Breaking Even (12 page)

Is she... crying? Did she just say
fucking
?

“Ash, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I will be fine. I just... can you please go meet her in my place? She just wants to set up the pool party for Tag, and I really can’t deal with her. I’ve hated her since he hired her, and I refuse to see her. You know everything there is to know about the party. Wren is MIA, so it has to be you. Please. I’m begging you.”

Considering she sounds like she’s close to falling apart, I sigh and agree. At least it’s not a matchmaking scheme.

“I’ll have to reschedule it. I have plans, but I’ll tell her I’m taking over the party planning so you don’t have to deal with her anymore.”

“That’ll work,” she says, a sniffle following.

“You sound rough. Can I do something?”

“No,” she whimpers. “I’ll be fine.”

With that, she hangs up, and I frown. What just happened?

Instead of dwelling on it, I drive over to Brin’s house, happy when I see the Range Rover is gone. I really hope she doesn’t run over my newly-repaired Porsche with my Range Rover. That would suck.

Once I park—and leave her plenty of parking room—I jog up to her house. Maggie’s car is gone, too, so it’s just me and the snake in my hand.

That sounds a little dirty.

After unlocking the door, I head into the bedroom and grin as I pull open the cotton-filled panty drawer. But when I spot a few new pairs of satin thongs on top, I’m forced to swallow hard against the instant knot in my throat.

When did she get these?

The snake wiggling in the bag reminds me of the task at hand, and I remove my eyes from the scandalously distracting new underwear to focus on my main objective. I stick my hand in the bag, but I pull it back quickly, screeching like a kid when the damn thing latches on and bites the hell out of me.

“Fucking psycho!” I bark, dropping the bag.

The sneaky bastard tries to slither away, but I grab him by the tail, jerking it back up from the ground. But then the vicious thing turns and strikes at my hand, and there’s not a damn thing I can do but cry out like a little bitch.

Briar scratch? That’s not like a damn briar scratch! That’s like having two searing hot, fat needles jabbed into you. The guy switched the snakes. He had to. The one he was playing with was calm and even... sweet. This thing is a rabid demon.

After it strikes me again, I drop it, and it slithers under the small crack of her bed. I groan as I stare at the impossible mess I’ve gotten myself into. I sure as hell can’t leave this horrible thing in her room. This is a complete and total fail. Instead of doing a victory lap, I’ll be playing the snake trapper all night.

***

BRIN

Grocery store, drycleaners, and the gas station
. Three more stops and then I can rush home and change. I want to look better than the last time, so I actually bought a sexier pair of shorts. They’re still comfortable. They’re not as sexy as a tight dress, but they’re a step up from my usual attire. They were also cheap because of a sale, so that made it a no-brainer.

“Brin!” Tria calls, waving at me from a restaurant patio. As I move toward her, I see a red-cheeked Ash sitting beside her, sipping from a teacup.

Rain sits down with them just as I near, and then I see Raya Capperton right behind her, a bitter scowl on her usually sweet face. What’s going on? And why do they all look pissed?

“Are you guys okay?” I ask sincerely, and Ash starts crying into her napkin.

Oh no.

“We hate men,” Raya says while crossing her arms under her chest, her eyes the saddest I’ve ever seen them. I really thought things would be better between her and Kade by now.

“I can’t be in public,” Ash says, wiping her eyes as her tears pour uncontrollably.

I stand on the sidewalk as they sit behind the rod iron-fence separating us, and I remain dumbfounded and completely useless.

“We can’t go to my place,” Tria grumbles.

“Mine either,” Raya growls.

“Certainly not mine,” Rain says, sighing... oddly.

Shit. I really, really,
really
wanted to hang out with Rye tonight. I have so much fun when he’s around, but... Ah, hell. I have to do the right thing.

“You can come to my place. Maggie has a date tonight, so my house will be empty.”

I won’t cancel on him until I know for sure they are staying for a long period of time.

Apparently all hell has broken loose in the fairytale lives of the Sterling Sparklers.

***

BRIN

When I open the door, I hear a rustling motion in my room, as though there’s a struggle. What the hell? Did he set up a prank that moves?

“I can’t believe he did this,” Ash groans.

