by Kate Stewart
“That’s where you’re wrong.”
I managed to pull myself together enough for the interview. And after a shot of whiskey and a few uncomfortable minutes, it began to flow. After an hour of steady questioning, Reid being the most evasive with his answers, I had enough to make journalists everywhere envious.
The guys and I laughed through old memories as Reid stood idly by and watched me. With a quick look at the clock, I grabbed my bag and said my goodbyes. Ben dodged me sheepishly when I looked pointedly at him. “You call her and you make things right.”
Ben’s jaw ticked. “I’m not the one who fucked up.” There was no forgiveness in his voice. Not an ounce of pity. But I heard the hurt and it ran deep.
“Talk to her,” I said, pressing in. “You might be surprised at what she has to say.”
“It’s been over,” Ben said. “There’s nothing to say.”
“You’re here, and that probably won’t happen again for some time.”
“I’ll think about it,” he said as he kissed my cheek. “Thank you, Stella.”
“Of course, thanks for the interview, hot shit.”
“You could have a little patience with him,” Ben said as he eyed Reid, who waited for me by the door.
“We aren’t like you and Lexi. This is different.”
He guffawed and shook his head. “Bye, baby.”
I met Reid at the door. “Let me drive you,” he offered in a whisper.
“I’ve got a trunk full of wedding crap, but thanks,” I said as I opened the door. “Reid—”
“I’ll see you there.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
In too Deep: Genesis
“What a fucking day,” Nate said through the speakers in my SUV as I drove through the gates of the country club.
“You can say that again.”
“What a fucking day,” he repeated, and I let out a chuckle.
“How did it go?”
“I think my editor will be happy.” I looked back to see a limousine pull up right behind me. My shameless family spilled out the door of the large club with inquiring faces. My twin cousins, Noel and Noah, attacked Reid the second he stepped out of the car.
I couldn’t help my grin. “Hope you’re happy, asshole,” I said in a whisper, which Nate heard.
“Stella, I know I’ve been working a lot and it’s getting in the way of us, but I promise I won’t let it go on much longer.”
“No, babe, I wasn’t referring to you. I was talking about . . . Paige. Her wedding is a circus.”
“Stella,” he warned. “She may be doing this for you someday.”
“Well, I’m sure as hell not going to let her get off easy. And I’ll make damn sure she has to make 3 a.m. trips to Wal-Mart for a week to see if they got more cheap plastic bubble wands.”
“Play nice, and then come get dirty with me,” he said. “I can still taste you.”
“Deal,” I said as I watched the mob swarm Reid. It was his worst nightmare, but oddly, he seemed comfortable enough with them as she signed my Aunt Vesta’s purse. Shameless.
“Deal, huh? That’s all I get? You okay?”
No.
“Yes,” I said out of breath as I grabbed a few boxes out of my trunk. Reid spotted me struggling from the front door and came my way, holding his hands up to my cousins to let them know he would be back.
“You need help?” he asked as he stood at my trunk.
“Babe,” I spoke to Nate in an attempt to wave Reid away, “I have to go. I have my arms full.”
“He doesn’t know about me,” Reid said with a wicked gleam in his eye.
Nate spoke as heat flashed through my face. “Okay, see you later. Wake me up,” he said with a sexy lift in his voice.
“Can you?” I asked Reid, my head locked between my cheek and shoulder.
Reid raised a brow. “Hang up on your boyfriend? Gladly,” he took the phone and pressed end, then stuck it in my purse before taking the boxes from my hand.
“You better pray he hung up first. If I have to explain that later, you’re a dead man.”
“I can give you my room number,” he whispered in my ear, making me jump, “if that will make it easier for you to find me.”
“That’s just tacky,” I said as I grabbed three lead bags full of embroidered crap. “I’m not your groupie, Crowne.”
“No,” he said softly. “You’re not.”
My mother spotted us from the entrance and rushed our way. Reid smiled as she approached in a glittery black dress suited for a Diana Ross concert. “Looks like I finally get to meet the parents.”
