by Debbie Mason
“What are you apologizing for? My grandson deserved to know his supposed fiancée was kissing another man.”
“It wasn’t my sister’s fault, Estelle. Easton kissed her, not the other way around. And I’m the one who encouraged him.” She had, and he did. And once again, she felt the sting of betrayal. She could only imagine how Grayson felt.
Cat frowned. “That’s not—”
“Girls, this isn’t the time or the place.” Her mother forced a smile for their attentive audience. “Chloe, it would be best if you come for your fitting at another time.”
“But Ty…” she trailed off. Her mother wore the same expression she had last December. Chloe clenched her teeth to stop her chin from quivering and glanced at her watch. “Oh my, I didn’t realize how late it is. Estelle, we better leave. We’re expecting a call from Steven, remember?” She raised her hand. “Ty, darling, I’m sorry I have to go. Pick out whatever you want me to wear. I’m sure you’ll find something for me in this cute little shop. Size two, remember.” She was a size eight, but Ty knew that.
“With that ass, more like a size twelve,” someone said with a snort.
Heat rushed to Chloe’s cheeks, and she grabbed Estelle by the hand. “Kit Kat, Mommsy,” she murmured and dragged her manager to the front of the shop.
Nell held the door open with a smug smile. “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure you ladies get the perfect outfits to wear.”
Estelle opened her mouth. Chloe hustled her out the door before she made matters worse.
“Your mother certainly makes no effort to hide that your sister’s her favorite,” Estelle said as they stepped onto the sidewalk.
“She blames me for the situation with…” Out of the corner of her eye, Chloe spotted Grayson getting out of a black Yukon in front of the sheriff’s station. “Estelle, there’s Grayson. Come on.” This was her chance to make things right.
“Grayson! Yoo-hoo, Grayson,” Chloe called out and waved. He glanced their way. Since he had on dark sunglasses, it was hard to gauge his reaction. But if she wasn’t mistaken, his shoulders rose on an unhappy sigh. After her reception at Naughty and Nice, she wasn’t sure she was up to another confrontation or rejection. But she had to do something. She couldn’t stand to see that look of disgust in her mother’s or sister’s eyes…or Easton’s.
“Go ahead, my dear. Don’t waste your opportunity. I’ll catch up with you.”
Intent on her quarry, Chloe nodded and ran down the sidewalk. Since the outcome would hardly be what Estelle hoped for, it was probably best that Chloe speak to Grayson on her own.
He leaned against the hood of his SUV wearing an expensive black suit. And he wore it very well. Chloe had always been attracted to a man with a sense of style, and Grayson had been no exception. But now it seemed her tastes had changed. She found Easton’s casually rugged look more appealing. When she reached Grayson, it took a moment for her to catch her breath. “Hi,” she finally managed to say with a tentative smile.
“Hello, Chloe. What can I do for you?” His voice was tight. Obviously he was as angry at her as everyone else.
“It was my fault, Grayson. I set everything up.” His expression didn’t change, and she swallowed hard. She had to be completely honest with him to make him understand. “I heard about the problems you were having with my sister, and I thought maybe you weren’t her one after all. I didn’t mean to hurt either of you. I truly didn’t.” She looked at the parked cars along Main Street, then drew her gaze back to his. “It was me who bought the gun and sent the poem, not Easton. And that picture, I never should have sent it to you. She was upset when you moved out. Easton was just trying to comfort her. I’m truly sorry, Grayson. I’ll do whatever you need me to do to make this right.”
He sighed and took his cell phone out of his pocket. “Chloe, I appreciate what you’re trying to do. But Cat kissed Easton, not the other way around.”
“No, that’s not true. Easton told me…”
“If that’s what he said, he was trying to protect Cat.” He handed her his phone. “Look at his face, Chloe. You’ll see what I mean.”
