by Julia Gray
“No, I haven’t,” I admit. “But I’ve met his daughter.”
Silence.
“Oh,” I go on. “She left that part out, did she?”
“She sure did.”
I can’t help but smirk.
“She’s alright," I respond. "Her name is Myra. Same age as me.”
“Hmmm, well that changes things a bit.”
“You’re still coming, right?” My stomach has butterflies. I haven’t spent much time with my mom this summer. I miss her, even though the second she sees me run to the bathroom she’ll know about the baby.
“Yes, darling I’m coming. Now put your brother on.”
“What?” I respond. I bite the side of my lip. “Oh . . . he’s out.”
“Okay well, I guess I’ll just see him later. Okay, bye honey. I’m at the salon.”
“Bye.” I hang up, flabbergasted. Aunt Sheila never even thought to ask about my brother. I guess she forgot he was supposed to show up too. He got lucky this time He is technically an adult now who should be able to do what he wants, but Mom and Dad keep us under a microscope. I guess that is the price you pay when you live off of family money. I grab my laptop and start formulating an email.
Dearest Brother,
Come home now!
No, he’ll never respond to that.
Dane,
I just got off the phone with mom. She’s coming to London. Tomorrow.
I quickly hit send in hopes that he will see it in time to hop on a train.
“Knock, knock,” Myra says as she enters the room.
“Yeah.”
“Hey,” she says, pointing a finger. “You promised you wouldn't do that anymore.” I didn’t even realize I rolled my eyes when she walked in.
“Sorry.” I shake my head. “What’s up?”
“What’s up is that you’ve got a hottie downstairs insisting you see him.”
“Huh?” I blush. “Sam is here?” The butterflies in my stomach turn to knots.
“Well.” She shrugs. “I might have encouraged him some.”
“Myra.” I jump up and run to my suitcase. “What did you say to him? Tell me the exact wording you used.”
“Chill out yeah,” she laughs. “He likes you. Why does it matter what I said?”
And the games have begun. Myra is in hot water. The more she messes with my life, the more I feel like messing with hers. She has no idea what she’s starting. “Come on. He’s fit. You’re abroad for the summer.” I glance at her. A satisfied grin is stamped on her face.
I grab a cuter top and my tightest pair of jeans.
“Right.” I giggle to myself. “Well, thanks, girl. I’ll have to return the favor one of these days.”
“I’m sure you will,” she replies. I wait for her to leave before changing into my clothes. I have no idea what to say to Sam. I’m still mad at him, and that’s never a good thing.
Chapter Ten
“. . . he has a hold over me . . .”
Sam is staring at me like I’m a ticking time bomb. I’m waiting for him to speak first. He grins and takes a step closer. I put my hands on my hips and stare at the shiny marble floor behind him. We’re in the foyer, and I know what he’s thinking. He wants me to ask him to come in and have a seat. Then we’ll talk, laugh, and he’ll end up getting me to agree to a first date.
“Fine,” he exhales. “I’ll say something first.” He pauses for a moment and then chuckles.
“What?”
“You don’t want to apologize for earlier, do you?” he continues. “Because your friend said you did.”
I slowly shake my head with a smirk on my face.
“Then what do you want?” he asks.
“Me?” My cheeks feel hot. Most guys would apologize anyway just to get on my good side. “I don’t want anything from you.” I lift my chin. He leans in closer.
“Then why did you come downstairs?” He raises his eyebrows. I have to admit it would be a whole lot easier to throw him out if it wasn’t for that sexy accent.
“I thought you wanted to apologize,” I answer.
“Nope.”
“Great.” I roll my eyes. “Maybe we should just agree to disagree.”
He sniffs.
“Is that perfume? It smells like you just sprayed it.”
“Oh shut up,” I reply. The way he looks at me makes my heart beat faster.
“And lip gloss too?”
“And your point is?” I respond, calming my nerves, so I don’t blush.
