The Gamble

by Kristen Ashley

  “It’s just that, uh… Harry came by. He told me about last night.”

  “Oh.”

  “And, uh, so did Brody. He told me about last night too.”

  It must have been a busy morning for Bitsy.

  “Oh. Yes, well, it was an interesting night,” I said to her.

  “You should know, Shauna lied to Kami. Max never took Shauna ring shopping.”

  “Oh. Okay.”

  “He, well, I don’t know why he hooked up with her. She’s gorgeous, of course, and I don’t think she ever showed him her, you know, true face until, you know, they got together.”

  “Bitsy,” I broke in softly, hearing her hesitation, knowing it had to be hard to talk about the woman who’d been sleeping with her husband in her bed when her husband was murdered, “you don’t have to talk about this.”

  “I know,” she said softly back then she suddenly asked, “Your brother lost his legs in the army?”

  This hit me hard and I sucked in breath. How she knew this, I didn’t know. Could be Max. Could be Mindy. Could be Mindy telling Brody who told Bitsy.

  It didn’t matter, she knew so I said, “Yes, Bitsy, Charlie lost his legs.”

  “Brody says Mindy says you looked after him.”

  So it was Mindy-slash-Brody.

  “Yes,” I answered.

  “So, I think…” she paused then said on a rush, “you’d get me.”

  “I’m sorry?”

  She was quiet a moment then said softly, “No one gets me, Nina.”

  I walked backwards to the bed, feeling my way with my feet and when I hit it, I plopped down.

  “Bitsy, I don’t know,” I said honestly.

  “I know what happened to Charlie, Nina,” Bitsy said gently. “So, I know you’d get me.”

  I felt tears hit my eyes at what she was saying and I whispered, “Bitsy.”

  “I had my moments, Nina, it’s terrible to admit but I understand Charlie.”

  I swallowed and whispered, “Okay.”

  “I’m sorry for you and for him.”

  “Thanks.” I was still whispering.

  “But my husband was fooling around on me,” she whispered back. “And I don’t blame him because, you know, the way I am. But I have to talk to someone about it. Someone who gets me.”

  I heard the tears in her voice when she stopped talking so I said, “Oh, sweetheart.”

  “And you also get what it’s like to have Shauna involved, seeing as she was after my man and she’s after yours too.”

  “I’m not sure Max is my man.”

  “Oh he is. Never seen him like that with anyone except Anna.”

  I sucked in a silent breath and my body locked.

  She kept speaking. “The whole town’s talkin’ about it. We’re all real glad. Thought Max’d never find anyone after Anna died. It’s been ten years, that’s a long time. Lord knows, I know that.”

  I couldn’t think of her open talk about Anna, I had bigger things coming at me from her words.

  It seemed now I was up against my own idiocy, my mother, Steve and the whole town of Gnaw Bone. My only ally was my father and right then Max and Steve were running him out of town.

  I wasn’t in trouble, I was screwed.

  “Bitsy –”

  “Brody told me all you’ve done with Mindy and, I gotta say, I’m glad you’re nice. Anna was my best friend and I loved her. She’d want Max to end up with someone nice.”

  Yes. Screwed.

  “I don’t know what to say. Um… thank you.”

  “Thank me for you bein’ nice?” she had a smile in her voice.

  “Yes, I guess, and thank you for trusting me to talk to.”

  She was quiet for long moments then she asked, “Do you think I’m crazy not to be mad at Curt?”

  “I can’t say you’re crazy for anything you feel right now.”

  “These past ten years, even though… you know.” She stopped and I didn’t know but I didn’t get the chance to ask before she went on, “I wasn’t much of a wife.”

  I thought this was hideous if Curtis Dodd made Bitsy feel that way but I didn’t tell her that.

  “Things are hard, when this happens, on everyone,” I told her.

  “He loved me, people don’t get that. We had a good marriage, considering. We were… uh… you know….” she hesitated and then said, “active that way it’s just that it wasn’t the same as, you know… Shauna could do.” Then when I didn’t speak, she repeated, “You know?”

  “Of course,” I said, thinking I kind of knew but mostly I didn’t and I said a little prayer of thanks for that.

