Blood in the Past (Blood for Blood Series) Read Online Free Page A

the car and watched her lover’s eyes creep downward to her low-cut tank top. She kissed him deeply, the way she always did, but he pulled back. Just a little.
     
    “Some of the guys still think you’re an informant.”
     
    She pouted. “I thought you told them about me.”
     
    “I did, just not all of them—“
     
    “By the way, I’ve been trying to call you since Delaware, baby.” Jillian spoke in a coquettish tone, giddy to spill her news right then, but Calvin cut her off, nodding curtly.
     
    ”Listen, I want to talk about us tonight, Jilly.”
     
    Jillian’s heart flip-flopped. Finally! That was what she had waited months for. Lyla was more than an adult and about to complete her last year of residency. In fact, she’d just moved into her own apartment. Calvin could finally leave his wife. Plus, this would be the perfect time to share her exhilarating news! But why doesn’t Calvin look as thrilled as I feel?
     
    Jillian craned into the car to give him another quick peck on the lips. Calvin said goodbye and headed home to catch up on some sleep—in the bed he still shared with his wife. Driven by curiosity, and perhaps a bevy of other emotions, Jillian tailed him to his cobalt-blue, two-story townhouse.
     
    The serene neighborhood on the outskirts of Philly intrigued her. She wanted so badly to be a part of it, and she even imagined Calvin returning home from work to her , greeting her with a kiss. Jillian wondered if she would move in with him or if he’d leave the house to his wife so they could start anew in their own house. Soon she would know. Maybe even after that night’s talk.
     
    Jillian arrived at the Atlantic City hotel early. She draped herself in a silk negligee—a gift from Calvin—and lit several gardenia candles. She always used a gardenia-scented conditioner, and Calvin had mentioned when they first met that he liked the way her hair smelled. In fact, he’d described the smell as “divine.” Jillian shivered with anticipation as she ordered a bottle of champagne from room service—she didn’t think a single glass would hurt—and sprawled across the king-sized bed to await her lover.
     
    Calvin lumbered through the door well after eight. He didn’t even spare a glance at Jillian. Instead, he circled the room and extinguished each candle with his thumb and forefinger. Finally, he perched on the edge of the bed and stared at her. Jillian didn’t budge. Even holding the champagne flutes, she fought the urge to fuss with her hands under his scrutiny. He got up, turned up the lights as bright as they could go, and returned to his spot on the bed.
     
    “Jillian, I’ve asked you several times not to call my house.”
     
    She sat up. Are we not about to have the talk I’ve looked forward to all day? The talk I’ve longed for the past five months?
     
    Calvin continued. “I think we should stop seeing each other. At least for a while.”
     
    “Baby, no.” Jillian’s voice fluttered, like her heartbeat. Her mind swam for a way to fix things. “You’re right, I shouldn’t call. I promise I won’t. It’s just that—”
     
    “It’s too late, sweetheart. My wife knows something’s up. And now she’s confided in my daughter and...I just need to be home with my family and set things straight, you know? We have to cool it for a while.”
     
    “You had to get us a fancy hotel room to do this?” Jillian’s voice quivered. From sadness or anger, she couldn’t be sure. What about my news?
     
    “I thought we could have one last special night together—”
     
    “So you put out the candles?”
     
    “Look, okay fine. I thought, maybe after...you might need to blow off some steam. At the casinos or the spa or something.”
     
    Jillian said nothing. She’d been holding both champagne flutes in her right hand as part of her seductive pose, like a pair of delicate glass tulips. Now they felt heavy and the stems awkward between her fingers. She laid them on the bed