“Nothing,” he replies. He nods and heads towards the door. My heart starts racing.
“Sam,” I yell. He stops and turns around. “You can’t just . . .” I’m at a loss for words. I thought this conversation would go very, very differently.
Sam walks toward me with a grin on his face. His eyes are dark and somehow entrancing. The curve of his bicep sticks out below the sleeve of his t-shirt. The closer he gets the warmer I feel. I should say something. Scold him maybe.
I can’t.
It’s like he has a hold over me and I can’t do anything about it.
He walks right up to me and steals a kiss. His hands slip around my waist and pull me towards him like I’m his property. His lips are firm and powerful. They force mine to succumb to the desires in his head. My cheeks feel like a burning fireplace.
He pulls away. I crave more, but I’m too stubborn to say it.
“If you want more,” he mutters. His voice is deep, and he whispers so only I can hear him. “You know where to find me.”
As quickly as he kissed me, he’s back at the front door showing himself out. I watch him step outside and shut the door, still saying nothing. He stole my ability to think. My brain won’t work. I stand bewildered for the next five minutes.
What just happened?
I take a deep breath and finally take control of my head again. This entire time, I didn’t even realize my overwhelming urge to vomit.
GAVIN
Chapter Eleven
“I made a mistake.”
This guy hardly leaves his hotel room. Something must be going down today. I watch the man from the photograph look both ways as he gets in his car. Until now my assignment from Matt Haskell has been pretty dull. The man I’m following spends all day indoors and all night at the bar.
Nothing suspicious.
I watch his car turn out of the parking lot before I start my engine. I follow him to the highway, glancing at my phone every five seconds wondering if Mr. Haskell needs to know that this man is leaving the area.
Nah.
For all I know he’s jumping town. I turn on the radio and pretend I’m out for a casual drive. I stay a few car lengths away from him as he moves to a different lane. I stay put and let my car get lost in traffic. I can still see him.
Time passes, and I begin to stare at my cell phone again.
“Where are you going, old man?” I say out loud. Not like it’ll help.
We are getting closer and closer to a neighboring city. He takes an exit, and I follow, grinning. He’s going to the airport. Guess whatever he was in town for didn’t work out. Mr. Haskell will be pleased to hear this. He won’t show it much, but I know he’ll give me an approving nod.
The man pulls into the parking garage. I circle and watch him find a parking spot before entering the garage myself. I find a spot as he crosses the street. I park and jump out to follow him in a matter of seconds. He’s heading for departures. I rush to catch up, but I take a step back when he suddenly stops. He stands and stares at the screen displaying all the departing flights. He shifts to one foot, adjusting his dark brown jacket. I have to give him credit. He blends in well with the crowd.
I find an open chair to sit and wait. My back is turned for a fraction of a second, and when I look back, he’s gone.
My chest pounds out of control.
I made a mistake.
My eyes immediately begin scanning the crowd in front of me. I can’t see him anywhere. My mind automati
cally divides the airport lobby into quadrants. I must search them all.
I dive into a crowd of people and begin making my rounds. This should work unless he has somehow slipped past airport security. Then I might never find him. I scan the crowd and walk into the men’s bathroom. Still no sign of him.
I pull out my cell phone, terrified of calling Mr. Haskell just to tell him I failed at the one task he gave me – stalking the man who might be in town to kidnap his wife.
That’s my last resort.
My eye catches something out of the ordinary. A passenger with a designer handbag and an expensive fur vest. Her blonde hair shines in the light, and the way her hips sway back and forth remind me too much of . . .
She strolls towards airport security, pulling out her cell phone. I watch her stop. Her eyes go wide. She glances around at her surroundings, hardly noticing me. She brushes her hair over her shoulder and speed walks in the opposite direction. I jog to catch up. I turn a corner and stop.
She’s gone.
I give in and dial Mr. Haskell’s number.
I hold my cell phone to my ear and cringe when I hear Matt Haskell’s voice.
“Yes,” he answers impatiently.
