Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
T he Labor Day Bash to celebrate the end of summer turned out to be a stellar day.
Zoe had done a great job, setting up game tables, volleyball and cornhole competitions, live entertainment in the gazebo, and barbecue food trucks in the park. Vendor tents with goods for sale from the local artisans were scattered around the park.
Zoe’s parents as well as her former in-laws were in town, along with Chaz’s parents for the party, helping to keep an eye on her children. All seven of Harmony’s brothers, along with her sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, and parents were there, with Harmony being the only single family member. Even Homer brought a date. Morticia’s father and his girlfriend were present, putting a damper on Morticia’s fun.
Even though Matt and I shared a house now, we’d barely moved in and weren’t even unpacked yet. We were just friends, but no one believed it, so I insisted we arrive separately for appearance’s sake.
Looking around, the park was packed. This was one of Grammy’s favorite parties. I felt so alone without her. Everyone else had family around, even Matt. His parents were back in Ireland still, but his uncle and cousins were here.
Rita and Charlie caught my eye. They sat up near the stage in the gazebo once more and hadn’t seen me yet. I’d looked at the note she’d given me at least a hundred times, still unsure of what I wanted to do. I touched the red H pin I wore every day and renewed my resolve to be the hero of my own story.
I started to head in their direction when someone tapped me on the shoulder. Turning around, it was Tabatha. Her hair was shorter than mine but still long enough to pull into a high ponytail. She folded her hands, looking down at her sneakers for a minute, and then met my gaze with regret in her eyes.
“Hi, Tiffany,” she said quietly.
“Hi, Tabatha,” I responded warily.
“How are you?”
She sounded genuine, but what did I know? Clearly, I wasn’t a good judge of character. I hadn’t seen her or heard from her in over a month.
“I’m doing okay. Tired, but I’m not sick anymore.”
“Well, that’s good. Mom said you felt the babies move. That’s exciting.”
I folded my arms over my stomach. “What are we doing here, Tabatha?”
“What do you mean?” She couldn’t quite meet my eyes.
“You haven’t talked to me in five weeks, and now you’re acting like we’ve been best friends since birth.”
“I know.” She wrung her hands together. “I’m sorry. I’m just nervous.”
“Why?”
She finally looked me in the eye. “Because I owe you an apology.”
“Okay, I’m listening…” I watched her cautiously, wondering if an unseen hammer was about to drop.
“You tried to make amends during lunch, and I shut you down. I’m sorry about that. I can be a bit hard-headed.” She shrugged.
“I hadn’t noticed.” I laughed, losing some of my resolve. “But thank you.”
She nodded. “Just because you’re on Grammy’s side, and I’m on Mom and Dad’s, doesn’t mean you and I can’t meet in the middle with each other. If we’re ever going to have a chance at actually being sisters, then we have to agree to disagree on who was at fault in keeping us apart. We’re adults. What kind of relationship we have going forward is up to us now.”
“I agree.” This was an easy yes .
Tabatha had been wronged as much as I had, and at this stage of my life, I was cherishing the relationships I had more than ever. I was tired of the games and giving more than I got. It was time I put myself first and started demanding that the people in my life meet me halfway.
“Good. So, where do we go from here?” She looked hopeful.
“How about we try lunch again and take it one day at a time?”
“Sounds great to me.” She glanced over at Rita and Charlie. “Well, I won’t keep you. Enjoy the party, and I look forward to lunch soon.”
“It’s a date.” I smiled as she walked away, feeling a seed of hope blossom.
That feeling was suffocated by weeds when I saw my ex-husband limping my way.
“Well, well, well, going solo today?” Bud looked around warily and then touched the neck brace he wore with an exaggerated grimace. “I see you don’t have your bodyguard around. I knew he would get sick of you.”
“A neck brace? Seriously? That’s pathetic.”
“You won’t find it pathetic in court.” He narrowed cold, dark eyes at me. “I told you this conversation wasn’t over.”
“You’re not hurt any more than you have a bad back.” I gave him a disgusted look. “You make me sick.”
“And you make me greedy, you bi?—”
“Easy there, laddy,” came a deep rumbling voice from behind us, “I wouldn’t want ye to fall again.”
Bud whipped around with ease, and then immediately grabbed his neck when he realized he had an audience. “Fall?” he said loudly. “More like you pushed me.”
Matt stood in a row with his cousins, Finn and Aidan, as well as what had to be his uncle, judging by the resemblance and age of him. They looked like giant sequoia trees from the redwood forest. His uncle was even bigger than he was, which I hadn’t thought possible.
The tranquil grandeur of them all was awe inspiring…
And intimidating as hell.
“Pushed ye?” Matt and his crew all let out big, hearty, booming laughs. “If I pushed ye, laddy, ye wouldn’t still be standing.”
“That’s a threat,” Bud said loudly, looking around at the spectators. “I have witnesses,” he added, glaring back at Matt.
Matt’s grin faded into a scowl. “Ye have witnesses to what a fool ye are. I’m a lover not a fighter, but ye be testing me patience, laddy.” His hands were loosely balled into fists, and his uncle cracked his knuckles, no words necessary. “I didn’t so much as lay a finger on yer weak self.”
“I’m not weak,” Bud growled out.
“Really now?” Finn’s gaze ran over the length of him.
“Hell, even I could take him,” Aidan said.
“No one’s going to take anyone,” Matt said. “Besides, he can’t prove a thing.”
“Yeah? Tell it to the judge,” Bud said with bravado even though his eyes were filled with worry. “You have no idea what I can do.”
“Aye, but ye have no idea what we can do, and there’s a whole clan of us.” Matt’s uncle spit to the side and clenched his jaw.