  “And he’s a man,” she went on defending her husband.

  “Well, that explains a lot,” I told her and she gave a short laugh.

  “Yeah.”

  “Bitsy, darling,” I said, “you should feel free to feel how you want and don’t think of what people think.”

  “No one liked him anyway, he died and his mistress phoned the police. It’s hard not to think of what people think since everyone’s thinkin’ somethin’.”

  “Well, try. Anyone who truly cares about you will let you have your feelings, whatever they may be.”

  She was silent a moment, letting this sink in then she said, “Yeah.”

  “Do you want me to come and visit with you? My Mom’s here and she loves coffee. She’d really like one of your lattes. She’s also a really good listener.”

  “Your Mom’s here?”

  “Well my Dad came and he was being, well, my Dad, which means he was being a jerk to me and to Max. I told my Mom and Mom, being a Mom and in particular, my Mom, who’s a little nutty, decided to bring her husband and have him help Max take care of Dad. So she’s here, my stepdad Steve’s here and Max and Steve are in town probably threatening Dad and maybe earning themselves a lawsuit.”

  “Good thing you’re a lawyer,” she said, again sounding like she was smiling.

  Well, there it was again, news travelled fast.

  “Hey, speaking of that, would you help me draw up my will?” she asked. “George is covered in work but he’s reading Curtis’s tomorrow and he said I should have one drawn up straight away after Curt’s is read. He wants to do it for me but says it may take awhile because he has some big case pending so he referred me to a guy next town over but I know him and he’s a weasel. I’d rather you help me do it.”

  “Bitsy –”

  “I’ll pay you.”

  “It isn’t that.”

  “What is it?”

  “Um…” I tried to think of what it was then when I couldn’t I said, “nothing. Sure, I’ll be glad to help.”

  “It’ll be easy. Just wanna make sure Shauna never gets her hands on any of it.”

  “Bitsy –”

  Bitsy’s voice got low and I realized Brody really shared when she said, “The kid’s Curt’s, I’ll put some money aside for him to get when he comes of age. ‘Til then she can blow.”

  And there it was. Bitsy was a good woman, through and through. She was also a woman scorned.

  “Okay, darling, we’ll tie it up tight,” I assured her.

  “I want a DNA test, though.”

  “Okay.”

  “Maybe three, who knows who she’d fuck to get the test results back that she wants. We may need to go out of state.”

  It was my turn to talk through a smile. “Might be a good idea.”

  “Maybe you know someone in England, she’s never been to England, would better our chances, seein’ she’s been outta state.”

  I laughed and heard Bitsy laugh too.

  I also heard the front door open and Mom call, “Neenee Bean, let’s go hiking!”

  “Be down in a sec!” I called back.

  “That your Mom?” Bitsy said in my ear.

  “Yes.”

  “You can come over, bring her too, anytime you want. Just give me a call, ‘kay?”

  “Okay.”

  There was a hesitation then, “Thank
s, Nina.”

  “Bitsy?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You just give me a call too, anytime. Here at Max’s or I’ll give you my cell, but it’s an international number so –”

  “Honey, I’m loaded, haven’t you heard?” I laughed again and she said, “I got a pen and paper right here, sock it to me.”

  I gave her my number, she read it back and then I offered, “Anytime, Bitsy, okay?”

  “Thanks Nina.”

  “No, Bitsy,” I said softly, the tears hitting my eyes just as I fought them back. “You don’t know how many times I tried to get Charlie to open up to me. So thank you again for trusting me.”

  “Oh honey,” she laughed in my ear, “my pleasure. I’ll lay all my troubles on you, you like it so much.”

  I laughed back which helped the tears subside and said, “Take care.”

  “Yeah, you too. Hope to see you soon.”

  “Bye.”

  “Later, honey.”

  “Who was that?” Mom asked and I looked to see her standing at the top of the stairs.

  “A friend of Max’s,” I told her, hitting the off button and vaguely hearing the answering machine beep again. “Sounded like a friend of yours.”

  I sighed because there it was again, Max, his friends and the whole town sucking me in.

