Web of Lies by Candice Owen Page A

her heart warm at the thought that she had not been wrong about her father.  Plus, she was happy he had made a way for her to meet Jack. She knew she wanted to be with him as more than a passing acquaintance.
     
    “Faith...”
     
    “Jack...”
     
    They spoke each other’s names at the same time. 
     
    “You go first,” she told him.  She wondered if he was going to ask for payment, now that he’d told her his story...
     

CHAPTER EIGHT
     
    Three weeks earlier--Jack
     
    Jack let Faith go first.  He watched her face, as she thanked him for telling her his story.  There was a lot he hadn’t told her, and maybe never would.  All water under the bridge, yet things that helped him grow up and become the man he was. 
     
    With Faith, he wanted to focus on the future, not the past.  She was like a breath of fresh air that he couldn’t get enough of.  She was nothing like the countless women he had been with over the years. There were women who taught him how to be a lover, and those who used him to get their kicks.  There were those he cared about, and those he didn’t.  He wanted things to be different with her.
     
    “Your turn,” she said, when she was done, and he smiled at her.  She had the ability to make him smile about everything.  No one had ever had that effect on him in all his thirty-eight years. 
     
    “I’d like us to go out,” he began, “on a date.”  He waited, watching the look on her face change from surprise to anticipation.
     
    “I’d love to,” she said.  “When are we going?”
     
    “As soon as you can be ready.  You’ll need to wear your leathers.  I have a helmet for you already.”
     
    He loved the way her eyes sparkled at the thought of going for a ride.  They walked in together, going to their separate rooms. Within half an hour, they were on the road, with Faith holding his sides lightly.  She was warm behind him and completely at ease. 
     
    He took her to the park for a picnic lunch, and he watched her smile at the babies and the dogs.  Then, he rode to the next town over and took her to the Native American museum where Grant had been a member of the board.  He introduced her to the staff.  They all shook hands and expressed their condolences, and, as expected, Eva Jones hugged Faith tightly to her motherly bosom.  He listened as she fielded invitations to dinner, barbecues, and even a wine tasting, and then they said their goodbyes. 
     
    He took her to dinner at a restaurant by the river, and they sat outside on the wide porch and watched the boats go by and the sun set on the water.  He had never seen her so relaxed, and he was glad he had been the one to help ease her grief.  He would not always be around, and he knew the pain of her father’s death would return.  He hoped their date would be a happy memory for her.
     
    He called for the check.  It had been a long day out, and he could see that she was flagging. 
     
    “Time to go.”  He stood and held out his hand to her.  She took it with a smile, and followed him out to the bike.  “I think you’ll have to hold on a bit tighter going home, else you’re likely to fall off.”
     
    She laughed, and once he was on, she got on behind him, and obligingly wrapped her arms around his waist.  His body kicked him hard, and he was glad her hands went no lower.  She relaxed against him, her breathing deep and even.  The roar of the engine and the feel of the wind around them wrapped them in a cocoon of comfortable intimacy.  Back home, he asked if she wanted a nightcap.
     
    “A glass of wine would be great, thanks,” she said and went to sit in the living room. 
     
    “Red or white?” he wondered.
     
    “Sweet,” she said.
     
    He brought the wine to her and sipped his gin and tonic while she dozed over her wine.  He let her be until he drained his glass, and then he woke her.
     
    “Bedtime,” he said.  “You’ve had a long day.”  He helped her to her feet and