by Zuri Day
“Hell, looks like they own it.”
“I came here to start a life with the man I love very much, who I’ve been with for years. And for you to follow me—”
“It’s a free country. I need a job. Saw one that fit me. Applied. Simple as that.”
“Not that simple, and you know it.” Nicki reached for her bag in the back seat and pulled out a sheet of paper. “I have the money—ten thousand, as promised. There will be two more payments of five thousand each. To have proof of this agreement, I’ve had what we agreed on put in writing. Not a lot of legal jargon. Quite concise. You agree to cease all contact with me following the receipt of this first payment. You also agree not to take the job at the community center and not to remain in Paradise Cove. We can wish each other the best and go our separate ways. I admit I really dislike being in this situation, but I don’t hate you. There were some fun moments in that brief time we spent together. I’ll choose to remember them.” She held out the piece of paper and dug for a pen. It wasn’t until she found one that she looked back up and realized Vince hadn’t reached out for the paper she held.
“You’ve got to sign the agreement, Vince. I can’t give you the money without it.”
Vince huffed, looked over at her with narrowed eyes. “What if I said I don’t want the money? What if I said it’s too late for that?” He craned his neck from left to right and looked behind him. “I’ve never lived in a small town before. Looks like this one might grow on me.”
“Vince, don’t...”
He snatched the paper, folded in half. “Give me a day to think about it. Meet with Terrell. Then I’ll decide what I’ll do.”
He opened the door.
“Vince, wait!”
“I’ve been waiting. It’s your turn now.”
Nicki sat stunned. What just happened? Away from the city, closeted in a small town, her bullshit radar had clearly quit working. Vince’s flip of the switch caught her totally off guard. But she was no fool. Clarity came quickly. That asshole had never intended to settle this drama. He wanted to throw his hell no in her face. That in itself was bad enough, but life could get worse. He could be on his way to the center right now, ready to spill the beans about dating her to the first Drake who’d listen. Nicki started the car and tapped Julian’s number seconds later. The music playing right now might be a treacherous dirge, but it was time to face it.
“Hey, baby.”
Julian sounded so happy to hear from her. It hurt to know the joy wouldn’t last long. “Hi. Are you busy?”
“Not right now. Just waiting to hear about your trip to the doctor, and how it feels to once again walk on two feet.”
“It feels amazing.”
“Really? You don’t sound too happy.”
“Actually, I’m not. We need to talk.”
“What’s going on?”
“I don’t want to discuss it over the phone. Can I come by the office?”
“My next client arrives in about twenty minutes. How far are you from the office?”
“I’m back in town, so not that far. But I don’t want to have this conversation in a rushed atmosphere.”
“You’re worrying me, Nicki. What’s this about? Second thoughts on the AD position?”
“No, I’m really excited about developing that program.”
“What then? Did you wreck the car?”
“No.”
“Rob a bank?”
She smiled. “No.”
“Then what? Listen, never mind. This is my last patient until after lunch. Why don’t I head home afterward and we can talk there?”
“Okay. But just don’t...” How would it sound for her to ask that he not talk to his brother? Not good. Really bad, in fact. “Never mind. I’ll pick us up something for lunch. See you then.”
The weather turned gloomy as quickly as Nicki’s day. She hadn’t known there was rain in the forecast. Didn’t know bullshit was scheduled, either. A day full of surprises.
Since the weather had turned chilly, she decided on soup. Stopped by Julian’s favorite deli and found that a lot of other residents had the same idea. She pulled up in front of the town house thirty minutes later. Felt she’d been inside only moments before hearing Julian’s car. Busying herself with gathering dishes and reheating the soup, her back was to Julian when he entered the room. As if not looking at him would delay the inevitable. It did not.
“All right, Nicki. Tell me what’s going on.”
She turned. “Oh, hi, babe. Don’t you want to sit down first? I just need to nuke the—”
“No, that can wait. The only thing I want right now is an explanation.”
“Okay, but I might as well warn you. This won’t be easy for me to say or for you to hear. It’s about that guy who’s been bugging me, trying to extort money.” She paused for a response or a reaction. There was none. “It was Vince Edwards.”
The merest crease appeared on his brow, but his voice was calm. “The ballplayer?” Nicki nodded. “The one coming in town to interview at the center? You two dated?”
“Briefly. Barely a month, as I told you before. Before you and I got back together, I had already found out what a jerk he was and had broken things off. Hadn’t heard from him since ending it with him two years ago, until just before the show started on Broadway. Obviously he found out I was in it, made up a lie about me owing him and started the harassment.”
“Why you, though? A guy like him has probably dated hundreds of women.”
“I’ve asked myself that question a thousand times, almost every time I’ve had the misfortune to answer his call. I wouldn’t knowingly. But a few times, especially around when the show was just getting started, I answered unknown and private numbers. That’s how this started.”
“When you say the two of you dated, did you sleep with him?”
Nicki nodded, answered softly. “Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?”
