by Niecey Roy
Roxanna sat behind her desk and nodded to a chair across from her. I sat.
She folded her hands on the desk, portraying the epitome of importance. “Now why don’t you tell me what you’re so excited about.”
I pulled the newspaper out of my purse. Setting it on the desk, I said, “This is going to change my life.”
“What’s that?” She took the newspaper. Her gaze skimmed the headline on the front page I’d circled with a fat red marker. She blinked at me, confused. “The Buchanan’s annual masquerade ball?”
“Yes, the cancer research fundraiser.” I nodded and sat on the edge of the seat, barely able to contain my excitement. “This is how I’m going to fix things!”
“Okay?”
I rushed around the desk to grab the newspaper from her and jabbed my finger at it. “This is it!”
She jerked the paper from me. “Calm down. I can’t talk to you when you get like this.”
“I’m serious. Think about it.” Pacing the small space between her desk and the wall, my hands became animated. “Deborah blackballed me from the bridal expo.”
“What?” Her eyes widened. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I just found out about it two days ago,” I said, still pacing. “It sent me into some kind of rage.” I stopped pacing to clench my fists together and face her. “And then I called her.”
“Her,” she repeated.
“Deborah.”
“Holy shit. What did you say?”
I told her word for word our conversation, which left Roxanna speechless. Roxanna was never speechless.
I ended with, “It didn’t end well.”
“I bet she’s angry.”
“Furious. I was a mess. Call it another nervous breakdown. I went to Decadence to drink. Alone.”
“Alone?” Roxanna shook her head. “You could have called me.”
“I know, but I wasn’t thinking clearly.” I waved my hands. “So I went there and got smashed drunk and made an ass of myself. And then I fought with Leo. And then we made up and—”
“Ew!” She covered her ears. “La-la-la, I don’t want to hear that part.”
I took her hands from her ears. “I’m not going to give you those details, so shush it.”
“Thank God.”
“Rox, pay attention. What I’m telling you is that during our phone call, Deborah revealed a huge piece of information. Huge.”
“God, the anticipation is killing me,” Roxanna breathed. “What is it, already?”
“She still has the contract. The crazy bitch reads it for orgasmic pleasure because she’s a nut job.”
“Okay,” she said. Her gaze searched mine as she worked to catch up.
Sitting in front of her on the edge of her desk, I waved the newspaper at her. “I’ve got a plan. And it’s all thanks to Deborah.”
“A plan?”
“Yes. A plan.”
“Thank God,” she sighed. “I was so bored with Victim Lexie. If you didn’t knock that crap off I was going to shake you. Hard.”
“You’re right. No more Victim Lexie. That bitch is going down.”
“Good. Because playing nice with the devil will get you nowhere. Let’s take her out.”
She sounded like she was kidding, but just in case, I said, “Um, yes, we will take her down. Not out.”
Roxanna’s smile widened to a full-out grin. “Oh my God, I love Angry Lexie. She’s so much better than your crazy, depressed version. Not that I didn’t enjoy her a little bit, but with the carb binging you kind of took the crazy bit over the edge. It was getting pretty painful to watch.”
“Jeez, I got it.” I said. “The point is, she made the mistake of telling me she still has the contract, and now I’m going to use it against her.”
The Buchanans had brought out the darkest version of myself. As Roxanna put it, I’d become a victim; something I’d never considered myself. I’d always been the type of person who saw what she wanted and went after it. Working hard for something didn’t faze me, it’s the way I was raised. I had almost lost myself while I rolled up into a cocoon of self-pity.
“So tell me what you have in mind,” Roxanna said.
I raised the newspaper again so she could see the article. “I am waging war on the Buchanans.”
She raised her brows at me. “Ballsy. I like it.”
“Drastic situations call for drastic measures. Right?”
“Exactly,” She nodded her head as she sat back into her chair.
“So, we are going to sneak into the Buchanan’s mansion and steal the contract.”
