Chapter 22 #2
On the morning of Phase Four, I do my best to keep my cool even though I am buzzing with nervous anticipation. Dottie swore that her friend James has the entire situation under control and in the unlikely scenario that the plan doesn’t work, he won’t allow the blame to fall back on me and Delilah.
Still, I can’t help but wonder if we’ve taken this revenge plan too far.
Not because I give a shit about what happens to Earl.
He can eat poisoned black-eyed peas and die for all I care, but because Leonard told us specifically to stop with the petty revenge schemes at least until after the custody and divorce situations are settled.
Fucking with Earl’s hair is one thing, but if we get caught trying to pull off today’s plan, we might actually risk losing this beautiful little life we’ve been building for ourselves.
But Delilah is excited, and she believes in the man with the plan whole-heartedly, so I keep my anxieties to myself.
Like any other Wednesday, I woke Delilah up by licking an orgasm out of her and that happily sat on her face while she returned the favor.
Then I came downstairs and got started on breakfast while she showered and woke Sadie up.
With only a few weeks left until school starts again, Sadie’s summer activities have dwindled to a close, so after breakfast Suzanne picked her up and took her to Knoxville to shop for new school clothes.
Stephen and his team are deep into the construction of the nursery now, so the house is noisy and filled with working people every day.
Even the backyard is rendered useless while the guys and gals tear down and rebuild the fence (and the treehouse that Sadie sweet talked her uncle into building).
Usually, Delilah and I take a morning walk around the neighborhood before it gets too hot and then head to Miss Pattie’s for iced coffees and pastries before getting any tattooing or jam-making done and taking Sadie to the local pool to cool down in the afternoon.
But today, the two of us sit at the kitchen table, adding to the list of potential baby names and waiting for the arrival of our guest while drills whirl and hammers bang in the background.
“Juniper?” I ask, scrolling through the list of names on my tablet.
“I still like that one. Keep it for now.”
I nod and scroll.
“How about Magnolia?”
“Eh, I think we can officially scratch Magnolia from the list.”
“Agreed,” I say, striking a line through the name with my stylus.
A knock on the door reverberates over the construction noise, but before I can stand to answer it, Dottie Lynn lets herself in.
The man standing behind her has to duck slightly to get past the door frame, and when he does, my jaw drops to the floor.
I’ve seen James Adler on a screen before, in photos of Dottie and her friends and on social media, since he’s basically the most famous rich dude on the west coast. But nothing could prepare me for standing in the same room as him.
He’s eight feet tall and five feet wide, all muscles straining under a black t-shirt and dark denim jeans.
His hair is a deep, rich brown and thick enough to rival Superman’s, and when he takes off his sunglasses, his icy blue eyes nearly cut a hole right through me.
“Holy fucking shit,” I mutter. “That man is fine. Is it even legal for men to look that good?”
“Vee,” Delilah hisses, lightly backhanding my chest. “Stop staring. It’s rude and you’re gay.”
I notice Delilah staring, too, but I keep my remarks about that to myself.
“Just because I don’t want to eat at the restaurant doesn’t mean I can’t peruse the menu,” I say, eyeing Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome up and down as he and Dottie stroll into the kitchen. We stand to greet them, and when he holds out his hand to shake, I swear I almost swoon.
“Nice to meet you. I’m James.”
“I’m whoever you want me to be,” I answer, and Delilah whacks me again.
“Ignore her. She’s a very confused lesbian right now.”
“I don’t know, Lilah, I don’t think I’m confused at all. I think a man like James could set me on the uh…straight and narrow.” I wink at him, not letting go of his hand. Thankfully, he catches on to my teasing tone and chuckles.
“Don’t even bother. He’s disgustingly obsessed with his wife.” Dottie rolls her eyes, but there’s nothing but love in her face.
“I am. I’ve been told that my infatuation with Mrs. Georgie Adler is borderline repulsive,” James agrees, dropping my hand to shake Delilah’s.
I totally catch the blush spreading across her cheeks when their palms touch.
“And I would very much like to get home to her as soon as possible, so what do you say, ladies? Let’s get to work so we can say goodbye to Earl for good, shall we? ”
We gather around the table, and Delilah and I listen intently while Dottie and James rehash the plan for us. When they’re finished, Delilah’s eyes have gone glassy. I wrap my arm around her shoulders and pull her in close.
“What’s the matter, Lilah baby?”
“Why are you doing all of this for us?” she says, the question directed at James, not me. He just gives a lighthearted half-shrug and smile that could make me weak in the knees if I were the kind of woman to get weak over hot men.
Alright, fine. I’m a little bit weak in the knees. This guys is fucking dazzling.
“I take care of my people,” he says, patting Dottie on the shoulder. “Dottie is one of my wife’s very best friends. She’s marrying Stephen. Stephen works with me, Stephen is your brother. They’re my people, ergo, you and Ivy are my people. As far as I’m concerned, we’re family.”
“That’s quite a convoluted family tree,” I deadpan.
“So it is. But I’ve always been a firm believer that family isn’t about blood or relation. It’s about who you choose to fight for. You two lovely women should know that better than anyone, am I right?”
God dammit. I did not have ‘letting a beautiful man make me cry’ on my bingo card when I woke up this morning.
“And besides,” James continues, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the table.
“I know the optics of being a rich white dude in this world. I’ve got a metric fuck-ton of privilege, but I like to use my powers for good instead of evil.
I’m going to enjoy knocking your ex-husband down a couple hundred pegs. ”