Debra Burroughs - Paradise Valley 02.5 - The Edge of Lies Read Online Free Page B

he’d buy her a gun of her own.
    This was a safe, quiet town—there hadn’t been a murder in Paradise Valley in almost twenty years, she reminded him—but she went to the shooting range with him anyway, just to make him happy.

Chapter 5
    Emily gazed around her bedroom—their bedroom—she could hardly believe that six years had gone by since their wedding day. But time was not the only thing that had passed. Evan had too.
    The memories twisted her heart and stung her eyes and a tear slipped down her cheek. She wiped it with a tissue from her nightstand. As she dropped the crumpled tissue into the wastebasket beside the bed, Emily noticed her handbag sitting nearby on the floor. It was like a beacon, urging her to take the step she knew she needed to if she ever wanted closure.
    She eased the leather-bound notebook out of her purse and placed it on the bed in front of her, her hand lingering for a moment, caressing the cover. She released a held breath and gingerly opened the journal. “Well, here we go,” she said. “For better or worse.”
    Inside the cover was a note in Evan’s handwriting—it was addressed to her. She read it silently as the tears continued to flow.
    My dearest Emily, if you are reading this it likely means that my fears were realized and I am gone. I secured this under the gazebo, in a place I built out of love, hoping one day you would find it.
    I can only guess you might have questions, concerns, about what happened to me. You deserve to know the truth. I can’t give you all the answers, but I can share with you my fears and suspicions, along with my account of our time together. I want you to read this, linger over my words and envision the story as it unfolds—see yourself through my eyes. I don’t ever want you to doubt my love for you, darling. It is as real as anything I’ve ever known.
    ~ Evan
    Emily wasn’t at all sure she was ready for this, but knowing what she did now, she was painfully curious about what she might find within these pages. She shifted over to what had been Evan’s side of the bed. She breathed in the essence of him, hoping to do as he had said—get inside his mind and live the words as they unfolded.
    She turned the page and began reading. It started with the day they’d met. He’d described their wedding, seeing her in her gown, their honeymoon, his fears when she had asked him about why he’d been delayed, the ache he’d felt at having to lie to her.
    He’d put so much detail into his words, she really did feel as if she could see everything through his eyes. As she read on, beyond their wedding, to the life they were building together in Paradise Valley, Emily was riveted, transformed.
    ~*~
    Evan had work coming in, but he was getting restless tailing unfaithful husbands and doing boring background checks for a growing number of employers. He was used to fast-paced, high-powered work, something for which he could use his brain and his brawn. Hiding out in this small town was beginning to grate on him.
    One afternoon, he thought he sensed someone following him, watching him, when he and Emily were having lunch at an outdoor café in downtown Boise. One minute they were laughing, talking, and enjoying their meal, and the next he took off.
    Emily must have thought he was crazy as he raced out of the restaurant. When Evan reached the spot where he thought he saw someone watching, he found no one there. If someone had been there, they were gone now.
    He returned to the restaurant, breathless and full of adrenaline, to find a confused-looking Emily staring through him with laser-focused eyes. “Sorry, I thought I saw someone I used to know, love—in this small town, what are the odds? I wanted to catch up to him before he left, but I was too late. Maybe another time.”
    Her face relaxed and she gave him a little smile, her blue-green eyes sparkling now, clearly believing every word—man, how he loved her.
    He returned the smile and took her hand across