“At the masquerade ball?” She shook her head. “That’s not a good idea. She’ll have you thrown out and you’ll end up on the front page of the newspaper. Again.”
“But don’t you see?” My mind raced with my plan. “It’s perfect. Everyone will be in costume. And so will we. We can slip inside, sneak to her office. I know where it is, and it’s on the opposite end of the house from where the party will be. In and out before anyone notices we’re there.”
While I spoke, Roxanna’s face metamorphosed from doubtful to energized. “You’re right. It’s perfect.” She jumped to her feet and came around the desk and grabbed me by the shoulders. “And we get to go costume shopping! Gen is going to love this.”
“No!”
Roxanna blinked at my outburst. “Huh?”
I lowered my voice. “No. We can’t tell her. This is between us.”
Roxanna raised her brows in suspicion. “Why?”
“It’s the same night she’s meeting Matt’s little sister for the first time. She’s been talking about it for months now. His sister is only in town that weekend and if she misses that dinner—and she’ll insist on coming with us—I know she’ll be really disappointed. This is my mess and I don’t want it ruining her plans. So, it’s just you and me.”
“And Richard.”
“Why do we need Richard?” I asked.
“Because this is the big time, Lexie.” Roxanna clasped her hands and squealed with excitement. “We’re going in there like the big dogs do. With surveillance equipment. The real stuff. Richard will know how to use all those gadget-thingies.”
“The real stuff?” I wasn’t sure I liked where this was going.
“Yes. We’re taking one of the security vans.”
I shook my head. “Oh, no. Leo won’t go for that. He just told us to behave.”
Roxanna grinned. “He’s not going to know. There’re four vans downstairs, and we’ll only need it for about an hour. No big deal. He won’t even know it’s gone. Besides, this way Richard will be outside the mansion, ready to drive us out of there. He’ll be our eyes and ears outside, and we’ll be able to communicate with him while we’re inside to let him know when we’re on our way out. Easy-peasy.”
Well, when she put it that way…
“Just an hour,” I said, thoughtful as I envisioned the scenario. It would work much easier if we had a getaway vehicle. In and out.
“God, this is going to be great. Like a real spy mission.”
I crossed my arms. “We’re not getting crazy or anything. In and out, hopefully under a half hour.”
“Right.” She dropped back into her chair and crossed her legs. “Of course.”
“And once I have that contract, I’ll use it to blackmail her.” My brain ticked with all the possibilities. “I’ll make her retract her statement. Yeah. On camera!”
“Oh my God, she’s going to freak.” Roxanna grinned. “I love it.”
“And I’ll make her go talk to the bank and tell them I’m not a bad investment.”
“And she needs to get you back in the expo,” Roxanna added.
“This is great.” I rubbed my hands together. “I can’t wait to give her a taste of her own medicine.”
“We have one week to get ready for the ball. That’s not very long.” Roxanna pointed to the date on the newspaper.
“There’s nothing to really stress over. I k
now the mansion well enough so we won’t have any trouble inside.” I was sure of it.
“We’ll have to bring Richard in sometime after hours to check out the van equipment and make sure he can figure out how to use it.”
I fidgeted in my seat. “Leo will be pissed if he finds out.”
“Yes, but we need the van. And he’s not going to find out.”
“Okay.” I frowned at the stab of guilt. I’d told him we’d figure things out together, and now we planned to steal his van. Not stealing, borrowing. And I didn’t want him involved. He’d never agree with this idea, and it had to be done. I couldn’t trust him with this—he’d never understand.
“So how are we going to get inside? Dress like waitresses?” Roxanna asked, her pen poised to take notes on her own notepad.
“No, we’ll have to go in with masks and ball gowns like the rest of the guests. If she saw me, or anyone else recognized me, we’d be thrown out. Worse, she might call the police on us for crashing the party.” I had no doubt Deborah would do just that. And she would grin while the cops snapped on the cuffs and hauled us away in the back of a cop car.
