“That’s perfect. My sister left today on a quick business trip. She’ll be back on Friday. So, depending on what time you get here, we can either have the talk Saturday night or Sunday morning.”
She was quiet for a moment, and he worried their call had disconnected. “Vanessa, you still there?”
“Yes,” she responded quickly. “That’s fine. I’m booked at the inn on Main Street, so if you text me the location of where and when you’d like to meet, I’ll be there, ready to tell your sister everything I can about Karl.”
She took in an audible breath before she continued. “Michael?”
The inquisitive sound of his name colored by the richness of her voice was doing little to keep his overactive imagination in check.
You really need to get laid if the sound of a woman speaking your name turns you on.
“Hmm” was the only reply he could come up with, since he was still trying to keep the lust out of his voice.
“Are you certain you really want me to do this? I know in theory this may seem like the path you want to take. On the other hand, you have to know me showing up proving Karl is a liar will be hurtful to your sister.”
Michael shook his head, then closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. How was it that this stranger was focused more on his sister’s well-being than he was? Determined to get control of his thoughts, he cleared his mind and focused.
“What choice do I have, Vanessa? I know this is gonna hurt her. I can’t simply sit back and just let her ruin her life without telling her the truth, though. She may still decide to marry this man. But if she does, at least she has all the info to make an informed decision.”
“Have you considered what happens if she hears what I have to say and still goes ahead with the marriage? Do you really want to put yourself in a position where she sees you as an antagonist? Are you certain she’ll choose you over Karl if we do this?”
This woman’s questions were rubbing his nerves raw. It wasn’t so much that she was annoying him as she was shining a light on his fears. He’d asked himself these questions and came back with the same answers time and time again. Karl had to be stopped.
“I know you’re just trying to get me to weigh all the options. Trust me, ever since I discovered you were alive, I’ve considered all the angles. I know I could lose my sister over this. I know I’ll be hurting her. Honestly, even knowing that, I’d still make the same decision. Otherwise, he’ll destroy her if I stand back and do nothing.”
She exhaled deeply, as if she’d just relieved a substantial burden from her shoulders. Too bad the boulder sitting onhisshoulders hadn’t budged even a centimeter.
“If you’re certain,” she continued, “then I’ll be there Saturday evening as planned. I just hope you don’t end up hating me after you’ve used me as a tool to slice your sister’s heart open.”
He flinched from the sting of that blow. He could try to deny it all he wanted to, except Vanessa was right. He was using her as a blunt instrument to knock some sense into Cindy. Regret sank into his consciousness for all of a moment before he successfully set up a wall to block it out. The greater good, that’s all he could focuson. Otherwise, he’d never be able to drag either of these women through this ill-advised plan of his.
“I’ll see you Saturday, Vanessa.”
The decisive click of the call disconnecting sent a shiver of cold down his spine. Destroying one woman and opening up an old wound for another, that’s where he was right now. It wasn’t a place he’d have chosen to be. Except duty always came first. Even when that duty sucked huge donkey balls.
Chapter 6
Vanessa stood in her foyer looking at the daunting image of her packed weekender bag sitting in front of the door. She was really doing this.
She’d agreed to do this. Yet somehow she kept thinking that life would find a way to intervene and Michael would come across the good sense to call this entire thing off. Except here she was, standing in front of her door, ready to get in her car and drive more than an hour down I-80 West to get to Monroe Hills.
Instead of looking at the ominous bag, she turned around to make sure she had everything she needed. She shook her keys in one hand and shoved the other in her back pocket to make sure her phone was there. She’d packed a charger, and even if it had somehow crawled out of her bag, she kept an extra one in the car.
“You’re only going to be there overnight, Vanessa. Stop stalling and get in the car.”
She’d spent all day at the salon getting her hair, nails, and makeup done. She may be going to Mayberry, but damn if she was going to let her ex see her looking anything other than spectacular.
She wanted nothing to do with Karl. But she would make sure he’d take one look at her and know she’d survived his worst. Whenthey were together, she’d dressed in dowdy clothes that made her look older and did nothing to accentuate her natural curves. Fortunately, one of the perks of having more disposable cash than she’d ever need was the ability to hire a personal stylist. The thing Karl valued most was his money, and knowing she was spending it to look like this would drive him crazy.
I guess Karl isn’t the only one who knows how to play mind games.
With body-con dresses, fitted slacks, V-neck tops, and too many pairs of slinky designer shoes to count, her stylist had made her look twenty years younger. With her sleek shoulder-length haircut and the bold color makeup palettes she’d learned to carefully apply, she presented the image of confidence she’d always wanted.
Today she wore dark-wash skinny jeans that showed all her hips and backside, a fitted crop-top turtleneck, and a camisole under it, since she wasn’t quite bold enough to expose her soft, flat-ish stomach. On her feet were over-the-knee leather boots that made her thick thighs look amazing, and when she took one last glance in the hall mirror, she knew she looked more than good.
Satisfied that she had no more excuses not to get in her car, she grabbed her bag and made her way to the brand-new silver Jaguar sitting in her circular driveway.
She pressed her key fob to start the ignition, slid into the driver’s seat, fastened her seatbelt, and gripped the steering wheel. “All right, Vanessa. It’s showtime.”
