“Hi, everyone!”
Lexie looked up and saw a brunette standing by the threshold.
“Aileen!” Shelley cried delightedly.
Lexie’s heart sank. Aileen was absolutely stunning.
CHAPTER THREE
Rick kept an impassive face as Shelley and Aileen greeted each other enthusiastically.
His sister would have to pay big time for springing this on him. As a precocious teenager, Shelley believed she knew exactly what to do to “fix” the situation he’d been forced into because of her. He really wished Shelley would stop feeling guilty and butt out of his dating life.
His gaze went to Lexie. She was quietly chopping some celery, frequently glancing at Shelley and Aileen, who were talking in hushed tones.
“You okay, dude?” Lucas whispered.
He smiled tightly. “Sure. But Shelley won’t be when I blast her ear off later.”
Lucas chuckled. “Do you know why Aileen’s here today?”
“She said to me at the door that she’s been wanting to give Shelley a belated birthday present. Since she couldn’t visit her at home because of Betty, she took the opportunity to come here and drop it off.”
“Shelley’s still working on ways to get the two of you back together, huh?” Lucas said dryly.
He rolled his eyes. “My dear sister still won’t believe me when I say I’m not interested in Aileen anymore. She thinks I’m just saying that to make her feel less guilty.”
“Hey, Rick?” Shelley called out.
“Yeah?”
“Since there are only seven of us and there are eight chairs around your dining table, is it okay for Aileen to join us for dinner?”
Rick swallowed his groan. “This is Lucas and Jade’s party. I think it’s up to them,” he said, covertly nudging Lucas for some help.
“Jade? It’s okay, isn’t it?” Shelley asked.
“Um... I don’t really think it’s up to us. You and Rick are the hosts,” Jade answered.
“I say yes, then,” Shelley said with a grin.
“What do you think, bro?” Rick asked Lucas, staring at his friend intently.
Lucas squinted his eyes at him. “Well...”
“Oh, thank you, guys,” Aileen gushed, looking directly at Rick. “I’m so looking forward to spending time with you tonight.”
Damn.
Yes. Shelley would definitely have to pay for this. Maybe a whole month with no allowance would teach her a lesson.
*****
Rick smiled as compliments for Shelley’s food started coming from everyone around the dining table. His sister grinned goofily, embarrassed by the effusive praise. He might still be annoyed with the brat, but he was very proud of her.
“I couldn’t have done it without all your help,” Shelley said graciously.
“Since you’ve done such a wonderful job playing head chef, Shel, I’ll help you clean up after dinner,” Rick said, deadpan.
Shelley stared at him. “You said you’ll do the cleaning up.”
“I did?” he asked innocently. “I don’t remember saying yes to that at all. And these guys have already done enough for tonight. So I think it’ll be you and me.”
Shelley tried to hide her pout.
Aileen laughed. “You know he’s just teasing you, Shel. Don’t worry. I’ll help him.”
“I’m more than happy to help,” Jade said. “I haven’t lifted a finger yet.”
“Oh, just leave it to me and Rick,” Aileen said breezily.
“It’ll be quicker if we help, Aileen,” Lexie said. “In fact, why don’t you and Shelley relax with Jade and Lucas while the rest of us do the cleaning up? Seems to me you girls are keen to catch up.”
“Yay, I’m excused!” Shelley said delightedly. “But you have to help,” she added with a playful smirk at her brother.
“Okay, fine,” Rick said dryly, although he was in wholehearted agreement with Lexie’s suggestion.
He glanced at Lexie, thrilled that she seemed jealous enough of Aileen. But he didn’t like that she’d been extraordinarily quiet since Aileen had arrived. He was sorry she wasn’t fully enjoying herself.
Last night had been hard. After Lexie had kissed him, it had taken all of his self-discipline to walk away and pretend it didn’t mean anything. He really should say something so she’d stop trying.
But for the life of him, he couldn’t voice out his “rejection”. It was hard enough turning his back on her. Saying out loud that he wasn’t interested was such a lie that he couldn’t imagine himself uttering it.