“I could probably get on the list since it’s a fundraiser event. My dad’s loaded. I could go as a representative for Moss Industries.”
“She knows you’re my friend.” This plan had sounded much better in my head, and the details were getting sticky. “I doubt she’d let you on the guest list.”
“I need to be on that list,” Roxanna said.
“Deborah’s assistant is in charge of the list.”
“What’s her name?”
“Kristine Kosmicki.”
“Kristine Kosmicki,” she repeated, writing the name on a notepad. “All we need is a little something to bribe her with, that’s all.”
When I left Roxanna, she was busy researching places we could get costumes for the ball. What I was about to do went far beyond anything I would ever have considered before. Maybe Roxanna’s wild ideas and too many espionage movies had rubbed off on me. Whatever the case, it didn’t matter. Smiling, I pressed the elevator button for the lobby. After next week, things would finally be back to normal.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Are you ready for this?” I asked, turning to face Leo on my parents’ doorstep. The blue and grey sweater somehow made his green eyes even more intense. Or maybe it was all in my head. Things were different between us, closer. I finally had closure and now everything about Leo—his smell, his touch, his smile, the way he said my name—embraced me. His gaze twinkled down at me, and my heart swelled so much I thought it would burst.
He dropped a soft kiss to my lips. “Don’t be nervous.”
“Alexis Anne Gorecki.”
I jumped away from Leo. Gen stood in the open doorway on the other side of the threshold, her lips upturned into a grin. “You are so busted, you little tramp.”
Leo laughed, and I grabbed her by the hand and yanked her out onto the front porch, then turned to pull the door shut behind her.
Whirling to face her, I said, “Jeez, shut it, you brat.”
“Don’t get mad at me because you were caught in a lie.” She waved her finger back and forth between us, still smiling widely. “Catherine said you told her there’s nothing going on between the two of you.” She laughed. “You are so dead when she finds out you lied to her.”
“Don’t remind me,” I grumbled.
“Why are you two out here lurking anyway? I’ve been watching you from the living room window for five minutes.” She crossed her arms, shivering. “It’s freezing out here.”
Leo chuckled. “She’s nervous about bringing a new boyfriend home.”
Boyfriend. This was the first time he’d defined our relationship.
“Boyfriend, huh?” I smoothed my hand over his chest. “Kind of presumptuous, don’t you think?”
His cocky grin told me ‘no,’ and we both knew—even though we hadn’t had the discussion—we were together. This was a thing, he and I.
“Look how cute you are.” Gen punched Leo in the arm. “I’m happy for you two.”
“Now convince her she has nothing to worry about. She thinks your parents are going to stress about it.”
Gen snorted. “Lame. They both love you. They’re going to be so happy.” She turned and opened the door, then said to me over her shoulder, “They were worried you were going off the deep end.”
I pushed her into the house. “They wouldn’t say that.”
She gave me a pointed stare.
“Well, Dad wouldn’t say that,” I said. Leo helped me out of my jacket, and I leaned into his side just to feel his arm around me. “Thank you.”
“The guys are in the living room,” Gen told Leo, pulling me away from him by the arm. “I think they’re watching Die Hard.”
“Love that movie,” Leo said as Gen nudged me toward the kitchen.
I looked back at him over my shoulder, barely holding back an adoring sigh.
“Look at you,” Gen teased. “You have your dreamy-eyes back.”
“Quit pushing me.” I pushed her hands away. As we neared the kitchen, I whispered, “Catherine really is going to kill me.”
Gen grinned. “At least it’s you this time and not me.” She sing-songed the last words, and I glared at her.
“Thanks for the support, brat.” But I couldn’t keep the smile off my face—how could anyone blame me for falling for Leo. He was perfect. And he’s mine.
Gen whispered in my ear, “You should have thought about that before you decided to have dirty sex with Leo, and before you lied about your relationship to everyone.”
