Three Days Later
The pounding at the door had me grumbling under my breath.
Before the blast, no one came to my house apart from Susana, and those were on allotted days and times so I knew when my space was being disturbed.
Now, it was a free for all.
I grabbed the door, pulled it wide, about to growl at whoever was darkening my stoop, but when I caught sight of Parker staring back at me, I blinked in astonishment.
“Parker?”
“Why do you look as if Justin Bieber has come to visit you?” she sniped, shoving herself through the door and pushing me inside. The second she did, she blew out a breath of relief.
“Justin Bieber’s your guilty pleasure, not mine.” I arched a brow at her. “How many drugs did you have to take to get out of the house?”
She waved a hand. “The CBD is doing something for me.”
“Something or just giving you an excuse to eat gummies?”
A laugh escaped her as she hurled herself at me and dragged me into a hug. “You’re such a bitch,” she said affectionately.
“Well, you knew that without having to traumatize yourself by leaving your place.” I frowned even as I squeezed her back. “Are you okay? What are you doing here?”
I knew she loathed West Orange.
Knew she was scared she’d see one of her brothers or sisters in town.
Hell, she wasn’t only scared of seeing them; Parker was afraid of everything outside her home.
Literally everything.
“Bear’s funeral’s tomorrow.”
“So? You didn’t know him.”
“No, but I know you, and I know he mattered to you, so I came here for moral support. Emotional too, but you’re the ice queen and I figured you’d prefer for me to be here to help coordinate things.”
This time, I shook my head. Had water got trapped in my ears?
“You’re here to help coordinate things? How? This isn’t a royal funeral, Parker. I mean, he might have been called a Prez, but there won’t be an honor guard.”
“Will there be a wake afterward?”
“Yes.”
“Will there be food and drink and—”
“Yes, but there won’t be servers.” I frowned at her. “I wish you’d said something about visiting. I’d have told you not to come.”
She rolled her eyes. “It’s a good thing I stopped getting offended by the things you say a long time ago.”
“You know it comes from a place of love,” I chided, not even feeling guilty. Mostly, I felt confusion.
My hermit friend/EA was here to attend the funeral of a man she’d never met, all so she could coordinate the wake?
What did she think happened? Brothers lined up with silver trays loaded with bottles of beer to serve the council, and canapés of mini burgers and fried mac and cheese balls were dished out to the Old Ladies?
“I’m here now, so you’d best put me to good use.”
Huffing, I asked, “Where are your things?”
She smiled at me. It was too bright. “I, um, didn’t bring anything with me.”
“What?” I spluttered. What in the actual fuck was happening here? “You came to stay and didn’t bring anything with you?”
“Rachel?”
Twisting away from Parker, I sought Lily out. Peering at her, I asked, “Everything okay, Lily?”
“Yeah, but you have to get going soon.”
I reached up to rub at my forehead. A thought occurred to me, and I turned to glower at Parker. “That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”
Parker’s gaze turned blank. “Huh?”
“Hello?” Lily asked politely. And it was a question. She was silently asking who this was.
“I have an appointment with the OB/GYN. You came to strong-arm me, didn’t you? Well, you didn’t need to. Rex is coming with me.”
Parker batted her lashes a couple times. “You caught me.” She shot me a sheepish smile. “Well, don’t worry, I did bring my computer with me so I can crack on with work while you’re gone. Are you sure there’s nothing to arrange for tomorrow?”
“No, it’s handled.” That was Lily. And she sounded put out.
“Lily, this is Parker. My executive assistant.”
They shared a look.
“Hello, Parker.” Lily’s smile was pleasant.
Bland.
I didn’t trust it.
Just like Parker’s reason for being here. Why did she intend on staying the night and had brought her laptop along but not a change of clothes?
“Hello, Lily,” was Parker’s bright retort.
“What’s going on?” I demanded, because something sure as hell was happening and I didn’t like it. Not one goddamn bit.
“Nothing’s going on,” Parker grumbled. “Jesus, Rachel, you sure know how to make your best friend feel welcome.”
Guilt hit me, but I was one of the best lawyers in the tristate area for a fucking reason.
“Are you guilt-tripping me?”
Parker’s smile was sweet. “Would I do something like that?”
“Yes,” I groused, but the lock at the door sounded, the handle twisted, and Rex appeared in the doorway.
“Rach, how many times have I told you to lock this damn door?”
“I did lock it. I unlocked it to let Parker in.”
Rex arched a brow. “You’re the assistant who executes, huh?”
Well, that was a weird way of phrasing it.
Parker’s cheeks turned pink. “Well, something like that.”
“Since when do you blush?” I demanded.
She glowered at me. “I do not blush.”
“You’re blushing now.”
“I am not.”
