“Have you lived close to each other since then? Like now?”
“Yeah. We lived together for a while, but then Barr got married. I got married. Still, we were always close. We’ve done everything together since then. We chased our dreams together, made them happen, and got back everything my father had lost tenfold. And now we’ve chosen you together.”
A shiver worked through her body as she looked up at me. “That feels big.”
“It fucking is. Did you hear about the force of our willpower?” I kissed her and forced myself to pull back. I had meetings coming up and I didn’t have time to give her the attention she deserved. “Maybe tell Sam that. The power of the three of us combined to sway you over to us. It’s not your fault.”
“The power of the three stooges?” She grinned and ran her fingers over my beard. “I’m glad you chose me. Even when I’m the most scared I’ve ever been because I think I’ll lose Sam, or…y’all, I’m always glad you chose me and I’ve gotten to have this.”
“You’re not losing us, Sugar.” I looked at my watch again and frowned. “Go talk to Barrett, okay? Explain things to him and give him a chance to talk to you. I was there when his marriage crumbled. It was a long time before the divorce.”
She nodded and stood up. “Can I take a picture of you working?”
I laughed. “Fuck, no. I saw what you did to Holden. He’s already called me three times, saying if I don’t spank your ass, he’s going to.”
Her eyes widened. “Oopsy.”
49
***SJ***
Ididn’tgettotalk to Barrett before going home that day. He’d been in a big meeting and when given the choice of staying to face a conversation I didn’t want to have or leaving work on time, I left work on time. I needed to run by Dad’s house to get clothes for a few more days at Dominic’s, anyway.
I’d had my car fixed and drove it down the Beltway, singing at the top of my lungs. If I couldn’t hear myself think, I didn’t have to think. Great reasoning. The music cut off in the middle of a note that I couldn’t hit and left me feeling embarrassed as I glanced down at my phone and saw an incoming call. I jabbed the button to accept the call over the speakers and answered.
Logan’s voice filled my car and tempted me to pull over so I could find the button to block his number before I forgot again. “SJ, I have something I need to talk to you about.”
The Beltway scared me and I never took my hands off the steering wheel while driving on it, so I couldn’t hang up the phone. Sighing, I tried to ready myself for a conversation with him. “I don’t know what you could need to talk to me about, Logan. Three weeks ago, we hadn’t spoken in years.”
“Those old fuckers who tried to threaten me? Who are they?”
Blood rushed to my face. “They’re not old, Logan. Jesus.”
“So, you’re fucking them. Right?” He laughed, but it sounded absolutely humorless. “The way they came racing down to play hero, I knew something was up. No wonder you didn’t want me, SJ. I can’t get a senior discount for you.”
“They’re in their early forties, Logan! Grow up.” I glared at the road in front of me, wishing I was staring down at Logan instead. I just wanted to bump him with my car, a little. Just a baby bump, really.
“I remembered the new job and the way they acted when they followed you to lunch that day, too. There’s three of them. Are you fucking all of them?” His cruel voice said he wasn’t asking just to make conversation. “Is that how you got your sweet new job? Spread your legs for the company and made it to the executive level? Must be pretty good snatch.”
Anger vibrated through me as I listened to his vitriol.
“It’s interesting to me that the CEO and CFO are both fucking the new help. I wonder how that would look for their pretty, pretend-ethical company.”
Coldness washed over me. “Logan…”
“That’s what I thought.” He scoffed. “You can start begging whenever you want.”
“What do you want?”
“Now I know you really didn’t earn the job standing up if you can’t figure out what I want from you, SJ.” He laughed again, but this time it seemed like he was enjoying himself. “I’m busy for a couple of days with work and stuff, but I’ll call you when I’m ready. I really liked that white dress, SJ.”
The phone clicked off and I jumped as the music blared to life again. By the time I pulled into Dad’s driveway, I was a mess. I was shaken by Logan’s antics, worried about what might happen, and I just wanted to crawl into bed and hide.
Instead, when I opened the door to let myself in, Dad was leaning against the kitchen island with a dark frown on his face. Grandma and Reba were behind him, both of them the picture of wanting to be anywhere but where they were.
“What’s going on?”
Dad moved closer to me, looking me over as if he was inspecting me for injuries. “I heard something that really worried me, SJ. I need to know the truth.”