by Linda Verji
Ulysses frowned in confusion. “Was that wrong?”
“Yes,” she answered shrilly. “You shouldn’t have invited him. He’s crazy.”
Frankly, she looked like the crazy one right now. Wesley was watching her quietly with confusion and shock written on his features as if he was also surprised at how badly she was reacting to his presence in her home. As if he’d expected to be welcomed with open arms. He was really crazy, wasn’t he?
Freddie turned back to Wesley, but before she could physically drag him out herself, her mother grabbed her arm and yanked her towards the archway. Tanaya’s grip was forceful enough that Freddie found herself being dragged through the hallway and into the kitchen.
Tanaya slammed the door shut before turning to her daughter. “What’s going on?”
“You invited him here!” Freddie reminded her unnecessarily.
“Yes.” The older woman folded her arms over her chest as she watched Freddie keenly. “So?”
“So you shouldn’t have.”
“Why not?” Tanaya reminded her, “He’s your boyfriend.”
“No, he’s not.” Now that this situation had happened, lying wasn’t an option. If she hadn’t lied before, Wesley probably wouldn’t be here. Freddie confessed, “We broke up.”
“What?” Tanaya’s arms dropped to the side of her body as her jaw fell. “When?”
“Weeks ago.”
“But the other day, you told me…” Tanaya’s shock widened eyes raked over Freddie.
“I lied. I was with someone else.” Still agitated, Freddie reached for the doorknob, “He needs to get out of here.”
Her mother stopped her by grabbing her hand. “Okay, okay, I get that you broke up. But you don’t need to be so rude to him.”
“You don’t understand, Mama.” Freddie furiously explained, “He cheated on me then he tried to kidnap me.”
It was her mom’s turn to blink. “What?”
Freddie didn’t have time to explain further. She shook off her mother’s now loose grip and opened the door. She was planning to go back to the living room and bodily haul the man out of their house, but her mother suddenly rushed past her to get to the living room before her.
“You!” Tanaya’s brown eyes were wild with anger as she stopped right in front of Wesley. “Did you-” She paused to laugh, as if she couldn’t quite believe it either. But there was no amusement in her eyes as they met Wesley’s again. “Did you cheat on my daughter?”
Immediate panic flared in Wesley’s eyes but before he could answer, Ulysses who’d been pacing in front of the TV whirled to face his wife. “He what?”
“He cheated on Freddie,” Tanaya revealed even though she hadn’t gotten Wesley’s answer yet. “And he kidnapped her.”
Ulysses went from shocked to furious in an instant. His voice was icily cold as swiveled to face Wesley. “He what?”
“No. No.” Wesley lifted both hands as if to defend himself. His voice wavering, he added, “It’s not like that. That’s not what happened. I can expl-”
“I’m going to kill you.” Ulysses hurtled around the coffee table and went for Wesley. But Wesley already had his hands up. As soon as the older man tried to reach for the collar of his jacket, he shoved him away. Ulysses stumbled backwards with the force of the shove. The rage that shuttled through Freddie was indescribable, more severe than any other emotion she’d ever felt.
Heating up with each step she took closer to Wesley, Freddie demanded, “Did you just push my father?”
“Did you just push me?” Ulysses asked as he closed on Wesley again.
“You’re dead!” Tanaya informed Wesley as she prowled towards him.
Wesley had the look of a rabbit trapped by a pack of rabid wolves. He took a step back, but the couch was in his way and he fell to seated position on it. His panicked eyes switched between Freddie, Ulysses and Tanaya as he insisted, “Let me explain. Let me explain.” In a rush of words, he added, “I wasn’t the only one cheating.”
That brought all three Lathams to a shocked standstill. “What?”
“I wasn’t-” Wesley set both feet on the couch then stood. He leaped over the back of the couch. Once he was safely on the other side, he said, “I wasn’t the only one cheating.” He pointed to Freddie. “She was cheating too.”
Startled, Freddie pointed to herself. “Me?”
“What is he talking about?” her mother asked.
“I don’t know.” This was news to her too. When had she cheated? Freddie turned to Wesley. “What are you talking about? When did I cheat?”
