Austin winks in her direction and then looks back at me with that stern face. I can only imagine the line of questioning I’ll get from the former Marine, and I know this can go from cordial to conflict in a heartbeat.
I step up and tell him my truth, “I’m no Missy, if that’s what you’re worried about. I’ve heard the stories, and I had the unfortunate privilege of sharing a meal with her and your father—”
“A full meal?” Jalynn asks, surprised. “I couldn’t make it to the appetizers before telling those two off.”
Tessa waves a hand in the air. “I spilled my drink on her Dior. That’s the one and only time, and it was enough.”
Jalynn and Tessa high-five.
I look to Austin and Bryce. “What I mean is, I know what she is and why you’d look at me and suspect the worst. I’m not after Tanner’s money. Truth is, I’m actually uncomfortable with all of this. I know what money can do to people, and I’d just as well be happy with living in Tanner’s studio apartment where at least one of my things gets ruined with paint every week.”
Tanner’s hand relaxes at my side.
I look at him with a smile. “We’re in love, and this marriage is very real and made with the best of intentions. We’re happy to answer any and all questions you have. And I signed a prenup. Or a post-nup. I’m not entirely sure what it—”
“Which I strongly opposed,” Tanner adds.
“I’d like to see that,” Bryce states. Tessa gives him a beady-eyed expression. “I want to make sure they’re both protected.”
“Very fair.” I nod. “Just give us a few minutes because I’m a little jet-lagged and hungry.”
Bryce’s hands are buried deep in his pockets, and Austin still has his arms crossed. Bryce’s brows rise at the same time Austin’s head tilts to the side. There’s an awkward silence. My stomach grumbles, but I don’t think anyone can hear it with all the internal noise going on in our thoughts.
Austin looks at Bryce. The two seem to be having a conversation without actually speaking.
When they look back at us, Austin is the first to speak, “How is it possible that the youngest Sexton boy is the first to marry?” He’s laughing as he wraps his arms around Tanner. “Mom always said you were the lover out of all of us. She knew then that you’d be the first to attach yourself to a ball and chain.”
“Let’s get your wife fed.” Bryce holds his arm out, pointing us toward the kitchen.
Their change in reactions to our marriage news is giving me emotional whiplash.
“You actually have food in this place? I thought you were the takeout king?” Tanner says to Bryce.
“Too much Chinese food was giving me a fat ass. We cook our own meals around here now,” Tessa chimes in as she puts Charlie down.
Bryce wraps his arm around Tessa, smiling. “Yeah, there are a lot of changes around here.”
“Most being me,” Charlie announces with his thumb pointing back at him. “I have one question though.” He walks up to Tanner. “What do you know about Legos?”
They all laugh while Tanner squats down to Charlie’s level. “I am a Lego fanatic. Have you ever seen a Nerf gun made out of Legos?” he says with excitement in his voice.
Charlie’s face lights up. “Really? Oh, you have to show me that.” He pulls on Tanner’s arm, and Tanner follows without hesitation.
“Here, come sit,” Tessa says as she motions to the table in the gourmet kitchen. “Charlie’s got his paws on Tanner. He’ll be busy for a few minutes.”
“Yep, that’s how Tessa nailed me down.” Bryce laughs.
Tessa smacks his arm. “I did not use my kid to nail anyone down.”
“What? He’s fucking adorable.” Bryce grabs Tessa’s hand and kisses her palm.
We all sit and talk, getting to know each other. As Bryce’s assistant at Sexton Media, Jalynn has colorful stories to tell. She tells a hilarious story about how Bryce courted Tessa. When Bryce found out Tessa worked at a salon, he had Jalynn make an appointment for him, so he could see her again. He thought she was a hairdresser or masseuse. Turns out, she’s a makeup artist, and she completely did his face up, eye shadow and all.
“Hey, in my defense, I had no idea what I was coming in for.” Bryce holds up his hand.
“I tried to warn you, but you wouldn’t listen,” Jalynn defends. “You do look good in blush though. Brings out those high cheekbones.”