He took a slow deep breath. He wished he could tear up that stupid contract he was obligated to follow until Shelley turned twenty-one. He wished there’d been another way of getting Betty to sign it aside from agreeing to the ludicrous conditions she’d insisted on.
Yes, he was incredibly stupid to have conceded to Betty’s demands, but he couldn’t undo what had been done. Nothing would change the fact that if he fell into a serious relationship while he was still trustee of Shelley’s assets, Betty would get access to Shelley’s inheritance and his company.
There was no way he could let Betty win. No. Fucking. Way.
He cleared his head and joined in the conversation around the table. He was the host, and he couldn’t ruminate about his own problems during a dinner party for his engaged friends.
*
“You don’t need to help clean up, girls. I have this,” he said, as everyone sat back in satisfaction.
“Don’t be silly, Rick,” Lexie said, already gathering plates to take to the kitchen. “Let us help.”
“Okay, thanks,” he said with a smile.
Lexie didn’t exactly look at him, and she was already walking towards the kitchen with the others. But he was just relieved she was talking directly to him again. He’d acutely felt her distance in the last few hours, and he didn’t like it one bit.
He stood up and went to his sister. “Great dinner. Thank you again,” he said, kissing her head. “You and Aileen go chat in the living room with Jade and Lucas while we clean up here.”
Shelley grinned and hugged him around the waist. “Scoop some ice cream for me afterwards, okay?”
He rolled his eyes. “Don’t push your luck with ordering me around, brat.”
Shelley laughed and swanned out of the room.
He frowned when Aileen approached him instead of following Shelley.
“Rick,” Aileen said in a stage whisper. “Can we talk?”
“About what?” he asked nonchalantly as he picked up some empty glasses.
“I’d rather not talk here,” she answered, glancing furtively at the kitchen doorway. “It’s about Betty.”
He cocked his head in curiosity. “Okay.” He left the glasses on the table and led her to his study. He flipped the light switch and looked at her expectantly.
“I bumped into Betty at the mall a week ago,” Aileen said. “I was going to ignore her, but she stopped me and said she wanted to talk.”
He raised an eyebrow. “What about?”
“I don’t know. I told her to leave me alone—I’m still mad at her, you know—but she clutched my arm and begged me. And I mean begged me. I was surprised, to say the least, so I just stared at her. She gave me a card with her phone number, told me it’s very important that I talk to her, then she left.”
“Have you called her?” he asked in a low voice, not liking the sound of this.
Aileen shook her head. “I could try now so you can hear. I’ll put her on speaker.”
He stared at Aileen. She was already aware of the whole issue between him and Betty, but should he let her get involved again? He didn’t want her expecting anything from him.
“Isn’t it worth finding out what she wants?” Aileen pressed. “I really think we should call her tonight. She acted very strangely that day.”
“Okay,” he said, curiosity getting the better of him. “But don’t say much. Just try to get her to talk about whatever it was she wan
ted to talk about.”
Aileen nodded, calling the number she was given and putting the phone on speaker.
“Hello?” came a reply.
“Betty?”
“Yes?”
“It’s Aileen.”
There was a brief pause. “Oh, I wasn’t expecting you to call tonight. How are you?” Betty said, her levity sounding forced.
“I’m good, thanks,” Aileen responded. “You told me last week that it’s very important that we talk. So what do you want to discuss?”
“Uh... I can’t remember now. Anyway... uh... say hello to Rick for me when you see him.”
“Okay,” Aileen said, frowning.
No! Rick vigorously shook his head. They weren’t seeing each other anymore—and that was what Betty should know.
Aileen’s eyes rounded at his warning. “I hardly see Rick these days, Betty,” she said hurriedly. “But if I run into him, I’ll let him know you said hi.”
“Of course. Okay, then,” Betty said.
They heard some muffled mumbling in the background. Betty must have covered the microphone and was talking to someone.