“Sir,” I gulp. “I’m sorry. I tried to-“
“What is it?”
“I followed that guy to the airport,” I respond. “He disappeared on me.”
“And?”
How does he know that’s not the worst part?
“And.” I swallow. “Someone else was here, but she disappeared too.”
“Was it?”
“Yes,” I say quickly. He’s going to drive down here and beat my ass for saying this. “It was your wife.”
PAIGE
Chapter Twelve
"The more, the merrier . . ."
I sit in my room biting my nails expecting Aunt Sheila's driver to show up any minute with my mother in the back seat. It will be difficult having to look her in the eyes. For some reason, I have this nightmare scenario playing in my head where Mom takes one look at me and knows that I am pregnant.
"Knock, knock," Myra says as she slowly opens the door.
"Why bother to knock if you're going to walk in anyway?" I ask.
"Oh, honey." She clutches a squirmy Princey in one hand and sits next to me. "I say mean things too when I'm nervous."
"I'm not nervous." I sigh and glance out the window at the grayish sky. There are rain clouds in the distance. "Why would you think I'm nervous?" I instinctively touch my stomach. Does Myra know? Is it obvious that I run to the toilet every morning and barf up everything I ate the day before?
"Well . . . Sam." She twirls a strand of her auburn hair and sets Princey down on the floor. He looks up and whines, but Myra ignores him. Her focus shifts to me instead.
"Sam," I repeat. "Of course."
"Don't tell me you've never been with a guy," Myra comments. She has a twisted smile on her face. The same one I see her make when Aunt Sheila asks her politely to keep Princey out of the dining room.
Princey goes where he pleases.
"That's none of your business," I mutter. If I've never been with a guy, I wouldn't be in this position at all. This might be the only time in my life I have ever wished to be a virgin.
I quietly giggle. I've cried. I've pouted. And I've been so angry that my head felt like it might erupt. Why not laugh at myself too?
"Okay." She holds up her hands and watches as Princey begins chewing the corner of my nightstand. "I was only trying to help. Princey, come on boy." She stands up, and her eyes dart to the window. "Looks like the car is back from the airport."
I race to the door as soon as Myra leaves and jog down the stairs. My stomach is churning. I need to see my mom and get rid of this sick feeling that won't leave. Either she will know right away that I am pregnant or I will have more time to hide it from her before she lectures me for being careless and slutty.
The driver walks inside. His hands are empty, and he has a blank expression when he sees me. I wait to see if he's going to go back outside and retrieve my mom's luggage, but he doesn't. He begins walking towards the kitchen instead.
"Excuse me," I call after him. "Where is my mom?"
"She wasn't there, Mam." The driver shrugs.
"You mean you didn't wait for her? I don't understand."
"She wasn't aboard the flight," the driver responds. "I had the airline confirm this, Mam. She must have rescheduled her trip. I already informed your aunt." He turns towards the kitchen again but stops when Princey begins barking from upstairs. There is someone at the door.
Aunt Sheila's driver heads to the front foyer and opens the door. A guy is standing on the porch panting. My eyes go wide, and my heart jumps. I never thought I would be this excited to see my brother.
"Dane!" I shout.
"Nice email, sis. Am I too late?" he responds, out of breath. He grabs the hand of a beaming woman. I do a double take when I see that the woman is Mikki. She looks older. She looks happy. She looks . . . confident.
Her shoulders don't slump when she walks, and she doesn't stare down at her feet when she has nothing to say. She smiles at me, and it reminds me of the few pleasant conversations we have actually had. Dane looks happy too. He doesn't wrinkle his nose when he sees my face. He walks straight up to me and gives me a hug.
"I wasn't sure if you would read my email or not," I say.
"Of course." He takes a deep breath. "Thanks for the heads up."
"Thanks?" I can't be sure that this person in front of me is the same brother who hurls insults at me every chance that he gets.