We laugh, we drink, and we tell stories. Tanner comes down and grabs a beer. The brothers have plenty to tell of their days at the lake house. Bryce was chubby, Austin’s a troublemaker, and Tanner has forever been the perfect one. I’m not surprised.
Their dynamic together lifts my spirits. After meeting Edward and Missy, I was worried Tanner didn’t know what it was like to have a normal family. Now, I have no doubts. More importantly, I feel like I fit in with this crazy, dysfunctional family, and I love it.
I just wish meeting them and announcing our marriage were the only reasons we were here.
26
TANNER
Seeing Harper sitting with my brothers brings me so much joy. I wish I were only here to introduce them and celebrate our wedding. Unfortunately, we have more important things to discuss.
Tessa comes down from putting her son to bed. He’s a cute kid who thinks my brother is Superman and calls Austin Batman because of his love for the Batmobile. The table conversation was fun and light, but now that his innocent ears are asleep, it’s time for the adults to talk.
Harper notices my change in posture. I ask Bryce if he has scotch and to bring over a few glasses. We’re gonna need it. Too bad he thinks I want it for a toast.
“So, fill us in. When did you guys get married?” Bryce asks, pouring the glasses. He serves Tessa first.
“Three days ago.” I smile, wrapping my arm around Harper, who still looks gorgeous despite the fact that it’s three hours ahead in New York. We should be long asleep. “She knocked me off my feet, and I didn’t want to spend another day without her by my side.”
When I glance up after placing a kiss on Harper’s forehead, both Austin and Bryce are looking at their girlfriends. Part of me wishes I had been here these past few months to see the evolution of two men who had sworn off love but actually found it in the most powerful ways.
FaceTime and phone calls aren’t enough to understand how they feel about these women. Bryce’s hand curls around Tessa’s, and Jalynn lovingly rests her head on Austin’s shoulder. I get the feeling the idea of marriage has been rolling around in their heads as well.
“I wish you had told us. We would have been on the first flight there,” Bryce says.
“Before or after you told me not to do it?” I raise a glass to my lips and wait for their responses. When they don’t give one, I down my drink.
“It’s not like that, baby bro. We don’t know Harper. How could we know if she was using you or not?” Austin says and then looks my way. “Sorry. Shit. Should we be having this conversation in the other room?”
“Anything you have to say can be said in front of my wife. Whether you like it or not, this is legal and final. She’s prepared to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly that comes with being in this family,” I say, and Harper gives me a reassuring nod as she rubs my thigh. “My entire life, you have told me what to do. You treat me like the baby.”
“That’s because you are,” Austin says.
“I’ve always held you to the highest caliber. I think you’re smarter than this fool.” Bryce motions toward Austin, who raises his own glass.
“It’s true. He throws it in my face on a daily basis, how he can’t wait for you to come to work so that he can have real talent beside him.” Austin shoots his drink back.
I look back at Bryce in surprise. He’s always been supportive of my schooling, and he tells me about the business. I just never thought he was actually listening.
“Harper, you’re going to love San Francisco,” Jalynn exclaims.
Harper’s hand pau
ses on my thigh.
I answer for her, “We haven’t discussed logistics yet. Harper is a fifth grade teacher, so she can’t leave New York until June.” I lift the bottle and refill my and Austin’s glasses. “There are a few things we need to talk about, but it will all work out. There’s something else we need to discuss first.”
“It’s a bummer we missed it. I’ve always wanted to go to New York. We would have come,” Tessa says.
“We planned the wedding in twenty-four hours, so it wouldn’t have been much notice even if you did want to come,” I reply.
Bryce wraps his arms around Tessa. “We’ll go to New York soon. Maybe a weekend at The Carlyle Hotel.”
Tessa blushes as he places a kiss on her lips.
“Well, you’re here now, so let’s celebrate. We have our annual Kick Off The Holiday party tomorrow, but let’s plan a celebration for this weekend,” Austin suggests.
“What’s that?” Harper asks.
“It’s the annual Sexton party they host before the big advertising push for the holidays,” Jalynn explains.
