Page 163 of Override

"The guest bathroom." Confusion washes over her face. "The rest of that system..." I shake my head. "...was never mine.”

Chapter 33

Maeve

Then the memory crashes into me. My house. The security update. Men moving through the rooms with equipment while Ronan explained that the new system would keep me safe.

And him.

I remember passing him in the hallway. He'd barely looked at me. My stomach drops so violently I have to take a step backward.

"You do work for him." The words come out thin and breathless, but the accusation behind them hangs heavily in the room between us.

His entire body goes still. "No."

"You were there."

My heart begins pounding hard enough to make the edges of my vision blur. I look toward the door behind him, then the windows, trying to understand where I am and how far we've driven and whether I could find my way back if I ran.

Back. The thought nearly makes me laugh. Back to where? The house I'd just escaped? The man who'd taken everything away from me? Or had I never escaped at all?

My eyes snap back to the man in front of me. Taibhse. The person I'd trusted. The stranger I'd told things I hadn't even admitted to myself. The man who had gotten me to my parents' house. Who knew when I was alone. Who knew when Ronan left. Who knew when I was sad. My stomach turns.

Oh, God. Was that the point? Had this all been some kind of test?

A way to see if I would betray my husband? A way to prove I couldn't be trusted? Had Ronan known about every message? Every conversation? Had he known when I snuck out to see my father?

I press a hand to my mouth. "I'm sorry."

His brows draw together. "What?"

"I won't do it again." The words begin spilling out before I can stop them. My chest is tightening, making every breath feel smaller than the one before it, but I need him to understand. I need Ronan to understand. "I shouldn't have left the house. I know that now. I understand. Just tell him I'm sorry." I take another step backward until my legs bump into the edge of the couch. "I won't leave again. I won't try to contact anyone. You can tell him that. Please. I understand now."

Something dark flashes across Taibhse's face. "No."

The word comes out so sharply that I flinch. His jaw locks. I see something that looks like real anger, and whatever fragile thread has been holding me together begins to fray.

Then his fingers move. Twice against the side of his thigh. A pause. Twice again.

I stare at the movement. He closes his eyes. Breathes in deeply through his nose. Once. Then again.

When his eyes open, the anger is still there, but it feels different now. Controlled. Contained. Not directed at me.

"Maeve." His voice is lower this time. "I do not work for Ronan."

I shake my head because I know what I saw. "You were in my house."

"I was."

"With the people installing his security system."

"Yes."

My laugh comes out broken. "Do you understand how this looks?"

His mouth presses into a thin line. "Yes."

The immediate answer stops me. He doesn't try to convince me I'm wrong. Doesn't tell me I'm confused or that I don't remember what I saw. He just stands there and lets me be angry.