Serenity (Inevitable Book 5)

by Janet Nissenson

  Once Julio had settled her on the living room sofa, sandwiched between him and Chad, Sasha tearfully choked out all that had happened. Her landlords let her talk, which was a small miracle for the chatty Julio, only offering her an occasional pat on the back or a low murmur of sympathy.

  “I - I did the right thing, didn’t I?” sniffled Sasha. “I mean, should I have stuck by him, waited to see how this thing played out?”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “Possibly.”

  Predictably, the spouses had differing opinions on the situation, with Julio remaining adamant that Sasha had done the right thing, while Chad continued to ponder the matter more closely.

  “Well, I can tell you right now, that if my man told me he was going to move back to the same house where his ex was still living, I would have told him to kiss my ass,” declared Julio. “I don’t care what he might have told you about how things have been over for a long time, and that he’s only doing this for his kids. Bitch is still sharing an address with him, isn’t she? Who knows how long it will be before she starts sharing other stuff again.”

  Chad thwacked his husband on the forehead with his open palm. “Very sensitive of you to bring that up right now,” he chastised. “Don’t listen to him, Sasha. He’s been watching too many episodes of Scandal lately. As for your Matthew, there’s no denying that he’s crazy in love with you, girl. I’m sure it’s killing him inside right now to have to do this, to have to make this choice. But I also understand your point. He’s cancelled enough dates with you these past few weeks that even a saint would be pissed off and fed up.”

  Julio wrapped an arm around Sasha’s shoulders and gave her a smacking kiss on the cheek. “She is a saint, Chad. And I don’t blame her in the least for finally setting her foot down. Matthew could have dealt with the problem child without moving back in with la familia. He’s feeling guilty right now, and responsible. And I’m guessing that little brat is taking full advantage of poor Daddy and putting the pressure on him. But something doesn’t feel right about this whole thing, you know? I can’t put my finger on it right now, but it will come to me eventually.”

  Chad exchanged a knowing look with Sasha. “Told you he’s been watching too many soap operas. Speaking of which, we need to get your mind off of all this for awhile. How about we order in from that Indian place you love, and then we can watch one of your favorite movies?”

  Julio made a face. “You know I can’t eat curry,” he complained. “It doesn’t agree with me. And I can never read the little tiny subtitles on those French films Sasha loves.”

  Sasha smiled in spite of her misery. “I’ll take pity on you, then,” she assured Julio. “Especially since I need cheering up right now. Why don’t you pick out a good comedy we can watch? As far as dinner is concerned, believe it or not, I’m actually in the mood for pizza and red wine.”

  Julio clapped his hands in glee. “Now you’re talking, querida! Let me go see if I can pry Elliott out of his bat cave for a night so he can join us. And Sadie’s at home for once. She has Sundays off from the strip club.”

  Chad shook his head. “For the fiftieth time - at least - Sadie does not work in a strip club. It’s officially called a gentleman’s club.”

  “Yeah, right,” snorted Julio. “Call it what you like, but I know what I saw the one time I went to watch her perform, and the girls might as well have been buck naked for the little scraps they were wearing. And the guys didn’t look much like gentlemen to me.”

  “Just go ask them if they want to join us,” instructed Chad. “But don’t tell them all the details, would you? I doubt Sasha wants all of her personal business shared with the whole household.”

  “Fine. What should I tell them then?” asked Julio with an exaggerated sigh.

  Sasha’s chin wobbled as she blinked back tears. “That I’ve got a broken heart,” she whispered. “And that the only short term cure I can think of is eating something greasy and trying to drink away my sorrows. Both of which are always easier when you’ve got as many friends as possible around you.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  June

  Matthew waited impatiently for the single serve coffeemaker to finish brewing, almost desperate for his morning caffeine fix. In the nearly four weeks since he’d been living back here in Hillsborough, he had yet to have a good night’s sleep, and most nights was lucky to get three or four hours. Last night had been no exception, and he didn’t expect the situation to improve anytime soon.