“You’ll be hearing from my lawyer,” Bud said, as he shuffled away.
“Shocker.” I watched him go, then I turned to Matt. “Seems like you’re always coming to my rescue.”
“Well, if ye had let me drive us both here, then I wouldn’t have to, lass.”
“For the millionth time, I can take care of myself.” I crossed my arms.
“I like yer lass, boy.” His uncle grinned wide. “Ye’ve chosen well.”
“Uncle Liam, this is Tiffany.” Matt gave me an apologetic look. “Tiffany, this is me Uncle Liam.”
Chosen? For what? My contribution to the Children of the Clover? I looked at all four of them, wondering if they all had clover tattoos. Not Aidan…yet, anyway.
I cleared my throat. “Nice to meet you, Liam, but Matt didn’t choose anything,” I clarified. “Because we’re not anything. Well, except soon-to-be co-parents.”
“Aye, whatever ye say, lass.” He gestured to Finn and Aidan. “Come along, lads. Let’s leave the co-parents to it.” He led the way over to the beer tent.
“Sorry about that. The name Liam means strong-willed warrior or protector. That pretty much sums up me uncle.” Matt held his hands up. “He’s beyond stubborn, but there’s no one I’d rather have by me side to defend me than me uncle.”
“Well, that’s good because I have a feeling that you’re going to need to be defended.” I sighed.
“I’m not worried, lass. I’m more than capable of defending meself.”
“You should be. Bud is a very convincing liar.” I shook my head. “I didn’t tell you, but he served me with papers.”
Matt’s face twisted into disgust. “He’s suing ye again?”
“Yes.” I nodded and then felt sick over my next words. “And apparently, he’s now suing you too.”
“Hi, Tiffany, come on in.” Victoria Steele opened the door to the Steely Knight Agency at the end of Lighthouse Lane on Freedom Lake. It wasn’t too far down from Smith’s Funeral Home.
“Thanks, Victoria.” I took a seat at a table with plush chairs around it and a wall of windows that overlooked the lake. The sky was an ominous gray with high winds that made the lake choppy. It looked like rain at any moment.
It was a fitting day that matched my mood.
Alexandra Knight walked in with a folder. “Hi, ladies. Sorry I’m late. I was printing these images.”
“What images?” I asked.
“The ones from the security camera from your salon,” Alex replied.
“That’s why we called you here,” Vicky added.
Both women were in their fifties. Fit, fabulous and dressed to kill in power suits, with ruthless reputations. Alex had short jet-black hair that was slicked back, and deep red lipstick in sharp contrast to her pale skin. While Vicky had buzzed platinum-blonde hair and white lipstick that stood out against her caramel skin. You could see the crafty, cunning determination blazing in both their eyes. No wonder Grammy liked them so much.
They played to win.
Alex opened the manila folder and spread the images on the table before us. Matt’s back was to the camera, and he was so much bigger than Bud, it was hard to tell what had actually happened when Bud fell backwards off the porch.
Vicky hit play on her laptop, and the footage showed Matt take a quick step toward Bud, and then Bud tumbling off the porch. You couldn’t see Matt’s hands to tell if he pushed Bud or not, but the quick movement forward implied he did.
I squinted at the footage. “Wow, that doesn’t look good.”
“It’s not the best look for Mr. McGinnis.” Alex pursed her lips, looking thoughtful. “It’s also not absolute proof that he actually laid hands on Mr. Grant.”
“We need to find a way to prove he’s lying about his neck injury,” Vicky said.
“Easier said than done. He’s good. Lying is second nature to him. He’s been lying about his bad back for years. He claims I had more than enough money to support us when we were married, but I forced him to work. Since he didn’t have an education, he could only get construction work, which led to a back injury.”
“Is that true?” Vicky typed something into her notes.
“The back injury, yes, but not the permanent disability,” I said. “When I met him, he was already a construction worker. He helped build my grandmother’s house, and she knew his parents. I was blinded by his charm, but all he wanted from the start was my money. He wanted a sugar mama. He’s lazy. Shortly into our marriage, he quit his job.”
“How did the back injury come into play?” Alex looked up from her tablet.
“When I found out he quit his job, I threatened to leave him if he didn’t go back to work. He agreed but never forgave me. His resentment turned into him downright despising me over time, and our marriage fell apart. He started cheating on me. I can handle a lot of things, but someone not wanting me is not one of them.”
“What happened?” Vicky’s gaze was sharp and serious.
“I served him with divorce papers, and suddenly he had an accident , rendering him permanently disabled.” I shook my head in disgust. “He knew what he was doing. He wanted to set himself up even after our divorce so he would never have to work again. I regret the day I ever laid eyes on him.”
“A judge granted him alimony?” Alex’s mouth flattened into a stern line.
I nodded. “Yes. Bud claimed he didn’t make enough from his disability checks to live the lifestyle he was accustomed to, and it was my fault he was in this position, so I should still have to help support him.”
“And he keeps suing you for more money?” Vicky’s eyes hardened.
“You got it.” I like them. They were no-nonsense and tough. “Now he’s upped his game because I have all of Grammy’s money, and he wants more.”
“Eugenia Eisenhower was one hell of a woman.” Alex’s jaw clenched. “We’ll be damned if we’ll let this scumbag take one more cent that belonged to her.”
“Grammy always spoke highly of you both and appreciated you looking out for her for so many years.” I was definitely happy to continue that legacy. I had used several different lawyers in the past without success. “I’m counting on you to do the same for me now.”
“Oh, trust me, honey,” Vicky said, with a look in her eye that meant business, “Bud Grant doesn’t know who he’s messing with.”