Kari sipped a glass of wine as I finished my dinner. I knew that she wanted answers to what was going on with Cane, but I remained silent.
How can I explain something to her that I can’t explain to myself?
All I knew for certain was that I was wiped out—completely and utterly spent. I just wanted soft sheets and maybe a little wine.
Just as I started to get up, we heard Max’s voice raise slightly from the living room. “Cane—no. That’s not what I’m saying …” Silence again. “I handled it, man. We are back at the house. Everything is under control.”
Kari bit her lip as Max’s voice lowered, barely audible. “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he said.
My stomach knotted. “After the day I’ve had and your boyfriend in there—doing whatever it is he’s doing, I really think I need a drink.”
“First of all, he’s not my boyfriend. Second of all, I will never turn down wine.”
“What’s going on with you and Max anyway?” I asked as I watched my sister get up from the table and make her way to the kitchen. She began to pour our drinks. “He looks at you like you’re his and you seem sure you’re not,” I observed, taking a sip of the cool pink liquid after it was handed to me. “One glass of wine and then I’m starting on the Bacardi.”
“She’s just a pain in the ass—that’s what she is,” Max rumbled from the doorway, irritation written all over his face. “And so is Cane.” He moved his eyes to me and I could see the underlying hesitation in them.
I struggled to swallow the Moscato. “Why do I get the feeling that you are saying that for a reason?”
“Because I am.” Max took a deep breath. “Cane is on his way over here.”
JADA
We were sitting on the back porch a little while later, enjoying the peace and quiet. The ceiling fan whooshed and the pool bubbled. With the white twinkling lights strung overhead and the glow of the tiki torches, the backyard had a relaxing, romantic aura.
Kari snuggled into Max’s lap, wrapping her arms around his chest. He leaned his head back on the chaise and closed his eyes, looking completely content with my sister cuddled against him.
Jealousy reared its ugly head.
That should be me. I miss that.
I downed the rest of my wine in one gulp. “I’m going in for a refill. Do you guys need anything?”
“I think we’re good,” Max drawled, stroking Kari’s bare thigh.
My spirits in limbo, I stalked into the house and considered turning on a movie—something violent and gory. Something where the asshole gets what he has coming.
As I entered the kitchen, the doorbell rang.
I had struggled over whether to be there when Cane arrived. If I left, Cane would think he got to me and enough was enough. He needed to be put on notice that I was done being messed with. But that didn’t mean I actually wanted to deal with him.
Pretending that I didn’t hear the doorbell, I started across the living room in the opposite direction of the entry. It rang again and I caught Max’s eye through the window. He smirked as our eyes met, obviously having heard Cane’s arrival and clearly reading my intentions.
I sighed as I flipped him the bird, my gig obviously up, and turned on my heel. I could hear Max laughing and that only irritated me more.
I jerked open the door. Cane was standing on the other side, looking delicious in a pair of dark denim jeans and a white t-shirt, his sunglasses tucked into the top of his shirt. He smelled woodsy and musky, the scent making me shiver.
He’s like looking at a famous painting in a museum. He’s made to visually appreciate, but there’s no way I can afford to take him home.
“Are you going to invite me in?” He flashed me a grin that was undoubtedly his most seductive, but I held tight and shook my head instead of swooning.
“Do I have a choice?” I asked dully.
“Do you ever? I think we’ve been in this situation a time or two.”
“Whatever, Cane.” I left the door open and walked back into the kitchen. I heard it shut as I rumbled through the pantry, looking for the rum Kari had put away. I knew mixing wine and rum was going to result in a hot mess of a morning, but I needed something a little stronger than Moscato to make it through the night.
Maybe I should just go for whiskey.
“What did you do today?” he asked, clearly leading me, his voicing growing closer.
“Nothing much.”
“Really? Nothing interesting happened today?”
“Nope.”
“You want to do it this way? Okay, fair enough. I’ll cut to the chase. What’s this I hear about you having dinner with Powers?”