Chapter 22
Fox was gone by the time Bailey rolled out of bed the next morning.
He had said something about heading to work, but she wasn’t much of a morning person, so she wasn’t really listening.
It didn’t matter though. For the first time in a long time, she bounced out of bed with a grin on her face. The day was off to a great start.
There was a very good chance that multiple orgasms had something to do with her sunny mood. She couldn’t think of a better way to spend a sleep deprived night than with Fox between her thighs.
Nothing could ruin her day. She had even decided to adopt the mostly Labrador from the shelter. Or maybe all three dogs and start her own herd.
“Hello?” she sing-songed into her phone when it rang next to the bed. She hadn’t bothered to check the caller ID thinking it must be Fox calling to wish her a good morning. If she had, she would have just let it go to voicemail. Unfortunately, it was too late.
“We need to talk,” Brooke snarled from the other end. “We’ll do lunch. I’ll send you the details when I decide where I want to eat.”
“Wonderful. It will be great to see you too,” Bailey answered into the dead phone. Brooke had hung up the minute she was done speaking. “Said no one ever.”
She tossed the phone on the bed. Nothing good ever came from meeting Brooke. If it wasn’t for Ethan, she would have cut off contact with her years ago. So much for her perfect morning.
Walking into the bathroom, she turned her shower on as hot as she could stand. The soreness from last night came back to life as the water ran over her body.
She smiled at the memory of what caused it. At least her sister couldn’t take that away from her. Then she went cold with a terrifying thought. Did Brooke somehow know that Fox had spent the night? Was she about to walk into an ambush?
She didn’t think he would use it as ammunition to break up with her sister.
He just wasn’t that type of man. Sure, the guilt might gnaw at him, but he would never share something so intimate with someone else.
She would even bet he had never participated in “locker room talk” in high school.
No, he would keep their secret. But if Brooke wasn’t wanting to meet over that, then what was it?
Finishing her shower, she dried off and moved into the closet to look at her clothes options. It didn’t really matter what she wore. Brooke would look down her nose at whatever she chose. Still, she wanted to look like someone on a lunch outing rather than someone who worked alone at home.
She chose a simple wrap dress and a pair of strappy sandals. It was still miserably hot outside, so something cool was a must.
With her hair up in a ponytail and some light makeup, she deemed herself worthy of handling whatever Brooke was planning on springing on her. She just hoped Ethan wouldn’t be caught in the middle of something nasty.
Her phone was still on the bed when it pinged.
Brooke had sent a message with information about the pricey place near downtown where she wanted to meet.
At least Bailey knew what she was going to pay for a salad her sister would push around the plate.
It didn’t leave her much time to get any work done this morning, though.
She was pulling out of her garage an hour before she was supposed to arrive. Between traffic and finding parking, she didn’t want to leave anything to chance.
The drive in wasn’t too bad. Finding a parking garage that didn’t charge her an arm and a leg was a different matter, however. She finally settled on one that only required a two-block walk.
By the time she arrived at the restaurant, she was certain she looked like a sweaty mess. Slipping into the restroom, she worked feverishly to repair her makeup before Brooke saw her. Her sister would never let her get away with smeared mascara or faded lipstick.
She checked her hair in the mirror. Pulling the hairband out, she brushed until not a single hair dared to be out of place. She gave the ponytail one last tightening before returning to the lobby.
“Why do I always have to wait for you?” Brooke asked.
Bailey froze for a moment in panic. She quickly adjusted her dress and plastered a smile on her face.
Walking over, she went through the motions of hugging her sister.
It was all for show. Neither one really wanted to touch the other one.
“I swear you’ll be late for your own funeral. ”
“Well, it’s not like it can get started without me,” she answered.
Brooke rolled her eyes in typical fashion. She gave her name to the hostess, and they followed the woman to their table. They both pretended to study the menu. Bailey knew Brooke would get what she always got. Heaven forbid she eat anything of substance.
“Caesar salad, dressing on the side, and I’ll stay with water.” She instructed the waitress.
“I’ll have the grilled halibut, asparagus, and a diet soda, please.” Bailey smiled at the harried-looking woman and handed her the menu. “It’s good to see you. How’s work?”
“How do you think?” Brooke snapped.
“I don’t know, or I wouldn’t be asking. I’m just trying to make conversation.” The drinks arrived before they could descend into an argument. Bailey took a moment while she added her straw to the glass to regroup.
“Done anything exciting lately?” she asked trying again. A slow smile crept over Brooke’s mouth. Bailey hadn’t seen that smile since her sister admitted to sleeping with the basketball coach at the high school. It made her nervous.
“Oh, I’ve been doing a lot lately. Not so much exciting as time consuming,” she answered. She took a sip of her water and set the glass down hard enough to slosh some on the tablecloth. “I spent a day sitting in a courthouse waiting to see if Jimmy would get bail. Know anything about that?”
Bailey almost sighed in relief. If this was all Brooke was here to bitch about, then she had nothing to worry about.
She had plausible deniability on this. Knox had explained what happened, but that wasn’t her fault.
Besides, it had always been just a matter of time before her sister’s sorry excuse of an ex-husband spent some serious time in prison.
“I knew he was arrested, but I had nothing to do with it,” she said. “The law of averages says it was only a matter of time. I think he’s been pretty lucky to skirt the law as long as he has.”
“Someone ratted him out, Bailey.”
“Are you sure? The drug task force could have just gotten lucky.”