“Mija! I’m so happy you’re here. Finally!” She gave me a kiss on the cheek. “Your sister is driving me crazy!”
“I live in the same city, Mom. Be thankful you get to go back to Dallas.”
Reid smiled down at her, my mother a full foot shorter than him. He was noting the similarities. I had to admit the older I got, the more alike we looked. However, while I was trying to work on my subtlety, my mother was set in her ways. She scrutinized Reid. “Who are you?”
“I’m Reid,” he said with an apprehensive smile. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Emerson.” He easily handled the boxes to offer his hand, which she frowned at. “Where is Nate?” I couldn’t help my smile. My parents adored Nate and rock star status meant shit to my mother. Still, I had to scorn her. “Momma, don’t be rude, this is one of Paige’s old friends.”
“Oh,” she said, trailing her eyes down Reid’s attempt at business casual. “From where does she know you?” My mother gave him the third degree as he set the boxes down on a bell cart one of the bridesmaids wheeled out.
“We used to work together,” he answered, indulging her with the same amusement he did me when we met.
“Reid,” she said, trying to place the name. And then her eyes narrowed.
Oh, shit.
I saw her palm go up and cringed as Reid took two forehead slaps to the head. She dug right in. “You think I’m so old I forget that you took my daughter? That you have my daughters fighting for months?”
Reid stood stunned as he looked to me for help. “Family affair,” I piped as I left him there to fend for himself. “Welcome to the party, rock star.”
I walked inside the bustling club and was greeted by at least a dozen aunts, uncles, and cousins. I searched the large lobby for Neil and found him standing in the corner, watching, paralyzed with fear as his new extended family marched in like ants. I fled to him and dropped the bags at his feet before I threw my arms around him. “Hey, brother.”
He smiled when I pulled away. Neil and I had gotten close over the last few years. I could talk to him about anything. It was a strange dynamic, but it worked with us. I’d definitely gained a brother. We talked a lot, especially in the last few months when he needed advice on how to handle the family.
“You can still back out of this,” I said, nudging his shoulder.
“This is just the rehearsal,” he said as he watched the crowd thicken behind me. “My dad’s side isn’t even here,” I said with a laugh as Neil paled. “It will be fine,” I assured him with a little shake in my voice as Reid appeared with my mother’s arm wrapped around him.
Traitor.
He must have talked some major shit to get in her good graces, and by the way she stared up at him, I could tell that’s exactly what he did. His eyes found mine as I watched his lips twist up in a smirk. And the rattle was back.
Neil lit up beside me when he caught sight of him. “Damn, man, are you a sight for sore eyes!” They did the man hug, back clap thing, and I saw that as my chance to find my sister. Reid’s hand shot out as I attempted to make my escape.
He leaned in to whisper, “Now or later, it’s up to you.”
“I’m going to find Paige.”
“Later, then.”
I was dizzy and the rehearsal hadn’t even started yet.
“Stella!” My favorite cousin Tangie greeted me in the doorway of the small room wher
e the rehearsal was being held. “God, did you see Reid Crowne? I thought I was going to die when he got out of that limo. We thought it was Uncle Georgie being all flashy, but no, a fucking rock star pops out!”
I laughed, and she gripped my hip, pulling me close while we walked. “You look hot! It’s been too long cousin. I need to get my ass here more often to see you.”
“Anytime, Tangie, I meant that. You know I don’t like these other fools.”
“I heard that,” My cousin Ramon—the oldest of all the cousins—chimed in as he joined us. “God, Stella you grew up fast.”
“Don’t let the suit fool you,” I said with a wink. Pretty soon I had a posse in pursuit of my sister and was about to send out a search party when I spotted her in a private bar in the back of the club, pointing to her empty shot glass. “Just one more,” she said with a slur.
Oh shit.
“No more,” I snapped as she held up the tequila shot and smiled at me. I took the glass from her and warmed my insides with its contents.
“Paige, we have to get going,” I said as I gripped her to me, trying to decipher her clarity through inspection, and then glared at the bartender. He looked me over with appreciative eyes. “Really?” I deadpanned. “Get real,” I snapped as Reid walked through the door.
