“No way in fucking hell am I using my brother’s vulnerability for my own benefit! You aren’t either. I’ll tell him myself first.”
“Will you, Ophelia?” Kendall mocked in a hard voice. “Would Cash or Stretch ever forgive you for opening your fucking mouth? I’m sure they wouldn’t expect you to expose them.”
Kendall was so right. Cash especially would be furious. Whatever slim chance they had of making things work between them would disintegrate in such a betrayal of confidence. They all needed to be in agreement on going public. “I could always tell Christopher what you’re doing. I could expose Daphne.”
“Then, we’d be telling on each other. I’m happily married. As a matter of fact, Johnnie, my husband, wouldn’t be too happy to hear about your affair. He’d appreciate my diligence in looking out for you. Meanwhile, your boyfriends would hate you. Yes, my plans would be derailed. Temporarily. Yours would be ruined forever. I’d see to it that Johnnie kills them.”
“Daphne might have something to say about this,” Fee persisted, not yet ready to give up on her quest to make Kendall back off from blackmailing her. “Christopher might kill her.”
“He might also fuck her. Are you truly worried about ruining his marriage? Or are you afraid he might go after Daphne and ruin how loyal you think he is to his wife? Why not test his fidelity? Give me seven days.”
No, there was no changing this woman’s mind. “Fuck you, Kendall. If I give in to your blackmail now, you’ll do it to me over and over again. I can’t believe I was so wrong about you.”
Kendall’s face crumpled and tears rushed to her eyes all over again. “I swear I won’t. This entire afternoon has given you the wrong impression of me. My feelings for Meggie. Me in general. If you help me, I’ll keep your secret and never use this against you again. If Christopher sticks by his vows, I’ll even help you to get him to accept your relationship with Cash and Stretch.”
“What if he doesn’t stay faithful?” she screeched before she stopped herself from admitting to a small sliver of doubt. Based on her own experiences, men in relationships were cheaters and abusers. But then it was her personal experience.
“In life, we have hard lessons to learn. Perhaps, Meggie will finally remove her rose colored glasses. She needs to see he’s human. My God, the pressure she puts on the poor man to live up to her standards. You lived with them. You know what I mean.”
Yes, she did. Meggie put Christopher on a pedestal, that eclipsed the sun and the stars. Fee had never thought about the burden of those expectations resting on her brother’s shoulders. That didn’t make Kendall’s intentions right, but it was food for thought.
“No, I can’t.” She wouldn’t.
“I’m not giving you a choice. Either you agree or I expose you.”
This fucking bitch! Fee cringed at all the ramifications of her gullibility. However, she had more than just her brother and her marriage to consider now. She had Cash and Stretch’s very lives.
“Or how about I test Zoann and Val’s marriage? Zoann doesn’t care for me. Maybe, I should show her who’s boss.”
Fee didn’t think Val would cheat any more than Christopher would. However, Meggie would listen, think. Zoann would react. She’d kick Val out. Perhaps, never give him a chance to explain his side. “Let me get this straight. Because you’re so generous, you’re giving me a choice between my brother and my sister? Which of their marriages you can break up?”
“That’s the gist of it.”
“It still wouldn’t be Meggie that you’re messing with, so Christopher wouldn’t be distracted to the extent you need him to be.”
“Christopher loves his Bitsy. Wouldn’t he try to help her, if he thought Val fucked over her?”
“Wouldn’t he kill Val?”
“At least it wouldn’t be Cash and Stretch.”
Kendall was right. Oh my god! Had that thought really crossed her mind? That Cash and Stretch’s lives were more valuable to her than Val’s?
“If you don’t agree to my demands, I’ll have Cash and Stretch killed. So the choice is yours. Val or Christopher’s marriages? Or Cash and Stretch’s lives? As long as they’re alive, you have a shot to win them.”
If they were dead…God!
“What will it be?”
Fee couldn’t risk Zoann’s reactions. She was counting on Meggie to understand. “Seven days with Christopher, Kendall. Not a day more,” she snarled. “I also don’t care for your help with anything. Ever. I especially don’t want your assistance with my brother when you’re forcing me to help you fuck over him.”