She took in Easton’s expression. He looked…stunned. Oh, my goodness, Grayson was right! Why hadn’t she noticed that when she took the picture? It must have been the shock of it all. But she didn’t understand how her sister could kiss another man when she loved Grayson. Or why Easton lied. He had to know how Chloe felt after seeing that kiss. Had to know how much it hurt. Then again, she shouldn’t be surprised. The only person’s feelings Easton had ever cared about were her sister’s. But given what he’d said to Chloe in Ty’s office, maybe that had changed. And the thought that her sister had initiated the kiss and not Easton gave her hope. If Chloe wanted a relationship with him, she had to ensure her sister was happily married to Grayson. Now she just had to convince the handsome man standing before her that he still wanted the same.
As she studied her sister’s body language, she knew how. “You’re right. Cat kissed Easton. But it’s not what you think, and I can prove it to you.” She pointed out how Cat’s arms and hands were positioned. She looked stiff, her feet turned as though ready to bolt. She didn’t lean into Easton. Instead she held herself away from him.
Grayson shook his head. “Sorry, I’m not seeing what you do. It’s obvious to me your sister’s made her choice. And it’s not me.”
Chloe sucked in a panicked gasp. This was not going the way she had hoped. She looked from the photo to Grayson. There was only one way to convince him. She glanced around; there were too many people on the street. She took him by the hand. “Give me one more chance to show you what I mean. Please,” she pleaded when he hesitated.
His broad shoulders rose and fell on a deep inward breath. “All right, Chloe.”
She pulled him into the alley at the same time his grandmother appeared. That wasn’t good. She had to get rid of her. “Estelle, would you mind giving us a little privacy? Grayson’s upset. Maybe get him a coffee at the bakery? A…dozen cupcakes, too.”
“I don’t want—” he broke off when Chloe gently elbowed him in the stomach.
Estelle frowned, looking from Grayson to Chloe, who gave her manager an exaggerated wink, pretending some alone time with her grandson was part of their original plan.
“Cupcakes are just the thing to mend a broken heart. I’ll get right on it.” Estelle beamed, returned Chloe’s wink, then headed down the street.
Grayson groaned. “You know what she thinks, don’t you?”
“Yes, but don’t worry. I’ll fix everything with Estelle. She thinks I’m in love with you, but I’m not.”
He angled his head, his eyebrows rising above the frame of his dark shades.
His reaction didn’t surprise her. Several months earlier, she’d been vocal about her feelings for him. To everyone, including Grayson…and Easton. “I thought I was, but I was jealous of my sister. I think Easton might be my…Never mind. Okay, so first, I’m going to kiss you like I would if I was in love with you.”
“Ah, Chloe, I’m not sure this is a good idea.” He curved his hands around her biceps, setting her away from him.
“Trust me. You need to see what I’m talking about to understand that the kiss Cat gave Easton meant nothing to her.” At his skeptical look, she added, “You’ll understand what I’m getting at, I promise. I’m an actress, Grayson. It’s not real. We’ll just pretend we’re Rand and Tessa,” she said with a cajoling smile.
Last year, Grayson had been undercover on As the Sun Sets. He’d played Rand Livingstone, Tessa’s ex-lover. “Now give me your cell phone and put your arms around me.” When he reluctantly did as she asked, Chloe wound hers around his neck, holding up his phone to get the best angle.
Then she kissed him. Passionately, like a woman in love. Kind of like she’d kissed him during the last scene in Christmas at the lodge. Embarrassment heated her face at the memory of that day. She’d made a fool of herself in front of Easton, her sister, and the cast and crew. And afterward, devastat
ed by Grayson’s rejection, she’d made one of the biggest mistakes of her life. She’d accused her sister of trying to kill her. No wonder everyone hated her. She really did have a lot to make up for, and this was one step toward doing just that.
She took the picture, then stepped back and showed him the screen, comparing the photo of Cat and Easton’s kiss to theirs. “Do you see the difference now?”
“Maybe.” She didn’t miss the unconvinced look in his eyes.
Chloe sighed. “All right. If that didn’t convince you, this will.” She lifted up onto her toes. “Now this is how I believe my sister was actually kissing Easton.” Holding up the phone, she pressed a soft kiss to Grayson’s firm lips. No heat, no passion, just a woman searching for answers…and comfort. She heard the click of a camera and frowned. She hadn’t snapped the picture yet. An anxious knot formed in her chest, and she slowly broke the kiss, turning her head. Estelle stood in the alley with a coffee cup at her feet, focusing on the cell phone in her hand. At the zip of a message being sent, Chloe’s eyes widened. “Oh, no, you didn’t!” she cried, seeing the self-satisfied smile spread across the older woman’s face.
