“Actually, Mia is coming with me.” My head whips to Callie, and the words “Excuse me” fly from my mouth before I give it a second thought.
“What,Daddy? Is it a school night?” Calista lays it on thick in that syrupy tone she knows I loathe and uses every damn time she wants to rattle me. April chokes on the final sip of her champagne. It trickles down her nose and onto her blouse.
Good, I hope it burned on its way out.
Schooling my features the best I can, I stare her down the same way I do when Lily says something out of place. It’s not nearly as often as Callie or my hair would be totally gray by now. “Do we need permission to stay late,Dada?” I set my glass down so hard Callista’s smile slips, and mywater spills. “Fine,” she huffs, her voice back to normal. “Butexcuse you, I’m taking her out.”
“Did you ask her if she’d like that? She just arrived today. She must be tired.”
“It’d actually be really nice if both of you stopped talking as if I wasn’t here.” Mia smiles sweetly, but her eyes are all sass—wide, ironic, and lit with something that I shouldn’t be drawn to.
Liam smirks and says, “Missed you, kid.”
She winks at him. “Good night, boss.”
Placing that warm, misleading hand on my thigh again—and making me consider only wearing shorts for the rest of her stay here—she tells me, “Yes, she did in fact ask me if I’d like to do some night sightseeing.”
Callie cuts in, addressing April, who’s putting on her coat. Correction, Liam is putting her coat on for her. “Aw, she’s cute. I said bar hopping with skyline views and eligible eye candy. I pride myself on being the best wingwoman a single hottie like you could ask for in New York. Ask anyone who survived it.”
“Oh, shut up, you.” Mia brushes off the compliment, and I can’t tell if she’s being modest or if she’s genuinely that oblivious.
“Please, Mia, do whatever you like. I just know Callie can be pushy and wanted to give you an out if you were tired.” The half-truth rolls off my tongue too easily.
“I had a nap. I’m good. But thanks for checking.” She taps my thigh again, now a thank-you in my imaginary Morse code.
Part of me wants to peel her hand away before Calliesees it. The rest of me wants to hold still. Self-preservation roars louder than want, and I shift just enough to make her hand slip away. I regret it immediately and blame Calista, eyeing her with daggers in turn.
“I just need to use the loo, and we can go, Callie.”
“Sure, go ahead, babes.”
Oh, great, some Callie-and-me time. Just what I need to wrap this night.
“I know Mama Jett taught you some great manners, but I’ll check anyway. Did you thank April?” she asks before I find a way out.
Fully aware I’m walking into an ambush, I ask anyway, “Thank April for what, Calista?” My voice drops into that stern dad-tone.
“Honestly, Jett. Just look at how you say my name. You chastise me so much, I’ll end up with a daddy complex, and you’ll have no one else to blame but yourself.”
I stare at her, confused and severely distraught. Where the fuck does she get those things from? The dark depths of her soul? The last three minutes of her therapy sessions?
“Calista, I don’t have the time or the mental bandwidth to unpack that right now.”
“Don’t change the subject.” I didn’t; she did. Women are out to get me. I don’t stand a chance. “Did you thank April or not?” she asks again.
I’m not even fully listening to her anymore. “Thank A for what, Calista?” I soften my tone on purpose, and she smiles, catching on.
“For that hot as fuck souvenir she brought you from London. She deserves a raise, at the very least. Little ol’ meover here?” She slumps back in her chair, dabbing at the corner of her eye with the cloth napkin. No tears, just pure performance. “All I got was some duty-free Toblerone.”
CHAPTER TEN
mia
Callie introducesme to three of her favorite bars, and we have a cocktail in each. What a turnaround. This is so fun. Why haven’t I done a pub crawl back home? Oh, right. I was either too broke or too busy studying or working.
I trip my way to the fourth bar when the alcohol turns into a truth serum.
“Cal, Cal, Cal,” I yell. Then I shush her when she turns her attention from the map on her phone to me. She smiles showing off her big white teeth, and I stumble back. I shush her teeth now. “I got a secret. I can’t tell you. And you can’t tell anyone.”
