Dirty Exes

by Rachel Van Dyken

  I couldn’t hold on anymore.

  He collapsed against me seconds later and whispered, “Do you have more ice cream?”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  JESSIE

  Vanessa was home.

  She looked pissed, and the hairs on the back of my arm stood on end, like maybe she’d found out things she didn’t need to know yet. The fact that she was making her anger known meant another fight I didn’t want to participate in, more hurtful words exchanged, more rehashing of a past that had shattered us. I was done playing her games. I had enough to deal with: divorce papers, Blaire, and my best friend not answering my calls.

  I just wanted to relax.

  I ran my hands through my hair then checked my phone to see if Blaire had finally responded to any of my texts just as my publicist texted: Calling.

  At least he gave me a warning.

  “Brady’s out, something came up,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone. “They need a player in Cambodia in two days.”

  “For the orphanage groundbreaking and final event?”

  “Yeah, they want to make you honorary chairman and for you to do the whole thing: the speech, the signing, the charity dinner, the building project, all of it.”

  “That’s . . . soon.” I loved doing charity work, it was one of the few positives that came from my marriage with Vanessa. She’d actually encouraged it early on because it added to our already perfect image. But I’d found that I loved giving back, so maybe I could be thankful that out of a bad situation came my life’s work after football. “Two days?”

  “You’d fly out tomorrow night, private jet. The other players went earlier, and Brady was supposed to go today.”

  “Alright.” I nodded. “Alright, I’ll do it.”

  Shit, it was bad timing. I was planning on serving Vanessa with divorce papers on Friday—the same day I’d leave for Cambodia. But maybe this would be a good time to volunteer, escape it all, clear my head by helping others, and figure out what the hell I was actually doing.

  I quickly sent a text to my divorce lawyer about the change in plans and nearly dropped my phone when Vanessa crossed her arms and stood in front of me. “Going somewhere?”

  “Cambodia. Remember the charity campaign?”

  She perked up. “The one you wanted?”

  “Yup.” I could almost see the wheels turning in her head.

  Her posture relaxed, and she got that look, the one that said she was plotting something. “Well, I’ll go pack.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” I braced her shoulders with my hands. “What do you mean you’ll pack?”

  “I’m your wife. We’re keeping up appearances. I need to be there.”

  She marched off.

  And while I was wondering how the hell she figured she was invited, my phone pinged with a text from Colin.

  Colin: Sorry, busy night, lots of ice cream. Sorry for being weird today. Good advice btw.

  I grinned at my phone, good on him. I just bet it was a busy night.

  Me: I take it busy means sex. Just heard I’m going to Cambodia. Don’t suppose you feel like being a third wheel so I don’t tie your sister up in a bad way?

  Colin replied right away.

  Colin: Congrats man! You’ve been wanting to go since the team announced they were helping raise money to build the new orphanage down there. You’ve got a good heart, it’s just shit deep under your terrible personality.

  Me: Right . . . So you coming? Private jet?

  Why the hell was he hesitating?

  Colin: I got work, man.

  Me: You work so you don’t get bored. Plus you can donate money. You like donating money.

  He still wasn’t texting back.

  Me: Please? I need you man. I need my best friend. Vanessa invited herself. You don’t want me on a plane with her alone.

  Colin: Okay, just let me take care of some stuff.

  I exhaled in relief.

  Me: I owe you.

  Colin: You have no idea.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  COLIN

  “Come here.” I pulled Blaire into the shower and kissed down her neck, gripping her ass with my hands as I thrust against her. “You work today?”

  “I work every day.” She met my mouth with a deep kiss. I groaned. Yeah, I was going to murder Jessie if I had to stay away from this for a few days.

  “I have a proposition for you.” I pulled away.

  Blaire gave me a well-deserved skeptical look. “What is it?”

  “Something came up—”

  She eyed me warily as I tried to think of the best way to confess to her what my conversation with Jessie had been about.

  It was typical for us to travel together, we always did.

  Vanessa hated third-world countries.

  The fact that she was going meant she was fighting tooth and nail to get Jessie to notice she actually had a heart. Her going meant she was still trying to change his mind. Did she ever give up?

  This also meant she was going to drive him insane.

  And the last thing I wanted was him getting stressed in front of reporters because Vanessa was being clingy and then blaming himself in case he didn’t raise enough money for the orphanage. Granted, they raised money throughout the year, but this was the big event, and different countries hosted each year. The entire thing spelled chaos and nightmare.

  Tangled web.

  Party of three.

  Her hurt expression was the only indication that Blaire was on a completely different page. “I need to leave the country.”

  The minute I said it I regretted it.

  She burst out laughing. “Are you serious right now? That’s how you’re going to do this? You’re going to actually leave the country? God, Colin, just put on your big-boy pants and say it.”

  “Say what exactly?” I frowned.

  “That this was fun”—she shrugged, her body braced for impact, her skin pale—“but you’re done.”

  “Fine, this was fun.” I grinned, she looked ready to strangle me. “But I need to flee to Cambodia with my best friend and his wife so that he doesn’t get tried for murder. And I don’t want to go, but I promised. So I figured if I just paid for you to come with me . . . you know, like a really sexy carry-on, only you’d be walking with your own suitcase, not stuffed in mine, I wouldn’t have to leave you alone here with all the ice cream.”

