“I heard about you.” His eyes narrowed. “Didn’t you get eight years in jail?”
I grinned then. “I was pardoned by the President of the United States himself. How great is that?”
Murphy 2.0 looked kind of green.
“Let’s go, darling,” Murphy 2.0 said. “We have to get you changed so we don’t miss the wedding photos. I would hate to not be able to be there for my son on his big day.”
Melody huffed loudly.
“I have a dress in the trunk that might do,” she admitted. “I can change in the back seat of our car.”
It was only when they were walking away that Crockett said, “Why would one have a suitable dress in the trunk of her car if she was confident that she was doing the right thing by wearing what she’s wearing?”
I looked down at her, so fuckin’ close that I could smell her beautiful scent, and said, “She knew that you’d stop her. My guess? She’s not even close to being done yet.”
Crockett reached up to rub her face but paused before she’d actually touched her eyes.
“That woman drives me to drink,” she said as I started guiding her to the front door where who had to be her sister waited once again. “I already had a beer in a coffee cup on the way over here. Let me just tell you, it wasn’t enough alcohol to have to deal with Melody.”
The door opened for us before we got there, and Nora stared at us with wide eyes. “She’s wearing a wedding dress.”
Crockett’s eyebrows rose. “I told you, point-blank, that she was going to do something to ruin this wedding.”
Her eyes were filled with disbelief. “They’re normally so level-headed. They don’t act like this around me, Crockett. They’re good to my kids. They didn’t do this at my wedding.”
“You got married at the courthouse without telling anyone.” Crockett slipped from under my arm and moved to the little room right inside the door they were using as a coat check. From there she dropped her wrap into a small basket near the top, which made the hem of her skirt ride up to expose the bottom curve of her ass.
When I didn’t look away, the woman that was now clearly paying attention to me cleared her throat.
I looked away, might I add reluctantly, and gave a chin jerk toward the sister who was now very much aware that I was there.
“You’re her date?” she asked, looking at me warily. “Your name is?”
I held out my hand for her to shake, which she did seconds later.
“Zach,” I said, “and yes, I am her date. I’m actually her boyfriend.”
Crockett squeaked in surprise, whirling around so that her skirt flared out around her before settling once again against her sweet body.
Her eyes were wide, and she was staring at me with surprise on her face.
“Crockett didn’t tell me that she had a boyfriend,” Nora said, sounding upset about it.
I tilted my head when Crockett sighed and disappeared farther into the room, after what I didn’t know.
“You don’t strike me as the type to know much about your sister’s life,” I admitted. “Do you know that she has a stalker? Do you know that your stepmother treats her like absolute shit? Did you know that she broke down on the side of the road the other day and was there for over an hour because she had nobody to call to come get her?”
Nora’s eyes went a little flinty.
“What are you trying to say?” she asked.
“I’m trying to say that you and your brother live in your own little bubble and have no earthly idea what it’s like for Crockett,” I said. “From what I understand, Murphy is your grandfather, too, right?”
Nora nodded. “He is.”
“Then why aren’t y’all there helping with his store? Why did Crockett have to give up her career to do that? Why didn’t y’all volunteer to help?” I wondered. “Why is she working her ass off right now? Why is she the sole caretaker for your grandfather? Why is your little sister named so close to Crockett? Why do y’all allow her father to treat her like dirt and not stick up for her?” I was on a roll now. I would’ve kept going, but Crockett was back, filling the doorway, with a look of disgust on her face.
“The dress she chose to change into isn’t much better,” Crockett admitted. “In fact, I would almost say it’s worse. But it’s not white.”
“What do you mean it’s worse?” she asked.
“It’s the same dress as the mother of the bride,” Crockett said. “You did send it to her, right? Showed her Nadine’s dress as an example on what to wear?”
Nora tossed her head back and groaned. “Yes.”
“Then have fun dealing with that,” Crockett said. “I’m going to go get in my seat next to Murphy.”
And with that, she latched on to my hand and tugged me toward the doors that were at the end of the hallway.
“What’s that about?” I asked.
“We were having lunch one day when Melody sent a text to Nora asking about Belinda’s mother’s dress. And she wanted to make sure that she was wearing something appropriate. So Nora texts Belinda, who then texts her mother, and they all send back a pic of Nora’s mother’s dress so Melody will have a gauge on what to wear. Only, it doesn’t surprise me in the least that Melody got the same exact one. Honest to God, that is so Melody. Which I told Nora would happen. I flat out told her that she’d show up with the same dress, and Nora said she wouldn’t.” She looked up at me with a raised eyebrow. “Thank you for coming.”
I reached out and tugged her back into my body.
“We have a few things to talk about tonight,” I said. “So don’t go running off until we do that, okay?”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m not going to be running anywhere in these heels.”
• • •
Two hours later, the photos were taken, and Belinda was fuming.
I could tell, even being a man that usually didn’t notice those types of things, that Belinda was about to lose her shit when it came to Melody Archer.