  “Well, I guess, now she’s a friend of mine too.”

  Mom grinned and walked into the room, threw herself on the bed and bounced.

  “This room is divine,” she remarked, throwing out a hand then she looked at me. “Tell me all about your new friend.”

  “Well... I can’t believe I’m going to say this but it involves murder.”

  Mom leaned forward and her eyes got wide. “No kidding? Do tell!”

  I stood up and took the phone back to its charger. “Let’s get coffee.”

  “Okay, bring mine up here, I feel like lounging,” she said and rolled to her back.

  “I thought you wanted to hike?” I asked, Mom gave me a look, lifted up a leg and showed me a slender foot in a strappy sandal.

  “In these shoes?” she asked back, I smiled and she finished, “Temporary Colorado insanity.”

  “Your wish, Mom, my command,” I replied, leaned into her, kissed her forehead and then walked to the stairs to get my Mom coffee.

  Then I took it back up to her and we lounged on Max’s bed and I told her about rape, parking lot fisticuffs, restaurant wrestling, ice queens, sweet and wise twenty-four year old girls, mountain men and murder.

  * * * * *

  “Oh my God,” Mom breathed, standing by my side on Max’s porch, staring at Cotton walking up the steps, “is that Jimmy Cotton?”

  “How do you know what Jimmy Cotton looks like?” I asked her.

  “Internet,” she whispered, making her “I don’t do e-mail and internet” even more of a lie, her eyes still glued to Cotton and she appeared to be swaying.

  “She swoons, Cotton, you’re the male in this scenario, you’ve got to catch her,” I told Cotton as he stopped in front of me.

  “She wears fancy clothes, like you,” Cotton observed, giving Mom a once-over and giving me further evidence that my shopping with the goal to blend in during my Colorado adventure failed.

  “She’s my mother,” I replied.

  “I can see it,” Cotton remarked.

  “Oh my God,” Mom breathed, staring at Cotton and looking like she was either going to faint, drop into a curtsy or throw herself in his arms.

  Cotton looked at me and asked, “She say that a lot?”

  “Twice as much as me and I say it a lot, a lot.” Or these days, I did in my head, but I didn’t share that with Cotton, I just told him, “She introduced me to your work. She’s a fan.”

  “No kidding,” Cotton mumbled and I smiled. “Came by to see where you two hung the pictures,” Cotton told me, dipping his head toward the house.

  “They’re hanging them today. My husband is helping,” Mom shared, sounding embarrassingly like a sycophant and Cotton’s brows knit together.

  “What’s takin’ so long?” Cotton asked me.

  “We’ve been, um… kind of busy,” I explained and he grinned.

  “Neckin’?” Cotton enquired cheekily.

  I shook my head and hoped it didn’t look like an “I wish” shake.

  “Taking Bitsy to the Police Station and dealing with surprise visits from my Dad, yesterday, and Mom, today.” I gestured to Mom. “Then my car got vandalized, we think by Damon.” I pointed to the car and Cotton slowly turned to look at it then back to me as I continued. “And Brody’s in town so we had dinner with him and Mindy last night. Dinner included our table being visited by an unhappy Kami, a not-so-nice Shauna and then Harry wrestled around on the floor of The Rooster with Shauna’s date, turning over some tables and getting doused with ketchup and horseradish sauce.” Cotton stared at me speechless so I finished. “In between that we slept and, yes, there was some necking.”

  “Nina gave me the lowdown a minute go,” Mom told him. “It would seem that Gnaw Bone is the Rocky Mountain Peyton Place.”

  “Got that right,” Cotton replied and then turned to look over his shoulder.

  I looked too and saw the Cherokee heading up the road. Then I felt my heart skip and I didn’t think this was because I was worried about the outcome of the confrontation with Dad. It was more likely because I was happy Max was home.

  “Seein’ as I’m here,” Cotton said as he turned back to me, “I’ll supervise the hangin’ and bum a cup o’ joe.”

  I smiled and replied, “You’re in luck; we just made a fresh pot.”

  “I’m a lucky guy,” Cotton said back on a smile and we all watched Max turn up the lane and park.