“That would be nice, but unfortunately, our nuptials isn’t the reason we came here, unannounced.” I sigh, glancing to Harper for support, and then spilling everything I’ve learned. “Harper had the unfortunate opportunity to meet Missy and Father a few days ago when they were in town.”
“She said that earlier,” Bryce speaks up and then curses under his breath. “Please don’t tell me you’re selling your portions and staying in New York.”
“No. Don’t worry. I—” I reach for Harper’s hand. “We haven’t decided yet what our future holds, but there’s something that Harper brought to my attention that I think you guys should look at.”
“What is it?” Austin sits up, giving us his full attention.
The four of them are looking at me. My palms are sweaty, so I let go of Harper’s hand and wipe them on my jeans and rise from the table, holding my finger up to let them know that I’ll be right back.
I walk to the front of the apartment and go into my carry-on bag where I have Mom’s file. For a moment, I wonder if this is the right thing to do. I could be wrong. I pray I’m so fucking wrong. I could also be right. I have no idea.
With a heavy heart, I walk back into the kitchen and hold up the file. “This is Mom’s entire case.”
My brothers flinch. The girls’ eyes widen, and Jalynn bites her lip.
“Why do you have Mom’s case file?” Bryce asks, sitting straighter. His arms cross defensively.
“I took it from Dad years ago. That’s what happens when you baby-brother me. I take matters into my own hands,” I reply.
Austin rubs the back of his neck. “Okay. So, what is it you want us to see?”
The papers feel like a thousand pounds in my hands. I look at Tessa and Jalynn and realize this might not be something my brothers want them to hear. “It’s pretty intense and something we might want to discuss in private.”
Jalynn speaks up, “Hell no. I’m not going anywhere. Whatever’s in that file can be heavy, and I don’t need Austin running.”
He gives me a nod. “Jalynn stays.”
“Same for Tessa,” Bryce speaks up even though Tessa looks like she’s ready to bolt.
I put the file on the table and open it up, keeping the gory photographs buried in the back of the paper-clipped pile. The pictures of the accident are enough remembrance of the day we’ve all worked hard to forget.
“I’ve studied these photos a hundred times. In the back of my mind, I just had this feeling that something was off,” I start. “Dad wouldn’t talk about the accident, and if I asked questions, he would tell me I was too young. He didn’t want me to hurt more than I was already hurting. I always knew that was a crock. That’s why I took the file. When Harper saw it, she had the same feeling. Her dad owns a high-end auto body shop in Queens—”
“You’re officially my favorite sister-in-law.” Austin nods slightly with a smile on his face.
Harper smiles softly before Tessa places her hands on her hips and speaks up, “She’s your only sister-in-law.”
“I know. That’s why she’s my favorite. So far,” he jokes.
I try to wrangle his attention back in. “Harper, being raised around cars, looked at the photos differently than I have all these years.”
Bryce leans in. “What do you mean?”
Harper lifts the photo that she took to her dad and puts it in front of Austin. “This is your mom’s car after it drove off the cliff. The car is pretty beat up, but check out down here, the spot right next to the bush.”
She waits for Austin to take it in.
His mouth purses as he studies it. “The tire came off. That was due to impact.”
“That’s what the report says, but a tire shouldn’t come off the body so easily,” Harper explains.
Austin’s entire face goes pale. “The frame would be bent, but this axle is intact.”
Harper’s chest inflates as she takes a nervous breath. He gets it, too. “Messing with someone’s lug nuts is the number one way to cause accidents and make it appear to be just that. An accident.”
“What are you guys looking at?” Bryce asks, taking the photo from Austin, who now has his head in his hands.
Harper points it out to him. “A tire is held on with five lug nuts. In a crash, the tire can come off, but the rim would be damaged. In your mom’s case, the tire completely came off the car without any damage to that portion of the car.”
“You think someone tampered with their mother’s tire?” Tessa asks in disbelief.
I glance at Harper and then back at them again and nod. “Yes.”
Austin rips the picture from Bryce’s hands. “Fuck! How did I not notice that before?”