  “Stop worrying about the ice cream.” She looked down.

  I pulled her into my arms. “Blaire, I told you last night, I’m in, I want this, I want you, stop doubting yourself, it’s not attractive.”

  She pulled away. “What do you expect from me?”

  “Trust,” I said slowly. “Until I give you a reason not to, then you can just kick my ass, alright?”

  She smiled, but it was forced, uncomfortable. “I can’t just go to, where did you say? Cambodia?”

  “Yeah. Don’t you get vacation?”

  She frowned. “Of course I get vacation, but we have a lot of important clients and I’ve already forced Isla to take on too much while investigating Jessie.”

  “And getting stuck in his pantry.”

  “That too.”

  “Forced into a pity date.”

  She grinned. “It was anything but a pity date.”

  “I understand, I just wanted you to know that I wanted you with me, that my first choice would be you, not him,” I said softly.

  She walked into my open arms and hugged me. “Thank you.”

  “I’ll call while I’m away.”

  “You better.” And then she froze. “Jessie doesn’t know, does he?”

  I didn’t know how to respond. “I’m not sure you want the answer to that question. Why is he still texting you?”

  “Not sure you want that answer either. Besides, it’s not like you and I have talked about . . . all of that yet.”

  I sighed. “We’ll figure it out when I get back.” I tilted her chin toward mine. “Now kiss me.”

&nbs
p; I wasn’t sure Blaire would understand, because who just goes to a foreign country when their best friend asks for help? I wanted her to come with me. Everything with her was new, and I was honestly afraid, afraid that if I left, she’d get that look on her face, the one that said she was going to give in to fear rather than give in to me. Like hell I was going to take that chance.

  How did I even ask that sort of question? Um, hey, wanna go to a foreign country with me, all expenses paid, oh, by the way, we’ve only been together maybe two days so what do ya say?

  I wasn’t sure how to even approach it.

  Could she even take time off her job?

  Hours later, I was finally in her bed.

  After an amazing shower.

  She was tucked into my arms, sleeping.

  And I was going to kill my best friend.

  Thoughts jumbled and tossed in my head until I finally fell into a fitful sleep with the taste of her skin on my lips.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  BLAIRE

  I was going to get wrinkles from all the frowning I did on my way to the office. I hadn’t gotten a text from Isla about Vanessa, which worried me.

  She got the pictures, right?

  The intel I worked my ass off getting?

  My answer came the next day when I walked into our office and found Vanessa waiting. Her glare said it all, she was raging about something.

  “He’s going to Cambodia for a charitable event. I’m going with him. And you’re coming too.” She shoved a finger in my direction. Isla mouthed, “Sorry” behind her.

  “I’m sorry, but why would I go to Cambodia?” I slowly backed up.

  Vanessa huffed, “Because prostitution is huge there, and if he’s already cheating like you’ve so wonderfully shown me in those damn pictures, he’ll succumb to temptation. Jessie’s been excited about this opportunity since it was announced eight months ago, but he wasn’t chosen to go then. That was around the same time he started pulling away, it could be connected, maybe not. He is clearly looking forward to getting away from me, no cameras, no trail, nothing. I refuse to let that happen. Besides, your contract states you’ll agree to travel if there’s proof that there’s been indiscretion.”

  “Right,” I said slowly. “We have pictures.”

  “I’ll do you one better.” She tossed me her phone and I looked at the screen. “I’m going to assume that he’s been texting you because you’re an old friend and you played into it because you’re just that damn good of a PI—am I wrong?”

  I gulped.

  Caught.

  Red-handed.

  I wanted to cry.

  I wanted to explain, to tell her she was wrong.

  But she wasn’t.

  I’d never been so embarrassed in my entire life. Isla gave me a look of complete disappointment too. Apparently Vanessa had done a little PI work of her own and found out that I’d been a past flame, one that Jessie regretted losing. Pairing that with the screenshots of our texts was more than alarming—it was damning.

  “I’ll book my ticket,” I said in a small voice. “And for the record, it’s not what you think . . .”

  Vanessa gave me a disgusted look. “Why would he go for ground beef when he’s got porterhouse at home? He’s just bored, and you’re convenient.”

  She shoved past me and left.

  I hated her.

  I hated that what she said felt true.

  I hated that even the memory of Colin’s hands on my body didn’t armor my heart like I wanted.

  Because she said exactly what I’d always believed about myself.

  Not enough.

  Not for Jason.

  Not even for a cheater like Jessie.

  So what made me think I could keep a man like Colin?

  I walked to my desk and pulled a piece of licorice from a drawer.

  Isla crossed her arms. “Tell me you haven’t been seeing Jessie.”

  “I haven’t,” I said quickly. “At all, you know that, but I’ve texted him back, it was harmless.” Even as I said it, I had to wonder, If there was no Colin, would it have stayed that way? It was all hypothetical, but guilt was guilt and I knew, I knew in my heart that I was in a bad place when I first saw Jessie, which was my own fault because I hadn’t dealt with any Jason issues. But Colin, he’d been the one who had opened my eyes just a little bit about my own insecurities and demons. Had Colin not been around, had Jessie pursued—I know, I would have jumped without thinking, and it would be all on me.

