28. Graham
GRAHAM
“Surprise!”
I can’t close the door fast enough.
My siblings—and Claire—are already barging in armed with boxes of pizza, big printouts, and binders.
“It’s anniversary party-planning time!”
“I’m busy.”
“No, you’re not. We asked your secretary.”
“And I called the concierge before we came over.” Claire beams at me.
“I already told you that you can just spend whatever amount you want on the party. No budget,” I remind them as I trail them to my dining room. “What do you need me for?”
“Do you have soda?” Max asks me.
“No, I don’t have soda.”
“Have some water,” Ryan chides his younger brother.
“What about a Monster Energy drink?”
“I told you to order soda,” Shawn complains to Hannah.
“You have money. You can buy your own soda.”
“I don’t need it.” Hannah is already pilfering my wet bar. “Because I’m an adult, and I can drink!”
“Graham,” Shawn begs and flops down on the floor at my feet. “Please! I need soda!”
“That was cute when you were little. Now it’s just pathetic,” Ryan tells him.
“I really don’t need to be involved with the anniversary party planning,” I tell them helplessly as Bridget sets out plates and utensils.
“I think Mom and Dad would really appreciate it if we all participated in planning it.”
“Where’s Lulu?” Shawn complains from the floor.
“Ignore him.” Ryan hands me a drink.
“We can ask the concierge to send up sodas,” I finally offer begrudgingly, and I take out my phone to text the request.
“He has milk, though, boys. Maybe you could drink that. I’m putting the cupcakes in your fridge, Graham,” Claire calls.
“I would think you’d have soda for Dani. She likes soda,” Max complains, dragging himself to the table.
“Are you guys coming to the cabin again this weekend?” Hannah asks as she grabs a slice of pepperoni.
“I think Dani has to work.”
Ding-dong!
“I’ll get it. It’s probably the concierge. I told him to get an assortment,” I call over my shoulder as I head to the front door.
“Hey, bro.” Kraig sneers at me when I open the door. He shoves several bags at me.
“I took the drinks up because I’m not going to make that poor bastard behind the desk do manual labor that I could do myself.”
It’s a familiar dig at me.
“You could have worked hard and made all this money too,” I snap, even though I know I should keep my mouth shut.
But I’m pretty sure my stepbrother stole my girlfriend’s panties, and I’m not keeping the peace with him anymore.
“No, because I couldn’t profit off of my own mother’s kidnapping. But you know, we just have different values.”
“You took that money too. No one told you to drop out of high school,” I snarl at him.
He brushes past me, checking me with his shoulder.
“Oh, did Kraig actually make it?” Hannah exclaims when I follow Kraig into the dining room.
“What the fuck? Kraig is coming?” Max says around his pizza.
“I know, right?” Bridget says. “He never wants to do these things.”
“No, I do want to do these things,” Kraig challenges them and wrenches a chair away from the table. “Graham is the one who never wants to do them. I work. I have a real job. You guys don’t know what it’s like to actually have to work, that’s all.” Kraig laughs like it’s a joke.
He’s always resented Frank remarrying. It’s just weird that he’s directing it at the half-siblings. Usually it’s just at me.
After our mom was rescued, people sent money and donations. There was a big lawsuit. I helped Mom manage her money, made sure she never had to work if she didn’t want to. And she spoiled her kids—including Kraig, though he’d never admit it.
“Have some pizza, Kraig?” Claire offers awkwardly.
“You guys bought the fancy stuff.”
“It’s New York City,” I remind him tersely. “It’s all fancy.”
He scowls at me.
Bridget opens up her binder. Everyone seems uncomfortable.
I glare at Kraig across the table as he scarfs down the pizza, getting it in his scraggly beard.
Hannah takes a deep breath.
“So—the anniversary party. Mom and Frank never had a big wedding with a reception with all their friends and family, so we want to really blow it out. We’re thinking the Maxine Hotel—it’s historic—or the Westbridge Country Club.
We’re just not a hundred percent sure on the dates yet.
Dad is talking about taking Mom to Scotland with Mom’s parents. ”
“Just go ahead and book both,” I tell her.
“They require deposits.”
“I told you, just put it on the credit card.”
Kraig has a sour look on his face as he picks olives off his pizza.
“There’s a plain cheese, you know.” I hate having him in my house. I hate knowing that he has Dani’s panties.
I’ve been stewing on it for days, and I finally settled on just paying Hudson Wynter to have one of his guys steal them back—though I really had to talk myself out of upgrading to the deluxe assassination package.
Kraig’s lucky I don’t have the Wynter brothers throw him out a window.
My phone rings. It’s Hudson.
