by Terry Towers
and I spoke, yes.”
“And he told you…” A part of him was getting a bit of satisfaction out of this encounter.
She’d never apologized or shown remorse for what she’d done. With Emma everything was
everyone else’s fault but her own, and she was so beautiful and was able to charm people so well
that people usually bought what she was selling. But not this time. Graham knew her and her
games way too well now.
“It’s not important.”
“That’s what I thought.” He sighed, thrusting a hand into his blonde hair. “And why in the
hell are you even in my house?”
Her head jerked back up and her eyes narrowed at him. “You were ignoring my calls.”
“That’s the beauty of divorce, once those papers are signed, I’m no longer required to speak
to you.”
“Besides, Graham, you leave the key outside for anyone to use, for a cop I’d have thought
you wouldn’t do something so foolish.”
“Yes, I should have moved it once your ass was out of here.” He pointed to the hallway.
“Now you have to leave.”
“Why the rush?” A smirk touched her lips and he immediately knew she was up to
something, or had done something. Any amount of amusement he was feeling at seeing her
squirm was fading fast. He wanted and needed her out, immediately.
“Most importantly, because I don’t want you around anymore. But also, I had a long day and
I need some sleep, so you need to leave. NOW!”
“Is it because of that girl you’re seeing?”
Graham fought back the surge of anger that was beginning to simmer within, as his jaw
clenched. “What do you know about her?”
Emma shrugged as she slid from the bed and walked toward him, swaying her hips
seductively. “She dropped by. I sent her home.”
“Sent her home?”
“She’s not right for you. I can tell.”
“Where did she go?”
“Why should I care?” She reached out to touch him, but he grabbed her wrist.
“Don’t touch me Emma. I’m going to find her and you’re going to get out of my house.”
“This was our house.” She yanked her wrist from his grasp and scowled at him.
“WAS our house, but not anymore. When I get home I want you out, otherwise I’ll have you
escorted out and charged. Are we clear?”
Anger flared up in her blue eyes as she glared at him.
“I asked, are we clear?”
“Asshole! Now I remember why I fucked around on you.” She grabbed her handbag and a
duffle bag from beside the bed, then stormed past him, nudging him in the stomach with her
elbow as she went past. Out in the hallway she spun around and caught his gaze. “And by the
way, the FedEx guy wasn’t the only guy I fucked in our bed!”
What in the name of God did I do to deserve this bullshit? Graham groaned inwardly, not
bothering to answer back and encourage more of an argument with her.
She waited for his response, and when one didn’t come she huffed and stormed down the
staircase. He didn’t follow, but waited until he heard the front door open and close before he
released the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.
He looked over to the bed; it beckoned to him, but he had more pressing issues. He didn’t
even want to imagine how torn up Genevieve would be feeling right now. He’d worked so hard
at making her feel as special as she deserved to be feeling and it would be shot to hell because of his bitch ex-wife.
Not bothering to take the time to change out of his uniform, he waited until he heard Emma’s
car start and tear out of the driveway before heading downstairs and grabbing his car keys.
Chapter 16
~ Graham ~
Where is she? After going to her apartment and coming up empty he visited her boutique,
curious to see if perhaps she’d gone to work early to clear her head. He found a note on the door apologizing to customers that the boutique was closed for the day.
Almost home, he pulled off to the side of the street, grabbed his mobile phone and rang her
number for the fifth time. As per the previous calls, it went straight to voicemail. He wasn’t sure if she had her ringer off or was flat out avoiding his calls.
Frustrated, he tossed the phone onto the passenger seat of the car, then shifted it into gear. He was almost home when he decided to make a stop. It was almost noon so surely Dane would be
up by now; if he wasn’t then he’d hang out and wait for him to get up. Maybe if Dane called her
she’d answer the phone; he hoped anyhow.
Fifteen minutes later, he was coming up onto Dane’s house and immediately spotted
Genevieve’s car in the driveway. Anger and hurt rumbled within him.
Of all places for her to go and of all people for her to run to, she went to his brother? He
attempted to keep a clear head as he pulled into the driveway and shut off the car.
Why shouldn’t she go to Dane, she thought he was messing with Emma, he reasoned with
himself as he made his way up the driveway toward the front door. At least he’d found her and
he could get things straightened out. Just because she was with Dane didn’t mean a thing, it
meant she wanted to talk about him and who better than with his twin brother? The more he
mulled it around in his mind the more it made sense and his anger faded.
Not bothering to knock, he flipped to Dane’s key on his key ring unlocked the door, opened it
and let himself in. The house was completely silent – too silent for a couple of people chatting, unless they went out. As he walked further into the house, he heard soft snores coming from the
living room.
