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“That’s enough, Ruth.” Johnny glares at me. “Go speak to the family. Let me handle the rest.”
I throw my hands up. “What am I supposed to say?”
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”
Cole swings the kitchen door open and motions for me to follow him. “Come on, I’ll go with you.”
When I dig my heels in, he walks over, takes me by the hand and leads me through the house, deftly weaving around guests. When we reach the front porch, he pulls me to the side and lowers his voice. “What the hell has gotten into Davis?”
“He’s engaged.”
Cole’s brows rise. “Wow.”
“I know.”
“Don’t worry. It’ll work itself out.”
“It’s not the only thing. What am I supposed to say to these people?”
“The truth.”
“What? That their son allegedly said something inappropriate to Ashley, and then my brother lost his shit?”
“Just say you’re sorry, Ruth. Start there. The rest will come.”
“This is the last thing my family needs,” I say, my eyes searching his. “What am I going to do?”
He places his hands on my shoulders and looks at me with enough conviction that I almost believe him when he says, “You’re going to do what you always do. You’re going to fix it.”
Later, I apologize to the bride and groom, and she sort of laughs me off. “My brother is an ass. Even more so when he drinks.”
“Mine too.”
“I wouldn’t worry too much,” she tells me. “My parents are furious at him. It’s not the first time something like this has happened. Danny can’t handle not being the center of attention.”
“Anyway,” her husband says, “it’ll make a good story for the grandkids.”
Chapter Fourteen
Passerby
It’s not hard to get the bastard down to the beach. All I have to do is promise him something. Like a carrot dangling from a stick, the lure of something he wants, and that’s that. Weak morals and all, but then, most people are easily swayed when they think something is about to turn out in their favor.
So, easy-peasy, I get him to meet me down at the beach, or at least who he thinks is me. There are three things you should always keep a secret: your love life, your income, and your next move. Once you lose your mystery, you can’t get it back. As the saying goes, sincerity is glass, discretion is diamond.
That’s what I told him anyway, in the note I left beside his bed. I added a few Xs and a few Os, and from then on, it was pretty much a done deal.
Our little night swim. Our secret rendezvous under the stars.
It sounds lovely. But it wasn’t all fun and games. It takes an incredible amount of strength to hold a person under the water against their will.
Thankfully, not nearly as much to entice them to get sloppy drunk first.
If you can manage that, the rest is easy.
I did. And it was.
Chapter Fifteen