“Because I know how you feel about that. Besides, I told you he and I dated.”
“You told me you dated, but you didn’t tell me you dated.” He put a sarcastic emphasis on the last word. “You tried to make it sound casual, as in went to the movies or out to eat. Not like something that was intimate, the two of you connecting by having sex.”
“Trust me, there was no connection—”
“There’s always a connection.” His tone was emphatic, but his voice did not rise. “Despite what society says, there is no such thing as casual sex. We were barely broken up a month, Nicki. How’d it happen?”
“I don’t even know. Angry. Stupid. A rebound reaction, and one of the worst mistakes I’ve ever made.” She looked directly at him for the first time, her eyes shiny with unshed tears. “It was only after finding out the truth about him and what a jerk he was that I felt truly ashamed for being an easy target, one of hundreds of women, as you said, who’d ignored the signs and drank the Kool-Aid.”
“Yet he’s not in any of their towns trying to get hired on where they’ve just taken a job. He’s here. With a scheduled interview at the center that bears my name. And I’m just now finding out. That’s messed up.”
“I never thought the harassment would go this far. Thought him saying he’d come here was just a threat.”
“Wait, he told you about coming here? When?”
“The day of the brunch. He sent a text.”
“So you knew before I did. Before Terrell. You knew he was coming here and kept me in the dark!”
“I thought it was just a threat to get me to pay him. So I agreed to give him money. I didn’t want you to know. He promised that afterward he’d leave me alone. But he lied.”
“When did you last talk to him?”
“Today. I met with him to—”
Juli
an held up a hand. “You met with him? Here, in Paradise Cove?”
“In the strip mall parking lot to give him the money. But to get it he had to sign an agreement that put his promise to leave me alone in writing.”
Julian leaned against the island. Was silent for a very long time. The silence made Nicki feel horrible. Then he started talking, and she felt even worse.
“Before I was confused, but now everything makes sense. The distractedness. The distance. You being nervous and jumpy and preoccupied. Sleeping with me every night while keeping secret communications with another man.”
“Julian, it wasn’t like that—”
“I asked you what was going on. Not once. Several times. On any one of those occasions, you could have trusted me, confided in me, but you didn’t. You let my family entertain the notion of hiring your extortionist as a mentor to young children.”
“Baby...”
He shook his head. “Don’t. Not now. When I needed you to talk, when there should have been conversation, you were silent. But knowing I might find out the truth, you decide you want to bare all and tell me everything. Well, guess what. It’s too late. I don’t want to listen. Not to another word that you have to say.”
Except for a word here or there, Julian never raised his voice. He turned and walked out of the house. Seconds later she heard the car leave the driveway.
When she went to bed, he still hadn’t come home. Wasn’t there when she awoke the next morning. There wasn’t a word for how bad Nicki felt. Everything Julian had said was correct. There was no good excuse for why she hadn’t told him everything from the beginning. That she hadn’t had caused a horrible ending. The worst part about it was that she couldn’t even put the fault for what had happened all on Vince. The person mostly to blame was herself.
Chapter 25
Before he’d only had a clinical perspective. But at this moment Julian knew from personal experience how a person could snap. He hadn’t even known he could get this angry, let alone having ever experienced it before. As angry, hurt and disappointed as he was in Nicki, it was the dog Vince Edwards at the pit of his rage. He’d disrespected Julian’s woman. Misled his family. No one mistreated his family like that and got away with it. Not on Julian Drake’s watch.
He tapped the steering wheel and called his office. Cited an emergency and canceled his next appointment. Then he called Terrell.
“What’s going on?”
“I need your face not to show what your ears are hearing.”
A short pause. “Okay.” The teasing quality had totally left Terrell’s voice.
“Is Vince Edwards scheduled for an interview today?”
“Yeah, he’ll be here in about an hour. Hold on a minute.” Julian heard a series of noises, imagined his brother closing the door. “Okay, man, talk to me. No one can hear us. What’s going on?”
“Something you’re not going to believe.” Julian took a deep breath, forced himself to stay calm as he relayed an abbreviated version of what he’d found out from Nicki. “She tried to explain, but I’d heard enough,” he finished. “I thought nothing could hurt like her rejecting my proposal. But this type of betrayal? It’s on another level. If you don’t have trust, you don’t have a relationship.”
“It’s a rare moment when I’m speechless,” Terrell said solemnly. “But I’ve got to tell you, bro. This is one of those times.”
“Hard to find words for this situation. I finally get what I’ve always wanted—Nicki living here in Paradise Cove—then find out that a dude she slept with has followed her here, and some twisted game has been playing out the whole time that she’s been with me. And the only reason she tells me is because he might mention it to you? That’s a wrap, man. Done deal. It’s over.”
“Where are you headed now?”
“Your office, for the interview. I’m almost there. I’ve got a few questions to ask Vince Edwards. See what kind of threats he has to offer up when facing a real man.”