  He couldn’t recall a time in his life when he’d been so unhappy, so depressed, and the only real bright spot in his daily existence was his son. The one upshot of living here again had been being able to spend more time with Casey, and that was practically the only thing keeping him sane. The two of them would have dinner out at least twice a week, and Matthew made it a point to attend as many of Casey’s summer league baseball games as possible. And since school was out for the summer, Casey had more free time in the evenings to watch movies or quiz his father about computer programming. Matthew was more than a little astonished to realize just how smart his son was, how adept at figuring things out, even more so than he and his genius-level IQ siblings had been at the same age.

  Hayley, meanwhile, seemed at times to completely forget the fact that she was expecting a baby. She hadn’t breathed a word about the pregnancy to any of her friends, and had sworn Matthew and Casey to secrecy. She didn’t seem to have a care in the world otherwise, and went about her life as though nothing at all was different, or was going to change in a very big way within the next few months. She was always asleep when he left for the office, and slept in until at least noon on the weekends. Hayley was rarely home in the evenings, preferring to spend time going to the mall or the movies with her girlfriends, and she seemed impatient and bored to tears whenever Matthew tried to engage her in conversation.

  But when he had commented in a sarcastic tone the other night that she didn’t seem to care one way or the other if he was here or not, Hayley had given him a hug and a little kiss on the cheek, assuring him that it meant the world to her to have him back, and that she hadn’t been this happy in months. Matthew hadn’t been entirely convinced that she was sincere, however, especially when she promptly turned down his invitation to join him and Casey for dinner the following evening, claiming she’d already promised Brianne to go shopping with her.

  The coffee finished brewing, and Matthew grabbed the mug almost desperately, not caring that he burned the roof of his mouth by gulping a third of the hot liquid down at once. It was one of those mornings, he thought caustically, that he wished he could hook himself up to a coffee drip and have the caffeine delivered right to his veins.

  His thoughts drifted automatically to Sasha, as they did so frequently these days, and wondered if she was already up and about. He knew her to be an early riser, particularly on the days like this one when she taught a morning class, and he tried to picture her at the studio going through her own practice. He missed those mornings when he had woken early, only to find that she’d been up for more than an hour already, putting herself through a grueling routine. If he shut his eyes, he could picture her now standing in a one-legged tree pose, or dropping back effortlessly into a graceful backbend. Or simply sitting in a cross-legged lotus position, her eyes closed, and her hands in prayer at her heart. He had timed her once as she sat unmoving that way, and for more than five minutes she hadn’t so much as flinched, deeply immersed in silent meditation. She had looked so lovely, so utterly calm and peaceful, that he’d been envious in a way – envious because he himself had never known that sort of serenity before. And now, because fate had dealt him this very unexpected hand, Matthew feared he’d never come close to feeling the way he had during his time with Sasha - happy, content, and loved.

  He had finished his coffee and was in the middle of brewing a second cup for the road, when Lindsey tottered inside the kitchen, her high-heeled, marabou-trimmed bedroom
slippers clicking loudly on the flagstone floor. Matthew wasn’t sure what the most startling thing about her appearance was - the short, ultra-sheer black lace robe and G-string that was all she had on, or the fact that she was actually up and about at six o’clock in the morning. Her long, glossy hair was carefully mussed, and she was already fully made up, complete with false eyelashes and bright red lipstick.

  He realized with a sickening sensation that Lindsey had dolled herself up, and risen at what was for her an ungodly hour, with the intention of attracting him. There was no other reasonable explanation for her provocative appearance, and especially now, when she knew he’d be alone and ready to leave for work. But rather than be aroused by her near-nudity, Matthew had never been more turned off in his life.

  “Good morning!” greeted Lindsey cheerily, something else she never did. “I’m glad I caught you before you left. Would you like me to cook you breakfast?”

