Slow No Wake (12 page)

Serenity was next. She didn’t appear to be as strong or physically fit as her sister, so I could understand why they placed her second. She would have Trinity at the top to give her a hoist.

Brad and Serenity repeated the same moves that Brad and Trinity had just done. When Serenity was high enough to lift herself, Trinity grabbed hold of her and helped her up the wall.

Brad now stood staring at the wall. I wondered what his next move was going to be. The twins both got on their stomachs at the top of the wall, but they couldn’t quite reach Brad to give him a hoist up. Brad then backed away from the wall and tried to make a running start. He was able to walk up the wall a few feet, but it still wasn’t enough for the twins to reach him.

Brad shook his head and threw up his arms. “We just don’t have enough people to do it,” he said.

Eddie nodded in agreement.

We were all silent for a minute staring at each other.

Then Eddie said, “It’s okay to ask for help.”

Brad looked at Eddie then looked at our team.
“From you or from them?”

“Either or both,” Eddie replied.

Brad thought about it for a minute. I could see the wheels spinning in his head. He asked Daniel to remove his belt then he held on to one end then tossed the other end up for Trinity to grab. Using the belt, Trinity was able to pull Brad up enough for Serenity to grab hold of his arm. Then Trinity grabbed the other arm and with Brad half climbing the rest of the way, the twins were able to get him high enough so that he could lift himself over the wall.

Ricky and Daniel didn’t have any trouble hoisting me high enough that I could make it up to the top of the wall. Then Ricky got a push up from Daniel and I was able to pull him a bit until he could hoist himself the rest of the way. Ricky then used the belt to pull Daniel part of the way up and I grabbed his arm and gave him a bit of a pull until he was over the wall with us.

When we were all at the top of the wall, Eddie started a round of applause. We all joined in clapping, then laughing. We were all exhausted, but we’d done it.

We took a short break and Eddie gave us all bottled water from a cooler. I swear we all downed our bottles in one gulp.

Then it was time for the final element of the day. The overhead ropes. As we all stood under the massive ropes structure, I wondered what I hell I had gotten myself into.

“There are several ropes elements. Today, we’re going to do the tight-rope walk at the top,” Eddie informed us.

I gulped. I had seen people walk tightropes, but they were in the circus. They had practiced their whole lives and tightrope walked on a daily basis. My feet never left the ground if I could help it.

When I glanced over at Daniel, he looked like he was gleaming. Of course, he’d be excited about a thing like this. He did kite surfing, which was an extreme sport. This probably seemed like nothing to him. Ricky was also grinning. I noticed the twins looked as dumbstruck as I did. Good, at least I wasn’t alone in my lack of enthusiasm and downright fear.

Eddie glanced in my direction and gave me his dimpled half smile. A shiver ran through me. I tried to play it off as fear of the tightrope wall, but deep down, I knew better. Eddie still had the ability to turn me to jelly with just one sexy look.

“You don’t need to worry too much,” Eddie said. “You’ll each be strapped to a safety harness, so if you fall off the rope, which I hope you don’t, you won’t fall to the ground. It’s a safety precaution so you won’t get hurt.”

The thought of being strapped to a safety rope didn’t lessen my fears very much. It was still a very long was up there and it seemed like a long way back down to the ground.

Serenity raised her hand.

“Yes,” Eddie said acknowledging her.

“Can we give it a pass if we don’t want to do it?”

“You can always give it a pass, but I would prefer you didn’t. I’d like to see you move beyond your comfort zone.”

As soon as he said move beyond your comfort zone, Eddie stared right at me. He was definitely outside of my comfort zone, but I wasn’t planning on moving beyond it any time soon.

I glanced over at Daniel and he was staring daggers at Eddie. I guessed he wasn’t too thrilled about the thought of me moving beyond my comfort zone either. Daniel was definitely firmly within my comfort zone. In some ways, he was my comfort zone.

