Not in Her Wildest Dreams(44)

Paige went straight through a puddle to get to Lyle before he could shut his door.

"Why didn't you tell me who they were for?"

He snapped his head around while gunning his engine, making it roar with  warning. His fury was as tangible as the icy rain that weighed her  clothes and whitened her fingers. His gaze probed hers, obviously trying  to figure out if she was saying what he thought she was saying.

"I just came from talking to Evelyn." She couldn't hug herself hard enough. "Why did you have to fix her car?"

He smiled without humor, tone deeply patronizing. "It gave her a reason to park in the driveway."

Oh, gross. "So it was going on as recently as last year?"

He shrugged. "Dad wasn't keen on Walt leaving him in charge of the  factory so he could run for Mayor. Thought it'd be too much work. He  came around."

She stared at him, waiting for some sign that he felt as appalled as she  was, that his love for their father was damaged by this news. That he  needed comfort.

Nothing.

"It doesn't bother you?"

"Live and let live, Pidge. Ignore what doesn't have anything to do with you. That's what you should have done."

The rain continued to gather in her hair, trickle down her neck, cold, cold, cold. What could she say? He was right.

"How long have you known?" she asked. "Forever?"

"Pretty much." He shuffled through the CDs on the bench seat beside him,  chose one, and opened the case. "Dad beat the snot out of Golden Boy  for trying to get into your pants because he knew Evelyn would never  approve. He beat the snot out of me for figuring out why he was coming  from old lady Melker's house when he found you two in the driveway." He  pushed in the CD and Theory of a Deadman filled the cab.

"Did you know Dad owed her his half of the factory as payment for a loan?" My loan. Paige shivered.

For a moment Lyle didn't seem to hear her over the music. Then he  laughed, more of a bark, and shook his head. "So they don't have to buy  it back because Dad owes it to her anyway. And G.B.'s taking over so he  winds up with the goods once again. Figures."

She hadn't thought that far. Instinctively, she looked over to Sterling, wondering if he'd heard anything.

Everything. He looked murderous.

Lyle twisted to see where she was looking, swore tiredly when he saw Sterling.

He nudged her shoulder hard enough she was forced to take a few steps  backward to regain her balance. It created enough space for Lyle to slam  his door. With a spray of muddy water against her leg, he spun out of  the driveway.

Paige wiped the rain out of her eyes. Gravel crunched as Sterling came up to her.

"I'll take you into the house. You need to dry off and warm up."

"No."

"Damn it, Paige, you want pneumonia?"

"I can get my own towel and cup of tea." Who else had she ever been able  to lean on but herself? She didn't need him. She squelched her way  across the rest of the driveway, toward the front door.

"Look, I'm as blown away as you are. Let's talk this out."

"I don't n-need to talk out anything." Her jaw was rattling so hard it  was difficult to speak. If that stupid Lyle had locked her out- No,  thank God, the door was open. She used her body to stop Sterling from  following her in.

"I'm not m-mad," she assured him. She wasn't. Just wet, tired and done.  So very, very done. "I'm relieved not to have a stake in the audit  anymore. I can walk away."

He frowned. "You're going back to Seattle?"

"Winner takes all, Sterling. Enjoy it."

She stepped inside and locked him out.





Chapter Twenty-Seven

Paige threw a store-bought lasagna from the freezer into the oven, showered, then called her father.

"You and Evelyn Roy?"

Silence, then, "It was a long time ago."

"Was it?"

Another delicate pause. "It's complicated."

"Honestly, Dad, I don't care who you sleep with. I really don't. But why  did you set me up to audit when that loan you took means they already  own the company?"         

     



 

"See, I kept telling Walt that we should bring you in to work that off, but would he listen?"

"You could have warned me!"

"I have to admit, I'm surprised you found out about it. I figured Evie would take it to her grave."

"Yeah, well I did find out and now, for the sake of my professional  reputation, I'm walking away from trying to arrange a buy out. As far as  I'm concerned, the Roys own the company."

"Pidge," he chided. "I can still sign the deal Walt brought me."