I still have no idea what’s going on with all of the girls. They rode with me, but they were bashing men without details as to why they were ranting.

Instead of going to my room to find what prank Rye has left behind, I move to the kitchen and decide to make margaritas instead.

“What happened?” I ask as Rain gives Ash another tissue.

“He didn’t tell me. He kept it from me, and now... now... I’m going to kill him,” Ash growls, her fury sweeping in quickly.

The rustling in my room turns to silence, and I realize that jackass is in there right now. I’m going to kill him before Ash kills Tag. That’s why he asked me what I was doing. He wanted to make sure I was going to be out of the house, and like an idiot, I even gave him a timeframe to plot his attack. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

“Why are you killing Tag?” I ask softly, serving her the first strong glass of margarita.

“Because I’m pregnant and he didn’t tell me!” she barks, and I slide the margarita away from her. Obviously she can’t drink that in her condition.

Everyone at the table goes still and silent. Apparently no one knew. But... isn’t that something the girl tells the guy? Not the other way around?

“It’s payback. For Trip. I know it is. I’m going to kill him,” she groans, dropping her head to her hands.

“I thought you were on the pill,” Rain says quietly.

“I am. But I had to change my prescription two months ago. Whenever you change your pills, there’s a major possibility that you can get pregnant. So, we used condoms during that period of time. One of the condoms broke the last time I got drunk. My fertile son of a bitch husband knew it, but he kept it a secret.

“For two months he’s acted differently. He has constantly stopped me from drinking alcohol, limited my caffeine intake, and has even made me eat healthy shit. And he did it all with stealth so that I didn’t notice. He’s crafty like that. It’s one of the things I love and hate about him. But you have to tell a girl there’s another body growing inside of her if you’re suspicious!”

Whoa.

“You’re sure you’re pregnant?” Tria asks.

“Positive. I took ten tests. Not one of them said negative. My bladder has shriveled up in fear because I tried to take more tests. One time—the condom only broke
one
time.”

She scrubs her face with her hands and glances down to her stomach while we all search for the right thing to say.

“Wow. He really is fertile. Or maybe it’s the two of you combined, considering you’re the first and only girl he’s ever gotten pregnant,” Rain says, looking just as shocked as I feel.

Ash’s eyes change, anger fleeing as regret fills them. “I’m so sorry, Rain. This is... I’m an insensitive bitch for griping about this in front of you.”

I forgot Rain can’t have children, and I’m sure this is hard for her to sit in on.

Rain smiles warmly and rubs Ash’s hand in hers. “You’re not an insensitive bitch. I don’t think you know how to be. You were surprised, then a little freaked out, and now you’re venting. It’s allowed.”

Something crashes to the ground in my room, and a series of muttered curses and yelps of pain ring out in sequence. Then I hear the window in my room opening and slamming within seconds apart. Did he just call someone or something a vile bastard?

“What was that?” Ash asks, recoiling in alarm.

“That would be my very annoying neighbor trying to carry out some nefarious plan of revenge. Apparently things went
awry
. Pun intended.”

I grin as they all chuckle, and Ash says, “Come on out, Rye. We could use advice from a man right now.”

“No thank you. I’ll just stay in here until you all leave,” he calls back, and I stifle a laugh.

“Does he sneak into your room often?” Tria asks. I don’t like her teasing smile right now, because she’s giving me way too much credit if she thinks Rye is into me.

I grin while joking, “Usually he waits until after I go to sleep, and then he breaks in and breathes heavily in my ear.”

“That’s bullshit! I never breathe heavily. I’m afraid it’ll wake you up,” he says, playing along instead of being defensive, and everyone laughs again.

“I’ve never heard him joke before,” Rain says, her eyes on Tria.

“Me neither,” Tria says, grinning.

They apparently don’t know him very well, because that’s all the man knows how to do.

“Come have a beer,” I say to him as I stand and head to the fridge. I return to the table with two beers and a pitcher of margaritas.

With a reluctant sigh, he comes out, eyeing the table full of women. His arms have spots of blood on them, and so do his hands. What the hell has he been doing? He looks like he got into a fight with a thorn bush.

“What happened to you?” Tria gasps, staring at the same red flakes of blood that I am.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” he mumbles, sulking.

“Did you know I was pregnant?” Ash asks Rye, ambushing him.

