Fool Me Once (First Wives Series Book 1)

by Catherine Bybee

  Their polite divorce shook the state. Media had a field day and made crap up when there was nothing gossip worthy to report. First it was that Paul had found another woman, then that Shannon had an affair . . . none of it validated with facts. A few pictures leaked of Paul dating, but never with the same woman twice. His handlers kept the media out of his personal life as much as they could. Alliance helped Shannon with the media for the first year. Since then, there was little to report.

  Shannon moved out of Sacramento and into the house she and Paul had shared before he was elected. Everything was as they’d contracted. Paul even added a security detail for her and kept in contact with Alliance to make sure she was cared for. It was as if he knew he’d left a footprint on her heart and still wanted some control over her life.

  “He’s a great man. Just not the kind to settle for one woman.”

  Lori placed her hand over Shannon’s. “I’m sorry.”

  “I’m fine. Please, let’s not talk about ancient history. It’s time for me to move on.”

  Lori lifted her drink with a reluctant toast. “To moving on.”

  Chapter Six

  “Antonio!” Reed greeted the man he’d met the night before.

  They shook hands.

  Around them swam a sea of bikini-wearing women sporting suntan lotion and consuming copious amounts of liquor. The DJ pumped music loud enough to bust eardrums, and a walkway was set up in the middle of the deck.

  “What’s going on?” Reed asked the Italian.

  “Male exploitation.”

  “Male what?”

  “Male fashion show without clothes.”

  Naked? That didn’t sound right.

  Antonio pointed to the lineup of men wearing Speedos and shorts. Reed noticed Trina and Avery spreading oil all over two of the men that were part of the previous evening’s party.

  “Looks like someone is having fun.”

  “That Avery is a party.”

  “Looks like it’s rubbing off on her friend.” Reed looked around to see if Lori was nearby.

  Sensing what he was searching for, Antonio pointed toward the massive swimming pool. “The others are over there.”

  “Should we drag them over here?” Reed asked.

  “I’m not walking on that stage.”

  Yeah, neither was Reed. “I’ve never met a single woman who didn’t appreciate this kind of thing.”

  “Let’s go.”

  Antonio led the way, weaving through the deck chairs and kids running around.

  He spotted the two lone women stretched out on chairs, large sunglasses covering their faces.

  He’d pegged the conservative woman for a one piece. He was wrong. Lori wore a black bikini, revealing more skin than he was prepared for.

  “Bella!” Antonio announced their presence before they stood over them.

  Reed couldn’t see Lori’s eyes, but he felt them.

  “Hey.” Shannon lifted her sunglasses.

  “We’ve come to drag you away from this boredom,” Reed told them.

  “I’m not bored,” Lori countered.

  Shannon pushed up from her reclined position. “What did you have in mind?”

  Lori slapped at Shannon’s arm.

  “We’re good.”

  “Come, Bella, sitting in the sun you can do at home.”

  Shannon stood, reached for Lori’s hand. “C’mon. I need my wingman.”

  Reed liked Shannon more and more.

  He reached for Lori’s wrap and handed it over once she was standing. Not that he wanted her to cover up. That yoga butt looked even better in a bikini than it did in pants.

  The four of them found a spot on the north side of the stage right as the cruise director took the mic. “Ladies and ladies, and a brave few gentlemen. What is a day at sea without a lot of suntan oil and skin?”

  Reed kept an eye on Lori as the translators made sure everyone on board caught the information.

  The cruise director and her staff were wearing bright shirts and equally bright shorts with comfortable shoes. They worked the crowd, encouraging them to drink the cocktail of the day and to get the most out of their cruise by entering as many competitions, events, and gatherings as humanly possible. If you’re bored on the ship, it isn’t from a lack of activities to take part in!

  “I’m starting to have college flashbacks,” Lori said loud enough for all of them to hear.

  The DJ turned up the music, making conversation difficult.

  The judging at this competition was based completely on applause and audience participation. One at a time, the men took the stage. Most of them owned it, chins in the air, smiles on their faces. More than one of the men sported bodies by beer, complete with several extra inches around their stomachs. Lori looked away when one guy tested his own beer gut with both hands and gave it a good shake.

  It wasn’t until Rogelio and Miguel took their turns, one after the other, that Lori and Shannon started to clap.

  From the side of the stage, Reed saw Avery blowing a loud whistle between her fingers and Trina waving some kind of pom-pom that one of the staff had been using to rev up the crowd.

  “Now it’s time to show us your best Schwarzenegger pose.” The announcer lifted her arms in the air, flexed what little muscles she had in example.

  Several men impersonated the Hulk, complete with grunts and growls. The first beer gut guy showed up on stage with a can of brew and flexed a bicep as he drank the whole thing in one swallow. The crowd went a little crazy.

  Rogelio and Miguel took the stage together, turned around, and showed off their backs with a pose. Lori leaned over to Shannon and said something he couldn’t hear. From the way the women smiled, they appreciated the view.

  He pointed to the stage and said, “You like?”

  She rolled her eyes but didn’t answer.