  My eyes stayed on him as he got out of the Cherokee and one look at his face, my body tensed.

  “Oh my,” Mom mumbled.

  She could say that again. Max looked angry.

  Max hit the top of the steps at the same time an equally unhappy looking Steve made it to the foot.

  Then Max’s eyes came to me and without greeting Cotton he told me the outcome of the confrontation.

  “Babe, your Dad’s a dick.”

  “Oh dear,” Mom was still mumbling.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  “Your Dad?” Max asked back. “Definitely jetlagged yesterday. You’re right. He’d wipe the floor with Kami at the same time takin’ on Shauna.”

  “That doesn’t sound good,” I noted.

  “It wasn’t,” Steve, who had arrived at our group, put in.

  “What happened?” Mom asked.

  “Bottom line, he ain’t leavin’ mainly because Niles arrives tonight and they want Nina to ‘appear’, Lawrence’s word, at breakfast at the hotel tomorrow morning,” Steve explained and my eyes locked on Max as my heart skipped a beat and this one wasn’t happy.

  “What?” I whispered.

  Max got close and his hands came to either side of my neck. “You ain’t goin’.”

  “But –”

  “Fuck ‘em, playin’ these games with your head.”

  “Max.”

  “Nina, they can want whatever the fuck they want, that doesn’t mean you have to do it.”

  I shook my head, short, dazed shakes and then it hit me.

  So I said, “I’ll go.”

  Max’s brows drew together dangerously and he asked, “What?”

  “I’ll go.”

  His hands tightened on my neck and I felt his body tighten with them. “Why?”

  “Because, it’s the right thing to do.”

  “Nina –”

  “No, Max,” I cut him off, hooking my thumbs in his belt loops at the sides of his jeans and I explained, “You don’t break up with someone over e-mail or over the phone. You do it face to face. No matter what you may think, Niles isn’t a jerk, he never hurt me, lied to me, cheated on me, hit me. He deserves me breaking up with him face to face.”

  “Your father’s prett
y convinced he and Niles can talk you into changing your mind,” Max informed me.

  “Well, they’re wrong.”

  “Duchess –”

  I interrupted him, this time by leaning into him and I said softly, “Max, they won’t because you’ll be there with me.” His body jerked with surprise as his head tilted to the side. “And Mom,” I went on. “And Steve. You’ll all take care of me.” I leaned in closer and promised, “It’ll be okay.”

  His fingers at my neck tightened again and he whispered, “Baby.”

  “You’ve done a lot for me but can I ask you to do this too?”

  Max’s eyes held mine for a long moment before he replied softly, “Wouldn’t want it any other way.”

  This was what he said, what he meant was he wouldn’t allow it to happen any other way. I knew that, he knew it too but it was nice the way he said it.

  And there it was again. Now I was inviting Max’s deeper involvement in my life. What was wrong with me?

  “What’s all this?” Cotton asked and Mom moved toward him, deciding she would stop fawning and start flirting (innocently, which was Mom’s way and Steve thought it was annoyingly hilarious or hilariously annoying, I couldn’t ever tell which) and hooked her arm through his.

  “Coffee first, you need at least coffee before any conversation commences about Lawrence Sheridan,” Mom told him.

  They started walking to the front door, everyone moving in that direction, when Max’s head turned toward the road then everyone’s heads turned to the road. This was because three cars were speeding up it.

  I stared at the racing convoy. Brody’s Subaru, followed by Becca’s sporty, red, mini-SUV and trailing was a police SUV.

  “What now?” Max muttered as he slung an arm around my shoulders and headed us both down the steps. For my part, without much choice, I wrapped my arm around his waist and hooked my thumb in his side belt loop.

  Brody stopped his Subaru on a spray of gravel and was out of it practically before it came completely halted.

  “You ain’t answerin’ your cell and your line’s fuckin’ engaged,” he accused Max the instant he cleared the door.

  “What –?” Max started but Brody interrupted him.

  “You seen Mindy?” he asked, his eyes were locked on Max but I felt something grip my insides, something vicious.

  “No, why?” Max answered, I heard his tone had an edge and watched Becca pull in behind Brody’s Subaru.