Obsession Read Online Free PDF Page A

way into the living room. It felt good to be home.
    Home .
    The house he and Tess had picked out together and decorated together. His apartment had never been home to him. Just a place to park his ass between shifts.
    It looked the same. Except the photos of the two of them were gone. His anger multiplied at the thought that she’d shoved their pictures in a drawer somewhere because she was so damn eager to be rid of him. And now here he was, back at the house. An invalid.
    “I’m sorry.” Tess closed the door. “I didn’t ask them here.”
    He didn’t say anything because he didn’t know what the hell to say to her anymore. Before she’d asked him to leave there had been nothing but stony silence between them. It’d been a long time since they’d had a decent conversation.
    She sighed, apparently frustrated as always with his lack of communication, and went down the hall to free Othello.
    His dog ran toward him and for the first time since waking in the hospital, Alex smiled. “The Big O! How ya doin’, boy?” He scratched behind the dog’s ear. Othello squirmed in ecstasy and pressed his large body into Alex’s good leg.
    “You should rest.” Tess stared at the dog and crossed her arms.
    “Don’t baby me.” He straightened. Othello butted his hand and licked his fingers.
    “Well,” Tess said. “Okay. Are you hungry, then?”
    “I could eat.”
    She disappeared into the kitchen and Othello followed, looking back at Alex with hopeful brown eyes.
    “I’m coming,” he muttered, grabbing the handles of the walker.
    He whistled when he entered the kitchen. For as long as he could remember, Tess had wanted a new oven and refrigerator for her small catering business. Now a stainless steel gas oven stood in place of the old one. The refrigerator had been swapped for a restaurant-sized double-door job. Canister lights lit an island work area as big as the bathroom in his apartment. Cherry cabinets, granite counters and a terra cotta floor completed the rehab.
    He lowered himself into a kitchen chair. Same table and chairs. The set they’d picked out together shortly after they got married. He ran his hand over the scarred surface. At least she’d kept the table and chairs.
    “Business must be good,” he said.
    “Pretty good.” She opened a cabinet and took out some plates.
    “I like what you’ve done.”
    “Thanks.”
    There was a long silence as Othello settled his head in Alex’s lap and Alex stroked his ears. “So, Shannon’s pregnant again.”
    “Yes.” Tess pulled bread out of a built-in breadbox that hadn’t been there before.
    “How many does this make?”
    “Four.” She reached for the peanut butter then opened the fridge for the jelly. She slathered several pieces of bread with the peanut butter and jelly, and placed two sandwiches on a plate. She’d always loved to bake but cooking hadn’t been her favorite.
    “Does it bother you?”
    “I’m fine with it.” Grabbing the plate and a bag of chips in one hand, she opened the fridge again, took out two cans, and kicked the door closed. She placed everything but her root beer in front of him.
    Alex took hold of her hand before she had a chance to escape to the other side of the kitchen. A panicked look crossed her face but she didn’t pull away. “Are you really fine with it?”
    “I’ve accepted it.”
    He dropped her hand and turned to his food, disappointed that it had come to this. If he’d had any illusions of fixing their marriage, they were gone now. She’d made sure of that while he lay in a hospital bed with a shattered knee and an equally shattered career.
    Tess leaned against the island and sipped her root beer while Alex ate his sandwiches.
    “I’m glad you’re all right.”
    “Are you?” He ate a chip and watched her, missing nothing. Not the fleeting look of pain. Not the tense way she held her shoulders or the nervous habit she had of playing with the tab on her can.
    “That’s not fair, Alex. Of