Prodigal Son

Chapter 17

Felicity jerked upright, ending her back float and started treading water. She wasn't imagining anything. Someone was out there in the shadows.

"Who's there?!" She demanded. Fear made her voice sound higher, but anger kept it strong.

A figure rose from the shadows and stepped forward.

"It's only me. Oliver."

Relief hit her, but her heart kept pounding.

"You scared me to death! Stop doing that! Why were you hiding in the dark?"

Oliver was still wearing the black tuxedo pants and white, button down shirt he'd worn for the gala, but he'd traded the gleaming wingtips for more practical footwear, lost the yummy suspenders, opened up his collar, abandoned his tie, and removed his cufflinks.

He walked to the edge of the pool and crouched down. Felicity swam close and even though they were half way between the shallows and the deep end and the balls of her feet could just touch the bottom, she hung on to the cement side. With the pool lights reflecting upward, Oliver's features were easy to see, but he was doing that impassive expression thing.

"I was sitting here when you arrived," he said.

"You were watching me the whole time?" She waited a beat and he said nothing making his non- answer, her answer. She should have been creeped out. Two weeks ago, she absolutely would have been. What did it say about her now, that she wasn't? She found it odd behavior for Oliver to stay silent, but not creepy. Why? The answer quickly came. Because she trusted him. Something settled deep inside her.

Still, that didn't mean she didn't want answers.

"Why didn't you say something?"

"I thought tonight, of all nights, you needed your swim. I didn't want to get in the way."

But he also didn't leave. Oliver was in a contradictory mood tonight.

"You're not in the way. Why were you here?"

He lightly shrugged. "You said the conservatory was a good place to think."

"There's a difference between thinking and hiding in the dark, brooding."

He remained silent, not giving a hint of what he was feeling. His emotionless look was getting on her nerves.

"If you're done swimming," he finally said, "we should talk."

She tipped her head further back, studying him more carefully, and then shook her head. She didn't need to read his expression to know what he was going to say wasn't what she wanted to hear.

"Don't."

"Don't what?"

"Whatever it is you are going to say. You're back to blaming yourself, aren't you."

He looked away. "I'm the one that almost got you killed. I put everyone in danger."

"No, an unhinged woman who wrongfully blames you is to blame. You stopped her. You're the hero in this."

"If I hadn't come back, she would never have threatened Mom and Thea, never would have come after you."

"She came after us because of the lies people told. You didn't do anything."

When he nodded, she thought she was getting through to him. She was wrong.

"And that's my fault. I should have made it clear to everyone our relationship was strictly business. You were right about that. You were right about everything. The townhome, working from home, letting people make assumptions. It was all a mistake. My mistake," he emphasized.