“Oh, my God,” Paige said looking between us. “You made it!” She sprang from me into Reid’s waiting arms, and they hugged each other in greeting. Paige was leaking in a sappy puddle, a mix of tequila and jitters, but I saw it. The genuine love between the two of them, the friendship they missed on both parts. Guilt weighed me down as Reid looked over at me as Paige gushed. “It feels like it’s been longer,” she said, dabbing at her tears as if she were a silly woman. And she was, but it amazed me the gravity of the situation. It all came back to our decisions: mine to kiss him, our decision to be together, and how it had affected all of us in some way.
He stared at me with drawn brows, trying to read my thoughts as I looked on at Paige, who was truly happy to see the friend she had before her sister drove a wedge between them and rock ‘n’ roll ate up the rest of his time, and his attention.
Reid being Reid bent down to whisper to her, making her smile.
“So, are you staying for dinner?”
“Yeah,” he said as he looked over at me. “If that’s okay.”
“Of course it is!”
I looked at the bartender. “Line them up.”
Thirty minutes later, the four of us, Neil, Paige, Reid, and I were laughing hysterically at Paige, who was doing a spot-on impression of our mother, which even Reid could appreciate. I had the bartender substitute Paige’s shots for water, and she didn’t seem to notice. We knew we were supposed to be somewhere, but for a brief moment in time, we captured a glimpse of the old days, and we weren’t ready to let go. I caught Reid’s eyes on mine, and it was probably because I was watching him just as hard.
“You okay, sis?” Paige asked as I swallowed down another shot. I was done drinking due to my shitty attention span and wiped my hands after sucking on a lime and tossing it in the glass. I learned my limit years ago and rarely strayed.
“I think the better question is, are you? I’m not the one who’s about to get married.”
“Could’ve fooled me,” Reid muttered, just for me to hear. I cut my eyes his way.
“I don’t want you stressing,” Paige said. I cut her off fast.
“I’m fine.”
“I know I made it hard on you,” she said softly. “I’m sorry.”
I grinned at her. “You’re a bride.”
“I’m getting married.” She hugged me close as we sat on the bar stools, while Neil and Reid stood talking behind us. “He keeps staring at you,” she said bluntly.
I saw Reid’s eyes drop to the floor and he grinned. He was busted because Paige wasn’t talking quietly at all, and I couldn’t convey it quickly enough.
“Paige,” I said with big eyes. “They can hear you.”
“Do you still love him?”
Reid’s gaze landed on mine as Neil rattled on about their honeymoon trip to Jamaica
Paige rattled on, too, as if we were speaking about the weather. “I know it was only like two minutes y’all were together, but if this upsets you—”
“Paige,” I whisper-yelled as she continued to talk out of her drunk ass.
“Noooo,” she said with a confident grin. “You’re happy with Nate. And who wouldn’t be. The man is beautiful.” Reid’s jaw ticked, and I nodded to Paige.
“There you are!” my mother yelled, and all four of us jumped.
“We have rehearsal right now,” she said, motioning us with her hands in her ridiculous dress. She looked slightly frazzled as she spied the empty glasses on the bar.
“Bear?” my father asked, appearing behind her. “Who do we have in here?” he asked as he took a step forward.
Heat burned my face, and I began to panic while Reid took a step forward to introduce himself.
“Reid Crowne sir, it’s nice to meet you.”
My father cringed and stared at Reid’s hand as if he were going to take it off after he claimed his head.
I jumped from my stool. “Daddy, it’s cool.”
“This Reid,” my mother said with a clueless smile in his direction. “I like him, honey. He going to gift Paige the limo for tomorrow.” She grabbed Neil in her clutches as Reid tried to work his magic yet failed.
“I think you should leave,” my father snapped, his eyes glaciers shooting right at Reid. “Right now.”
Reid stood stunned as I pushed my Dad a few feet back. “Daddy, don’t. I’m begging you. Don’t.”
