Page 62 of Paradise & Vodka
"Thirty years ago, and you just found out?" I questioned.
Earl nodded. "It remained … What was the word the doc used, Dix?"
"Dormant," Dixie replied.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Ashleigh inquired.
"Because we didn't want you to worry," Earl said.
I placed my hand on Ashleigh's knee while she continued to question them. "But Everleigh knew. You trusted her enough—"
"I only knew because they need money for the medical bills."
Dixie turned and faced Ashleigh. "We didn’t tell her for a long time, but once the medical bills started piling up, we had to."
Paul pulled up to the airport as I asked, "So Dougie only agreed to give you money if Everleigh married him before he was twenty-six so he could get his inheritance?"
Everleigh took a deep breath. "Yes. When I got home from visiting them in Alabama, I walked in on him screwing my only friend in New York at the time. We were already engaged, and I’d thought it was love—real love—but it wasn't. I tried to break off the engagement, but he begged me to stay because of his inheritance. So, I agreed if he would pay all the medical bills for Dad, plus pay off their mortgage and their debt."
I didn't like it, but it seemed Everleigh was smarter than I thought.
I thoughtmy sister marrying my ex was the worst my family could do to me.
I was wrong.
I couldn't believe that my father was sick, and no one told me. I wasn't sure if they had ever planned on telling me. I wasn't able to question them further because we arrived at the airport, and it was time to leave, but I was going to get answers on our long flight to Vegas.
It was time I gotallthe answers.
"Are you sure you want to leave without your husband?" Joss asked Everleigh, stopping us from boarding the plane.
"He hasn't called to make sure I was okay, so why should I care about him?" she replied.
"Maybe he's dead," Nick stated.
"Last we’d heard, there weren't any casualties," Everleigh said. "Everyone at the center was checking continuously."
"When was the last time you tried to call him?" I asked.
Everleigh looked at our parents, and Mom said, "It's been a few hours now, I think."
"Then maybe he's being held hostage too." Nick grunted a sarcastic laugh. "Wouldn't that be some shit?"
One of the men from the private team came over and whispered something into Joss's ear. She nodded and then turned back to us. "We have to go now. Last chance to stay and see if you can find him."
"Let's go home. I'll find out either way."
"We're going back to Vegas," I said, meaning Las Vegas wasn't her home. "We'll have to get you a flight home from there."
"Oh, right. That's fine. I just want out of here."
I looked at Nick, and he shrugged before wrapping his arm across my shoulders and leading me toward the stairs of the plane. "Not our problem, baby."
Everyone boarded the plane. The guys were celebrating a successful mission with drinks because that was what Nick and I were: a mission. It was crazy to think that one minute everything had been going well, and the next, we were a mission for mercenaries and FBI agents. But we were safe and going home, and the people I cared the most about—even Nick—were all safe.
We had all survived.
To my surprise, there was a flight attendant, and after the plane was in the air, she got us all drinks and food.
