Page 83 of Bad Situation

Finality fucking sucks.

I spoke with Millie and Kate before the service and, right now, they’re overwhelmed with consoling hugs and words that will never relieve their pain.

I turn to Ellie and pull a tissue from my Saint Laurent clutch and hand it to her. “I’ve got to get back to the office. Will you be okay with Mom and Dad?”

Robert looks from his phone to his wife. “I’ve got meetings this afternoon, too. You should go back with your parents to get Griff. I’ll see you at home tonight.”

“I’m fine.” Ellie doesn’t look at Robert but nods and swipes at her tears, giving me her cloudy blue eyes. “We need to get together this weekend without Mom and Dad. I want to meet the man you’ve been hiding from everyone.” She lifts one of her shapely brows and adds, “I’m just glad I’m not the one making waves for once.”

I give her a small smile and try to lighten the mood. “Don’t be a bitch in a cemetery. It’ll come back to haunt you.”

Robert ignores us both and turns his attention back to his phone, mumbling, “I’ll ride back to the office with you, Jen.”

I sigh and turn to my parents and pull them in for a hug. “Go spend your time with Jordy and Cara before Cam and Paige get back—focus on them. Dad, I’ll let you know if anything comes up at work.”

My mom hugs me and, despite the current elephant that has parked its ass between my father and me, my dad plops a kiss on top of my head. “I’ll call you later. There’s a small outfit in Corpus that looks like it might be a good fit. I want you to start looking into their numbers.”

I know the refinery he’s talking about because they just got slapped with so many environmental violations, it’ll take them years to recover financially. We could clean it up in months and he’s right. It would be a good fit.

We say our goodbyes and Robert and I make our way to Donny, who’s waiting for us. I’m back to being chauffeured everywhere again, this time with an additional security detail who stands sentry at the rear of the Escalade, his eyes scanning the tombstone-littered space. I tiptoe through the mucky, wet grass in my Balenciaga knife booties, damning my decision for style over something more sensible—in this case, a pair of Hunters.

I hand my umbrella to Donny and climb in with Robert following me. When we get settled and pull out of the cemetery just north of Highland Park where Patrick has lived for over thirty years, Robert asks, “I haven’t heard any updates. Any leads on the shooter?”

I look over at my brother-in-law and tell him the truth. “No. I spoke with the homicide detective yesterday. Nothing new.”

He throws me a curious look. “Now that you’ve hooked up with that FBI agent, I thought he’d be your go-to.”

I tip my head and blank my features. “Not that it’s any of your business, but, no, he’s not investigating it.”

No one but my dad and Trig knows about Eli poking around for me.

He shakes his head and looks out the window. “Ellie’s been broken up since the shooting, barely keeping it together. At first, I was surprised because she wasn’t close to Patrick—not like you.” He turns back to me. “But now I think it’s because you were there and could’ve been caught in the crossfire.”

I frown because I didn’t know my sister had any anxieties after the shooting. “I had no idea. I’ll talk to her. You should’ve gone home with her if you knew she was this upset. Your tax meetings can wait.”

He throws me a frustrated glare. “I can’t hold her hand every time the wind blows the wrong way.”

The mask falls over my face like it does every time I have to deal with Robert. He’s good at his job but he also kicks ass at being an unavailable and emotionally-detached husband. Being his sister-in-law is a trying job most days of the week. But during moments like right now, as his wife’s protective big-sister, I want nothing more than to bloody his motherfucking nose with my cell case made from titanium. “Death is hard, Robert, but someone being gunned down within twenty feet of a person you love might require a bit of patience.”

“You know what I mean. Let’s be real. She’s twenty-eight. It’s time for her to act like an adult.”

My jaw tenses and so does everything else in the car. I see from the corner of my eye that Donny stiffens, but our new security detail—whose name escapes me but I do know that he’s former Secret Service—sits stone-like with his eyes trained out the side window. Who knows what’s graced his ears over the life of his career.

“Wow,” I throw back at Robert.

He lifts a brow, inviting me to continue.

I shift in my seat to face him head-on. I might as well throw my mask out the window because after my week—no, my fucking month—I’ve had it. “Ellie is who she is and she hasn’t changed a bit since the day you met her. She’s perfect just the way she is. If you try to do one thing to change my sister, I’ll rope your ass to the cold, hard ground on Jesus’s birthday right before singing hallelujah—and I’ll do it grinning ear-to-ear. You might be good at your job, Robert, and I respect you at work, but do not talk shit about my sister. If there’s anything in life I’m passionate about, it’s my family. You might’ve married a Montgomery, but do not confuse that with being one. And do not think just because we share the same table at holidays that I’d give one shit about telling you to man-up, take a fucking day off, and go home to spend a couple hours with your wife and son.”

His eyes narrow and he leans back in his seat like a motherfucking petulant child who got caught eating his boogers.

“Since we’re being real and all.” I offer him a tight smile before crossing my legs and turning forward.

Music floods my ears and, if I weren’t trying to be a badass, I’d lean up and kiss Donny on the back of the head. He turned on Sam Hunt. I know for a fact that Robert hates country music, particularly Sam, who his wife—my sister—finds hotter than a day in the desert.

But, today, I’m going to be a badass because, as fucked up as we may be at times, no one messes with my family.

*****

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