Eddie gave us a demonstration about strapping ourselves into the safety harness. Then he asked for a volunteer to go first. I must have been momentarily possessed because I raised my hand.

I could hear Daniel let out a small gasp. I glanced over at him and he had worry in his eyes. I gave him a reassuring smile, but it didn’t seem to ease his fears much.

Eddie got me strapped into the safety harness and then I climbed the small ladder up to the top of the end pole. I noticed Eddie was climbing up the ladder on the other side to meet me.

Panic set in as I looked down and realized how high up I was.

I could hear Eddie’s voice say, “Don’t look down.”

Too late.

I could feel myself wobble a bit, so I looked over at Eddie and tried to steady myself. For the first time, he wasn’t looking at me lustfully. He wasn’t trying to seduce me. He was actually looking at me more like a friend. And there was something else in his eyes. I couldn’t quite place it because I had never seen it in his eyes before, but it may have been love.

I slowly stepped onto the tightrope and told myself I could do it. I continued putting one foot in front of the other until I was about a quarter of the way there.

Terror gripped me again as I realized I was in the air without the safety of the large end pole behind me.

“You can do it,” Eddie reassured me. Just hearing his voice and seeing that loving look in his eyes was enough for me to gather the strength I needed to make it the rest of the way.

When I got to the other side, Eddie embraced me in a hug. He felt warm and safe.

As good as it felt to be in Eddie’s arms, I suddenly felt uncomfortable when I remembered the rest of the staff, and Daniel, were on the ground watching us.

“You should probably let me go,” I said.

Eddie kept me in a tight embrace. “I don’t want to let you go.”

I knew he meant more than just that moment. “You have to let me go.”

“I can’t.”

“Please.”

I could feel the breath leave his body but he was still holding me. I was so caught up in the moment of feeling Eddie so close to me and the tenderness between us, I hadn’t even realized that Daniel had climbed up Eddie’s end pole.

“Let
Lexie go,” Daniel said.

Eddie did as he was told then he looked over at Daniel. “You shouldn’t be up here, man.”

Daniel let out a single laugh. “Like you have anything to say about what someone should and shouldn’t do.”

“You need to get down so
Lexie can climb down.”

Realization crossed Daniel’s face. “Right, sure.”

Daniel climbed down the pole and I climbed down right after him. Eddie stayed at the top for a moment, then climbed down after us.

Daniel was now standing so close to me we could have been attached at the hip. When Eddie returned to the group, I noticed ‘old’ Eddie had returned. There wasn’t a trace of the loving man, who had embraced me at the top of the pole. He was a charismatic asshole again.

NINE

Drift

I
was so exhausted by Thursday evening, all I could think about was getting home, changing into my pajamas and climbing into bed with a good book.

Imagine my surprise when I saw a petite blonde sitting on my doorstep. “What are you doing here?”

“Did you get my letter?” Hannah asked as she rose. I noticed a large duffle bag was lying on the ground next to her.

I motioned toward the bag. “Are you planning on staying a while?”

She kicked some sand on the ground with her flip flop. “I don’t really have anywhere else to go.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “Why is that?”

“Well, it’s kind of a long story, but dad kicked me out.”

I heaved a sigh. Even though we still had a lot of issues to deal with, could I leave my sister to live on the streets? I had to admit, a small part of me sought revenge and that part of me thought that her being homeless and jobless was justice for her betrayal. But a bigger part of me wanted to help my little sister when she needed me.

I unlocked my door and entered my apartment. I expected her to follow, but she just stood in the doorway. A lone teardrop escaped down her face as she stifled a sob.

“Are you going to stand out there all night? Rumor has it my landlord is a pervert, and he lives two doors down.”

Hannah scooped up her duffle bag and hurried into my apartment.

“You’re going to have to sleep on the couch until we can get a bed for my spare room,” I said.

“It’s okay. I don’t mind.”

“You can come to work with me tomorrow. If you have no objections, I’m going to sign you up for our volunteer program. It will give you something to do until you’re able to find a job.”

