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“We all want to know that,” Sullivan said.
“I think I know who’s behind it. CGTV,” Ian answered.
“Another hatchet job for ratings?” Trey asked.
“Undoubtedly.” Ian was confident he was right. “We’ll know for certain tomorrow morning when the courthouse opens in Springers Glen. I don’t think there’s a marriage license on record the way CGTV claims.”
“Seriously? That’s bold of them. I wonder if that has anything to do with why they’ve been trying to contact me,” Trey said.
Sullivan and Ian perked up.
“What did they want?” Sullivan asked. “Did you talk to them?”
“I didn’t,” Trey answered. “One of my assistants did. Some reporter at CGTV wanted to know if I had any comment on my best friend jilting my half-sister, and wanted to know where the wedding was held.”
“That’s interesting,” Ian said.
“Not really. What’s interesting is they seem to think I attended the wedding.”
“Why would they think that?” Sullivan asked.
“No idea. My assistant gave the usual line that I was unavailable for comment. I could call them and ask them why they think I was at your wedding.”
“My fake wedding,” Ian said. “Don’t forget the fake part.”
“He gets a little panicky when you talk about the wedding like it’s a done deal,” Sullivan told Trey.
“Can’t say I blame him. Though she’s a pretty little thing. And that sister of hers damned sure has it going on. Did you see that as—”
“That’s my sister-in-law,” Ian interrupted.
“Your fake sister-in-law ... who so happens to have a killer as—”
“Trey!” cried a female voice from the doorway.
They turned in time to watch Sasha launch herself at Trey. It never ceased to amaze Ian the way those two behaved together. Seeing Sasha on a runway, aloof and elegant as a queen, he’d never imagine she could leap like a tiger cub onto her huge brother and wrestle him out of his chair.
And Trey. His holdings and worth rivaled Ian’s own. Thousands upon thousands of employees, shareholders and investors relied on the man’s renowned ability to make cold-blooded decisions the business world demanded. It was hard to believe that same man was allowing his half-sister, who for all her height, was tiny in comparison to Trey, to pin him on the floor in an ugly half-nelson hold.
“Uncle! Uncle!” Trey cried.
“I can’t hear you,” Sasha said, panting.
Ian felt the tiny twist in his gut he always felt when he witnessed Trey and Sasha together. He wished he had a sibling, even an obnoxious half-one like Sasha. He had no uncles or aunts, no close cousins. He only had his mother and father, and they were distant, both in mileage and emotion.
He stood, picked his way around the happily-struggling pair and sat behind his desk. He logged into the computer to begin sifting through the emails that had piled up that morning.
While the mail downloaded, he gazed out the big window at the sweeping view of the east lawn. Off in the distance, he saw Jada, Marina and Jack Forest heading toward the stables. He liked the look of it, the way Jada seemed to belong to the place. She was a natural.
“Say you wear granny panties or I won’t let you go,” Sasha demanded of a wriggling Trey.
“I do not wear granny panties,” Trey replied, then heaved himself upward with a mighty growl.
Sasha squealed, clinging to his back like a leggy gnat.
Ian slowly shook his head at their silliness and began digging through emails. Sometimes, it sucked to be responsible.
WHEN SHE WOKE UP THAT morning, Jada had high hopes for the day, thinking she’d be spending most of it with Ian. Now she found herself on the porch with Marina, waiting for Mr. Forest to finish sorting out Trey’s suitcases and car. Ian was long gone.
She sighed.
“Sorry you’ve got to hang with me,” Marina said.
“Yeah, well, you’re my second choice, for what it’s worth.”
“Ha-ha. I know who my first choice would be.”
“Let me guess,” Jada said. “Trey?”
“Gawd, yes. Did you know he’s the seventy-sixth wealthiest man in the western hemisphere? And hot, too. Don’t you think?”
“His father was hotter,” interrupted a shrill voice from behind them. Agatha Brimgore strode up to the sisters. “That’s why I married him. Shallow, I know, but I already had plenty of money from my dead husbands, so I could afford to be superficial.”
Jada didn’t know what to say to that, and so said nothing. It wasn’t necessary, regardless.
“Marina,” Agatha said, “give me your number so I can shoot that info to you.”
“Oh, do you have them already?” Marina asked in a gush. “Terrific! Here.”
They exchanged numbers and within moments Marina was thumbing through Agatha’s texts.
Agatha tucked her phone into her pocket, raised her long nose in the air and looked down at Jada. “Your feline snagged up half the flowers on my bathing cap.”
“Sorry. I’d be happy to pay you for it,” Jada said.
“Unnecessary. That cap was irreplaceable.” She sniffed, then turned to go, waving one hand in the air as she went. “Ta-ta, Marina dear.”
“Ta-ta, Ags,” Marina said, not looking up from her phone.
When the front door closed behind Agatha, Jada scowled at her sister. “What the hell? Ags? Marina dear? Puke.”
“Yeah, we kind of overdid it in the jacuzzi last night. A few too many highballs. It may have gotten a little sloppy.”
“I don’t want to hear about it,” Jada said, though she kind of did. There was a bigger question waiting, though. “What info does she have for you, anyway?”
“She got me the email addresses and phone numbers of our three suspects’ agents. Awesome, huh?”
“What did you have to tell her to get those?”
“Well, um ... don’t be mad. I know you will anyway, but try.” She looked at Jada. “I told her everything.”
“You didn’t. Seriously? Not your part in it, though, right?”
Marina shrugged. “Like I said, there were a few too many highballs. I got to feeling badly about how my part in it could have really hurt Sasha and so I apologized and everything. Anyway, it came out all right. Agatha wasn’t even mad. How cool is that? She forgave me and said she’d help. And she has, too. She’s made my job a lot easier.”
Jada’s blood pressure kicked up a few notches. “I cannot believe you told Agatha your secret. It’s getting harder to count who does know your secret than who doesn’t. That woman will never keep her mouth shut, Marina.”
“I think she will. She was upset when she heard what I knew, and she wants to find out who tried to screw over Sasha.”
Jada would have pursued the subject further, but Mr. Forest was ready to take them to the stables so she had to leave the conversation as it was.
Hours later, after their lovely ride exploring the grounds, Jada and Marina returned to the main house for lunch. Ian and Sullivan remained holed up in Ian’s office, a disappointment for Jada who had hoped Ian would find some time in the afternoon for her.
Late in the afternoon, Jada and Marina joined Sasha and Trey at one of the docks. They dangled their feet in the chilly water and savored the warmth of the sun on bare legs and shoulders.
Sasha told Trey how Marina studied billionaires, embarrassing Marina and instantly transforming Trey from flirty admirer to distant ice man. Sasha found the situation hilarious and ribbed Marina mercilessly, but Jada felt sorry for Marina, knowing Trey probably thought she was a gold digger.
In a way, Jada asked herself, wasn’t that what Marina was? No, Jada wouldn’t believe it. She knew deep down that if it were necessary, Marina would choose love over money every time.
Her sympathy for Marina, however, was short-lived when Sullivan came strolling onto the docks and spoke to Marina in an overly-casual tone.
?
??Hey, Marina, I’ve been meaning to tell you. I looked into your friend’s little matter,” he said. “Tell her it’s fine. Nothing actionable. She might want to keep it on the down-low, though, for now.”
Marina didn’t hide her relief. “Thanks, Sullivan. I appreciate it.”
“No trouble. So what are you all doing down here?”