He doesn’t even act affected by that question.

“I knew about the condom breaking. Shit happens. He didn’t know if you were pregnant,” Rye says with a shrug. “It’s not like he can pee on a stick for you.”

“But he knew I could be pregnant,” she growls, taking her anger out on the only man in view.

He comes to sit as close to me as he can get and as far away from Ash as he can manage. I’d laugh, but now is not the time.

He picks up his beer just as I take a sip of mine, and then he swaps the bottles and takes my beer instead. I’d ask why, but I already know the answer. Instead of reacting at all, I just start drinking the new beer.

“Someone else talk,” Ash mumbles, burying her head in the crook of her arm as she rests it on the table. “I’m tired of being the only one with issues.”

Raya sighs hard while staring at her engagement ring, twisting it absently while remaining lost in thought. “Kade won’t let me in. He refuses to let me help him through anything, and since Thomas died... He just keeps pushing me away. He won’t even look at me right now. I’ve tried to be patient—give him time to grieve—but I think he’s only growing farther away from me with every passing day.

“I left the vineyard three days ago, turned off my phone, and I’ve been staying in a hotel. We’ve already moved back the wedding date twice—even though we’re weren’t even planning the wedding until spring. I’m starting to think he regrets proposing. It’s hard to love someone if you can’t let them in. And he just keeps shutting me out.”

“Have you tried talking to him?” Rye asks, and he’s met with a glare I didn’t know Raya was capable of.

“
No.
Why didn’t I think about talking to him?” she asks, sarcasm dripping from her tone. “I love the jackass, but he’s... Well, I’m pissed.”

“Why are men so damn stupid?” Tria growls.

“Men suck,” Rain says for the hundredth time.

“I can’t believe he didn’t tell me I was pregnant,” Ash groans.

Tria decides to take her turn after a long, deep breath. “Kode has gotten a little more aggressive lately than usual. He punched a guy last night because the guy’s hand might have groped my ass. But I had warned him the guy was a sleaze-ball photographer, and had asked him to keep his cool since he insisted on joining me at my meeting. I needed that guy to use Beauty Graffiti on his shoots. He sure as hell won’t now.”

“He grabbed your ass in front of Kode?” Rain asks in shock. “I’m surprised Kode let him walk away.”

“I love Kode for who he is, but there’s a line. My business is the line. The guy was inappropriate, but I was handling it. Kode can’t just swoop and give me that reputation. No one will work with me otherwise. I can handle things myself from time to time.”

“Sounds like Kode had justifiable reaction to me,” Rye whispers, leaning down to my ear.

I have no idea how to respond to her problem. I’ve never had a guy react that way over me. Twisted as it sounds, I’m actually a little jealous. John would have let a man grab my ass and give it a massage, and he wouldn’t have done a thing about it.

I lean over to Rye and tug him down to me so that I can whisper in his ear, as they all go on and on about men being stupid.

“They’re leaving them? They’re all breaking up at once? Is that what this is?” I ask, confused by the madness going on around me.

“You aren’t really leaving them, are you?” Rye asks, suddenly looking worried.

They all stop talking and stare at him as though he has sprouted a second head. “Don’t be so dramatic,” Raya scoffs, rolling her eyes.

They all say something about him being ridiculous and make fun of him for being a drama queen, and I bite back a grin. “Yeah,” I say, adding to the bash-Rye fun by echoing Raya’s words, “don’t be so dramatic.”

He glares at me, and I snicker quietly to myself. Rain hides her smile behind her hand, and I tilt my head. She still hasn’t said what Dane has done to piss her off. All she has said is that men suck.

“Why do men have to be idiots all the time?” Tria asks Rye, narrowing her eyes at him, and all the girls stare at him expectantly.

Rye mutters something like hell and high heels under his breath just as the front door opens and Maggie walks in.

“Oh,” she says, feeling a little startled. “I didn’t see any cars.”

“They rode with me. I thought you were already gone on your date,” I say by way of explaining.

Very quickly, I go through the motions of introducing Maggie to the girls she doesn’t know, and she waves awkwardly, considering they all sound and look miserable. Maggie turns her attention on the uncomfortable man at my side who is getting closer to me every time a girl gives him a threatening look.