A Tangled Web - R.G. Alexander Page 0,6

woman was officially erased from existence. Her lawyer’s attached letter reaffirmed what the documents were claiming, that her previous records were sealed, and she had nothing more to worry about. Sal would never find her. It was over.

As soon as she told Liam, everything would change again. But if she was going to be the bold new Dani Harris instead the meek Danielle Craver he’d met three years ago, she needed to start acting like her.

She’d tell him today. After all he’d done to help her, he’d earned that and so much more.

When she’d escaped Sal and turned to the only friendship left he hadn’t tarnished, she really hadn’t expected Liam to swoop to her rescue the way he had. He’d given her the greatest gift by simply believing her when no one else would. Without question or hesitation, he’d offered to take her to the police or kill the bastard himself.

After telling him she didn’t want him going to prison and that Sal had cousins on the force, Liam had made a few phone calls. Before the sun rose on a new day, she’d had a lawyer and several states between her and her abuser. Then they were in Arizona, living rent-free in the Sedona vacation home of a wealthy man Liam used to cook for.

It had been such a relief at the time that she hadn’t dared to question her good fortune. Then he’d told her he was staying with her until she got her paperwork in order and her safety was assured, and she’d started to worry that he might actually be too good to be true. People didn’t do things like that for each other. Leave their lives behind to help a friend without getting anything in return. Not in her experience.

But after a year of living together, she realized it was just his nature. He was always helping someone out of one jam or another. His personality inspired confidence, loyalty and yes, irritation because he loved to tease. If he believed in you, he gave all of himself without question. A nice guy who could kiss like the devil. A unicorn.

She’d never be able to pay him back. Not for any of it. He’d argued that he was a chef at the fanciest resort in town and didn’t need her to pay her half of the bills, but her pride demanded it. She’d been alone for most of her life and would be again. She couldn’t forget that.

She also couldn’t forget that though he seemed to be thriving here, he had another life in Texas that he never would have left if it wasn’t for her. His family had some land there. He’d had a career there and other people who depended on him, calling once a week to check on their prodigal son.

She glanced at her paperwork again. This was what they’d all been waiting for, whether they knew it or not. Now that it was here, his promise was fulfilled, and the bubble they’d lived in together would burst. She’d start her new life and he would go back to his.

Was that why she’d finally kissed him? Because she knew it was her last chance? She’d been sick in front of him, broken and fragile in front of him, and now she could add desperate and sex-starved to the list. What could she even say after that?

Sorry about that leg hump, Liam, it’s been a long dry spell?

Digging through the clean laundry for her favorite pair of patched up jeans and an oversized t-shirt, she started to dress. She couldn’t hide in her bedroom all day, and after she apologized for her part in Spidergate, she’d tell Liam the good news and handle whatever came next.

She walked down the stairs that opened on the spacious, high-ceilinged living room that she’d spent so much time in and shook her head, seeing it all with fresh eyes. Her sanctuary for the last twelve months had been a gilded palace that Liam’s friend called a “rustic getaway.” At least, that’s what he told her. She’d never met the owner, since he’d spent the last year in Europe with his girlfriend.

She wished she could thank him for being their own personal Daddy Warbucks. She had definitely felt a bit like Annie the first time she’d walked in the door. After a lifetime of small apartments and garage sale furniture, it had taken some getting used to.

Her dreams had always been bite-sized and ordinary. A small house of