day,” I said, trying to tread water and keep my entire torso hidden. It wasn’t possible, despite my best efforts.
    “Nope. Finished earlier than I thought.”
    “Are you planning to sit on that dock all day instead?”
    “Maybe.” He lifted an eyebrow at me. I could see him tracing the outline of my breasts with his eyes. A muscle in his jaw twitched, and he swallowed hard.
    I managed to get to the end of the dock and huddled next to it without getting out. “Maybe you can give me a little privacy.”
    “I have seen you naked, you know.”
    “Yeah,” I snapped, “outside my bedroom window.”
    He flushed. “You saw me?”
    “Yes, and you’re damned lucky I didn’t scream.”
    “I’m sorry, Lila, I—sorry,” he said. “I’m just going to head inside, if that’s okay.”
    “I’ll see you there,” I said with as much dignity as I could muster. As soon as he was halfway to the house, I hauled myself onto the dock. I used my bandanna as a makeshift towel until I was dry enough for my shirt and jeans.
    I went through the living room without looking at Jack, but my temper was cooler after I changed clothes. I still couldn’t resist poking at him a little.
    “Would you like anything for lunch? Sandwich? Cold pork chop? Binoculars to spy with?”
    “You know, I just thought of something,” he said. His face was serious, but his eyes crinkled up as though he were laughing.
    “What’s that?”
    “For someone who knew I was there, you were awfully uninhibited.”
    It was my turn to flush. “I…I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
    He pursued the point. “At what point did you see me? I fully admit I was there. I’d gone onto the deck for some fresh air and I heard noises.”
    “And you went to investigate out of concern for my safety. Is there some kind of burglar who moans when he’s got his hands on the DVD player?”
    “Sure, why not? All kinds of things turn people on. Like, say, being caught having sex.”
    “I don’t—I mean, I…” I gave up. “Fine. I saw you when you sat down.”
    “Thank you.”
    “Hope you got an eyeful, you disgusting Peeping Tom.”
    He grew serious. “Lila, I truly am sorry. I shouldn’t have done it, and I meant to walk away.”
    I sniffed. I took a step away from him, but before I could take another, he caught my hand and held on as though he were drowning. “Really, I tried. Please try to understand me, Lila. In my mind and in my heart, I was the one making love to you. Last night was like watching a movie of our sex life, with someone else pleasing you exactly the way you like it best. Don’t you get it, babe? Everything about you is exactly the same as it was for me two days ago, except that now it isn’t me you love. But you look the same to me. Your hair, your smile, your body, your…responses.”
    His voice cracked on the last word and I shivered. “Jack, don’t—”
    “I’m trying,” he whispered. He pressed my hand to his cheek and kissed my palm.
    I jerked my hand away. My body was responding to his voice and his touch as if we had been lovers. A fantasy was one thing. Everyone is free to daydream in a hot tub, and I often did. But in the flesh, there had never been another man since the day Ryan first kissed me.
    “I think you should go,” I said in a small voice.
    There was silence and then, “I think you’re right,” he said gently. “You’re a faithful, loyal wife in my world too.”
    His words were a benediction, and his leaving before he said anything more was a blessing of its own. But as soon as the door closed behind him, tears poured down my face.

Chapter Six
    It was the Friday after Jack’s bizarre change, and we’d all made it through another week of work. I had dreaded going to work on Monday, but to my surprise