Upon entering the living room his entire body froze as he laid eyes upon Dane, clad only in a
pair of boxers, lying on the sofa with Genevieve curled up next to him. They looked like a couple of lovers. It tore at him. Did her encounter with Emma simply drive her to the man she really wanted to be with? Just like with Emma, was he ultimately the consolation prize?
A part of him wanted to wake them and demand an explanation and explain the situation.
Dane would back him up and verify he was working, since he had worked the same shift. But
another part, a stronger part, was done. He was done with competition and fighting with his
brother over a woman. He cared for Genevieve deeply and thought they had a great future ahead
of them, but he knew he needed a woman who was one hundred percent positive it was him she
wanted in her life.
He refused to be a consolation prize again. Refused. Quietly, he made his way back out of the
house, got into his car and drove home.
~*~*~*~*~
Genevieve awoke to a thumping sound. Groggily, she opened her eyes and smiled to see
Graham under her, still sleeping. Closing her eyes she rubbed the sleep from them, glad that it
had all just been a dream. With her eyes cleared, she opened them back up and her body froze; it
wasn’t Graham’s body she was draped over, but Dane’s.
Oh shit. The realization sent a dagger into her heart, and sadness flooded through her again.
She pushed herself into a sitting position and pushed back the tears. Tears wouldn’t do her
any good. The faster I forget him the faster I can move on.
Her movement woke Dane and he stirred next to her. Slowly he opened his eyes and smiled
up at her. “Hey you. How are you feeling? Ready to talk?”
“Yes… No…” She sighed. “I don’t know.”
He sat up and stretched, before standing and offering his hand to her. “Come on. I’ll make
us…” Dane glanced over to the clock on the wall. “Lunch. And you can tell me what my ass of a
brother did to ya.” A wide smile spread across his lips and he jerked his head toward the kitchen.
“Come on.” Accepting his hand, she allowed herself to be pulled from the sofa and followed him
into the kitchen.
“So, ready to talk about it?” he asked, opening the fridge and surveying the contents as she
leaned against the kitchen counter, arms crossed over her chest.
“Oh, well. I guess.” She uncurled her arms and raked her fingers through her satiny locks.
“Today’s our one-month anniversary of making it official.”
“Uh-huh.”
“So I went to his house planning on surprising him when he got home after work.”
“Right.” With an armful of ingredients for sandwiches, he deposited them onto the countertop
and gave her a hip bump, moving her a couple of inches and out of his way. “So, was he a cranky
ass when he got home? He can get like that sometimes when it’s been an insane night. You’ll get
used to it, it’s nothing personal, but the job can mess with your head sometimes.”
Genevieve laughed. She couldn’t imagine Graham being cranky with her, but then again, she
couldn’t imagine him going back to Emma, but…
“So spill it. What’s going on?”
“It’s Emma.”
His body tensed up and his brow furrowed as he turned to face her straight on. “Emma? What
does she have to do with anything?”
“She was there when I got there.”
Lunch forgotten, his frown deepened. “I don’t understand. She was there? What did she
want?”
“Graham apparently. And it seems he wants her because she was in a little teddy-like thing
when she answered the door.”
Confusion was etched in his expression and shone in his eyes. “What did Graham tell you?”
“I didn’t speak to him, she wouldn’t let me. She told me they’d had an exhausting night and
he was sleeping. He was supposed to be at work, but apparently he’d lied so he could be with
her.”
“Graham did work last night. He was still at the precinct filling out paperwork when I left
this morning.”
A spike of hope raced through her until she remembered it was his brother she was talking to.
“You don’t have to cover for him.”
He huffed and turned back to making the sandwiches. “Trust me, the last thing I’d do is cover
for the guy who stole you.” Despite his words a grin touched his lips.
Genevieve laughed. “He didn’t steal me.”
“Either way, you’re with him and not me so I consider that stealing.”
“But his car was there when I got there.”
He turned back to her. She could see him thinking. “You know, I think he went in with his
partner; they went to a game before work. They do that once in a while.”
“Why didn’t you go?”
Dane shrugged. “Just didn’t.”
“So how did she get in?”
He turned back to her, passing her a ham and cheese sandwich. “How were you planning on
getting in?”
“The key under the rock behind the garbage bin.” She took a bite from the sandwich, not
even realizing how hungry she was until that moment.
He reached out and tapped her on the nose. “Bingo.” She giggled and jerked away from him,
swatting at his hand.
“Shit. I never thought of that.”
“Yup. That’s my guess.”
“But they’re divorced.”
“I’m guessing she’s pissed because I turned her down the other day and she’s trying to” – he
made air quotes – “ – get back at me.” With a huff, he grabbed his sandwich and took a hearty
bite from it then spun around and leaned back against the counter, continuing to eat.
It all began to click into place and she groaned inwardly. “I’m such an idiot.” She
immediately felt an intense guilt. How could she ever think he’d go back to Emma?
