Page 9 of Seduce

Tessa took the extra food into the kitchen, opened the cabinet, and pulled out bowls and glasses. “I’ll forgo the wine for now.” She might need it later. Talking about last night and the club wasn’t going to be easy, but she’d do it.

“All right. Soda it is.” Crystal opened the bottle and poured. Each one grabbed a glass and a bowl. Tessa also picked up the package of cookies.

In the family room, everything was set on the coffee table before they took their seats. Tessa curled her legs under her as she sat on her sofa, Sierra at the other end, and Crystal on the love seat.

“We’ve been patient. Now spill about being a member of the club,” Sierra said.

“I joined Wicked Sanctuary four years ago, right after I moved here.” Her life had been so different then.

“And you never told us?” Crystal’s voice carried a tinge of hurt.

“I’m sorry. I only went twice right after I became a member, and I stopped.” Tessa gave them a little smile. “It was nothing Max or the club had done.”

“Why didn’t you say something when I first started dating Max?” Crystal asked.

“Mainly because, from what you were describing, I wasn’t sure it was the same place. It wasn’t until I met Max that I knew.” Tessa had played her cards very close to her chest for certain reasons. She trusted her friends, and up until now, she hadn’t known how to broach the subject of her being a club member.

“Why?” Crystal asked. “There has to be some reason you kept quiet.”

“There was.” Tessa shifted. “I trust you two; I want you to know that. It’s taken me this long to feel secure enough.”

Sierra frowned. “Tessa, what is it?”

“I told you both I lived in Washington DC before I moved here and went to work at the library.”

“Yes, we were both surprised to hear you’d moved so far away from your family,” Crystal chimed in.

“I needed to put some miles between me and my past. Ruthledge is my mother’s maiden name. I changed my last name when I moved here.” She blew out a breath. “The reason I did that was because of my father.”

“Oh please, not another crappy father,” Sierra said.

“No.” Tessa smiled. “My dad isn’t a bad man. He’s made some bad choices. It has to do with his profession.”

“Ohhh. Let me guess, mob boss,” Crystal said.

“I’m going with lobbyist,” Sierra said.

“Close, both of you. My dad is a congressman.” While that wasn’t earth shattering, her father’s political career had shaped who she was today. Something she wasn’t proud of at times. It was time to stop hiding from her friends. Who was she kidding; these women were her family.

“That doesn’t sound so bad.” Crystal stared at her.

“Yeah, well, I grew up with a father whose political aspirations drove everything we did as a family.” If they went out, it was always for show. Pictures were taken, her father gave speeches, always the perfect little family.

“Oh boy, that sounds like my family,” Crystal said.

“In a way yes. Ten years ago, my father started grooming my brother for politics.”

“Is your brother older or younger?” Sierra asked.

“Younger by two years. He’s thirty now.” She hadn’t seen him since she left DC.

“Your father decided on politics for him?” Crystal asked.

“Yes, especially when I finished up my bachelor’s degree in library science and told my father I was going after my master’s degree.” That had been a fight. What had surprised Tessa the most was her mother standing up to her father. All Tessa’s life, her mother had been the perfect housewife, never a hair out of place. But that day, she’d taken Tessa’s side and told her husband to shut up and let Tessa do what she wanted.

Her father had been so surprised he hadn’t even argued when her mother told him they were paying for Tessa’s master’s degree. A smile crept over Tessa’s lips.

“My mother supported me the entire way. I got my master’s, and my father turned his attention to my brother and started grooming him.”

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