Chapter Fourteen
Easton flung open the glass door and stalked into the station. “Where’s Alexander?” he asked Suze, the dispatcher at the front desk. Her eyebrows rose, and she glanced past him.
“Right here, McBride.”
Easton turned. Grayson stood with his arms crossed over his GQ suit and a superior look on his face.
Easton strode toward him with his cell phone raised. “What the hell is wrong with you, Alexander? I apologized for kissing Cat. Explained that while it looked bad, it wasn’t what you thought. We’re just friends.” He had, despite Cat telling him not to. Grayson hadn’t responded to Easton’s texted apology. “But that wasn’t enough for you, was it? You had to turn the screws”—he shoved the cell phone in the other man’s face, making sure he got a good look at the photo Cat had sent Easton five minutes ago—“and kiss her sister.”
Last December, he’d witnessed a passionate kiss between Chloe and Grayson when they were filming a scene for As the Sun Sets at the lodge. It had bothered him. A reaction that had surprised him at the time because he wasn’t exactly Chloe’s biggest fan back then.
But today’s kiss had more than bothered him. And he wanted an explanation, a reason why he shouldn’t punch Alexander in his sanctimonious mouth. A mouth that had been on Chloe’s.
Grayson briefly scanned the damning evidence. “You might want to take a closer look, McBride. It looks bad, but it’s not what you think.”
“Really, that’s all you’ve got to say for yourself?”
“Like I said, take a closer look. Chloe was kissing me, not the other way around.”
Easton jerked back and turned the screen. He’d convinced himself that Grayson had kissed Chloe as a form of payback. Yes, it took some convincing. The guy wasn’t the type to play games. Now Easton’s chest tightened at the knowledge that Chloe was the one who’d initiated the kiss. Someone who had playing games down to an art form. And while that grated on one level, proving once again that she hadn’t changed, he was almost relieved. A few months back, Chloe made no secret that she was in love with Grayson. So Easton would rather put her kissing the other man down to payback than an attempt at following through with her original plan. Jesus, he hoped he hadn’t misread her. After this morning at the boardwalk, he didn’t think he had, but…
“I, ah, didn’t mean to eavesdrop…” Jill Flaherty, wearing a tan deputy’s uniform, nodded at the desk behind her. “…But I was sitting right there and couldn’t help but overhear. I’m not exactly Chloe O’Connor’s biggest fan, but I thought you should know the girls were pretty rough on her today. So were Cat and Liz. They basically booted her out of Sophia’s place. She seemed upset. Might have had something to do with her…um, well, making out with you, Grayson.”
Easton rubbed his hand over his jaw. He’d been so intent on laying into Grayson that he hadn’t bothered to keep his voice down. But that was the least of his worries. No doubt the latest Chloe drama was burning up the telephone lines in Christmas. Right now, he was more concerned about what exactly had taken place at Naughty and Nice.
Before he had a chance to ask, Grayson said, “She wasn’t making out with—”
Shuffling her booted feet, Jill interrupted him. “Just sayin’, but I saw the picture. So did pretty much everyone at Sophia’s. And if you two weren’t making out—”
“We weren’t,” Grayson said from between clenched teeth. “Chloe was attempting to prove to me that I’d misinterpreted the photo of my fiancée making out with McBride here.”
Jill’s gaze shot to Easton. “You were making out with Cat? How come I didn’t hear about it?” She didn’t give Easton a chance to respond. “Wow, who needs to watch As the Sun Sets. We have our own soap opera playing out in town.”
His brother stepped from his office in time to hear her last remark. He scowled at Grayson and Easton before saying to Jill, “Don’t you have some work to do?”
“Sheesh, I was just trying to help,” she said and stomped to her desk.
Gage ignored her. “You two, in my office now.”
“I don’t have time for this. I have to get back—” Grayson began, only to be cut off by Gage, who pointed at his office.
Grayson sighed and walked inside the wood-paneled room.