“Is this just playful bickering or can anyone join in?”
I threw my hands up at Giulia’s intrusion. “This is a free for all,” I sniped. To Rex, I muttered, “We need to get going.”
“We do.” His lips curved. “You get your keys—”
“We’re not going on your hog?”
He shot me a bland look. “No?”
“It’s a forty-minute journey,” I pointed out.
“You’re pregnant.”
“You noticed.”
“I did,” he said somberly, but his eyes had teasing glints that surprised me.
I knew he was dreading tomorrow, and when my OB/GYN had called to reschedule my appointment to today, the day before the funeral, I’d been tempted to cancel but the news had actually cheered him up.
Ironic, considering I was dreading it.
In fact, the only thing I’d been looking forward to had been a ride on the back of his hog.
I’d missed it and hadn’t even realized I did.
“Well? The baby’s like the size of an avocado—”
“It’s safer in a cage. Get your car keys. I’m not putting you at risk.”
“So you’ll put yourself at risk by riding the bike when I’m pregnant, and after, when the kid’s born, but I can’t be at risk for the nine months I’m pregnant… Is that your logic?”
He beamed a grin at me. It was utterly unapologetic. “Yes.”
“Fucking men,” Giulia groused. “One rule for us, one rule for them.”
Parker shrugged. “I think he’s being gallant.”
Giulia hooted. “These ain’t knights in shining armor, Parker. They’re dark and downright dirty—”
“How did you know her name was Parker?” The room seemed to freeze at my question. “I knew something was going on,” I growled. “Out with it!”
Rex said, “Rach, we don’t have time. We need to get on the road.”
I scowled at him. “Are you in on it?”
“In on what? I’m in on nothing, aside from the need to get you to the doctor’s, aside from the knowledge that you’ll do pretty much any damn thing to get out of today’s appointment.”
My lips tightened because he wasn’t wrong. Not that he needed to know that. “I’m not that bad. I know I have to go.”
“Well, stop procrastinating then.”
Growling under my breath, I stormed toward my office to grab my purse and then redirected to the kitchen for the car keys.
Along the way, I tried to listen to whatever my ‘guests’ were talking about, but mostly it was Parker asking if she could help with the funeral.
Suspicions still locked and loaded, I shoved them to the side upon my return to the hall. Mostly because I didn’t have an alternative—the nerves were starting to kick in.
I’d be having a quad screen and the nuchal translucency blood work taken today, and I was definitely anxious.
That was why I’d been looking forward to the ride. It’d have taken my mind off of things.
Goddamn overprotective men.
I shoved my keys at him as I approached and, halfway to the door, told Lily, Giulia, and Parker, “If you burn down the house while I’m at the doctor’s, I’ll make you pay to rebuild it.”
Parker snorted. “You’re such a weirdo.”
“When two witches, and Lily, get together, I’m expecting a drama of Macbeth proportions.”
Lily laughed. “Thank you, I think.”
Giulia huffed. “Been called worse shit than a witch in my time.”
Sweetly, I informed her, “I’m sure you have. I’ll see you all later.”
Rex opened the door for me, and I hovered nearby, just waiting for him to close it with both of us on the stoop.
That was when I heard a hissed, “You almost blew that, Giulia.”
“Sorry, baby brain. I forgot I shouldn’t know you—”
“Rach? You ready to go?”
Heading for my SUV, I waited for Rex to beep it and climbed in the passenger side. I could drive, and it was my car, but if I wasn’t going to ride bitch, then I intended on dealing with a few pieces of work and I couldn’t do that behind the wheel.
As I settled in, Rex did the same on the driver’s side.
Once he adjusted the seat, we set off, and I pulled out a file from my purse and started scanning the document.
“So, that was Parker.”
I shot him a look. “Yes, that was Parker.”
“You didn’t seem happy to see her.”
“She was being suspicious.”
As he slouched back, I wondered what it was about men that made them look so goddamn hot when they were driving.
One arm on the door, the other over the wheel, all he had to do to make this better was to put the car in reverse with one hand on the wheel, hook his other arm behind my head rest, then look behind him.
The notion did interesting things to my body.
My very stressed body which shouldn’t be focusing on his.
“That’s overreaching, isn’t it? Suspicious?”
“What are you? The prosecution?” I mocked.
He grinned at me. “Treat me like I am.”
Further surprised by his good mood when he’d been somber this morning before he left for the clubhouse, I murmured, “Parker has agoraphobia.”
“She can’t.”
“She does.”
“She can’t. How the hell is she here if she’s agoraphobic?”
“Since she moved to Pennsylvania, I can count on one hand how many times I’ve seen her, and even then, I was the one who rode over to visit with her.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
He pondered that. “Huh. Okay, that is unusual.”