Tangled Vows(20)

"Did I not pay you enough? Bailey, I'm sorry if I undervalued your services."

Bailey clenched her teeth together at his words. He made it sound so  clinical, so impersonal. It had been a mistake opening up to him, she  decided. Apparently, the connection she felt was one sided. She blinked,  wanting to cry again at the loss of the one person she'd thought to be a  friend. "No, you paid more than enough," she insisted. "I just had a  hard time getting back on my feet after the Army and then the mess with  my sister. This is my problem. I shouldn't have brought it up."

"I'll fix this, Bay."

She huffed. "There's nothing to fix. Thanks for calling, Everett."

"Bailey-"

She hung up before he could say anything else and let her head fall back  on the couch. An ache filled her chest. An ugly, shimmering rip  somewhere near where her heart used to be. And she'd thought the pain  from a bullet wound had hurt.





Chapter 16




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Everett set his phone down, his head bowed in thought. He'd wanted to  say more to Bailey. He'd wanted to tell her he would take care of her.  He'd wanted to tell her how much she meant to him, and how much it hurt  him to see her in pain like that. But he didn't. He'd been scared.  Scared he'd run her off. Scared she didn't return his sentiments. So  much for his tough, action-hero image. He was scared of a woman and her  feelings.

The thought made him grin. If there was any woman on the planet to be  afraid of, it would definitely be Bailey. She was one tough woman. Like a  Red Hot cinnamon candy, she was all heat and fire covered by a hard  shell. A huge fireball in one tiny package.

His deception had caused her this pain. He needed to set things right.  It was the right thing to do. And even if it wasn't the right thing, he  would do it anyway for Bailey.

He sat for a while, deep in thought. He needed to figure out the best  way to fix things. A way that would get Bailey her job back without  hurting her reputation or her pride any more than it already was. He'd  be damned if he would hurt her any more than he already had.

His decision made, he picked up his phone again and started to make some calls.

*

Bailey had just turned off the water in the shower when she heard her  cell phone ringing. Wrapping herself in a towel, she stepped carefully  out of the tub and made her way to her kitchen where she'd left her  phone. Morning light streamed through her living room window,  illuminating the dirty clothes left on the floor and the unwashed dishes  sitting beside the couch.

She turned her back to the mess. She still didn't have the energy to  face it. Besides, it was an expression of her current inner state, which  wasn't about to change anytime soon.

The phone rang for the fourth or fifth time-Bailey didn't remember,  didn't care. Glancing at the screen, she saw Sarah's name. Excitement  and confusion filled her at once. Why did Sarah want to talk to her? She  couldn't have been back from her honeymoon for long. Bay's thoughts  turned to Everett. Was something wrong, had something happened? She  grabbed the phone and answered.                       
       
           



       

"Sarah? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, silly. I'm just calling to check on you."

"Shouldn't you be getting settled in to married life right now?"

Sarah giggled. "I think that'll take a while. It's a lot to get used to."

"I bet. So why the call?"

"Oh, well, we got back from our honeymoon today, and I heard about what  happened. I know that must be hard for you. I wanted to make sure you  were doing okay," Sarah said.

Bailey pulled the towel from her body and used it to rub at the dripping  strands of hair hanging over her shoulder. "I'm fine, Sarah," she  insisted.

"Well, I know it was all just a ruse, and I feel terrible that I can't  correct people, ya know? Everyone keeps asking me how I like my  brother's new girlfriend. I mean, don't get me wrong, I think you're  great! I'd love to have you as a sister. But … " Sarah trailed off.

In spite of herself, Bailey felt a warmth inside at Sarah's words. She'd  liked the girl. She was genuinely sweet and kind, so different from  what she would have expected from a celebrity's family. She'd liked  Everett's whole family. Well, except for maybe Frank, but she'd only met  him the once.

"Thanks, Sarah. I really appreciate it. Now, tell me all about your  honeymoon," Bay said to change the subject. She'd been moping about too  much these last few days. It was time to get the focus off herself.

After chatting for a while, Bailey sensed Sarah had something else on  her mind, something she didn't want to say. Bailey wasn't one for  mincing words, so she blurted out, "Is there something you wanted to  tell me, Sarah?"

"Well … yes. I just … don't want you to be mad at me," Sarah hedged.

Bailey sighed but tried not to let Sarah hear her annoyance. "Just tell  me. I can't promise I won't be mad, but I promise not to blame you for  anything, okay?"

Sarah's already girlish voice got even softer. "I want you to do something for me."

Bay's guard went up immediately. People didn't usually ask for favors  unless it involved something unpleasant. She'd had enough of unpleasant  lately; she didn't want to deal with more. "What it is?" she reluctantly  questioned.

"I want you to watch the news tonight. Will you promise to do that for me?"

Stumped, Bailey searched through her mind to try to figure out why she  would need to watch the news. The only reason she could think of was  Everett. Everett. If he was going to be in the news and it was something  Bailey needed to see, then it could only be one thing. He must be  dating someone. He has another girlfriend, a real girlfriend. Pain and  jealousy shot through her. She sunk to the kitchen floor, afraid her  legs would no longer support her.

Her voice was a mere whisper when she finally replied. "Everett's seeing  someone, isn't he." It wasn't a question. She forced cheerfulness into  her voice. "At least they won't be talking about me anymore."

"No, Bay, that's not-" Sarah groaned. "Look, please just watch the news. I can't say anything else."

Those last words caught Bailey's attention. "What do you mean you can't  say anything? Does it have to do with me? Why wouldn't you tell me?"

"I promised Everett I wouldn't," Sarah whispered reluctantly.

"Everett? What the hell? If there's something going on, he should tell  me himself instead of letting you do his dirty work. Goddamn men!"

"Bailey, please. He means well, he really does."

"I know he's your brother, but I can't believe you're defending him!" Bailey fumed.

"I'm not defending him. I only want to see him happy. I want both of you to be happy."

Bailey paused her internal tirade. How could she ever be happy? Without a  job, without a supportive family or friends … without Everett. Pain  twisted her gut again. She didn't understand her feelings. She and  Everett fought constantly. They were from different worlds and wanted  different things. How could she … miss him so much?

Sarah took Bay's silence for acceptance. "So you promise me you'll watch?"

Unable to think about anything other than her pain, she agreed. "Fine, I'll watch."

"Oh my God, thank you, Bailey. I promise you won't regret this. Now,  I've gotta go. We don't have any food in the house yet." She laughed,  back to her happy post-honeymoon bliss.

Bay wasn't sure what she'd just agreed to. It didn't matter anyway. All  she did was watch TV now anyway. Why not make it the news for one night?                       
       
           



       





Chapter 17




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In spite of her promise, Bailey had no intention of watching the news.  She'd stewed all day, wondering what would be so fascinating she had to  see it. Finally, even she'd had enough of her own thoughts. She'd thrown  on some workout gear and had gone up to the gym to ground herself back  in her own body.

It had been exactly what she needed. She was done with the drama. She  was done with the uncertainty. She had to get on with her life, even if  it wasn't the life she wanted-or the person she craved.

Soon after she finished a microwaved dinner, a pounding sounded on her  door. Mark scowled down at her when she opened it. He was in his police  uniform, and as her eyes scanned his body, she had to admit he looked  good. However, she no longer felt an attraction to him. This was  something else that would have to change. A twinge of regret filled her,  and she sighed.

Mark pushed past her and whirled back to face her.

"Okay, then. Come on in," she said with a hint of a smile. She couldn't  remember ever seeing Mark angry. He was usually so easygoing.