I leave my siblings to go over the minutiae of party planning and head to my study.
Hudson lets out a long-suffering sigh when I answer.
“You know, you really could rough up your own family members, but far be it from me to tell you how to spend your money.”
“Did you find them?”
“No.”
“Then why are you calling me?” I stare out the window into the snowy city. The sun’s setting. It sets so early in the winter.
“One of my guys was in a bar tailing Kraig, keeping him busy while the rest of the team searched the house, you know.”
I grunt in acknowledgement.
“So in the bar, Kraig’s bragging that he got panties from this chick at work.”
Something twists in my brain.
Then Hudson adds, “He says that she knows about it and wanted him to have them. So.”
“So?” I spit out. “Where are they?”
“He apparently has them in his possession, and according to the people tailing him, he is at your penthouse. So they are on his person.”
I feel something in my brain snap.
I’m going to fucking kill him.
Kraig is sitting there at my table, guzzling my expensive scotch—and he’s got my girlfriend’s panties in his pocket.
Fake girlfriend, I remind myself. You kidnapped her, so “fake girlfriend” doesn’t even really describe it.
No, she’s my fucking girlfriend. I found her. I took her. Therefore she is mine.
Ding-dong!
My hand comes down hard on the table.
“I’ll get it.” Hannah grimaces at me. “Bet you didn’t think you’d have this much excitement tonight.” She scurries out of the room.
“Dani!” I hear my sister shout. My head snaps up.
Kraig’s does too.
I want to grab that bottle of scotch and slit his fucking throat when he smirks at Dani as she enters the room.
And I want to put my head through the wall when Dani smiles at him when she sees him—smiles like they share some sick little secret.
How dare she fucking cheat on me. How dare she not be faithful to me.
She even wore that ’50s housewife dress to fuck with me.
It’s driving me crazy—the way it cinches at the waist, the way the skirt flares off her hips, the way the creamy-pink lace chiffon drapes over the shoulders.
“Heya, Dani.” Kraig hugs her to him.
I’m going to break his arms.
“Are you here to save us from party-planning hell?” Kraig laughs drunkenly.
“Ooh, a party!” Dani claps her hands. “Is it someone’s birthday?”
“Wedding anniversary for our parents.”
“Fun!” Dani sits in the empty chair between Kraig and Bridget, and my half sister shows her the plans so far.
“If you need flowers, I have the best little shop…”
They’re flirting.
My chest is tight. I’m getting angrier and angrier as Dani laughs at a stupid joke Kraig makes.
I don’t think I’ve ever been this angry—not when I lost the high school district hockey championship game, not even when Stuart threw me against a wall and I chipped a tooth.
I’m so. Fucking. Angry.
Kraig is trying to steal my girlfriend. And she’s just going to let him.
I bet she goes home after this with him, back to his shithole of an apartment in that precious dress and lets him fuck her with his tiny dick. Lets him take her virginity. Lets him take what’s supposed to be mine.
“Wow, Dani, you should be an event planner!” Hannah praises. “We got through everything in record time!”
“I love your girlfriend, Graham, she’s amazing!” Bridget gushes.
Yeah, Kraig. That’s right. My girlfriend.
“I know,” I tell them simply.
Dani gives me a nervous smile as everyone packs up.
Ryan feeds Shawn the last piece of pizza then takes the boxes to the trash.
“Guess we won’t be seeing you at the cabin this weekend.”
“Oh,” Dani says. “Well, I mean, I—”
“Fuck off, Kraig,” I snarl.
Max rubs the back of his neck. Kraig just laughs.
“Good seeing you, Dani.” He gives her another hug.
“See you tomorrow at work!” she chirps.
I’m going to burn that dress that he had his hands all over. No, I’m going to fuck her in it first, then burn it, then burn my name into her skin.
I foist the bags of soda on the teenagers. Then they’re out of my house.
And it’s just her and me.
“I guess I should go—” She starts.
“Sit down.”
“I think my parents are probably wondering where I—ah!” She screams when I grab a fistful of her dress and throw her down on the couch.
“I said sit the fuck down.”
“What is wrong with you?” she screeches.
“Me? What’s wrong with me?” I’m pacing in front of her. “I told you not to fuck with me. I told you.”
I can see my reflection in the window. I know I look crazy. But I have every right to be.
“You fucking lied to me, Dani.”
“No, I didn’t—”
I knock back the rest of the drink then hurl the glass into the wall. She screams, her hands over her ears.
“You fucking lied to me.”
“I didn’t lie about anything,” she protests.
“Yeah?”
She cringes as I raise my arm.
“Then why the fuck does Kraig have your panties?”