Trying not to reveal how elated she was, she put on a professional voice and said, “You can definitely count on me.”
“I knew I could.” Barb sounded pleased that Claire was being so agreeable. “I’ll email you the details and company profile the day after tomorrow. Businesses go back to normal on the second of the month, but you’ll be meeting with the CEO on the third. That’s Wednesday morning.”
“Sounds good.”
“You sound good. The time off seems to have lifted your spirits,” Barb said, her normally commanding voice softening. “I know what a difficult time this must have been for you.”
Difficult time?
Oh right. The wedding.
“It was difficult,” she admitted. “But I’m doing much better. It was the right decision not to go through with it.”
“It’s such a shame.” Barb made a clucking noise. “Christopher is such a charming man. And quite successful.”
And a total bastard.
She bit her tongue, instead saying, “Chris is a great person, but he wasn’t the right man for me.” Since she felt uncomfortable discussing her personal life with Barb, she quickly changed the subject. “Anyway, I’ve been enjoying my time here, so if there are any more jobs in Southern California after this contract, I’d love to be considered for them.”
Maybe she was being presumptuous, seeing as how she hadn’t even spoken to the guys about the future, but she at least wanted to throw the idea out there.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Barb replied. “All right, darling, it’s time for me to lock up the office and go home to get ready. Do you have big plans for this evening?”
“Not really. Just hanging out with a few friends,” she said vaguely.
“Have fun, then. We’ll be in touch.”
After Claire hung up the phone, she did a happy little fist pump that fortunately nobody else could see, then hurried out of the room.
She found the boys sprawled on their respective couches, sipping beers as they watched the Bears game on the screen. They’d flipped a coin earlier to see which game would be their “primary” one, and since Aidan had won the toss, Dylan and Claire were forced to catch glimpses of the Niners game when the Bears one was on commercial.
“What do you look so happy about?” Aidan teased as she skidded into the living room.
“My boss just called.” She paused for dramatic effect.
Rolling their eyes, both men gestured for her to go on.
“She wants me to do an assessment on a company in Oceanside. It’ll be a two- to three-week assignment, so that means…”
Wide grins stretched across their faces.
“You get to stay longer?” Dylan said happily.
“Yep, and I can totally commute from San Diego to Oceanside, which means I don’t need to book a hotel up there. All I have to do is rent a car and I can drive back here every night.” She paused again, this time with uncertainty. “That is, if you guys want me to stick around.”
Aidan’s dark eyes took on an intense glint. “Come here.”
She went to him without delay, squeaking in delight when he pulled her into his lap. “You know how fucking bummed we’ve been that you were leaving?” he said gruffly. “We don’t want you to go.”
Dylan spoke up in a low voice. “If it were up to us, you’d never leave.”
Her heart did a somersault, then took off in a gallop when Aidan leaned in to kiss her. His lips were firm, his tongue insistent as it slid into her mouth. He kissed her until she was breathless, then pulled back and smiled. “So yeah, we want you to stick around.”
She smiled back. “Okay.”
“Good. So now, what do we want to do for dinner? Anywhere we go will be packed tonight, so I vote for staying here and grilling up some steaks and maybe—”
Dylan’s ringing phone cut Aidan off midsentence.
On the other couch, Dylan swiped his cell off the glass table and checked the screen. His chiseled features instantly tensed. “Fuck.”
“Who is it?” Claire asked in concern.
“It’s a France country code.”
Claire’s back stiffened, prompting Aidan to run a reassuring hand up and down her spine.
Dylan answered the phone with a curt “Hello”. Then he stopped, listened, and sighed in resignation. “It’s only three p.m. here, but happy New Year all the same, big brother.”
Since she could only hear Dylan’s side of the conversation, it was difficult to get the full scope of what was being said, but Claire understood the gist of it.