Julian pulled into the parking lot a short time later and saw Jennifer’s car. He wasn’t surprised. The intensity with which he’d relayed the story about Nicki had probably frightened his brother into calling backup. The mere thought calmed Julian. A little.
A quick knock and he opened the door to Terrell’s office. He and Jennifer were sitting at a small conference table. Warren was there, too. After hugging his mom and fist-bumping Terrell, he placed a hand on Warren’s shoulder. “How’d they get you away from Charli? Tell you there was an angry bull loose that you might need to rope?”
“More like a coyote threatening the livestock that might need to be shot.”
“Warren,” Jennifer admonished, “do not say something like that, even in jest.”
“Sorry, Mom.”
Julian plopped into a nearby chair. “Guess y’all have already gotten the 411.”
“Terrell told us what he knew,” Jennifer answered. “But there’s got to be more to the story.”
“How do you figure?”
“Because I believe I know Nicki,” Jennifer answered calmly. “She doesn’t strike me as a cheater. Or a schemer who’d act with duplicitous motives.”
“An hour ago I would have said the same thing. But the Nicki you know did all of that, right under my nose.”
“I heard, son, and that’s horrible. There is no denying or excusing the fact that she should have told you everything immediately. Up front. But I don’t think she acted maliciously. You’re angry and can’t see it now. But from an objective stance, there is room for other perspectives. Don’t get defensive,” she hurriedly added. “I’m on your side. I just caution you to not be too hasty. To get the whole story, hear all angles, before making up your mind.”
Jennifer left for a meeting. The brothers were mostly quietly waiting, until Terrell received the call that his appointment had arrived.
“You cool?” Terrell asked Julian.
“I’ll make it a clean kick,” Julian answered, referring to skills he’d honed for years as a black belt in martial arts.
“You heard what Mom said,” Warren chided. “Don’t joke like that.”
“He’s not joking,” Terrell said, real concern on his face.
“I have no plans to get physical,” Julian said finally. “If he has any sense at all, he won’t say the wrong thing and have to get punched in the throat.”
“Keep an eye on him,” Terrell told Warren as he reached for the phone.
“Hello, Beatrice. Will you escort our visitor back to my office? Thank you.”
A murmur of voices followed by laughter preceded a short knock on the door. A new, obviously besotted assistant announced Vince, who strolled into the office as though he owned the world. The door closed behind him.
He walked toward Terrell, now seated behind his desk, with hand outstretched. “Mr. Drake!”
Terrell didn’t stand and barely smiled. “Have a seat, Vince.”
The rude behavior was obviously unsettling. Even more so when Warren stood and walked toward the door and Vince realized he and Terrell were not alone. He looked at Julian, then back at Warren, now standing in front of the door as if to guard it.
Vince’s smile dimmed as he sat. “I didn’t realize this was going to be a group interview.”
“There’s a few things we didn’t realize, either, my man.” Terrell’s tone was not unfriendly. “A situation involving my brother Julian—” he nodded toward the conference table where Julian now rested a hip “—and a person very important to him named Nicki Long. We need you to clear up a few things.”
“And then we’ll need you to get the hell out of this town,” Julian said as he slowly walked over. “And not contact Nicki again.”
Vince sat up straight in the chair. “Careful, brother. That sounds like a threat.”
J
ulian offered a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Oh no, Vince, only cowards do that. Real men like the Drakes don’t make threats. We make promises. And we keep them. Harass Nicki again and you’ll find out.”
* * *
Thirty minutes later, Vince returned to his rental not quite sure how three men, talking calmly and smiling, put more fear in him than the punks he owed money had done while armed with guns. He’d never admit it. Was already creating an alternative truth in his head of why he decided not to work at the center. As for that witch Nicki, she wasn’t worth him getting in any trouble. Especially here, in a town where he didn’t know anybody and the Drakes were influential. Get arrested and there was no telling what would happen to him in jail. Vince would leave, but he’d remember the way he’d been treated. He’d come back here one day and bring his boys, the ones with records who were violent for real. Then he’d see how cool those Drake fools acted. Private school sissies raised on trust fund milk. He’d come back with backup, and even the score.
He checked the internet then plugged an address into his GPS. Minutes later he pulled into the parking lot of what seemed to be the town’s lone restaurant. “Rinky-dink Hicksville,” he muttered, anger increasingly replacing fear the farther he got from the center. “About all punks like those Drakes can handle.”
He stepped inside and was surprised at the classy decor. There were only a few patrons. Not surprising, since it was almost two o’clock and most lunch hours had ended. There was no one at the host station, so Vince walked over to the bar and grabbed a seat. Pulled out his phone to check messages. The bartender was on the other side of the L-shaped counter, his back to Vince as he chatted with an attractive woman typing on a laptop. The woman looked up, made eye contact and smiled. A few seconds later, the bartender turned and walked over.
“Sorry about the wait, sir. What can I get you?”
Vince answered without looking up from his phone. “Rémy Martin, neat, and a glass of seltzer.”
“Vince Edwards?”