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“Summer.”
“At least she’s not boring, and she does keep us entertained when she’s here,” the senator pointed out. The observation wasn’t appreciated.
Three sets of eyes turned on the senator; none of them were laughing.
No, boring she was not. For Falcone and Raeg, she was a guaranteed nightmare though.
*
Alyssa wanted to slam her door. She wanted to push it into the frame with every ounce of strength she possessed. She wanted to hear the violence of wood cracking against wood and have the satisfaction of hearing it echo around her. Instead, she closed it with the utmost control and patience. Just to prove she could do it.
“Your momma would just shake her head at us.” The lyrical Southern belle accent had her turning quickly to the bedroom doorway. “Then she’d ask me what I’d done to just upset everyone so. You know Raeg is just foamin’ at the mouth. He and Raeg are gonna be so ill now, aren’t they?”
Alone, Raeg and Falcone dealt fine with her for some reason. Together, the sexual tension was so thick Alyssa doubted Summer could cut it with one of her knives.
Summer stood nervously at the entrance, her gaze filled with a quiet sobriety Alyssa found disconcerting. But then Summer had a way of making most people nervous, despite all that southern charm.
She was the queen of double-talk and bullshit when she wanted to be, Alyssa acknowledged, and Summer could see through it like others could see through glass. It was almost impossible to lie to her.
“Summer, this isn’t your battle. Go home.” She knew her friend wasn’t going to listen, though. Summer never listened unless it suited her best interests at the time.
“You’re wrong, ya know.” Summer propped one delicate hand on her hip as she frowned back at Alyssa. “I told you to contact Shane and Sebastian before Harvey ever attacked ya,” she reminded
her. “Harvey was a crazy bastard. You wouldn’t call, though. You should have known this was going to come back to haunt ya. I even warned ya.”
“Father should have never let you stay—”
“Alyssa, your daddy was like a zombie, tryin’ to keep you alive and take care of your momma’s funeral arrangements while tryin’ to distract reporters.” Summer moved into the living area before going to the couch and curling into the corner of it. “Who better would he trust to take care of you than the friend his wife made certain was trained to do just that?”
Alyssa glanced upward as though searching the heavens. “Really, Mother?” she muttered. “You definitely had a bad-decision day there, didn’t you?”
“Your momma didn’t have bad-decision days, Alyssa,” Summer assured her. “She was the queen of manipulators. Damn, I wish she’d been my momma.”
No doubt Margot had wished that herself often. She and Summer would have been lethal in D.C. They would have started World War III before Davis Allen Hampstead even had a chance to get into the Oval Office.
“You have no business trying to help track down a would-be killer that’s probably long gone anyway.” The subject of mothers aside, Alyssa felt like shaking some sense into her friend. She rather doubted it would work, though. There would have to be the potential for common sense present first.
“But I know how.” Summer grinned. “Come on, sugah, you knew I wasn’t the helpless little belle I pretended to be. You were so busy hidin’ from life, though, that you overlooked that as well.”
“You make me crazy,” Alyssa hissed. Summer made her feel like she was in high school again. And not in a good way. “I didn’t overlook anything. You and Mother simply made certain I was never aware of it. Thank you for that. While you’re at it, thanks for telling me Shane and Sebastian showed up when I was unconscious two years ago. I appreciate the hell out of all that.”
In that instant Alyssa realized she was worrying the gems that hung on the gold chain like a talisman again. Jerking her hand down, she ignored Summer’s smirk.
“You love lyin’ to yourself, I have to say.” The smug little laugh that came with the accusation set Alyssa’s teeth on edge. “You knew the second you realized you were wearin’ that necklace that they’d been here.” Summer gave a little flip of her fingers and a roll of her eyes. “Like I said, you just ignore what you don’t want to see at the time.”
Crossing her arms over her breasts, she glared at her friend before muttering, “God help me.”
“He’s tryin’, sugah,” Summer expressed regretfully. “But you are just such a stubborn bitch you keep ignorin’ all His hard work where you’re concerned.”
“Oh, so you’re God now?” Alyssa questioned her mockingly.
Summer’s smile was so sugary sweet Alyssa felt the need for a dentist.
“Really, Alyssa, don’t you recognize His favorite angel? Why, just shame on you all day.”
“You are outrageous,” Alyssa accused her with a glower. “Well, try this one. Dad just informed Shane and Sebastian that we’ve been lovers. And Falcone overheard it.”
Summer dropped her head to the back of the couch, her eyes closing momentarily before she turned her head and glared at Alyssa. “Why the hell did you tell Goddaddy, Alyssa?” She pouted. “That’s wrong. And he didn’t have to know.”
