Nick didn't know exactly how he had gotten from Valeria's office to his apartment, only that he was barely aware he was moving. He could still feel Valeria's fingers stamped against his face, but that wasn't the worst thing that had happened to him.

The worst thing was knowing that he had dug his own grave and was now throwing the dirt on himself. Valeria was right about one thing: it had been his decision to believe in Miranda and not her, but he couldn't blame Miranda for trying to help him. They had known each other for many years. If the guy in the lab had given her those results, it wasn't her fault...

And now he was in a worse position than between a rock and a hard place, because he had already deliberately hurt Valeria, and there was nothing he could do about that. His conscience could not afford to hurt anyone else.

Valeria hated him, and Nick didn't know what to do to change that. She might never harbor good feelings for him again, and he completely deserved it.

He tried