face, hearing his voice? Walking at his side? No. It would be tooâtooâ
âIt would be wrong,â she said brusquely.
âAnnie...â
âThereâs no reason to compound one lie with another.â She rose, picked up the coffeepot and dumped the contents into the sink. âYou were right. One more mouthful of caffeine and Iâm going to start twitching.â
âAnnie...â
âWhat?â She swung around and faced him. âIt wouldnât work,â she said flatly. âNot for you, not for meânot for anybody else.â
âWho else? Nobodyâd need to know.â
Annie drew herself up. âWhat about your fiancée?â
âMy...?â
âJanet Pendleton. How would you explain it to her?â
Chase frowned. Another lie, coming back to bite him in the tail. âWell,â he said, âwell, Iâd just tell herâIâd say...â His eyes focused on Annieâs. âIâll tell her whatever it is youâd tell your pansy poet.â
Annie flushed. âThatâs one thing about you, Chase Cooper. You always did have a way with words. I thought I told you, Milton is a professor at the college.â
âHeâs a limp-wristed twit, and Iâll bet anything youâre taking one of his dumb courses. What is it this time? How To Speak Sixteenth-Century English In A Twenty-First Century World? Fifty Ways To Turn Simple Thoughts Into Total Obfuscation?â
âObfuscation,â Annie said, batting her lashes. âIâm impressed.â
âYeah, well, Iâm not. How can you be so gullible? Flocking to dumb courses given by jerks with too many initials after their names...â
âYou have a lot of initials after your name, Mr. Cooper. But, of course, youâre not a jerk.â
âYouâre damn right, Iâm not. At least Iâve got some calluses on my hands. I know the meaning of honest labor.â
âSorry, Chase. Youâve lost the right to use that word. âHonestâ does not apply, after the whopper you told our daughter.â
âIs that how you met him?â
âWho?â
âHoffman. Am I right? Did you take a course he taught?â
âMilton is a Shakespearean scholar with an outstanding reputation.â
âIn what? Seducing married women?â
Annieâs eyes flashed. âI am not a married woman. Yes, I took a course he taught and yes, he writes poetry. Beautiful poetry, which Iâm sure is beyond your comprehension. Unfortunately, since I know itâll disappoint you to hear this, Milton is not gay.â
Chase folded his arms over his chest. âI suppose you speak from personal experience,â he said, and felt his stomach clench.
Annie barely hesitated. Why worry about telling a lie to the master of the art? âOf course,â she said, with a little smile.
Chaseâs jaw tightened. This was a moment for some cleverly sarcastic remark. Unfortunately, his mind was a blank. No, that wasnât true. It had filled with an image of Annie in Hoffmanâs arms, of his fist connecting with Hoffmanâs narrow jaw.
âHow nice for you both,â he said coldly.
Annie tossed her head. âWe think so.â
âSo, whenâs the big day?â
âWhat big...?â She swallowed. âYou mean, the wedding?â She shrugged and mentally crossed her fingers. âWe, ah, we havenât set an actual date yet. And you?â
âAnd me, what?â
âWhen are you and Janet tying the knot?â
Knot was right. Chase could feel the noose, slipping around his throat.
âSoon.â
âThis summer?â
âIt depends. Iâve got this project starting in Seattle.â
âAnd, of course, that comes first.â
âItâs an important job, Annie.â
âIâm sure it is. And Iâm sure Janet understands that.â
âShe does, yes. She knows it
John R. Little and Mark Allan Gunnells