  The last hops and barley dude had changed his board shorts for Speedos. The crowd laughed, and Shannon watched through a slit in her fingers. As if the European male bathing suit wasn’t enough, he turned his back to the audience and flexed his hips to the music. Every dimple in his butt was one too many bags of chips.

  The last part of the competition weeded out the weak quickly.

  Pushups.

  The women went crazy, especially when one of the harder bodies did his impression of a stripper giving a lap dance.

  Lori reached over and grasped Shannon’s arm before pointing to Trina and Avery. Both of them were being dragged onstage.

  Avery jumped onstage, while Trina had to be coaxed.

  The men started to clap when both women were lying on the stage, faceup. The cruise director encouraged the crazy, and as the music took on a more sultry beat, Miguel and Rogelio gave the crowd a show worthy of any Magic Mike performance.

  Reed wondered if he needed to up his pushup performance in order to make Lori blush like she was doing while watching her friends.

  Shannon took pictures with her cell phone, something he considered himself. But he decided to hold this in his memory instead of his data plan.

  Once the “contest” was over and the majority of the men took away T-shirts, Miguel and Rogelio each managed a T-shirt, free drinks, and a crown. The beer gut guys received a bucket of beer.

  The music kept playing as the people on deck started to spread out for other activities. It wasn’t long before Avery, Trina, Miguel, and Rogelio joined them.

  “That was fabulous,” Shannon told them.

  “Crazy.” Trina looked at Lori, slight worry marring her brow.

  Lori placed a hand on her friend’s arm. “I’m sure it’s fine.”

  The statement sounded out of place.

  “You ladies stole the show,” Reed told them.

  Rogelio slid a hand around Avery’s waist, the familiarity of his touch raising a few eyebrows among the women. Miguel didn’t take the same approach, instead he said to Trina, “You make doing pushups onstage worthwhile.”

  Color rose in her cheeks.


  “How about some drinks,” Lori suggested.

  Miguel pulled out a drink card. “Free for us today. What can we get you?”

  Less than half an hour later, Rogelio and Avery peeled away from their party to “swim.” Only instead of heading for the pool, they headed toward the stairs.

  “That’s one,” Shannon said to Lori. Her eyes skirted over to Reed.

  “One what?” he asked.

  “Nothing!” Lori said too quickly.

  “Hey, Antonio, do you ever have the feeling that there is a whole conversation going on between women that you have no idea about?”

  “Every day, my friend.”

  “Everyone has secrets,” Shannon told them.

  Lori’s gaze moved between Reed and Shannon. Out of nowhere, she stood and reached for his hand. “Do you swim?”

  For one brief moment, he thought maybe she was suggesting they head in the direction that Avery had with Rogelio. But when Lori pulled his hand and led him to the pool, he realized his signals were being crossed again.

  Lori’s heart flipped a little when she saw Trina take the stage. Avery’s marriage and divorce wouldn’t be considered high profile on the Mediterranean Sea. A rich American man who divorced his trophy wife simply wasn’t newsworthy enough in this part of the world. Trina Petrov, however . . . might easily get picked up. Infamous in both Russia and Germany, Ruslan was a well-known businessman with as many allies as he had enemies. Those who knew him knew of Fedor’s death. And then there were the oil interests of Fedor’s mother, Alice—the reaches of their story captured worldwide attention. So far, the only person who looked twice at the four of them with any recognition was Reed.

  She grasped his hand and pulled him to the pool. The warm salt water was easy to slide into. And since the pool was more for lounging than for swimming, they stood waist deep along the side of the pool before she started to talk.

  “I didn’t want to swim.”

  His eyes lingered on her wet skin. “That’s too bad.”

  “You’re incorrigible.”

  “Guilty.”

  She dodged the splash of a man playing with his kids.

  “You recognize Shannon.” She was certain he had.

  “Hard not to. I do live in California.”

  Lori knew she stared. “You do?”

  “I thought I told you that.”

  She scrolled through their conversations and didn’t even know where he would have suggested they spoke of where they lived. Lori knew for a fact she hadn’t told him anything about where she lived. “No.”

  His fingers found her elbow and led her deeper into the pool. “Don’t look so stressed,” he said.

  She tried to relax. “They’re my friends. We planned a vacation far away to avoid recognition.”

  “I would think Shannon would be used to the spotlight by now.”

  “Doesn’t make it comfortable. Lots of people judge out there.”

  Reed splashed water on his arms. “I’m not judging, and I don’t think anyone else was snapping pictures of Shannon to sell to the media.”

  “If you see anyone taking pictures, tell me.” She hesitated. “Please. Or any of my friends.”

  His eyes narrowed. “Should I know who they are, too?”

  “No,” she said, straight-faced.

  “You’re a beautiful liar.”

  She shivered. “Please. I could use another set of eyes.”

  He blinked his a few times. “That’s a simple request.”

  “Good.” She turned to leave the pool.

  “On one condition.”

  A slow pivot and she was inches from his body.

  “What’s that?”

  “Dinner tonight. You and me.”

  Dripping wet, with a sly smile on his lips, he was hard to resist. When was the last time she had a romantic dinner with a man?