“Yeah…no, nothing major, just chilling here… Good, because I’ll be there too…yeah, I’m flying in to see Mom the day after tomorrow.” Dylan paused for several seconds, and then his face twisted in disgust. “No fucking kidding, Chris.” A muscle twitched in his jaw. “Right, of course. Uh-huh…yeah, whatever…I’ll see you Tuesday.”
He hung up and tossed the phone to the other end of the sofa as if it carried the Ebola virus.
Claire met his eyes. “What do you mean, you’ll see him Tuesday?”
“I was actually coming to talk to you about that before you raced in here with your good news.” His expression conveyed a whole lot of annoyance, but she knew it wasn’t directed at her. “I was going to tell you not to book anything commercial. My Coast Guard buddy got back to me and he’s agreed to fly me home the day after tomorrow. My Lieutenant Commander approved my leave request, so I have a day pass to see my mom.”
Right, because he still hadn’t spoken to Shanna, Claire remembered. And now she also recalled that her and Chris’s return flight from Paris had been scheduled for New Year’s Day, so he would be back in town the day before Dylan flew in.
“What did he say that made you so mad?” she asked quietly. “When you swore at him?”
Dylan’s mouth tightened. “He said, and I quote, ‘I guess I should give Claire a call when I get home’.”
A gust of anger swept through her. “He guesses?” She stumbled off Aidan’s lap, too pissed to sit still. “You know what? I’m coming with you on Tuesday. It’s definitely time for me to have a talk with your brother.” Sarcasm filled her tone. “You know, the talk we should have had the day of our wedding.”
Rather than argue, Dylan just nodded. “I think that’s a good idea. Now stop pacing and c’mere, honey.”
She inhaled deeply and willed herself to calm down. Chris might be an ass, but she refused to let him affect her this way. She wasn’t normally an angry person, and she hated this awful feeling of rage constricting her chest.
This time she slid into Dylan’s lap, exhaling in a slow rush as his arms came around her.
“What should we tell Chris?”
Dylan frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, your mom knows that you brought me back to San Diego, so he’s going to find out I stayed here. And I’m a terrible liar, so if he asks me what you and I did, my stupid cheeks will reveal the truth.”
Both men laughed. “She’s got a point, bro,” Aidan said from the other couch.
“I don’t plan on telling him that I slept with you,” she told Dylan, “but if he suspects something and calls me on it, I don’t think I can lie.”
“You don’t have to lie. If it comes out, it comes out. Chris is a big boy. He might not like that we’re dating, but he’ll get over it.”
She blinked. “We’re dating?”
Dylan rolled his eyes. “Of course we are.”
Confused, she slowly turned to Aidan. “Are we dating too?”
Those adorable dimples made an appearance. “Of course we are.”
“Oh.”
She was still trying to wrap her head around that when Dylan grasped her chin and forced her to look at him. “What, did you think you were here as our live-in sex slave?”
“Well, no, but…”
“This is more than sex, Claire.” His vivid green eyes shone with sincerity. “Don’t you get that?”
Emotion clogged her thr
oat, then damn near suffocated her when she glanced at Aidan and glimpsed the earnest intensity in his eyes.
“It’s more than sex,” Aidan echoed huskily. “Much, much more.”
* * *
“You sure you don’t want me to stick around?” Dylan opened Claire’s door for her, then got into the driver’s seat.
“No, this is something I need to do alone,” she answered, but her tone lacked any and all enthusiasm.
He pulled out of the rental agency parking lot and merged into traffic. It was just past eleven in the morning, a bright, sunny day that didn’t match his cloudy mood. He was anxious about seeing his mom, anxious about Claire seeing Chris. If there’d been a way to avoid either confrontation, Dylan would have jumped on it.
They didn’t say much as he navigated the city’s never-ending hills and twisty turns. The sun was so bright Dylan popped his shades on, then chuckled when he saw Claire’s pink cheeks.
She sighed happily. “You look so damn hot in those Aviators.”
“Yeah? Well, you look so damn hot in anything.” He winked at her. “And in nothing at all.”