“Nah, he’s the idiot for not changing the hiding spot of that key.”
“Then I think I’m going to have to go and see him.”
“Yeah, if Emma was there, I’m sure he could use seeing you right now. She has a tendency of
riling him up pretty bad and considering the insane night we had last night with calls I imagine
he was already in a foul mood.”
“I’m going to go check my phone and see if he called.” Leaving the remainder of her
sandwich on the countertop she made her way into the living room, grabbed her handbag from
next to the sofa, opened it and grabbed her phone.
“Did he call?” Dane asked, following her into the living room as he stuffed the remainder of
his sandwich into his mouth.
“Five times. And there’s voicemail.”
“Well, there ya go.”
Smiling, she went over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a hug; he
responded by pulling her tight and placing his chin on the top of her head. It wasn’t the hug of
would-be lovers, but of friends – sweet and comforting, but nothing more. “Thank you Dane.”
She pulled away and her smile widened. “For understanding.” She was about to pull out of his
arms when he caught her, holding her to him.
“Graham’s a good man, Ginny. Much better than I am. He deserves a woman like you and
you should be with him ’cause you’ll never meet a man who will treat you better than him.”
Genevieve’s eyes began to water and she swiped at them with the backs of her hands. She
knew that. She’d let her own insecurities and fears cloud the truth. “You deserve someone too,
Dane. You really do.”
He chuckled and released her, giving her a quick smack on the bottom, making her giggle
and yelp in surprise. “Well get going, no doubt he’s giving himself an aneurysm worrying about
you and in a mad search of the city.”
“Okay.” She gave him another smile and half-wave before turning from him and leaving, not
looking back.
~*~*~*~*~
~ Graham ~
Graham upped the speed on the treadmill and broke into a run. Whatever tiredness he’d felt
upon getting home was long gone. Now he was filled with an adrenaline rush, his mind working
overtime. After spending close to an hour attempting to sleep he’d decided to try and work it off in his small basement home gym. Maybe if he pushed himself to the limits of his exhaustion he’d
be able to fall into a blissful sleep.
He’d been running for close to fifteen minutes, his heart thumping rapidly in his chest and
sweat covering virtually every inch of his body when the doorbell rang through the house. He
ignored it. The last thing he wanted was to talk to someone – anyone.
But the person outside seemed to be intent on speaking with him. After a minute of hearing
the doorbell ring, he sighed in resignation.
Maybe it’s Genevieve, or Dane, maybe it’s both of them, a voice in the back of his mind
chimed in. He didn’t know what he thought of that option. Maybe there was a reasonable
explanation for them being cuddled and asleep on Dane’s sofa. She had thought he was back
with Emma. Maybe she ran to Dane for comfort…
But Dane could have told her he hadn’t been home and indeed been working. Anger surged
<
br /> up within him as he took the stairs two at a time to answer the blasted door and the insistent
person on the other side of it.
Not bothering to look out to see who it was on his doorstep, he pulled the door open and
came face to face with Genevieve. He didn’t know what to say so he said nothing and simply
stared at her waiting for her to speak.
She fidgeted in front of him a moment before speaking. “Can I come in?”
With a nod, Graham stepped aside and motioned for her to enter.
“Can we talk?”
“You didn’t return my phone calls.” He closed the door behind her, waiting on bated breath
to see if she’d tell him the truth and admit to being with Dane, or if she’d lie to him. If she lied, he was done. He had a marriage full of lies and games, he wouldn’t tolerate them again.
“I was sleeping and when I woke up I saw the calls and came straight here.”
“I see.” His heart sank; she wasn’t going to tell him about Dane.
“Can we sit down?” She started walking toward the living room as she asked the question,
not expecting him to say no.
“Sure.” He followed her and took a seat next to her, leaving a foot worth of distance between
them. “So talk. What’s going on?”
She looked at him, confusion in her features. He clenched his jaw, took a deep breath in,
slowly released it and forced himself to relax. He slid a little closer to her, taking her hand in his.
“I apologize. I’m exhausted.”
Genevieve seemed to relax at his explanation. “I came by this morning wanting to surprise
you when you got off and Emma was here.”
“I’m sorry, Ginny. I had no idea until I came home and she was in the bedroom.”
Her eyes narrowed and anger flashed in them at the thought of Emma.
He gave her hand a squeeze, attempting to calm her. “Nothing happened, Ginny. I kicked her
out and re-hid the key.”
She laughed softly. “The key was how I was planning on getting in.”
“Regardless of what she told you, I wasn’t here. I worked all night and my partner dropped
me home this morning. I had no idea she’d be here. No clue at all.”
She stopped laughing and lowered her gaze to their interlaced fingers. “I thought you were
back with her. She was so convincing and everything. I thought it was happening to me again. I