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“Are you making fun of my blazer, now? You, who never takes off your suit? Are you going to wear itoff-roading?” I teased.
For a brief moment, a smile crossed his face. “You’ll have to wait and see.”
“My money’s on you staying in the suit,” I chided.
“I’ll take that bet,” he growled, “andI’ll show you I can off-road with the best of them.” The way he said it made me go all squishy inside—as though he intended to show me something more than just how his jeep handled. Again,fine by me!But I didn’t say it. He’d fooled me once already that morning, making me believe that he wanted to be close, at least physically. I had zero intentions of letting him fool me twice.
Still, when he grabbed my hand and tugged me toward the house, it tugged at my insides.Damn him.Why did my body have to respond to his every touch?
“Chloe! Oh, thank goodness!” Daphne sprung from the house and rushed us. She grabbed me in a hug and rocked me back and forth. “You can’tbelievewhat it’s been like around here—a total cluster! Gene’s under so much stress that I started eating carbs again.”
She pulled back but didn’t release me from her embrace, her slender arms surprisingly strong. Up close, I could see that Daphne looked good; her skin was clear and glowing, and the dark circles were gone from beneath her eyes. She wore a flowing dress that showed off her lithe frame.
“It’s good to see you, Daphne. You look great.”
“I know, right? I’m not showing yet. I’m only a few weeks.” She rubbed her ultra-flat stomach.
“How are you feeling?”
“Great! I’m on theseinsaneprenatal vitamins. I got them from a specialist in Dubai! Ooh, and of course, I’ve quit drinking. It’s been amazing for my pores—my smoothie business is blowing up because everyone wants skin like this. It’s a good thing because I need the money!” She rolled her eyes. “We could lose everything. I mean,everything.”
Bryce cleared his throat. “Good morning, Daphne. Thank you so much for that thrilling synopsis.”
She grimaced. “Whatever.”
He nodded at me. “Chloe, I’m going in to talk to my father. I’ll let you two catch up for a minute. See you inside?”
“Sure.” As I watched him leave, Daphne watched me.
“Are you guys back on the love boat?” she asked.
“We never got off of it.” I forced a smile.
She arched an eyebrow. “Then where the hell have you been? And why has Bryce been acting like even more of a douche?”
“I needed to take Noah back to Boston.” That was sort of the truth.“But enough about me! What about you? Is everything okay? I mean, I know it’s notokay—”
“Oh my God, it’s beenhell. I can’t believe you didn’t even call me!” Daphne pouted for precisely one second, but she couldn’t bear to stop talking for long. “Michael Jones has completely ghosted me since he found out about the charges. He’s only out for himself!”
If anyone was only out for themselves, it was Daphne. She’d gotten pregnant with a married man’s baby whileshewas married to another man, and she’d done it in order to secure her position as a one-percenter. But I didn’t say a word. I’d learned that getting along with my young mother-in-law was much better than being on her bad side.
Daphne scowled. “The Joneses turned out to be just what I thought: awful. Gene reached out to their family before the scandal hit, but Mimi Jones has been throwing a fit about my pregnancy. She refuses to take his calls or support Gene, even though they’ve been friends forever. And Michael wants nothing to do with him—or me.”
“I’m sorry.”
Her nostrils flared. “Oh, it’s okay. We’ll showthem.”
“What about Felicia?” I hated even saying her name. More than that, I hated the fact that she and Gene were close and that he wished Bryce had married her instead of me.
Daphne sighed. “I’m not saying anything nice about her—you know how I feel about that bitch—but Felicia’s the only one of them to keep in touch withmypoor husband.”
I wanted to ask more but got sidetracked by Daphne’s tone. “Wait—are you and Gene back together?”
“He wants to be.” She lifted her chin. “And I guess I can’t divorce him right now—he offered me averygenerous stipend if I stay. There’s even more if I sign an affidavit that the baby’s his! He thinks it will look good to his shareholders if he gives off a ‘family first’ vibe. Plus, it’ll make him look virile.”
She rubbed her stomach again and shrugged. “Which he’s not. But it’s all for show, isn’t it?”
Daphne’s constant scheming was too much for me to keep up with. When we’d last spoken, she’d been ready to file for divorce and run to Michael Jones. “So…you’re going to stay?”