“What’s he doing here?” he asked, flicking a silver-gray gaze—the color of mine—back at me as if I’d physically hurt him.
“I invited him, Daddy,” Paige said in a slur that had me wincing.
Shit was about to get real, really real.
Scurrying to clean up the mess, I began to usher my father out of the door.
Reid tried to interject. “Sir, I know—”
“You need to leave,” he stated again, his angry eyes fixed, his voice unwavering. I looked back to Reid, my hand on my Dad’s heaving chest. “Don’t worry about it. Okay?”
“Daddy, don’t be rude. This is my wedding!” Paige was hopeless as she tried to straighten her titled green tiara with Mexican flag colored tulle hanging from it.
All we needed was a parade of Chihuahuas and a piñata to keep it hood.
“Paige,” my father whisper-snapped, “are you drunk?”
“No, Daddy,” she said as she lowered her head slightly. My mother looked between all of us, her suspicions on high alert before she went full rant. “Are you serious with me right now, Paige?” My mother never had fully perfected her English.
“Yes, I’m serious with you,” Paige said, poking the bear.
My mother wasn’t having it. She put her hands on her hips, a telltale sign shit was officially real. “I’ve had enough of your shit, young lady. You will act like a bride. You have people waiting. Get your ass out there now, Altos Paige Ornita Emerson.” Paige ducked her head with each sharp syllable of her name. “I don’t have the patience to tell our preacher, who christened you, you have no respect for Jesus.”
Paige burst out laughing as I cowered behind my sister from my dad’s accusatory stare.
“I respect Jesus,” Paige said, kissing my mother on the cheek. She walked over to Reid. “Ignore Daddy. I want you here. Please stay.”
And as if on cue, as if she was preparing for that moment her whole life, Paige turned to her groom and held out her hand. “Come on, baby, let’s do this.” Neil shook his head with a laugh and took her hand, looking back at Reid. “Hang out, man. It’s cool,” he assured as Reid stared at him without answering. My father, who was graying by the day in his fitted dress suit, looked between Reid and me as my mother followed the groom out.
“Come on, Stella,” he said with an anger-cloaked voice. �
��I don’t want you upset.”
Reid looked over to me with clear confusion. “It’s okay,” I assured him. “Just wait in here, or whatever.”
He nodded and watched as my father took my hand and led me out of the room.
“You are the maid of honor. It’s time to rehearse,” he said sternly.
I glanced back over my shoulder and saw Reid’s resolve. He wasn’t going to leave it alone. He had questions and wasn’t leaving without answers. Answers I would do everything in my power to keep from him.
After the rehearsal and an incessant amount of catch up kisses, I was touching up my lipstick in the bathroom when I heard a click behind me.
A surge of nervous energy circulated as Reid’s eyes found mine in the mirror. He was leaning against the door, studying me. I couldn’t get over the change in him. Eyes no longer hidden by hair, they were more haunting than ever as they watched me line my lips.
“Please,” I said, tracing the bow of my top lip. “I’m seriously close to losing my shit on the DJ. He’s passing out liquor to my fifteen-year-old cousins. I caught them trying to steal a golf cart. This is the crap I’m dealing with. And you saw Paige,” I reminded him, pressing the gloss over my bottom lip.
“You’re punishing me.”
“What?”
“For leaving, for letting you go, for the concert. You’re punishing me for all of it.”
“I’m in love with my boyfriend, Reid,” I said, zipping my purse.
His eyes flared. “That may be the truth, but you’re in love with me, too.”
“Don’t do this,” I snapped as I turned to face him head-on. “Just don’t.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s too late,” I said as my heart sounded off a warning. “I don’t want to fight with you, Reid.”
“I’m fighting for you, Stella,” he said, taking a step forward. “I keep waiting for you to end it with this guy. You tell me he’s a good man, fine. I say I can be the better man. I’m putting my hat in the ring. Right. Fucking. Now.”
“You’re insane,” I said, gesturing for him to open the door. He crossed his arms, refusing to budge.