“Stop pretending you don’t know.” Now that he was safe from the Latham pack, Wesley’s panic had receded. Instead anger flashed in his features. “You had a one-night stand too. With the guy who came to get you from my apartment.”
All eyes turned to Freddie. Her mother asked, “You had a one-night stand?”
“Who is this guy?” Ulysses chimed in before Freddie could answer.
“Ask her.” Wesley pointed to his nose. “He’s the one who did this to me. Look at my nose. Look at how they broke it.”
This was gas-lighting at its very best, and Freddie wasn’t about to fall for it. If Wesley thought that he could turn this on her and make it look like he was the victim, he was mistaken. Very mistaken.
“Don’t fall for it.” She turned to her parents. “I didn’t cheat on him. This useless excuse punk-”
“Then who was that man?” Wesley cut her off. His Adam’s apple bobbing wildly, he demanded, “Tell us. Who was that man?”
Her parents looked curious too. Freddie thought of lying, but then decided not to. Lying was what had brought them all to this point.
She started, “It was-”
The sudden opening of the front door cut into her words. Seconds later, Ari’s voice echoed. “I’m home.”
Leave it to her brother to have the best timing in the world. Barely a minute later, he strolled into the room. And wouldn’t you know it… Lex was right behind him.
Freddie’s heart tumbled to her stomach. Oh. Hell. No.
Both Lex and Ari were wearing workout clothes which meant that they were just coming from the court.
Ari immediately noticed the tension in the room. His wary gaze swept to Wesley, his parents and finally to Freddie. “What’s going on here?”
But it was Lex who held Freddie’s attention. The moment he spotted Wesley, he stopped moving and perceptibly stiffened. Wesley saw him too, and his breath burst out in a loud gasp. He took several steps back as if already preparing to run.
“That’s him.” Wesley pointed at Lex with a trembling finger. “That’s the man she cheated on me with.”
Oh. Shit!
CHAPTER 16
“That’s him,” Wesley repeated, this time more firmly. “What’s he doing here?”
Lex hadn’t spoken yet but the way he was glaring at Wesley said he was thinking of doing much more than just talking. Freddie could’ve sworn that there were flames coming off him as he watched her ex with those intense eyes.
“Who?” Tanaya who was still confused about what was going on asked, “Lex?”
“Lex?” Wesley’s eyes snapped to her. “You know him?”
“Of course she knows him. He’s my best-friend,” Ari chimed in. “What’s going on here?”
“Best-friend?” Wesley turned to Freddie. “You cheated on me with your brother’s best-”
He didn’t finish speaking because right then Lex took a step forward. Wesley immediately scrambled away to hide behind Ulysses. But it wasn’t far enough because Lex trailed right behind him. The look in his eyes said he was about to kill Wesley.
The next few minutes were pandemonium. Freddie racing towards them to stop Lex from committing murder. Wesley playing hide and seek behind her father. Ulysses looking around in confusion and demanding answers about what was going. Ari and Freddie trying to hold Lex back….
It was chaos!
It ended when a sudden piercing s
ound rang in the air. Everyone paused what they were doing to search for the source of the noise.
It was Tanaya.
The older woman had two fingers in her mouth, and though everyone had turned to her, she let out another piercing whistle that left everyone wincing.
“Okay. All right everyone. Time out. Time out,” Tanaya announced firmly once she had everyone’s attention. “We’re not kids. Let’s sort out this mess like adults.”
Wesley pointed at Freddie. “She’s the one who-”
“Shut up-” Tanaya cut him off sharply. Her eyes shooting fire, she pointed to the couch. “- and sit.”
Wesley instantly shut his trap. Sitting down was however, not as easy. He had to scoot past the still fuming Lex to get to the couch. Fortunately, Lex did nothing more than glare at Wesley as he hesitantly tiptoed past him.
Tanya turned to her husband. “Sit next to him.”
Ulysses moved to the couch.
“Ari, you’re with Lex there.” Tanaya pointed to the couch farthest from Wesley and Ulysses. “Freddie, you’re with me.”
