Todos los capítulos de THE HOUSE KEEPER : Capítulo 51 - Capítulo 60

Zoe's POV"Don't breathe," Elena whispered. "I mean it. If you breathe, the zipper wins."Zoe stood on a small round platform in the middle of a bridal shop on Madison Avenue. Her arms were stretched out like a scarecrow while a seamstress with pins between her lips pulled at the back of the dress.The gown cost more than Zoe had paid in rent during her first three years."I can't feel my ribs," Zoe whispered."You don't need ribs," Elena said. "You just need to look like a woman who has never scrubbed a bathtub in her life.""I scrubbed one this morning.""Then lie."Zoe laughed, and the movement made the pins shake loose. The seamstress muttered something in Italian that definitely did not sound like a blessing.Across the room, Margaret Blackwood sat on a cream-colored velvet sofa with her ankles crossed. She calmly sipped her tea while watching everything."Turn around, dear," Margaret said.Zoe slowly turned.The mirror showed her someone she barely recognized.Ivory silk covered

Chapter Fifty-ThreeZoe's POV"I did it," Renata said.She sat on the edge of the sofa in Julian's living room. Both hands were wrapped tightly around a cup of tea, but she wasn't drinking it.Her shoulder was almost healed, but she still kept her arm close to her body, the way someone holds a part of themselves that was badly hurt before."I tore out the last page," she said. "Twenty years ago. In a motel outside Baltimore, in the middle of the night, with a baby sleeping on the bed."Zoe's breath caught."With me?""You were six years old."Renata gave her a sad smile."You were sleeping with your thumb in your mouth. You still did that back then."Zoe felt her eyes grow hot.She pushed the feeling away.There was no time for tears.Julian stood near the window with his arms crossed. Arthur sat beside the desk. On the coffee table between them was the note from the scarf.It lay there like a small blue bomb."Why did you tear it out?" Zoe asked."Because of the name at the bottom."

Zoe's POV"You're not going alone," Julian said for the fifth time."I'm going alone," Zoe replied. "That's the whole point."They stood in the marble foyer of the penthouse.Julian looked like he hadn't slept in three days. His hair was sticking up on one side, his shirt was wrinkled, and he held both of Zoe's shoulders as if he was afraid she might disappear."Diane asked me to come alone," Zoe said. "If I bring an army, she'll know we suspect her. If I go alone, she'll think I'm still the scared little housekeeper.""You are not a scared little housekeeper.""No," Zoe said. "But she doesn't need to know that."A small, crooked smile appeared on Julian's face.He leaned his forehead against hers for one shaky second."Wear the earpiece," he said. "If anything feels wrong, say the word 'lemon.'""Lemon?""It's not something you'd say by accident.""I say lemon at least twice a week. I cook, Julian.""Then say 'pineapple.'"Zoe laughed.Julian laughed too.That small, warm moment was

Zoe's POVZoe woke up at three in the morning to the sound of someone breathing.She stayed completely still in the dark guest room, her eyes wide open and her heart beating hard against her ribs.The blanket was tucked around her chin.For a moment, her body felt the fear before her mind could understand what was happening.Then she recognized the breathing.Slow.Steady.Familiar.She sat up.The bedroom door was open just a few inches.Through the small gap, she could see a chair pulled into the hallway.And sitting in it, folded awkwardly like a man who had never learned how to sleep in a chair, was Julian.His head rested against the wall.His tie was gone.One hand hung over the side of the chair, his fingers curled around nothing.On the floor beside him was a baseball bat.Zoe's chest tightened.He's been guarding my door.She slowly got out of bed, careful not to make the floor creak.She picked up the extra quilt from the foot of the bed and quietly stepped into the hallway.

Zoe's POV"Chin up," Elena ordered. "Shoulders back. Walk like you own the building!""I have never owned a building!""Then pretend you own a really nice one!"Zoe slowly walked across the penthouse living room in six-inch heels.She had a tray of champagne glasses balanced on one hand.Four of the glasses tilted dangerously.One suddenly slipped.Elena quickly reached out and caught it just an inch above the marble floor."Again," Elena said."Elena, I love you, but I'm going to die in these shoes.""You will die in style."It was Friday afternoon, the day before the engagement party.The penthouse had turned into a war room that looked like a wedding rehearsal.Ramirez stood at the dining table with a map of the Astor Room spread out in front of him.Arthur was on the phone with a federal judge.Renata sat nearby, sewing something small into the hem of a green dress.Margaret was arguing with a caterer about salmon.And in the middle of all that chaos, Zoe was practicing how to act