He thought she looked especially cute today in her faded blue jeans and white V-neck sweater. Her hair was up in a messy twist, there wasn’t a drop of makeup on her face, and she wore no jewelry except for the plain silver watch around one delicate wrist. He loved that about her, how she didn’t put an obscene amount of time or effort into her appearance. She didn’t need to—her understated, fresh-faced look only made her all the more beautiful.
“Hey, I just realized, your ears aren’t pierced,” he said.
“I know. I always wanted to get it done, but my dad wouldn’t let me,” she admitted. “And then when I got older, I just forgot about it.”
“You still planning on seeing your folks after you talk to Chris?”
“Of course. My mom would murder me if I came to the city and didn’t visit them.”
Dylan stopped at a red light and reached over to rest his hand on her thigh. She smiled at the physical contact and placed her small palm over his knuckles.
“So then I’ll pick you up from their house later?” he asked.
“Sounds like a plan.” With her free hand, she grabbed her phone from her green canvas purse and checked the screen. “No more texts from Chris. I assume he’s meeting me at the apartment at noon like we arranged yesterday.”
Dylan tensed. Rather than calling, Chris had contacted the woman he’d left at the altar via text message last night, asking her to meet. Claire hadn’t told his brother she’d spent the last month in San Diego, but Dylan knew that tidbit would come out today when the two of them spoke.
Again, he couldn’t muster up much guilt over the situation. He knew Chris wouldn’t be happy when he discovered Claire and Dylan were involved, but after everything his brother had done, Dylan didn’t have any sympathy for the guy.
“I’m going to pack another bag when I’m there,” she went on. “I didn’t bring any work clothes with me for the honeymoon.” She paused, bit her lip. “I guess I should pack up my other things too, figure out with Chris who gets what when it comes to furniture and dishes and all that stuff.”
Dylan wondered if Chris would want to keep the apartment. Probably. He remembered his brother raving about how “prestigious” the location was and how one of the other associates lived in the same building.
For a moment he felt angry on Claire’s behalf—because really, Chris should be the one moving out—but then he let it go. If Claire kept the apartment, that meant she’d be staying in San Francisco, and that was the last thing Dylan wanted. He was praying this three-week extension they’d gotten would lead to an even longer stay on Claire’s part, but he was hesitant to raise the issue. He knew how much Claire loved her job, and he could never ask her to give it up for him and Aidan.
“It’ll all work out,” he assured her. “Doesn’t matter who gets what. Those are just things, and things don’t matter.”
She smiled dryly. “They do to your brother. Knowing him, he’ll want to debate every last item.”
The sedan came to a stop in front of a tall, well-maintained building. Dylan put the car in park. “Should I wish you luck?”
“Probably.” She sighed. “This is not gonna be fun. I’ll cab it to my parents’ house when I’m done here, and you can grab me whenever you’re done with Shanna. Oh, and tell her I say hi.”
“Sounds good, and I will.” He leaned over the center console and planted a quick kiss on her lips. “Good luck. And give my brother hell—he fucking deserves it.”
Her amber-brown eyes gleamed. “Damn right he does.”
* * *
Fifteen minutes later, Dylan was driving across the Golden Gate Bridge into Marin County. With the radio blasting one of his favorite Nirvana songs, he headed east toward San Rafael. As sunny as it was, the temperature was only in the low sixties, and a cool breeze drifted in from the open window. He breathed in the fresh air, enjoying the solitude. Living with a roommate meant he didn’t always have a chance to be alone with his thoughts, and sometimes he craved some Dylan-time.
It wasn’t long before he reached his quaint, tree-lined street and stopped in the driveway of the ranch-style house he’d grown up in.
The house is mother had almost lost due to her gambling addiction.
Jesus.
Shutting off the engine, he grabbed his mom’s Christmas gift from the backseat, which Claire had taken painstaking care to wrap. The red-and-white-striped paper and big red bow made him smile. He couldn’t believe he’d ever thought that Claire didn’t like and respect his mother.