  I hung my head. “This is so messed up. I don’t want to go to Cambodia!”

  “That’s on you, you were supposed to catch him in the act, that’s what bait does,” Isla said. “But if it makes you feel better, I do have a valid passport.”

  “You’d go with me? Even though Jessie and I have been exchanging flirty texts that make our company look bad?”

  “I fear for your safety if I don’t go with you. Last time you were in Mexico you almost got robbed twice.”

  I banged my head against the desk.

  “Stop.” Isla laughed and called over her shoulder, “Abby, keep things on lockdown while we’re gone, make sure we have international phone plans so I can work from there, and book us red-eyes both ways. Oh, and put on your PI gear, you’re going to need to take the new case.”

  Abby saluted. “Got it, should be another easy one. Plus I love catching the bad guys.”

  “Really?” I mouthed to Isla.

  She gave me a pointed look that I felt all the way to my toes—it was one that made me feel guilty, one that said, Shut up, at least she isn’t texting our client’s husband.

  I banged my head again.

  And then texted the semigood news to Colin.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  BLAIRE

  Awkward didn’t even begin to cover it.

  The minute I texted Colin, he called and told Abby not to book our travel, that he would take care of everything.

  I argued until he finally just hung up on me.

  And then I called back and apologized.

  And he’d already taken care of things.

  I didn’t like the way the words rolled off his tongue.

  And I was right.

  Because I was on a private jet on the Saturday I would normally have off.

  With Jessie and Vanessa sitting near the front sipping wine, and Colin and Isla giving each other the evil eye while I sat between them and tried to read my book.

  She was measuring him up.

  He was letting her but also staking his claim.

  Silent warfare.

  I could FEEL their intention even though there were no words.

  It was tense.

  To make matters worse, Vanessa decided that because of our flirty texts I’d be great secondary bait to Jessie, and I was to let her know if he texted or tried to meet me. Sadly, Isla agreed that this was how we oftentimes caught clients.

  So I felt I was caught between a rock and a hard place.

  And it sucked.

  Because while Jessie believed that we were invited in order to conduct business for and make a donation on behalf of my brother’s company—which we were—he had no idea what else we were doing. Thank God Ian was used to my odd behavior since starting Dirty Exes.

  And stupidly I wondered why the guy didn’t ask more questions. Was he really that trusting? I’d never given him a reason not to be, and neither had Colin. Well, at least not to his face. It was bad. So bad.

  Maybe he didn’t want to know.

  Maybe he didn’t care.

  But the sleuth side of me questioned everything, so I didn’t appreciate that he just went with things without wondering why they were the way they were.

  “Fine,” Isla said out loud. “You win the stare down, just be good to her.”

  “I am.” He said it so confidently that I laughed, causing Jessie to glance back at us.

  Colin tensed next to me.

  “Damn, this is some messed-up shit,” Isla sa
id under her breath. “I’m witnessing a sordid love triangle, like an HBO drama I can’t get out of.”

  “Speak for yourself,” I grumbled.

  “You weren’t complaining last night,” Colin whispered softly. “How many times was that? Seven? Eight? Lost count?”

  I slammed a hand over his mouth.

  Jessie glanced back again, catching the movement. I explained, “Your friend needs a muzzle.”

  “Tried it once, he actually liked it, shocker.” Jessie winked, and then he made his way toward us.

  Vanessa must have either fallen asleep or Jessie drugged her, because she stayed in her seat like she didn’t care that the shark was moving toward the bait.

  Colin didn’t like it any more than I did.

  He was just as still as I was.

  I wanted to elbow him, to remind him by way of pain what a horrible idea this was, but by his posture I knew he was thinking the same thing.

  I’m an idiot.

  “It’s going to be a long flight,” Jessie pointed out, eyeing me specifically. “You and Isla are welcome to take the bed, Colin and I usually stay up, play cards, then crash out here.”

  Colin exhaled like he was relieved.

  Isla stood and yawned, then slapped Jessie on the shoulder. “Just don’t plan on joining me, you’re married.” She smiled prettily, and he glared like he wanted to toss her off the plane.

  Colin gripped my thigh. “Why don’t I show you girls the bedroom.”

  Jessie opened his mouth.

  Suddenly Vanessa was stretching her arms over her head. “Jessie?”

  “Being summoned, man.” Colin smirked.

  Jessie groaned and turned away from us.

  Colin turned to Isla. “Give me five minutes.”

  Her eyebrows shot up. “Only five?”

  “Sweetheart, I could do it in one.”

  She burst out laughing. “Prove it.”

  “Not worth it.” He grinned. “I want at least five minutes and then the room is yours.”

  “He’ll hear you.”

  “I brought duct tape.” He wagged his eyebrows and pulled me to my feet. “Plus, now that Vanessa’s awake he’ll be forced into conversation, probably about shoes or her book, he’ll last maybe fifteen minutes before he needs more alcohol and by then I’ll be out of the room.”