“So what are you up to today, Aileen?”
“Nothing. I’m at a friend’s, just chilling out.”
“Well, be sure to keep in touch. I know Shelley misses you.”
“I miss her, too. She’s a great girl.”
“Yes, she is,” Betty said. “Anyway, I have to go. Bye.” Then she was gone.
“See? Wasn’t that strange?” Aileen asked. “She’s always been bitchy and now she’s almost friendly.”
“Yes,” Rick agreed, his worried scowl deepening. “Do you and Shelley talk on the phone a lot?”
“No. Maybe just five or six times since we broke up eight months ago.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if Betty checks Shelley’s phone without Shelley knowing. Maybe she’s seen your phone calls.”
“But so what if she did? Communicating with Shelley doesn’t mean I’m back with you.”
“No. But Betty could see it as a smokescreen. She’s probably trying to get you on her side to see if you’ll spill anything about us. She probably thinks we’re back together.”
“Doesn’t that woman give you a break?” Aileen said, puffing. “How can she spend all her time spying on you to see if you’re in a serious relationship or not? Really, Rick, you should complain. As long as you’re not married, it should be okay.”
Rick tried not to roll his eyes. How many times did he have to explain to Aileen that the contract stipulated he couldn’t be in any serious relationship—married or unmarried?
Yes, he was an idiot for agreeing to have that bit put in writing. But if he hadn’t, Betty would still be managing Shelley’s inheritance and would have lost a lot more of it.
And to be honest, he hadn’t thought he’d have a problem with the proviso when he’d signed the contract. When he’d been having the acrimonious talks with Betty, he’d very much preferred the bachelor lifestyle. Who wouldn’t, when he could end up with a woman like Shelley’s mother? Yuck. He’d seen the frustration and difficulties his dad had had to endure for being married to Betty.
“So are you still stuck with staying single for another six years?” Aileen asked.
“Yes. You know that’s something I can’t change.”
Aileen sighed. “It was my fault we got found out, Rick. I’m really sorry about that. I just didn’t know that the woman who befriended me at the yoga class was Betty’s sister-in-law.”
“You know it wasn’t working out anyway, Aileen.”
“You know what?” she said, as if an idea just occurred to her. “We can start again. I’ll be more discreet since I’ve realised how important it is to keep quiet.”
He shook his head, trying not to let his irritation show. Aileen damned well knew that the contract wasn’t the sole reason why they’d broken up. His feelings for her had gone. Towards the end, he’d just wanted out, suffocated by her neediness.
“I know you said back then that you couldn’t imagine us staying together because we didn’t have the freedom to develop our relationship,” Aileen said. “I know that hiding all the time, or not being able to sleep overnight in each other’s places, or pretending in public that we weren’t together, was too hard to maintain for another six years. But—”
“You’ve just said the exact reasons why I don’t want a relationship at this point, Aileen,” he interrupted gently. “I can’t see how anyone—even me—could put up with all that for six years. So it’s really better if you moved on.”
“What about Lexie?” Aileen asked, her voice growing a tad colder.
His heart galloped at the mention of Lexie’s name. “What about her?” he asked with nonchalance.
“She seems to like you.”
He shrugged. “Maybe. So do other women.”
Aileen laughed. “That’s true. Hey, you know I’m okay with no-strings, right? So if you want a hot night or two...”
He smirked, shaking his head. “Let’s not complicate things between us, Aileen. Anyway, we better go and rejoin the others.” He opened the door.
“So what do I do about Betty?” Aileen asked as she took the hint and walked out of his study.
“Ignore her. She’s manipulative. And I’ll to talk to Shelley to make sure she’s not sending the wrong signals to her mother about us. That girl needs to be warned to be more careful.”
“Rick,” Aileen whispered, halting him with a hand on his arm as they neared the living room. “It’s not Shelley’s fault. I initiated the calls most of the time. She hasn’t done anything wrong.”