“You’re lucky that she wasn’t wearing the white dress,” I felt it prudent to point out when Belinda stood next to me fuming.
It was during the family photos, this one including all of the Archers, that Belinda backed away for a moment to collect herself.
Unlucky for her that she came to my particular dark corner.
“What?” she asked, startled to see me there.
I gestured toward Melody.
“She was wearing a white strapless number that looked a whole lot like the wedding dress you’re wearing right now,” I told her. “But Crockett made her go change. Threw a glorified shit fit right there in the parking lot. You’re lucky that she’s only wearing the same dress as your mother, instead of the same dress as you.”
Belinda’s jaw clenched.
“I didn’t think she was that bad,” she admitted, still pissed as hell.
More pissed now that she’d heard what I’d just said.
“How do you not know she’s that bad?” I asked curiously. “Does Danny not tell you everything that she does?”
Belinda turned to me with a frown.
“What?” she asked.
“Does Danny not tell you that Melody and his dad treat her like absolute shit?” I rephrased.
She shook her head. “No. Danny doesn’t… I’ve never heard that she was bad. I’ve heard that she was difficult, but not bad.”
I tilted my head. “A few weeks ago, Crockett’s car broke down in the middle of a busy highway. When she called her dad, he didn’t answer, so she was forced to call her stepmother. Do you want to know what was going on? Ol’ Murphy 2.0 was at a track meet and refused to leave to come get her.”
Belinda frowned hard.
“When I picked her up off the side of the road—mind you, I barely knew her at the time. She only knew me as an ex-con that visited her store—I had to stop and get gas. And there was Melody. Waiting in her car for your father to come pump her gas. She’d called him at some point after Crockett had, and he�
��d dropped everything.”
Belinda started to look pissed.
“Obviously you know the whole Crockett/Rockett thing,” I continued.
That made Belinda wince. “I was told by Danny that Melody had a friend named Rockett that she’d always wanted to name her child after.”
I gave her a roll of my eyes. “I’m sure that’s it.”
We were silent for a few seconds as the wedding photographer had everyone move around upon hearing a request from Melody, repositioning Crockett so that she was on an end.
“Easier to cut her out of photos,” I told Belinda.
Belinda’s breath hitched.
Then, surprising me, she marched toward the group before anyone could take any photos.
“No, Danny.” Belinda clapped her hands. “Put your sisters on either side of you.” She made it to where Nora was on one side of Danny and Crockett was on the other. Then Belinda was on the side with Nora while Murphy 2.0 was on the side with Crockett.
Danny had both of his arms around his sisters, and he was grinning huge.
Though, even that ‘equalness’ still had him slightly leaning more toward Nora.
When Belinda came back, she was mad.
“Danny and Nora have lunch once a week without Crockett,” I said. “I heard that from Murphy.”
Belinda sat down hard on the chair next to me.
“She never has time to meet…” Belinda started.
“She takes a lunch every single day for a couple of hours. Closes the store down to do it if she doesn’t have someone to cover that shift. Twelve to two. When a normal person would take lunch,” I pointed out.
Belinda opened and closed her mouth.
“What did Crockett do wrong?” I asked. “Why does everyone hate her?”
Belinda pressed on her forehead.
“I…” She shook her head. “I don’t know. I didn’t realize that anything was wrong.”
Just then, the group taking photos broke apart, and the two sisters separated to head to where I assumed was the bathroom. Danny came over to where his wife was standing and wrapped her up in his arms.
I wasn’t sure what to think of Danny just yet.
The same went for Nora.
I just couldn’t find it in my heart to like a person that willingly allowed their sister to be treated like crap from a family member while that family member treated them normally.
“Danny,” Belinda pulled back. “Why don’t you ever bring your little sister to lunch more?”
Danny frowned. “Because she’s working?”
He looked confused.
As if he didn’t understand the question.
“She has every single day off from twelve until two,” Belinda pushed. “Y’all go to lunch at eleven. Is there a reason that two self-employed people can’t go to lunch at a different time to include their little sister instead of going at eleven when she can’t be included?”
Danny opened his mouth and then closed it. “She…” He paused. “Dad and Melody sometimes come with us. I just figured she wouldn’t want to come.”
“Why?” Belinda pushed.
“Because they don’t get along?” Danny shrugged. “And the other times, it’s just a standing time that we’ve always had. When we started these, Crockett was away at culinary school. It wasn’t like we intentionally said ‘hey, let’s have these at times that Crockett can’t go so she doesn’t think we’re purposefully excluding her.’”
“But that’s exactly what it seems like to her,” Belinda said. “You have lunch every single week. Did you know that you could go to her store and eat there?”
Danny opened his mouth and then closed it again.
“I don’t eat burgers,” he tried.
Belinda gave him a look that clearly said she was disappointed in his answer.
“I have a salad there every other time I go in,” Belinda said. “And when I’m not feeling a salad or a burger, she specially makes me a grilled cheese sandwich. Or a panini. Or something that I would like instead. She doesn’t just cook burgers, which I know that you would eat all day every day if given the chance.”