With the gift in hand, he walked up the cobblestone path toward the front door. He let himself in without knocking, immediately struck by a wave of nostalgia as he stood in the front hall and inhaled the familiar smell of home.
“Mom?” he called.
“In here, sweetheart!”
He followed her voice into the living room, his gaze settling on the beautifully decorated tree in the corner of the room. When she’d called to wish him a merry Christmas, Shanna had told him their neighbors Charlie and Beth had helped her set up and decorate the tree, and he suddenly had the urge to go next door and thank the sweet, retired couple for helping Shanna out. Sometimes he hated the thought of his mom living alone here, with him all the way in San Diego and Chris wrapped up in his own conceited bubble.
“I’m so glad you’re home!” With a beaming smile, Shanna hurried over and wrapped her arms around him.
Dylan hugged her back, marveling over how petite she was. Her blonde head barely reached his collarbone.
“Happy holidays, Mom,” he said gruffly.
“Happy holidays, sweetheart.” She tugged on his hand, her green eyes shining happily. “Come. Sit. Tell me how you spent your holidays.”
“First I want to know all about your trip to Palm Springs.”
They settled on the oversized, peach-colored couch, and Shanna spent the next few minutes outlining everything she’d done at her friend’s ranch. She looked tanned and relaxed, and so happy that he felt like a total ass for the pain he was about to cause her.
But he couldn’t pretend everything was okay, and after they’d chatted for nearly thirty minutes, Dylan took a deep breath and finally addressed the giant elephant in the room that Shanna was oblivious to.
“Mom,” he started. Then he stopped. Cleared his throat, tried again. “Mom, there’s something we need to talk about.”
Her pale eyebrows drew together. “What is it? Is everything okay?”
“No, it isn’t. I…I know what’s been going on around here. Claire told me everything.”
Shanna looked stricken for a second. She swallowed, then pasted on a blank look. “What do you mean?”
“Please don’t lie to me.” He released a shaky exhalation. “You and Chris have been lying to me for more than a year. So please, just stop.”
“Dylan—”
“Why didn’t you tell
me about the gambling?”
Shanna hesitated. Swallowed again. And then her entire face collapsed and her green eyes filled with tears. “Because I was ashamed.”
If there was one thing guaranteed to trigger his hero complex, it was a female’s tears. Especially his mother’s.
“Ah, shit. Damn it, Mom, come here.” Dylan put his arm around her trembling shoulders and held her close, his heart breaking at the sound of her quiet sobs.
She pressed her face against his chest, her voice coming out muffled. “I’m so sorry. I wanted to tell you, I really did, but I was so mortified. I never thought something like that could happen to me. You know me, Dylan, I’m careful with money, I don’t make impulse purchases or buy extravagant things. I…” The tears continued to fall, soaking the front of his sky-blue polo shirt. “I was embarrassed and ashamed and angry at myself for screwing up so badly.”
Sighing, he smoothed a hand over her hair. “What happened? How did it get so out of control like that?”
She lifted her head and wiped her wet eyes with the sleeve of her thin red sweater. “What did Claire tell you?”
“That you went to the casino with friends, caught the gambling bug and everything went downhill from there.”
A weak smile flitted over her lips. “Yes, that sounds about right.”
“I’d still like to hear it from you.”
After a long moment, she nodded, and the whole story spilled out. It was exactly like Claire had said, only much, much worse coming from his mom’s lips.
She told him about her increased visits to the casino, how overjoyed she’d felt when she’d won and how desperate she was when she started losing. She told him about the withdrawals she’d made from her savings account, the mutual funds she’d sold, the second mortgage she’d secured. She told him about missing work, lying to her boss, using up all her personal days and then eventually not showing up altogether.
When she got to the part about how she’d finally had to confide in Chris because the bank had sent her a foreclosure notice, Dylan’s chest tightened with both sympathy and anger.
“You should have told me,” he muttered.
Out of Uniform Box Set: Books 4-6 plus 2 Bonus Novellas Page 47
