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“I didn’t just get Adam!” Chelsea responds with just as much enthusiasm. “I got all you Casanovas now!”
Billy smirks and winks, raising his glass high, the smug expression on his face screaming trouble as he says, loudly, “And we got you Suttons, too! Thanks for bringing your sister to town!”
Fuck. This is going to cause a fight.
Steve throws his arm around my shoulder aggressively and pulls me in close to him, squeezing me to the point of pain again. He raises his glass and shouts, “She’s not here for long, so don’t get comfortable!”
Billy turns his gaze to Steve, full on glaring at him, but then he looks at me and his eyes soften. “Adley. You never have to leave Christmas. Get as comfortable as you like. If you need help, let me know.”
This guy. He’s not making it any easier, and I constantly have whiplash when I’m near him. Even though he doesn’t remember anything that happened between us, I’m still a fool for him, still longing for my time with him, even though I’m now engaged to another man.
Just move on, Ad. He’ll never settle down.
You don’t want to either.
“Who does he think he is?” Steve grumbles. “You’re engaged to me.I’m the one who got you. I’m sick of him talking like he knows something.”
I pull back from Steve, my eyes narrowing as I ask, “You got me? What’s that mean?”
He shakes his head. “That’s my ring on your finger. He needs to learn his place.”
“Steve. He’s going to be my brother-in-law and-”
“And I’ll remind him that’s all he is.” He cuts me off, his tone condescending and superior.
“Why do you hate him so much? You don’t even know him.”
“I know enough.”
He drinks from his beer, visibly angry, and my senses are going haywire. Something is off and I don’t like it. “Did something happen that I need to know about?”
He won’t look at me, and when I follow his gaze, he’s tracking Billy around the room. “Steve.” I say forcefully, and he turns to me so I repeat myself. “Did something happen that I need to know about?”
His expression changes, and his whole demeanor feels off as the look on his face shifts into one I’ve never seen before. Arrogance and mischief and lies.
My heart sinks to my stomach, knowing there’s something he isn’t telling me, and I stand firm, making myself feel all of it. I let myself be in this moment, which is so reminiscent of the pain and confusion I had as a child, and I know it’s a turning point, and I won’t ever allow myself to feel this way again in my life.
A man, a husband, a father—they should be my safe place in my life and this doesn’t feel safe.
“No,Adley, nothing happened that you need to know about.” He steps into my space, his hot breath mixed with the dark beer he’s been drinking turning my stomach. “Did something happen thatIneed to know about? You defend him left and right, sweetheart. It’s a little unsettling.”
He trails his finger along my hairline, but it’s not a gentle or sweet gesture and it certainly doesn’t match the tone in which he called me sweetheart.
My heart races, sweat suddenly running down my back, saliva pooling in my mouth as bile attempts to rise. I shake my head and step back from Steve, visions of my father’s many accusations against my mother flashing across my memory. “It isn’t right, Steve.”
“No, sweetheart, he isn’t right-”
“No. I mean this, Steve.” I wave a finger between us, taking another step back as I continue, “You. Me. It’s not right. It hasn’t been right for a while, if ever.”
An ugly expression falls over his face, but then he recovers and says, “Be careful what you say next, Adley.”
It’s now or never, Adley.
I take a deep breath in and then exhale and say the words I should have stood by months ago. “I think you should go.”
“That’s what you want?” He smiles and huffs a laugh as he scans the bar, and I follow his gaze, taking in where everyone is right now. Francesca and Britt chatting with Farrah, Chelsea wrapped around Adam, gazing at each other like they have a special secret. Mr. and Mrs. Casanova are even here tonight, but they’ve distanced themselves from us kids and are sitting at the bar talking with Al.
And Billy. He’s not looking at me, but his body language gives him away, and I can tell he has me in his sights.
