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Her mouth dropped open and her eyes bulged out. “Are you kidding me? That’s the lamest excuse I’ve ever heard.”
He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. I don’t give a shit what you think. Alex.”
My back stiffened at the abrupt call. “Yeah?”
“Who’s the new roommate?”
I sucked in my breath and shook my head. No way was I getting involved with that one. “Jesse’s almost home. You can ask him.”
“What?”
But I hurried out of there. I wasn’t looking forward to hearing Hannah’s reaction either when the new roommate did show up. And just then, because karma hated me, Tiffany’s Mazda pulled into the driveway. She got out, flashed me a friendly wave, and grabbed two large suitcases before she crossed the lawn. “Hi!”
This wasn’t going to go well. I gestured towards the house. “He doesn’t know. And neither does she.”
Tiffany went rigid. “My sister’s here?”
I nodded. No words were needed.
Beth stepped out from the door. She saw the packed car, her other cousin, and the luggage. She turned around and went back inside. Emerging a moment later, she had Hannah’s keys in her hand and she waved at us as she crossed the street. The red Camaro took off a second later.
Tiffany grinned as she pushed her pink sunglasses on top of her head. “She’s smarter than I give her credit.”
I grunted. “I was starting to like you until that comment.”
She shrugged. “That doesn’t bother me either.” Nodding towards the house, she asked, “So who’s all in there? I see Cord and Jamie’s car.”
“I just got here ten minutes ago. I had to go back home to finalize the sale on my house.”
“Oh, that’s right. The one your parents left you.”
I nodded. It was better in someone else’s hands. And it wasn’t somewhere I saw myself spending time in. With the monthly allowance my father was still paying, which I had been surprised when I got my statements from the bank; and the inheritance I got from my grandfather, the money from the house wasn’t that much. Still, I figured I’d find good use for it somewhere down the line. For the next three years, Jesse wanted me to stay in his house. He said even if we broke up, he still wanted me there. If that happened, he was family no matter what. He had to be. We needed each other.
“Where’s Jesse?”
I was distracted from my thoughts. “What? Oh. He was called in for a meeting with the coach. He just texted. He was going to help me move the last of my stuff, but he’ll be here in a few minutes.”
“So I have Derek’s old room?”
I nodded. The unspoken question was if she was still across the hall from her ex-boyfriend, and yes. She was.
She took a deep breath and surveyed the house as if we were heading into enemy territory. “This is going to be interesting.”
“Yep.”
That was an understatement.
“All right.” She flashed me a perfect smile. “Are you coming in after me? Or am I—”
I waved her off. “Oh. You’re all alone going in there. I’m staying back. I’ll go to the back to move in if I have to.”
She frowned and for a second, fear flashed in her crystal blue depths. She wavered before she rolled back her shoulders and her hands tightened their grips on the luggage. The Grant West Royal Princess was back in the building. She started for the house. Her shiny, white shirt that hung off one of her shoulders and draped over her, billowed in the wind. It hugged her form for a second. The sunlight hit on the sequins on her heels and cast a blinding reflection behind her as well. The only thing missing was a tiara.
Hannah and Jamie were still bickering, but as Tiffany stepped inside, I only heard him scoff, “Oh hell no!”
Then the bickering tripled.
Another car pulled into the driveway. This time, a girl came out. She was dressed in a tight black halter-top and overly tight jeans that showcased every muscle in her legs. Dark almond eyes landed on me and she flipped a strand of sleek black hair over her shoulder. She was the darker version of Tiffany. I only hoped she wasn’t there for Jamie.
“Hi.” She moved over to me. Her eyes crinkled a bit as she studied me before she asked, “Do you know Cord Tatum?”
I let out a small breath of air in relief. “Yeah, but you might want to call him out. I wouldn’t step inside if I were you.”
“Oh.” She frowned at me for a second before she pulled out her phone. Leaning next to me against my car, she quickly texted him.
“Like fuck you are!” Jamie shouted over the sisters.
“Oh.” Her head craned back. “I understand now.”
I nodded.
And we waited. No further introductions were made. This girl struck me as a type that didn’t lower herself to being the first one who gave her name and I didn’t care enough to be polite. She was another in a long line. She’d be gone after a week.
A momentary lapse in the fighting occurred. Cord popped out of the door. He lifted his hand to wave her over, but saw me and lowered it instead. Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he sauntered across the yard to my car. “Hey.”
The girl flashed perfect white teeth. Why wasn’t I surprised?
He said to me instead, “I didn’t know you were back.”
“Yeah. Ten minutes ago.”
“When did that start?” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder.
“Five minutes ago.”
“Oh.” He skimmed his date up and down, but looked back at me. “Is Jesse headed back soon?”
I nodded. “You know what the coach wanted?”
He grinned at me. “That’s team confidential. What’s wrong with you?”
I shrugged. “I’d appreciate a heads up if it’s going to be a problem for him later on.”
“Oh. No. It’s nothing like that. The pros are already watching Jesse. That’s what it was about. I was just teasing before.”
“Gotcha. And thanks for telling me.”
I could feel the girl reevaluating me. It was always the same. Tiffany had underestimated me as well.
Cord asked, “Is everything situated with your mom and niece?”
My gut dropped. I hadn’t expected that question, at least not in front of one of his girls. Sucking my breath in, I couldn’t stop my hand from clenching around the bag strap in it. Then I forced my head to nod. I tried to sound normal as I responded, “Yeah. The lawyers notified Claire of the inheritance. They thought it was typo.”
Cord nodded. “And the original lawyer never told them, right? He quit after your brother died?”
“Something like that. Yeah.” I narrowed my eyes at him. Why was he dredging this up? And in front of a stranger?
He turned and glanced back at the house. “They seemed to have come to an impasse. We could dart in and not get hit by any crossfire.” He jerked his head at the girl and she followed him eagerly.
After they disappeared inside, I released the breath I’d been holding. My stomach was in knots now. It was rolling and twisting.