  Matthew couldn’t help himself from laughing out loud. “Is this some sort of a sick joke, Linz?” he asked sardonically. “I think the last time you offered to make me breakfast was when you were pregnant with Casey. Come to think of it, that’s probably the last time you were awake this early, too. And, no. I’m leaving now.”

  He poured his coffee into a travel mug, ignoring the fact that Lindsey had sidled up next to him, so close that one of her breasts brushed against his arm – most assuredly a calculated move on her part. He jerked his arm away immediately, not bothering to hide his distaste, and received a displeased hiss from her in response.

  “I don’t have cooties, for God’s sake,” she replied huffily.

  “Hmm. I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” he sneered. “I hope, given as much as you sleep around, that you get tested regularly for STDs.”

  Lindsey gasped. “That is incredibly rude of you, Matt. And I’ll have you know that I’ve been completely faithful to you these past few months.”

  Matthew snorted in derision. “Why? It’s not like I give a shit who you fuck anymore. As long as you make damned sure the kids aren’t aware of what’s going on - and that you never bring your fuck buddies here to the house - you can screw whoever you want.”

  Her green eyes were shimmering with tears, and her pouty lower lip quivered. “You’re so mean, Matt,” she whispered. “I’m just trying to be nice to you, and all you can do is insult me.”

  He gave her a scathing look. “Is that what you call this little farce - being nice? Offering to cook me breakfast for the first time in over a decade, prancing into the kitchen half-naked, getting up before dawn so you can catch me before I leave for the office? Forget it, Linz. I don’t need your idea of nice. I’ve got to get going.”

  He picked up his travel mug and laptop bag, and started to head out of the kitchen without a backwards glance when Lindsey called out to him.

  “What time are you going to be home tonight?” she asked. “And is there anything special you’d like for dinner?”

  Matthew reluctantly turned to face her, intentionally keeping his gaze averted from Lindsey’s semi-nude body. “You’re not really doing this, are you?” he asked her tiredly. “Pretending that we’re all one big happy family again. I told you when I agreed to move back in temporarily that this was solely for Hayley’s sake, to help her through this trauma she suffered, and figure out what to do about her baby. I am not here for you, Lindsey, and I have zero interest in interacting with you. I have the great misfortune of temporarily sharing a house with you, but that’s as far as it goes. And to answer your question, I’m picking Casey up after baseball practice and taking him out to dinner. I invited Hayley to join us but apparently she already has other plans.”

  Lindsey made a big show of wiping away her fake tears. “Can - can I join you and Casey for dinner?” she asked hopefully.

  “No, you can’t,” he told her bluntly. “And for Christ’s sake, go put some clothes on, will you? Just because you’re a whore doesn’t mean you have to parade around the house looking like one.”

  He marched out of the kitchen before she could react to that bombshell, but he could only imagine the curses his ex was heaping on his head right now. Fortunately for his peace of mind, he’d stopped giving a damn about anything having to do with Lindsey a long time ago.

  At this early hour, the traffic heading into San Francisco was light, and the Tesla Model X ate up the miles smoothly. As usual, he had a hectic day ahead of him, jam packed with meetings, conference calls, and reports to review. In fact, the only good thing about his entire day would be spending time with Casey this evening.

  He couldn’t even count on Elena these days to provide some much needed comic relief or sympathy here and there, considering how pissed off she was with him. Matthew shuddered to recall the day he’d fessed up to his terrifying PA that he and Sasha were over, and that he had moved back to Hillsborough temporarily. Elena had gone off on him, but since the entire rampage had been delivered in rapid, furious Spanish, he could only assume that she’d called him twenty different kinds of a fool. But nearly a month later, her displeasure was still evident, her attitude frosty and impersonal, and he basically tiptoed around her most of the time.

  Not that he blamed her, thought Matthew with a sigh. He’d expected too much from Sasha, just assumed that she would always be gracious and understanding and supportive of all the demands on his time. But even someone like her had a breaking point, and his decision to move back to Hillsborough had been it for Sasha. Over the past few weeks, he had tried to imagine how he would have felt if the situation had been reversed, and knew that he would have reacted exactly the same way. No matter how many times Sasha might have insisted that she felt nothing for her ex, and that their relationship was definitely over, Matthew would have still been furious at the mere thought of her cohabitating with a man she had once had an intimate relationship with.

