Page 70 of All Wrong
She laughed, relief flooding her. “Thank God. Your secret’s safe with me.”
“Ready to go?”
She nodded. They got into her SUV. The scent of masculine soap and deodorant filled the cabin, and she took a moment to silently appreciate it. It was pleasant, but it didn’t hold a candle to leather and dark spice.
And she really needed to stop comparing Brett to Nick.
“How do you feel about a mountain cruise?” she asked. “There’s a restaurant at the top that has an incredible view.”
“Sounds fantastic.”
She drove northeast, stopping at a gas station at the edge of town. After filling up, she said, “Have you ever had a slushy?”
“What is that?”
“Crushed ice, drenched in artificially flavored high fructose corn syrup.”
“Uh, no.”
“Perfect.” She smirked and went into the convenience store, returning with two lidded cups.
When she came back outside, Brett wasn’t in the car. She spotted him off to the side of the building, talking to a couple of high school–aged boys. He didn’t look happy.
Corinne got into her car and waited. Before long, Brett returned, his easy smile back in place as he slid into the passenger seat.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Yeah, fine.” He pointed to the two clear-domed cups in the holders. “Are these what I think they are?” he asked.
“Yep. Prepare to have your slushy cherry popped.” She pointed to one. “Blue raspberry.” She pointed to the other. “Root beer. Pick your poison.”
He laughed and reached for the root beer. “You are a bad influence, aren’t you, Miss McCain?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
NICK
Where the hell was she?
From his spot in the shade of the massive maple, his eyes performed another scan. Callaghans. Their wives. Their kids. The old man, Jack. Lacie’s brother, Brian, and his wife.
No Corinne.
He kept thinking about Corinne losing her job. Moving out on her own. How she seemed to be separating herself more and more from her family. Not that he could blame her, but the timing sucked. He wanted to see with his own eyes that she was fine.
“Corinne’s not here,” Nicki said, appearing beside him.
Had his perceptive twin somehow picked up on hiswhere the fuck is shevibes?
“So?”
“Just thought you might be wondering, since she helped us out and all,” Nicki said with a subtle shrug. She didn’t wait for him to reply before continuing. “Lacie talked to her last night. Corinne said she had to attend a going-away party her landlords were having and might be late.”
More likely, it was an excuse not to show, to avoid the awkwardness of dealing with her sister and the rest of the hens. And him, of course.
Knowing Corinne, she also believed she’d let them down by not being able to find out more about the local business cash flow before she was suspended.
Nick glanced out over the rolling hills. The late afternoon sun was on its descent. While he understood Corinne’s reticence, he didn’t like it. Despite Shane’s assurance that she wasn’t in any danger, Nick had a bad feeling and apparently, he wasn’t the only one.
