“My mother’s dead, so I can’t really answer that, now can I? Maybe we should ask your dad. The stand-up guy who kept his son a secret all these years and then when the truth came out, gave him money to keep his mouth shut.”
The two of them stared at each other for a long, tense moment; Marley’s jaw set hard, Jordan’s hands clenched tight at his sides. Jordan looked away first.
“What do we do about this Berndt guy?” he asked Justin.
Justin looked at the note again. “Let’s set up a meeting—”
“You’re going to pay the blackmail?” Marley exclaimed with surprise.
“Hell no.” He glanced at her, then at Jordan. “I want to see what proof he has.”
Jordan nodded. “I’ll find his number and set it up for later today.”
“Make it tomorrow. Let him sweat it out a little.”
Jordan shot him a look. “I have a feeling I’m the only one sweating anything right now.”
“It’ll be fine.” Funny how, only a few weeks ago, Jordan had told him to lighten up, that everything would work out.
“I’ve got a meeting on the other side of town, but I need to get my Jeep first. You okay to drive me back to the apartment?” Jordan nodded, so Justin took Marley’s keys out of his pocket and tossed them to her.
She caught them with one hand. “You mean I’m free to go now?”
“So it would appear.”
She hesitated, eyeing the bottle of booze on the counter. “I can give you a ride.”
Jordan bristled. “I’m fine.”
She ignored him and said to Justin, “It’s not like I have to rush back to work or anything.”
After a final glance at Jordan, Justin lifted a shoulder. “Let’s go, then, I’ve got a lot to do today.”
He strode to the door but stood aside for her to precede him. Jordan grabbed the door from Justin’s hand. “I’m not drunk, you know.”
“I didn’t say you were. It’s no—”
He stopped mid-sentence when he saw his father’s office door open and his mother stepped out. He and Jordan exchanged glances as she walked toward them, followed by Dale. Justin saw his
mother glance at Marley and do a double take. Her eyes narrowed as she approached them by Jordan’s office. Her chin jutted out, and she turned her sharp hazel gaze toward him and Jordan.
“Mom, what a surprise,” Jordan spoke first.
“Good morning boys,” she said in her best I’m-in-public-with-people-watching voice. She stopped in front of them, her head tilted ever so slightly. Jordan stepped up and dutifully kissed the nearest cheek, drawing a twisted smile from Justin. Then she turned her gaze toward him and waited.
He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Slumming today, Mom?”
Marley’s brows rose before she could help it. Justin’s mother’s smile didn’t fade, but her laugh contained a brittle edge. Marley fidgeted, uncomfortable witnessing Justin’s open hostility toward the woman.
Then she turned her piercing gaze on Marley. Marley stiffened and drew herself up to her full height. She decided about the only thing the twins had gotten from their mother were their eyes; the rest came from Dale.
Mrs. Blake might have been pretty at one time, but now a bitter veneer sharpened the angles of her face in a most unattractive way.
“I apologize for my son’s rudeness,” the woman said, her cultured tone a stark contrast to the flinty gleam in her eyes. “I’m Diana Blake.”
Despite the uneasiness working its way through her, politeness dictated Marley accept the woman’s outstretched hand. “Marley Wade.” She pulled free as soon as she could.
“Wade…why does that name sound familiar?” Diana paused as if trying to recall, but Marley had the distinct impression it was all an act. “Oh, yes. You look just like your mother. She was very beautiful.”