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“She’s evil,” Jenny said, crossing herself. “I can’t stand to be in the same room with her. What’d she say?”
“She threatened me and offered to pay me off to go away. You know. Pretty much what you’d expect.”
Jenny snorted. “Did you tell James?”
“I did. He’s furious,” I said. “He told her this morning that I’m moving in with him and that he loves me.”
“I just got the chills.” Jenny ran her hands up and down her arms. “What’d she say?”
“Not too much. I don’t think she wanted to make him any angrier,” I said. “But just watch out for her. She’s a barracuda.”
“I can handle her.” Jenny tossed her curls. “It’s just too bad I can’t use a spe
ar gun on her bony ass.”
* * *
With all the sunshine and the happy news about Jenny and Cole, I almost forgot about Mrs. Preston and her threats. Almost.
When we got back to the resort, James went with Todd and Cole to have a beer and smoke cigars. Wanting to give them some guy time I begged off, citing a desperate need for some shade. I was headed back to the safety of my villa when Mrs. Preston practically jumped out of the bushes and grabbed my wrist again.
“Ow. Jesus,” I said. “Were you waiting to ambush me?”
“Something like that,” she said, giving me her best fake smile. A shiver ran down my back. “Where’s my son?”
“With Todd and Cole. But within shouting distance,” I said. I wasn’t sure if that was true, but she didn’t know that.
“Why didn’t you get on that plane this morning?” she asked.
I took a deep breath. “Because I love your son, Mrs. Preston. And he actually loves me back. I can’t just leave him because you don’t approve of me.”
I looked at her for a beat. “I’ve listened to everything you had to say about how I’m not the right person for James, and I actually agree with a lot of it. But the thing is, Mrs. Preston, we really do love each other. When that happens, all the things you’re supposed to do—like get on a plane and accept a bribe from your boyfriend’s mother—those things don’t make sense anymore. The only thing that makes sense is staying together.”
She dropped my wrist, and I took a step back.
“I’m sorry to let you know that, despite what I said this morning, I still do not approve of your relationship.” Celia studied my face. “My son might be more sentimental than I’d realized.”
“Maybe he’s just happy,” I said, rubbing my wrist. “It’s been a long time. I just wish you could be happy for him.”
“He can’t marry a hooker,” she said matter-of-factly.
“We’re not getting married,” I said, refusing to let her under my skin. “We’re going to live in sin first.” I fake-smiled at her, and I meant it.
She drew herself up to her full height, as if she was preparing to make an announcement. “Audrey, I believed you had my son’s best interests at heart. Now I see that you are letting him control you. Either that or you are too selfish to see that you’re about to destroy him.”
Fury bubbled inside of me. “I’m not being selfish. I love James, that’s all. And he’s not controlling me, Mrs. Preston—and you are not a candidate for that position, either.” I remembered what she’d said about Evie: that she was perfect for Todd because she was easy to control.
“Oh, you’ve made that clear,” Mrs. Preston snapped. “I can see now that you’re a problem, and that you’re not willing to work with me to become part of the solution. It’s too bad. Because now you really will break James’s heart.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that there is no way on God’s green earth that I am letting a twenty-two-year-old hooker have a relationship with, let alone move in with, my oldest son. Something bad will happen to you, dear. These things have a way of working themselves out. It’s Preston luck,” she hissed.
All of a sudden the sunlight was too bright on my face; I felt dizzy, my world scrambled. Celia had told James it was “Preston luck” that his high school girlfriend had been killed.
“Holy fuck,” I said.
She looked at me innocently, and an icy fear spread over my exposed skin. “Indeed. See you around, Audrey,” she said.
