Asher laughed, pulling me in for a hug and nuzzling my neck. “Poor Jake.”
“Hey!” Addison said. “No need to feel sorry forJake. I’m gonna rock that man’s world. You just take care of Dylan and leave Jake to me.”
“I can do that,” Asher said. He ran his hands down my arms and grabbed my hands. He tugged on them until I looked up at him again. “Hey. Want to save me from death by boredom at one of my father’s functions next Friday night?” he asked.
“Oh gee, when you put it like that...” I rolled my eyes but couldn’tsuppress the smile tugging at my lips. I’m pretty sure I would have gone anywhere Asher asked me to.
“And what about this Sunday? Feel like grabbing a bite or something?”
I frowned. “Actually, I’m busy Sunday.”
“You are?” Addison asked, butting into the conversation. “With what?”
“You know, stuff.” I had planned to slip out without telling her—without telling either of them—because I knewhow she’d react.
“What kind of stuff?” Addison asked.
Asher released my hand and took a step back, turning me over to his sister, who was circling me like a shark sniffing out blood in the water. She finally stopped, planting her feet so she could put a hand on her hip. “If you’re planning to go spy on suspects or follow up on leads without me, you—”
“Neither of you should be doing that!” Asherinterjected. “You guys are going to end up in jail. Or worse. You got lucky tonight.”
“Everyone just chill the heck out and take a deep breath,” I said, trying to sound calming. “Quit jumping to conclusions. I’m not doing anything crazy, reckless, or illegal.”
“Then what are you doing?” Addison asked. She clearly wasn’t going to let up until I told her.
So, I relented. “I got a job.”
“Congratulations,”Asher said, smiling.
“What? Where? Why didn’t you tell me?” Addison asked.
“You were there when I unofficially accepted it.”
Her face scrunched up. “Where? What are you talking about?”
“Cleaning house,” I said, gritting my teeth. I didn’t want Asher to know I’d stooped low enough to take a job cleaning a pigsty. I had a college degree!
Addison gave me another blank look, still not catchingon.
“For Quentin.”
Her eyes widened in recognition. Then in disgust. “No. Oh, hell no. No.”
“Addie, it’s a job, and I can use the money.” And this wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have in front of Asher.
“Who’s Quentin?” Asher asked, leaning against the wall.
“Just a friend,” I said.
Despite my glare, Addison jumped in, “One of Dylan’s friends who’s a caregiver for his disabled mom. He’sreally nice, like gave up his life to take care of his mom nice, but the cleaning of his house needs to be left to professionals, Dylan.”
“It’s notthatbad,” I lied.
“You’d have to buy a hazmat suit and those industrial grade cleaning supplies. You’d spend more money buying supplies than he’d pay you to do the work. I know his mom is hesitant to let people they don’t know into their home,but she’s gotta let that go, because Quentin needs help. I could give him some referrals.”
“But I need the money.” I groaned. “My auto insurance is due soon.” Not to mention my other bills.
“And you know what I need?” she asked.