“Ugh, shut up,” I said, and made a grab for her blue tipped hair, but she danced away, laughing.
“Girls! Not in the kitchen.” My mom looked up from the bowl of tossed salad. “Catherine invited Leo to dinner tonight, and I don’t want you two goofing around the kitchen and spilling something.”
Gen whirled over to my mom and kissed her on the cheek. I followed, and kissed her other cheek.
Gen winked obnoxiously at me. “Everything will be perfect for Lexie’s new bo-oy-friend.”
“Boyfriend?” My mom looked up to pin me with a surprised gaze.
Gen didn’t side-step fast enough this time; I tugged on her hair, and she stuck her tongue out at me.
Catherine watched us from where she leaned against the counter and rolled her eyes. “You two…I swear.”
“Since when do you have a boyfriend?” My mom now turned her back on the salad bowl. “Who is it?”
“It’s, um… I glanced nervously at Catherine, who towel dried a maroon ceramic serving bowl while staring me down. “I, uh—”
“Sheesh, spit it out already.” Gen laughed, her eyes shining.
“Okay.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “I came here with Leo.”
“With Leonardo Moss?” Catherine set the ceramic bowl down. “The guy I asked you about earlier this week and you ripped my head off?”
“Alexis.” My mom’s stern stare made me fidget.
“You are so dramatic,” I told Catherine. “I did not rip your head off.”
“Humph,” she answered, and turned her back on me.
I glanced at Gen and crossed my eyes. She pressed her smiling lips together and puffed her cheeks out.
“All I can say,” Catherine said, her back still to me, “is I hope you don’t screw things up with Leo. You aren’t exactly a ball of joy to be around these days.”
Before I could reply, my mom said, “Yes, and your dad really likes him, Lexie. I hope you’re…better.”
“Thanks for the encouraging pep talk, family.” I grinned and fought the urge to twirl.
Later, after dinner, I watched Leo with my family. He belonged here with me, with us. Every time his gaze found mine, my pulse would race because it felt right. For the first time in so long everything felt right. How had I ever thought Jeremy and I would be happy together? We hadn’t had this kind of comfort and laughter. Thou
gh my parents would have—and did—accept Jeremy into the family, he had barely spent any time at my parents’ dinner table. I wasn’t sure what kind of blinders I’d worn in that relationship, how I’d allowed myself to wear them, but I didn’t have to worry about that with Leo. He was so open, so forward in the way he spoke, the way he laughed. When he put his arm around me on the couch and I relaxed into his side, it was as if we had always been this way, as if he was a part of me.
I hadn’t felt this close to anyone in so long. Maybe since the first time he and I were together. And I love him. My skin warmed, and I knew my cheeks were flushed. I hid my face behind the wine glass, glancing sideways up at Leo’s smile. Did he know how I felt? What would he say? I wasn’t ready to admit it out loud, to profess my love to him—again. It was way too soon. A part of me was still afraid of getting my heart broken, even if my heart told me this time Leo wouldn’t leave me; this time he came with a happily-ever-after. I hope.
Chapter Twenty-Five
The Colonial Revival mansion on Prairie Hill was impressive. The massive white columns reached up to a second floor balcony, the wide stone steps rounded down to the half-moon driveway. The fountain was lit up tonight, the water flowing into a round, stone bowl. The first time Jeremy brought me here to meet his parents for an afternoon luncheon, I was awestruck. I’d known he came from a wealthy family, but it hadn’t hit me just how wealthy until I saw their home.
Roxanna sat beside me in the backseat of the limousine as we waited our turn to arrive at the front steps of the mansion. The line of cars wound through the gated community, filled with costumed guests who no doubt bubbled with excitement at attending the city’s most prestigious party. Everybody who was anybody in this state would be attending this ball. Our driver, a burly man with a snow white beard and kind eyes, hummed cheerfully, no doubt drawn into the festive mood. Lights from inside the mansion spilled through the windows, illuminating the grounds.