Danny didn’t have anything to say to that.
“And since we’re on the subject of the corner store, why was it that Crockett had to quit her job to work there when both of you were at home doing nothing half the day? You work from the family business, at home, for your father. You could do that from anywhere. That includes from the corner store where you could help watch over your grandfather.”
“Murphy doesn’t like us,” Danny said. “He only likes Crockett being there.”
“That’s not true and you know it,” Murphy joined in on the conversation.
He’d shuffled up during the dressing down that Belinda had given Danny and had quietly listened to everything that was being said.
Danny turned to look at Murphy.
“Dad told us that you didn’t want us there,” he said simply.
Murphy gave him a disappointed look. “And you believed him.”
Not a question. A statement.
“I…” Danny looked even more confused. “What exactly is it that’s going on here?”
“Why do y’all treat her like crap?” Belinda asked. “Why is it that your dad and Melody hate her so much that she doesn’t get picked up off the side of the road? Why is it that you have lunch without her when she’s just as much a sister? Why is it that she has to work her ass off to help run a store when you could just as easily help? Why is it that she was the only one that thought your stepmother would do something horrible to me at this wedding? And she was right?”
Danny didn’t have anything to say to that.
Before he even got a chance to respond, Melody rushed over with her husband in tow, looking smug.
Nora was with them, but there was no Crockett in sight.
Which had me getting suspicious.
“We should get the bouquet toss started,” Melody urged, looking innocent and urgent all at once.
“Where’s Crockett?” Danny asked, finally getting his head together.
“In the bathroom,” Nora said. “She, uh, had some bad food?”
She didn’t have any bad food because she’d told me when she’d gotten here that she was so nervous she hadn’t eaten all day.
There hadn’t been a chance for her to eat bad food since she’d gotten there.
Had there?
I walked past them all and headed to the bathroom that I’d seen them exit.
When I arrived it was to the sound of vomiting.
Maybe she had eaten something that had irritated her stomach?
“Crockett?” I called, closing the door behind me solidly before throwing the lock.
An answering expulsion of her stomach answered me.
“Crockett,” I said as I reached for one of the fancy towels next to the sink, wet it down, then used my pocketknife to open the far bathroom stall.
Once I had it open, I crouched down behind her and placed the cool towel against her neck.
“Something isn’t right,” she managed between gasps. “I feel awful.”
“What did you eat?” I asked.
A sick sort of ‘knowing’ was rocketing through me, and I wasn’t sure that I liked where my mind was headed.
“A molasses cookie that Belinda gave me that Melody brought for her. From some bakery in town, she said. They were good, but now my stomach hates me,” she whispered brokenly.
An anger like no other started to roll through me.
“Stay here,” I urged as I stood up. “I’ll be right back.”
She nodded, her face against her arm that was resting against the dirty toilet seat.
I’d shower her off later.
For now, I needed to find out what was in those cookies.
Because there was something in them.
I knew it.
I just had to find out what.
When I came to the main room, Belinda was standing at the front
of the room with her bouquet, watching the bathroom door worriedly.
I gave her a chin tilt and headed straight for her. Melody was leaning against a table looking pissed, and Danny was standing beside his father asking him questions that I couldn’t quite hear, but were obviously upsetting seeing as their father looked pissed, too.
When I arrived at the group, Nora looked at my face.
“She’s sick,” she said. “I told you.”
I looked away from her and looked at Melody.
“What kind of cookies did you give Belinda?” I asked.
Melody went slightly pale, stiffening minutely.
“Umm,” she hesitated. “O-ones that were made at a local deli. They’re called ‘bridal’ cookies. I thought they were fitting for today.”
With the amount of detail she’d just given, on the fly as well, I would’ve believed her. But since Juniper and her band of misfits she called sisters lied to each other on the regular, I’d become sort of a connoisseur when it came to lying.
I’d had to read between the lines, so to speak, and I’d realized rather quickly that Melody was lying. Not only was she not meeting my gaze any longer, but she was also now clenching her fists so hard that her knuckles were whitening.
“Which deli?” I pushed. “This could be important.”
Melody licked her lips. “Um, It’ll Be Deli.”
“It’ll Be isn’t open on Saturdays,” Danny supplied. “Are you sure it was that one?”
Melody looked at him with annoyance. “Yes, I’m sure it was that one. They have new operating hours.”
“Melody…” Murphy started, but surprisingly, it was Rockett that spoke up.
I hadn’t even seen her arrive. I’d been so focused on Melody that I hadn’t paid attention to my surroundings.
“What are you talking about, Mom? You made those just today. Then refused to let me have any,” Rockett asked. “Then the maid complained about how much of a mess you made and ate one of the cookies. She had to leave early because she was puking. I think those cookies you’re thinking of that you bought were the ones for your book club. But they weren’t called bridal cookies. They were called Ranger Cookies. The ones with the raisins in them that were disgusting.”
Melody opened her mouth to continue to lie, but surprisingly it was Nora who spoke up this time.
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