  “I need to watch over my friends.” Her excuse was lame, even to her ears.

  “You’re not old enough to be their mother.”

  “I’m their—” She caught the word lawyer before it fell from her lips.

  “You don’t look like sisters either.” Reed traced his fingers along her arm. “What are you scared of, Lori? I asked you to dinner, not skydiving.”

  “Something tells me skydiving is next.”

  He smirked. “Let’s start with dinner. We’ll meet up with your friends after . . . that is, if Avery and Rogelio come out for air before tomorrow.”

  “They were kinda obvious.”

  “They have the same goals.”

  What were Reed’s goals? Would he tell her? Should she ask?

  Did she want to hear them?

  “Okay, dinner. I can do dinner.”

  “All right then.” Reed left a hand on the small of her back as they exited the pool.

  His touch lingered long after they were among friends and separated by conversation.

  Chapter Seven

  Lori slipped into a midcalf-length sundress and jeweled sandals. The sun had given her face more color than she normally had, so makeup consisted of mascara and lip gloss. Strange how living in Southern California didn’t add a glow to her face, yet less than three days on the Mediterranean had.

  She glanced at the time when someone knocked on her door.

  “You’re early,” she called out.

  “It’s Trina.”

  Lori hustled to the door to let her in.

  “You look nice,” Trina said, closing the door behind her.

  “It’s just dinner.” And she was more nervous than she cared to admit.

  “If my opinion is wanted, I think Reed is a decent guy.”

  “We’ve known him less than forty-eight hours.”

  “And I’m sure there is a lot to know, but if this is a weeklong affair, what does it matter?”

  Lori had been asking herself that question since she met the man. “You’re right.” She shook her head. “I’m overthinking this.”

  “I’m glad you said that. It isn’t like you just buried your husband, or just divorced your husband . . . or had it bad for your ex-husband. You should be the first one from the First Wives Club that should be having a fling.”

  Hearing Trina paint the truth in black and white cleared up her resolve. She’d go to dinner, see if any warning bells rang. Lori sat on the edge of her bed. “How are you holding up?”

  A slow smile inched across Trina’s lips. “I forgot about Fedor for over an hour today.”

  “Let me guess: somewhere between the lap dance and oiling Miguel?”

  “Or the other way around.” Her smile fell. “I feel guilty.”

  Lori reached out and grasped both of Trina’s hands, encouraged her to sit next to her on the bed. “Stop it. You have no reason to feel guilty. Fedor did this to himself. We may never know why he did what he did, but it was his choice.”

  “He was my husband.”

  “No. He was a contract. He may have been given the title of husband, but he wasn’t.”

  “The world won’t think that.”

  Lori leaned down until Trina met her eyes. “Which is why we’re miles away from his life and the details of his death. Find the strength it took for you to take the plunge into his world, and use it to catapult out of it.”

  “I’m trying.”

  “Good. Now do me a favor. Every time you think about Fedor as your husband, take that word out of your thoughts and put in business partner. You don’t owe your business partner who killed himself anything.”

  Trina slapped her palms on her thighs and stood. “You’re right. He shouldn’t have done this to me. We had become friends, and friends don’t exit without an explanation.”

  “He shouldn’t have!” Lori agreed.

  Now that Trina was moving out of the denial stage of her grief, it was time for her to get mad. With any luck, this trip would help her move through the five stages quickly. The sooner she accepted Fedor’s death and the murky waters he left behind, the better.

&nb
sp; A knock on the door brought Lori back to reality.

  Trina kissed Lori’s cheek. “Go have fun. Shannon and I are going to check out the ice bar.”

  “Brrr, that sounds cold.”

  “If you need a cold shower later, join us,” Trina said.

  Lori laughed as she opened her stateroom door.

  Reed wore slacks and a button-up short sleeve shirt. His hair was wet, as if he’d just jumped from the shower. He’d shaved.

  “Hi.”

  His eyes swept her. “You look nice.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Okay, three is a crowd.” Trina pushed past Reed. “You kids have fun. Don’t keep her out too late, we have an early morning,” she teased.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Trina giggled and scooted past him and into the hall.

  Lori studied her feet, feeling a little bit like she had when she’d dated in high school and her dates had to meet her parents before taking her anywhere.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  “Let me grab my purse.”

  “Do you know anything about French food?” Reed asked as they left the room.

  “I know enough to avoid escargot.”

  When his hand found the small of her back, her cheeks warmed. Crazy how a simple touch declared that she was with him . . . if only for a meal.

  They worked their way through the halls and decks of the ship, which were a mix of everything from people still in bathing suits to others dressed to the nines.

  The low lighting and music of the French themed restaurant certainly paved the way for romance. Couples filled most of the tables, whereas families spent most of their time in louder locations on the ship.

  “Do you cruise often?” Lori asked him once they were seated.

  “This is my second,” he told her. “What about you?”

  “I’ve done my fair share.”

  “With your friends?”

  She shook her head, thinking of Trina and the others. “Not with . . .” she stopped herself. “With other friends.” She’d taken a one-on-one cruise with a previous Alliance bride in the past. This was the first time she had a group of four.