The two women settled on the armchair next to the couch Ulysses and Wesley were on with Tanaya taking the armchair while Freddie sat on its arm.
“Now that we’re all calm-” Tanaya shot a look at the still glaring Lex then revised her statement. “Now that we’re all almost calm, can somebody explain what’s going on here.”
Wesley started, “Like I was saying-”
“Not you.” The sharp look Tanaya threw him left no doubt that she hadn’t forgotten that he’d cheated on Freddie and almost kidnapped her. She turned to her daughter. “What’s going on, Freddie?”
Now that sanity had returned to the room, the full weight of what was going on hit Freddie. She and Lex had been well and truly caught. Or had they? A thought snuck in. She could say that Lex had saved her at the restaurant and at Wesley’s house without actually going into details about their relationship. It wasn’t like Wesley had actually witnessed anything incriminating. But even as that thought sunk in, she realized that she was tired. Tired of lying, tired of dealing with the drama her lies had caused.
She snuck a look Lex before dragging in a deep breath. Then she started, “I didn’t cheat on Wesley.”
Wesley immediately butted in. “Yes, you d-”
“Shut up!” Multiple voices rang in the room including Tanaya, Ulysses, Lex and Ari. It was enough to make Wesley curl quietly back into the seat.
“Remember the day you sent me to drop off Lex’s wallet?” Freddie asked her brother. When he nodded, she continued, “Well, I was taking the elevator up to his dad’s office when I caught this guy and some Instagram model kissing in the-”
Freddie’s words came to a crushing halt when Ulysses suddenly lunged for Wesley. Fortunately or unfortunately, Wesley saw it coming and immediately scrambled out of Ulysses’ reach. Within seconds, he was behind the seat again and glaring at everyone unrepentantly. However, when Lex suddenly stood up, Wesley’s bravado wilted.
“You’re all crazy,” he yelped right before he raced for the exit. The door slammed in the wake of his rushed departure. Mere seconds later, they heard the roar of his car as it came to life then sped away.
And just like that Wesley was gone.
Everyone left traded looks of shocked disbelief before Tanaya muttered, “Well, that was… um… interesting.”
“Interesting?” Ulysses was still livid. “I can’t believe he came to our house for dinner.”
“You invited him,” Tanaya reminded her husband. Before he could defend himself, she turned to her daughter. “Did you really catch him red-handed?”
Freddie nodded.
“Really?” Her eyes bugging out, Tanaya asked, “Tell me you crushed his family jewels.”
Every man in the room immediately winced as if they could imagine it happening to themselves.
“Sorry.” Freddie chuckled. “Didn’t think of doing that!”
“Where does Lex come into all this?” Ari jumped in. “You didn’t actually cheat on Wesley with him, right?”
“No, I didn’t cheat on Wesley with him,” Freddie assured her brother. “Lex simply found Wesley and me talking things out in the hotel’s lounge. I pretended that Lex was my boyfriend so I could get Wesley to leave me alone.”
Ari sighed in relief. “I knew that’s what happened. I knew it!”
But her parents weren’t as easily fooled. Ulysses folded his arms over his chest as his gaze shifted between Lex and Freddie contemplatively. But it was Tanaya who asked the question dancing behind that contemplative look. “Is that all that happened?”
Freddie’s heart bumped in her chest and her gaze immediately flew to Lex. He was watching her too but his gaze was indecipherable. She couldn’t tell whether he was as nervous as she was or if he was interested in coming clean too. As much as she wanted to quit lying, it wouldn’t be fair to just spring the truth on her family without talking to him first.
She started, “Yes-”
“No, that’s not all that happened,” Lex cut her off.
Freddie’s lips parted in a soundless intake of breath as she watched him with wide eyes. Was he going to tell them everything?
Lex said, “Wesley came after her again.”
Disappointment immediately pulsed through her. So he wasn’t ready to come clean yet?
“A few days ago, Freddie went to pick her bracelet from Wesley’s house,” Lex continued. As he described everything that had happened afterwards, varied expressions of shock and anger rang in the room.