He smiled. “I know. I’m not blaming either of you for this. Betty’s just extraordinarily vigilant when it comes to anything and everything that could be construed as me breaking the contract rules.”
“Hard to believe someone as sweet and loving as your sister has that woman for a mother.”
“Shelley takes after her brother,” he joked.
They chuckled as Aileen swatted his arm playfully.
There was a loud clang. Rick turned around and saw Lexie bend down to pick up a spoon that had fallen on the tiled floor.
“Sorry,” she mumbled, then stood up and continued on to the living room.
“Hey, where did you two go?” Shelley asked with a grin, carrying a tray of ice cream. “You left all the cleaning to the three girls.”
“No worries,” Cassie announced as she and Erin came out of the kitchen. “It’s all done. Now we’re ready for more of Shelley’s delicious desserts.”
“Thanks, girls,” Rick said, his heart pinching as he followed Lexie. Damn it. What was she thinking right now?
Lexie helped Shelley hand out the ice cream bowls, and Rick stood next to Lexie so she wouldn’t have a choice but to give him one. She did, her eyes downcast.
Deliberately, he grazed his fingers over hers as he took it. “Thanks, Lex,” he breathed.
“Sure,” she said with a twist of her lips that he’d be hard-pressed to call a smile.
He sat down, hoping Lexie would take the space next to him. But she walked over to the other side of the room where Erin was—away from him.
As the conversation inevitably turned to how great Shelley’s homemade ice cream was, Rick watched Lexie. She’d turned quiet again, apart from the occasional whispers with Erin. And her smiles held sadness that wasn’t apparent before.
His chest grew heavier.
Oh, he knew he’d frustrated her many times in the past when he’d pretended not to notice her flirtations. But after she’d kissed him last night, things had changed. He couldn’t hope that his actions would pass for ignorance anymore. This time around, she’d see them as nothing short of rejection.
He couldn’t taste the ice cream even though it was his favourite. He didn’t even want to finish it. All he wanted to do was go to Lexie and wipe the ache that he was sure she was feeling.
Hurting her hurt him. It was a revelation that emptied hi
s lungs of air.
But he just couldn’t see how they could make it work. Even if they somehow managed to start something, asking her to wait six years before they could progress to a serious relationship was laughable. Lexie would be thirty-two then. What if she wanted to get married and have kids before that age? He couldn’t be that man for her.
A bolt of pain struck him. The thought of Lexie spending the rest of her life with someone else—and having another man’s babies—made him feel sick.
Oh, hell. He had a problem. A very big one.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Thanks for a wonderful dinner, Shelley,” Lexie said, hugging the girl. “I really enjoyed your food. It’s right up there with some of the best I’ve had.”
“Aw, shucks, Lexie. You guys are giving me a big head,” Shelley said, returning her embrace. “Thank you for coming. See you again soon.”
Lexie faked a smile. She didn’t think she’d be seeing Shelley again anytime soon. It was a sad realisation, but she needed to stay away from Rick for a while so she could get her bearings back.
What a pity she didn’t even get to have a single date with him. But at least she could be grateful for one thing. Rick didn’t have to tell it to her face that she wasn’t his type. She got to keep some of her pride.
Some.
She’d lost a lot of it tonight. Everyone had noticed how she’d tried to flirt with Rick during dinner preparations, only for him to keep on avoiding her. Then he’d had that little quiet time with Aileen when the rest of them were cleaning up. Why did he have to hole himself up alone in a room with his ex?
That was a big whack to her ego, but most of all, it was a dagger through her heart. She wasn’t the best of actresses and, much as she’d tried, she was sure everybody had sensed her gloom.
She plastered a smile on her face as Aileen approached her.
“See you around, Lexie,” Aileen said with a smug smile. The woman didn’t even bother to pretend to want to shake her hand.
“Yes, see yah,” she responded with as much friendliness as she could muster. She wasn’t a sore loser. She knew when to back off. She’d never get in between two people who clearly preferred each other.
The Unyielding Bachelor Page 3