“Because you don’t think like a criminal,” Harper says.
The four of them swerve their heads in her direction, and she goes instantly pink.
“My dad’s seen his fair share of crime, and he likes to share his stories. Turns out, I have an eye for the illegal.”
“We think it was Dad or Missy who did this. Possibly both,” I add.
And, now, they’re all looking at me with wide eyes and slacked jaws.
“You think Dad tried to kill Mom?” Bryce asks in disgust. I’m not sure if it’s at the idea of Dad doing this or at me for insinuating he might have.
“My money’s on Missy,” I suggest.
“Are you sure about this? Eight years later, and you guys look at a photograph and upend the entire investigation?” Bryce asks.
Austin looks at him with a solemn nod. His mouth pinches as he shakes his head. “Motherfucker,” he growls. “This is my fault. I was such a selfish prick. I didn’t want anything to do with this. I know about cars. I should have looked at this file closer.”
Bryce is rubbing his temples. “It’s on me. Dad fought with me so much over the investigation. I always thought something was off, but he kept saying I had to focus on the company and leave the investigation to the experts.”
“Whoa,” Jalynn speaks up with her palms in the air. “You all know I’ve had my fair share of run-ins with Missy, and she’s not my favorite Sexton by far, but do you all really think she is smart enough to plan something like this or that your dad is evil enough to try to kill his wife?”
Silence fills the air.
“Dad knows cars. He taught me everything I know.” Austin adamantly shakes his head. “No. He’s a prick, but he’s not a murderer. Fucking Missy. I swear, the day that pageant queen entered my life, I should have known she would be trouble just by the way she was enamored by our lifestyle. I was too young and dumb.”
“And horny,” Bryce adds.
“You slept with Missy?” Jalynn says in shock.
“Lost my virginity to her,” Austin says dryly. “She tried to move on to Bryce, but he had a girlfriend. Dad was the next easy target.”
Jalynn grabs her stomach. “I think I’m gonna be sick.”
“Let’s b
ack up here,” Tessa orders in her motherly tone. “Everyone is in agreement that your mom’s tire was tampered with?”
We all nod.
“Why didn’t the authorities see it?” she asks.
“After Mom passed away, there was a detective over. A lot. They’d go into my father’s study. He was probably paying him off,” I say.
“Do you really think your dad was part of this?” Jalynn asks.
“I’ve always wondered why Dad puts up with her shit. No one can fuck that good. Trust me,” Austin states matter-of-factly, and Jalynn hits his chest. He rubs the spot she hit. “Seriously, something has always felt weird with them. Like she has this hold over him.”
“That hold didn’t stop him from hitting on me the night we met,” Tessa says to Bryce.
“He hit on you?” Bryce puffs out his chest like he’s about to strangle someone.
“That’s why I was up on the roof the night we met. I spilled my drink on Missy, and when she left in a huff, your dad hit on me.”
Bryce’s jaw looks like it’s trying to grind a hole in either side.
“Oh, stop. You should thank him at this point. If he hadn’t, you never would have seen me kicking the garbage can,” she says sweetly, leaning up to kiss Bryce.
He takes full advantage to make sure his claim on her is reinstated.
“Dad has never loved Missy,” Austin says. “Even when Mom and Dad used to fight all the time, they still had this bond. I’ve never seen him look at Missy the way he looked at Mom.”
“I can definitely attest to that. I was still living at home when all of this happened, remember? I watched the transformation right before my eyes. I always felt it was Mom’s death that changed Dad, but maybe Dad changed because he had something to do with Mom’s death,” I say, nodding my head like I’ve just figured it all out.
Bryce goes eerily quiet. His eyes are closed, and he’s clenching his jaw. “The night of Austin’s accident, I saw him praying. He was atoning for his sins. And it wasn’t for cheating on Mom with Missy. It was something darker. Austin’s right; there’s no love in that marriage. Whatever it is that binds them isn’t physical. That said, I refuse to believe our father killed our mother. Unless we can prove it, we might be making a mountain out of a molehill.”
Tanner: A Sexton Brothers Novel Page 26