  He longed to call her, just for the sheer pleasure of hearing her soft, melodious voice, but had stopped himself every time he pulled out his phone. And he’d fought off the urge to ask Tessa about Sasha, especially since he was well aware that both she and Ian weren’t exactly happy with him at the moment.

  His parents, too, hadn’t been able to hide their dismay when he had called to tell them the news, and his father had come right out and asked Matthew if he’d thought this move out carefully. His mother, on the other hand, had inquired about Sasha, and expressed her disappointment that she and Matthew weren’t together any longer.

  It seemed that no one was especially happy about his current status, including himself. In fact, the only person who seemed blithely unconcerned about the havoc she’d created was Hayley herself.

  Matthew frowned as he took the freeway exit for his office, thinking again that something just felt – well, off – about this whole pregnancy issue. For one, both Hayley and Lindsey were being extremely secretive and uncommunicative on the matter. He’d pushed for details about Hayley’s visit to the doctor and what had been said, only for her to stammer and stutter uncertainly. Lindsey had answered for her instead, stating that Hayley was simply embarrassed to be discussing such personal details with her father, and that the doctor had given her a clean bill of health.

  But it was when he’d insisted on accompanying Hayley on her next doctor’s visit that she and Lindsey had both gone off. Hayley had been visibly startled, and looked at her mother in something of a panic, and then both women had babbled almost incoherently about all the reasons why that was a bad idea. Hayley had reiterated what Lindsey had mentioned earlier, insisting that she would be mortified to have her father along while she was being examined and talking about “female stuff” with the doctor. She’d practically begged Matthew to drop the subject, and very reluctantly he’d agreed – at least for the moment. He had vowed to himself, however, to pay much closer attention to what was going on with his daughter, and that very soon she was going to have to answer some tough questions about her future.

  The office was ne
arly deserted when he arrived, and he was able to plough through a considerable amount of work - answering emails, reading over some reports, making notes for a speech he would be presenting at a conference next week - all before Elena arrived. He communicated with his pissed-off PA largely by electronic means these days, since she barely spared him a word. Even when she grudgingly deposited his morning coffee and breakfast on his desk – plopping it down hard enough for the coffee to slosh over a bit - she didn’t say a word or smile. Matthew thanked her profusely, telling her how much he appreciated it, but all he received in response was a glare and a grunt.

  His workday was as busy and stressful as usual, and since there was a lunch meeting with his staff scheduled, he didn’t leave the office all day. By the time four o’clock rolled around, he was exhausted both mentally and physically, and was more than eager to head out to watch Casey’s baseball game.

  Matthew hoped like hell that Lindsey wouldn’t decide to make an unannounced appearance at the game, as she had a couple of times so far. Normally she disliked attending the kids’ sporting events, and had invented multiple excuses over the years to avoid them. And he knew it was a deliberate move on her part to all of a sudden take an interest in such things. Lindsey was taking full advantage of his presence at the house to try and insinuate herself into his life, and thereby convince him to reconcile. On more than one occasion, she had tried to act as though they were all one big happy family again.

  He’d arrived home from work one evening last week to find nearly a hundred people milling about drinking and eating and lounging around the pool. Lindsey had teasingly chastised him about forgetting that they were hosting a party, and had promptly dragged him along with her to greet the guests. More than half the people there had been virtual strangers to Matthew, but there were others that he knew well and who had actually been good friends at one time. Awkwardly, he’d dodged questions about whether he and Lindsey were reconciled now, muttering that he was really here because of the kids, and that the living arrangements were temporary. Lindsey had glowered at him after overhearing a few such comments, and then accused him afterwards of embarrassing her and making her look like a fool in front of their guests.