"Yeah." He shrugs and keeps a grin on his face as Mikki walks up to me and hugs me too. She is wearing simple jeans and plain green t-shirt, but she carries herself as if she's wearing a ball gown that is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"Hi Paige," Mikki says. "How are you?"
"Fine," I reply. I take a step back, unsure if their sincerity is some kind of scam. "And you haven't missed a thing. Mom isn't here."
"When will she be here?" Dane asks.
"I don't know. She missed her flight."
Footsteps trot down the staircase. Aunt Sheila squeals behind me and reaches for Dane. She is still wearing her silky dressing gown. I catch a whiff of her perfume and cover my nose before the scent affects my nausea.
"My little nephew," Aunt Sheila shouts. "Is that really you?" She touches his cheek like he is five years old. "It's so good to see you, darling." Her eyes dart to Mikki. "And who is this?"
"Hi, I'm Mikki." Mikki reaches out to shake her hand, but Aunt Sheila pulls her in for a hug. I study Mikki suspiciously, wondering if she and Dane did something totally stupid like get married. But she doesn't have a ring on her finger.
"Oh, I hope you two are planning on staying." Aunt Sheila claps her hands together. "The more, the merrier for the big day."
"Aunt Sheila is getting married," I say to Dane. His eyes widen, and he nods slowly. "Isn't that great?" I know that Dane remembers our aunt's last failed marriage just as much as I do. I wait for him to uncomfortably fold his arms or even make a snide comment to make Aunt Sheila feel silly for rushing into things.
"Congratulations," he says with a grin on his face.
"Come in. Come in." She pulls Dane towards the hallway leading towards the dining room. "Are you two hungry?"
"We already ate," Mikki admits.
"Then stay for dinner tonight. I want you all to meet Victor. Oh, and you two can take the other upstairs guest room, okay?"
"Sure," Dane agrees.
I raise my eyebrows at the mention of my aunt's fiancé. I've been wondering since I got here what Myra's dad is like. I was even beginning to wonder if he even exists. Aunt Sheila nods and jogs back upstairs to finish getting ready. I stare at Dane.
"So," I say. "As our new cousin-to-be Myra would say, let's all of us have a chat yeah?"
"Cousin?" Dane asks.
"Yep. Victor has a daughter, and she's absolutely de
lightful."
Dane narrows his eyes, detecting the sarcasm in my voice.
"Sure she is." He follows me to the sitting area at the front of the house. It has an open window that faces the busy street. The three of us sit down on the white leather furniture. I see a pink vase in the corner and a delicate sculpture of a dancer on one of the end tables. Aunt Sheila definitely had a hand in decorating this room.
"Tell me everything," I say. I can't wait another minute. My brother's drama might take my mind of my own problems for a while. "Are you two married?"
Mikki and Dane look at each other. They smile, but I can't tell if it is because they are hiding something. Mikki bites the corner of her lip.
"No," she says softly. "But we have talked about it."
"You two seem different," I point out. "I don't know what it is but-"
"Excuse me," Dessie interrupts. She's wearing and apron, and she's quickly wiping her hands. "You have a phone call, Mam."
"Oh." I stand up, but Dessie tilts her head towards a phone sitting near the sofa. I inch towards it.
"Line three," Dessie says.
Dane and Mikki watch me as I pick up the phone.
"Hello?" I expect to hear Mom's voice on the other end. I am sure she has a well-planned explanation for why she isn't here. Maybe she never even intended to come in the first place.
"Paige," my dad replies. I clear my throat.
"Dad?"
"I am calling to tell you that your mother isn't coming," he states.
"Like at all? But what about the wedding?"
"What about it?" He pauses like the fact that Aunt Sheila is getting married is no big deal. "Listen to me Paige, stay at you aunt's house. Don't go wandering around the city."
I roll my eyes.
"Let me guess," I respond. "I'm in great danger? Dad, I'm always in danger somehow."
"Let me speak to your brother," he instructs. I cover the phone with my hand and look at Dane.