"And they'll pay you or you'll expose the affair? That's called blackmail, Dad. It's against the law."

Nothing.

"Dad?" she prompted.

"Arlene just came in." There was a noise of a kiss.

Really? She tipped her head back to grit her teeth at the ceiling.

"You're sleeping with Anthony's Auntie Arlene?"

"Not yet. I'm worried about my ticker. But I'm thinking about staying longer."

Paige looked at the phone, thought about throwing it across the room. Through a window.

"Sure, Dad. Do whatever you want." You always do. "I'm going back to  Seattle after I have everyone over for dinner to tell them you threw  away your share in the factory."

"On you."

Did he think that wasn't eating a hole right through her? "Bye, Dad."

Half an hour later, Zack came in with Britta. They had picked up Paige's  mother on the way. Britta had been in bed since returning from the  police station this morning. She had had to be coaxed out of it. She  looked like a zombie when she entered, wearing track pants and a baggy  sweater, cheeks pale and eyelids chapped.

Paige's mother, Connie, wore her nightgown and a quilted housecoat. She  hadn't wanted to come either. Routines were important to her and any  sort of deviation could throw her off.

"Hey, sport, thanks for picking up Nana," Paige greeted Zack as he  brought up the rear. He was pocketing car keys. "I thought only Pops let  you drive?"

"Mom wasn't up to it. Hey, you could have warned me you told Nana what happened this morning."

"She give you a hard time?"

"She said it sounded like something you would do."

Not anymore. Paige was through deflecting bullets for anyone but herself.

As a knock sounded on the door beside her, she added, "Do me a favor and  throw the salad into a bowl? It's in a bag in the fridge."

He nodded and took the stairs two at a time while she let Olinda in.  Cold air swirled around her feet as she did. Paige winced, still not  completely warm despite the long shower she'd taken.

Olinda's mouth was puckered and her nostrils flared. Paige had caught  her late enough in the day that she'd already combed out her hair. She  had a navy and red kerchief tied around her head.

"I'm not happy about this." Olinda stared at the threshold as if undecided about whether she would enter.

"I'm only going to say what I have to say once. If you want to hear it, come in."

"I suppose I should be grateful you're talking to me at all." Olinda  stepped into the house, handing Paige a foil-wrapped French loaf as she  turned to discard her wet coat and shoes in the downstairs closet. "What  happened to these tiles? They've all cracked."

"Age, I guess. Why wouldn't I be talking to you?" Paige hugged the warm  bread. It smelled yeasty and loaded with garlic. "Oh. Because you told  Sterling about Lyle and he fired him?"

Olinda stiffened. "I had to, Paige. I know what you're like with Lyle  and you would have taken forever to sort it out." She frowned at the  ceiling. "Is that the light fixture I put in? It looks so dated."

Paige rolled her eyes behind Olinda as they climbed the stairs. Her  mother was taking the lasagna out of the oven and Britta was setting the  table.

"What's this about, Paige?" Her mother looked at Olinda, never comfortable around her.

Paige took a little breath and ripped the bandage off. "Apparently Dad's  share in the factory was used as collateral for a debt. It belongs to  someone else."

"Who?" Olinda and her mother said together.

"Someone. Else," Paige pronounced carefully.

Britta lowered herself into a chair. Zack pulled out a chair opposite,  sat down and tore open the garlic bread. "Okay if I start?"

"Seriously, Paige. Who?" Olinda demanded.

Paige straightened a fork on one of the places. "It doesn't matter.  Well, maybe it does, but I'm not going to be the one to start the  rumors. I can't imagine it will stay a secret for long. The bottom line  is, what it means for us, is..." She raised her hands to indicate the  house. "This is it. This is all Dad has, legally, for the bunch of you  to fight over when he's gone. I refuse to be in the middle of this  anymore. I'm going back to Seattle. Tonight."         

     



 

Olinda made a noise of distress. "We were counting on you to make this work."

"Well, I don't have that magic ability," Paige said. "Mine's more along the lines of attracting humiliation."