Chapter 12
Chapter 12
N o one had any idea what they pretended to talk about that day. Everyone was exhausted, but the Albanian gang’s paranoia was such that they had to keep up the pretense of conferences, even after only three hours of sleep.
Maggie joined the group close to noon, still looking groggy and green. “Are you sure you should be here?” Blue asked the question Babs was thinking.
“I’m fine,” Maggie said, but she didn’t look it. She sat hunched in her chair sipping peppermint tea while Ridge simultaneously droned about the need for cleaner accounting spreadsheets and tossed his wife worried looks.
Everyone was relieved when the facade conferences came to an end and they could be done for the day. They were in the lobby refilling on coffee—and more tea for Maggie—when Amelia stormed in, followed by Darren.
“I’m going to kill him,” she proclaimed.
“Why this time?” Ethan asked, his tone nonchalant.
She pressed her lips together and looked away, tears filling her eyes. Realizing she was actually upset more than her usual irritation, he turned toward his brother-in-law. Anyone who knew him knew Darren should be concerned, but it wasn’t the sort of signal Darren picked up on, apparently, because he ignored them and smiled at Babs.
“How was work?”
“Good,” she said, wary from all the tension now in the atmosphere.
“What happened with you two?” Maggie asked, her tone weary as she listlessly stirred her tea.
“Nothing, why?” Darren said.
“Nothing? Nothing? ” Amelia faced Maggie. “He told me he contacted a private investigator to follow Ethan.”
“What? Why would you do that?” Maggie asked. Anyone who knew her realized Darren was now in the danger zone, everyone except Darren who remained smiling benignly.
“What do we really know about the guy except he disappears a lot? The wedding is only a few weeks away. Seems like one of us should check him out,” Darren said.
“Darren,” Maggie hissed.
“What?” he asked, genuinely clueless.
“First of all, they’ve been married for a year,” Maggie said.
“But…” He started, but she put out a hand to halt him.
“They’ve been married for a year. You want to throw down right here in this lobby, come at me again and call him her boyfriend. Second, I told you he’s been one of Cam’s closest friends for years and for the last few, he’s been one of my closest friends, too. Do you seriously think we would have let Amelia get involved with him if he hadn’t been vetted?”
Darren seemed unperturbed by her outburst. “Wow, Maggie, speaking of Amelia, I think you’re channeling her levels of drama and emotion right now. Must be the pregnancy hormones.”
Everyone went dead silent and then Maggie burst into tears and fled the room. Sighing, Ridge turned on his heel and went after her.
“What was that about?” Darren asked. He looked to Babs for an answer, but she was too stunned to reply. Maggie was pregnant?
Amelia stepped up. “That, you moron, was about the fact that you just announced to all her coworkers the news she’s pregnant.”
“I thought everyone knew,” Darren said.
“No, no one but family, a decision I’m sure they’re now regretting. What is wrong with you, Darren? Seriously, what is wrong with you? Do you purpose to make our lives a misery, or does it happen naturally? Do you not understand that neither of us wants you here? Why don’t you stay in California where you belong?” Now it was her turn to burst into tears and flee the room. With a sigh, Ethan turned and followed.
“I’m gonna fade awkwardly into the background,” Blue said, walking backwards until he reached the stairwell and disappeared.
“Wow,” Darren said. He looked as shell shocked as his sisters. ”I’m sorry you had to witness that, Babs.”
He looked so…wounded. She linked her arm with his. “Want to get out of here and grab a coffee?”
He nodded, allowing her to lead him out the door. Once there, he led her to his car. Babs didn’t protest because even though it was a rental, it was still nicer than hers.
They drove in silence to a coffee shop, presumably the same one he’d gone to that morning. They found a booth. In the background, Christmas music jangled merrily. The shop was decorated to the hilt with every table covered in greenery. It even smelled like Christmas, a mix of citrus and spice. Babs bade him sit still while she went to place their order. Based on Maggie’s desire to use food as a cure-all, she ordered an assortment of brownies and cookies for them to split.
Their order was called and she carried it to a table. So far gone was Darren that he didn’t even offer to help relieve her of the burden. Even after such a short time knowing each other, she knew that was unusual. She slid into the booth across from him and reached for her drink, a sugary latte she would no doubt regret later. Or maybe she was so far gone she wouldn’t notice the extra boost of caffeine.