Easton followed him, then turned at the doorway. “Jill, how bad was it at Naughty and Nice?”
She grimaced. “Felt like we were back in high school.”
“How did Chloe handle it?”
“Same as she did then. It was kind of surprising, you know, with her being a celebrity and all. You’d think she’d give them attitude, but she didn’t.” She organized the papers on her desk, then lifted a shoulder. “I felt sorry for her. She left looking like a kicked puppy.”
Easton’s chest tightened. He didn’t like the visual. He could picture it all too clearly. Even though they were obviously protecting Cat—a woman who sure as hell didn’t need protection—it made him angry that women old enough to know better were acting like catty bitches. And like Jill, he didn’t understand why Chloe didn’t stand up for herself. “Thanks for the heads-up, Jill. Appreciate it.”
“Anytime, Easton.” She eyed him speculatively. “So you and Chloe…”
“Don’t you have work to do?” he asked, catching her eye roll as he closed the office door.
“Easton, sit down.” His brother gestured to the chair beside the one Grayson occupied. While he did as his brother asked, Gage said, “Jill’s right. Thanks to you two, we’ve got more drama going on than a soap opera. And I want it to stop before it gets out of hand.”
“Why are you looking at me?” Grayson said. “I’m the injured party here.”
“I thought you were, too, but I just got off the phone with my wife. She mentioned a photo of you kissing Chloe in the alley. And from what I hear, she wasn’t pretending to be your fiancée at the time.”
“Would that be my fiancée who was kissing your brother?” Grayson asked.
“I kissed Cat. She didn’t kiss me. And I would have explained everything if you—”
“Don’t try to protect her, Easton. I know what I saw.” Grayson leaned forward in the chair and passed his cell phone to Gage. “Tell me, who’s kissing whom?”
Gage thumbed through a couple of pictures, and his left eyebrow went up. “Okay, so I was wrong. The problem isn’t you two, it’s Chloe and Cat.”
“Chloe may have been the instigator, but she came clean and apologized.” Grayson went on to tell them what Chloe had been attempting to prove when she’d kissed him.
Easton relaxed in the chair. He wasn’t exactly thrilled to hear Chloe had kissed Grayson more than once, but he had to admit to feeling a sense of relief upon learning why she did. Although now he was busted. Or more to the point, Cat was.
He didn’t get the opportunity to defend her t
o Grayson because the other man continued. “And just so we’re clear, Chloe also told me she’s no longer in love with me. I guess I was a passing phase.” His lips twitched as he turned to Easton. “But, if I’m not mistaken, she now has her sights set on you.”
Easton felt a smile beginning to form at the news, then caught his brother’s wide-eyed stare. And if he wasn’t sure what that look meant, Gage enlightened him with a groan and the next words out of his mouth. “Please tell me you’re not in love with her.”
Easton didn’t have to lie. He may be in lust with her, but he wasn’t in love with her. Although if his brother questioned him further, he was afraid he’d shoot holes in that theory. He had to divert Gage’s attention. Besides, Easton’s relationship with Chloe wasn’t the problem. “I’m not in love with anyone.” He jerked his thumb at Grayson. “But if he doesn’t get his head out of his ass, he’ll be alone, too.” Did that sound as pathetic as he thought it did?
Since his brother was frowning at him, it must have. But thankfully Gage turned his attention to the other idiot in the room. “We were talking about the case earlier, and I didn’t get a chance to mention the situation between you and Cat, but Easton’s right, Grayson. What’s going on with you two? Family’s pretty worked up about you moving out, especially Liz.”
“I know your family’s big on sharing, but I’m not. This is between Cat and me, and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Good luck with that,” Easton muttered.
His brother shot him a look before he said, “If there’s anything we can do to help, let us know.”
Grayson stood up. “I appreciate the offer. But until this thing with Martinez is wrapped up, it’s probably best that Cat and I take a break.”
Easton swiveled to look at the agent. “So what you’re saying is that the only reason you two are having problems is because Cat’s working security on the Martinez job?”
“Not entirely, no. It’s become apparent that we have things to work out. But because of the case, I can’t do that right now.”