“You should’ve let me kill that punk,” Ulysses berated his wife.
Tanaya ignored him and instead turned to Freddie. “Why didn’t you let the police get involved? At the very least, you should’ve taken out a restraining order on his punk ass. What were you thinking?”
At odds to explain herself, Freddie said, “I was just-”
“Oh, so that’s what happened?” Ari cut her off. Unlike everyone else, he didn’t seem angry about everything that Lex had said. If anything, he seemed relieved. Half-smiling, he turned to Lex. “I knew you two weren’t doing anything fishy.”
Lex looked shocked by the comment. His brow furrowed into a frown and anger flashed in his eyes as he glared at Ari. “Is that all that matters to you? That your sister and I weren’t doing anything-” He made quotation marks with his fingers. “- fishy?”
Ari was so surprised at the anger directed to him that he could only gulp. “Huh?”
“That man fought with your sister. He could’ve killed her.” Lex reminded Ari. “And all you’re worried about is if something ‘fishy’ happened between us?”
Lex was normally so quiet and even tempered that the sudden explosion of temper and words stunned the Lathams.
“I’m angry with Wesley too,” Ari defended himself, “but I don’t want anyone misunderstanding your intentions. I was just clarifying that nothing happened between you and Freddie. That you don’t even like her.”
Lex watched him for a quiet second then said, “You’re wrong about that.”
“Wrong about what?”
“I do like her,” Lex confessed.
What? Freddie’s sharp gasp echoed in the room to mingle with her parent’s own gasps, but they were all overshadowed by Ari’s dazed, “You like who?”
“I like Freddie,” Lex clarified unrepentantly.
His best-friend still couldn’t believe it.
“You… like… her?” Ari pointed to Freddie.
This time Lex didn’t say anything, but the answer was clear in his steely gaze.
The vein at the side of Ari’s neck started to twitch and his nostrils flared. Surprisingly, he didn’t yell as he asked, “Since when?”
“For a long time now,” Lex returned evenly.
Run. Run now. Freddie wanted to shout at him. She wanted to bodily move him away from her brother and the impending danger. But for some reason, her throat wouldn’t let her words past it, and her body refu
sed to lift from the seat. She could only stare at the unfolding scene in horrified fascination.
“Does that mean-” Ari gulped and swallowed, looking like he didn’t quite believe what he was about to ask. “Does that mean that something actually happened between you two?”
Lex’s gaze slowly turned to Freddie. It was almost as if he was silently asking her permission to say the truth. Before she could think about it, she slowly nodded. Lex’s lips lifted in a small smile of reassurance. When he turned to her brother, he was all business. “Yes, something happened.”
Ari went from shock to disbelief to anger in the spun of mere seconds. One would think that Lex would have more thought of preserving his life, but no. He stayed seated right next to Ari, watching him and waiting for his reaction. Meanwhile, Freddie’s parents were all so shocked by Lex’s unexpected confession that they could only watch the scene with open mouths, like bystanders watching a deadly, car pileup in progress.
Tension settled in the room like an electrified blanket. It was so thick, even a saw couldn’t cut through it. Everyone waited to see what Ari would do next. His expression said he was wondering what to do next, how to react to his best-friend’s confession. His flinty eyes switched between Lex and Freddie several times before he suddenly shot to his feet.
Ari strode towards the door as if intending to march out in anger but changed his mind. Swiftly, he swiveled around to glare at Lex. When he spoke, his voice was tight with unrestrained rage. “Outside. Now.”
“No!” Freddie, Tanaya and Ulysses all rushed to intervene.
“It’s okay.” Lex slowly rose to his feet.
Something about his calmness must have pissed Ari off because he lunged towards Lex. Fortunately, everyone else was close enough that they stepped in between the two men before Ari could do any damage. Ulysses and Tanaya grabbed one of Ari’s arms each while Freddie stepped in front of Lex with her arms spread out. Ari shot all the members of his family disappointed looks like they’d betrayed him.
But Lex didn’t want their protection. He discreetly swept his hand over Freddie’s back in wordless reassurance before skirting past her to stand right in front of Ari.