Their lunch arrived which put the conversation on hold. Bailey had no doubt that Brooke would bring it back up the moment she had a chance. Hopefully, after they had a chance to eat. Bailey put a small piece of fish in her mouth. It really was quite good, even if it would cost her a fortune.
“I think it was that big asshole,” Brooke said suddenly.
“That big asshole?”
“Yeah, turns out Fox has this whole other family.” Bailey looked at her in feigned astonishment.
There was no way she was going to let on that she already knew all about them.
Had even met a couple of them. “There’s an older brother who’s just hanging around.
He’s staying with Fox’s bitch of a sister. ”
“Brooke.”
“Well, she is. Anyway, I’m almost positive he and Fox had something to do with Jimmy’s trouble. Turns out, my idiot boyfriend has a pretty big tell.” Brooke smiles again, this time in triumph. “It keeps happening more and more. The dumbass doesn’t even try to hide it.”
“A tell for what?” Bailey was already exhausted from dealing with her sister. Why was it impossible to have a normal, enjoyable conversation when they were together? She had always yearned for the kind of sibling bond that seemed to only exist in books. They had more of an adversarial relationship.
“For when he’s lying to me,” Brooke sighed in exasperation like her big sister was also an idiot. “I asked him about Jimmy the other day, and his nose started bleeding. Just spewed everywhere.”
“That’s awful,” Bailey said, laying her fork on her plate. She was almost finished anyway.
“Right? Completely disgusting. I had to get out of there. But, anyway, I now know he’s been lying to me.
” Brooke stabbed a piece of chicken off her plate and popped it into her mouth.
She chewed it aggressively, cocking her head at Bailey.
The look of satisfaction on her face reminded her of an evil manipulator more than a faithful girlfriend.
“I mean he didn’t do that before, but lately, it’s happening more and more. ”
Knox had explained that with certain gifts, especially those that were mental, came physical repercussions. She knew if Memphis appeared as a hologram too many times, it made him sick. Knox told her about how bad it got looking for Thayer.
It only made sense that if Fox tried to change someone’s emotions too hard, it made his nose bleed. Of course, she could say none of this to Brooke. Even if her sister believed her, she would find a way to turn it to her advantage.
As hard as it was to accept that there are people in this world with abilities that go beyond the rest of humanity, it was even harder to keep it their secret.
She wondered how their significant others, like Dex, did it.
She made a mental note to ask him when she had a chance.
If she was going to stay with Fox, she had a lot to learn.
“Are you listening to me?” Brooke barked, pulling her from her thoughts.
“Yes. Nosebleed, got it. Are you sure you shouldn’t have him checked for a brain tumor or something?”
“Fuck’s sake, Bailey.” Brooke rolled her eyes again. “To be so book smart, you are such a moron when it comes to life stuff. He doesn’t have a brain tumor.”
“Hey, you don’t always have to be nasty.”
“It only hurts because it’s the truth.”
“Really?” Bailey’s blood was starting to boil. She had driven all the way into the city, in a nice dress, only to be insulted. “He lies to you all the time? Is that why you threw the mug at him, because he’s the one lying?”
She wished she could take the words back. There’s no way she should know what happened last night unless Fox told her. And that would only happen if he had talked to her.
“Huh,” Brooke said tossing her napkin on the table.
“I knew it. I knew he’s been fucking you on the side.
Though why he’d be interested in that.” She waved a hand at Bailey.
“When he has all of this I can’t fathom.
I guess just the thrill of doing sisters.
That’ll pass of course. He’ll realize you’re nothing more than seconds at best.”
“We haven’t been—” she tried to argue. But what could she say. They had slept together.
“Save it,” Brooke said, standing. The other diners were starting to take an interest in their conversation.
“I knew you’d stab me in the back just like all the rest of them.
I’m only going to tell you this once, so listen up.
You come near my boyfriend, my son, or my ex-husband again, and I’ll end you.
Do you understand?” She didn’t wait for a response.
Spinning around on her impossibly high heels, she stalked out of the restaurant.
“Sorry,” Bailey mumbled to her fellow diners.
“Is there anything else I can get you?” the server asked, hovering at the edge of the table. At least she waited until Brooke left before trying to hustle her out the door. She couldn’t even fathom the fallout if she had approached when her sister was in mid-threat.
“Just the bill, please. I think I’ve done enough for today.” The waitress squeezed her shoulder before returning to the kitchen. Bailey debated if she was going to cry but decided nothing her sister did could make her cry anymore.
She didn’t worry about warning Fox that Brooke was on the warpath. He would have to deal with his own fallout over breaking up with her. No one broke up with Brooke. She was the one that left.
Ethan was another story though. It worried her how Brooke would use the little boy to get even with her. She would have no problem making her son part of the punishment. She had done it in the past. This time would be no different.
The server brought the check, which was impressive to say the least. Bailey looked at the barely touched salad on the other side of the table. “I’ll take that to go,” she said handing her credit card over. At least the lunch wasn’t a complete loss. She would get two meals out of the experience.
Her thoughts turned to Knox. Had Brooke sunk her claws into him also? She doubted he could be intimidated by anyone. Still, she should talk to him. How did everything get so complicated? Life had begun to tangle the second Brooke caught Fox’s eye. The woman should come with a caution sign.
She stood, taking her container of salad, and walked to the door. It really was a nice restaurant. Maybe next time she would bring Fox here for date night. The thought made her smile. Screw her sister and her threats. This was one war she intended to win.