“So my sisters hate me,” he said after a few bites of brownie. Chocolate guy, good to know.
“Of course your sisters don’t hate you; they love you,” Babs argued.
He gave her a sad smile and broke off a larger chunk of brownie. “Pretty sure the fact that I made both of them cry within the span of five minutes and one of them told me to stay in California doesn’t bode well.”
“It doesn’t bode well, but they don’t hate you. Amelia was angry and Maggie hasn’t been herself lately, hasn’t been feeling well.” Of course she was pregnant. How had Babs missed the signs when they were so obvious?
“How did this happen? I always thought we were so close.”
“Family stuff is hard sometimes,” Babs said.
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Yes.”
“When we met the second time, and I told you my name, you seemed to already know things about me. Did Maggie talk?”
“Um,” she said, shifting uncomfortably.
“Bad things?”
“Uh,” she shifted again.
The air rushed out of him in a whoosh. “Wow, it must be bad if Maggie’s badmouthing me.”
“Not badmouthing. You know Maggie’s not like that. She may have expressed frustration a time or two.”
“About what?”
“Uh,” she shifted again.
“Look, I know you probably don’t want to break trust or betray a confidence, but I’m only asking out of an actual desire to change whatever is wrong with me.”
“I don’t think anything is wrong with you. I think you’re at cross purposes,” she said.
“How so?”
“You want to be the same kind of brother you tried to be when you were kids—the strong protector, the caretaker.”
“Yes,” he agreed.
“But they’re both gainfully employed adults who are both married.”
He opened his mouth. She rested her hand on his arm. “Don’t say Amelia’s not married. I’ve been here the whole time. Trust me when I say she’s as married as married gets.”
He picked up her hand and began absently toying with her fingers. “So as a fellow high functioning adult female, what do I need to do differently?”
“Acknowledging the fact that they’re grown up is a good start. Beyond that maybe listen instead of try to instruct. Don’t give advice unless specifically asked for it.”
“That will never happen,” he said.
“Then you’ll have to make peace with that. If you want the kind of relationship with them I think you do, you’ll have to have it on their terms. At this stage in your life I think that means being a friend more than being a brother. Would you criticize or try to correct your friends?”
He winced. “I’ve been known to occasionally, but I’ve definitely been getting better. I guess I’m kind of a perfectionist who tends to project onto the world around me.”
“So I’ve heard,” she said, but she gave him a gentle smile to take any sting out of her words.
He was still toying with her fingers. It was having the mind numbing effect on her, but he was lost in thought, still sifting through his hurt and guilt. A movement to her left caught her eye. She turned and made direct eye contact with Agron Hoxha. Trying hard not to react, she refocused on Darren. Inside she was having a mini panic attack.
Three times, that was how often her path had crossed Hoxha’s the last couple of days. That many couldn’t be coincidence, could it? Was he following her? Was he onto her, onto their whole operation?
If so, why would he follow her? She was merely a cog. Ethan and Blue would be the high value targets. Even Maggie had a higher security clearance than she did. Rational thought helped dial down her panic. There was no reason for a high value target to follow her, none whatsoever. Therefore he wasn’t. It was a small resort in a town with not a lot to do. Of course they would happen into each other. She was being as paranoid as he was purported to be.
“Want to grab some supper?” Darren asked.
“Are you sure you want to?” Babs asked.
“I’m in desperate need of a distraction. Also, you’re easy on the eyes and your lips are delightfully soft.”
“All valid reasons,” she agreed. “I’m going to dart to the ladies’ room really quickly because I think this is about my eighteenth cup of coffee today. I’ll meet you at the car.”
“Okay,” he said. He smiled, but she could tell his mind was elsewhere, likely still on the encounter with Maggie and Amelia. He might be upset, but it was a good sign for Babs that he didn’t actually mean to say insensitive things, didn’t intend to wound. Intentions went a long way with her. Everyone messed up; the trick was whether they meant to or not.
She used the bathroom and inspected her face while she washed her hands. It had held up fairly well, given her lack of sleep. The dry winter air was a boon to her long wavy hair that tended to poof and frizzle during the humid summer months. She slipped into her coat and headed for the door, and that was when she felt the gun being jabbed into her side.