Hannah nodded. “Sure, whatever you want.”

“When you’re at work with me, under no circumstances are you to ever interact with Mr.
LaRoche. Got it?”

My sister nodded.

“I’m serious,” I warned her.

“Okay,” she said. “I’ve got it.
Anything else?”

“Yes; I’m going camping this weekend and you’re not invited.”

“Why not?” protested my sister.

“You’ll have to excuse me if I don’t want you anywhere near my new boyfriend.”

Hannah heaved a sigh. She looked like she might cry.

“You can watch movies or go to the beach. It’s only a few blocks from here. You should find plenty of things to keep you occupied.”

“I feel bad that you don’t trust me. And I want to meet your new guy.”

“It will take some time for you to earn my trust again. You’ll probably meet my new guy tomorrow but it will only be in passing. We
work together, but we don’t want everyone to know we’re together. Got it?”

“I get it,” she said.

“You can put your bag in the spare room. We can pick up some stuff for you on the way home from work tomorrow.”

Hannah nodded and trudged toward the bedroom. Then she turned back to me and said, “Thanks,
Lexie. I really mean that. I know you didn’t have to take me in but I’m glad you did.”

I gave her a half smile, which was so symbolic of my current feelings for my sister. Half of me was happy I could help her and half of me was waiting for her to make another stupid choice that would ruin my life.

***

D
riving to work, I reminded my sister of my rules. “And what did I say about Mr. LaRoche?”

“Stay away from him.” Hannah rolled her eyes.
“Although you never told me why.”

“You don’t have to know why. Just do as I said.”

“Okay. Jeez,” she whined.

“The guy I’m dating is Daniel. If we run into him, just act casual. I don’t want anyone to know we’re dating.”

“Got it.” Hannah sounded exasperated.

“Except the twins already know,” I said.

Hannah raised an eyebrow. “The twins?”

I grinned. “I can’t wait for you to meet them.”

***

“T
rinity, Serenity, I’d like for you to meet my younger sister, Hannah. She’s staying with me for a while.”

The twins gave my sister broad smiles.

“For a minute, I thought you had a twin and were holding out on us,” Trinity teased.

I never thought I looked that much like my sister. I always considered her much prettier and she was definitely more carefree and outgoing than I ever was.

“It’s so nice to meet you,” Serenity said as she extended a hand to Hannah.

“Nice to meet both of you,” Hannah said as she shook Serenity’s hand.

Trinity just gave her a quick wave and Hannah waved back.

“You should definitely take your sister to meet Brad,” Trinity said and I swore she winked at me. I wondered if she was hinting at a possible match between them. It seemed completely improbable to me, but what did I know. I never thought my sister would sleep with my fiancé.

“Okay, we’re off to Brad’s office then,” I said.

I knocked on Brad’s door and was not surprised to hear a brisk, “What do you want?” from inside.

I opened his door a crack and peered in. “If it’s okay, I’d like to introduce you to my sister. She just moved to town. She’s interested in doing some volunteer work for the agency.”

“I’ve got like one spare minute,” he said coldly.

“I promise not to take up too much of your time,” I assured him.

I opened Brad’s door wider and dragged my sister into his office. When Brad glanced up at us, I was surprised to see his face completely brighten. He couldn’t take his eyes off of my sister.

Brad slowly rose from his chair, and with his eyes still locked on my sister, he moved to the front of his desk to join us. My jaw nearly dropped to the ground when he grabbed my sister’s hand then placed his other hand on top, in a two-handed shake.

“I’m so pleased to meet you,” he said with both of his hands still firmly grasping my sister’s.

“I’m pleased to meet you, too,” replied Hannah a little too sweetly.

The two stared at each other as if there was no one else in the room. I guess my question about Brad’s orientation was answered. He was definitely attracted to Hannah.

“Lunch,” he said. “You have to join me for lunch. If you don’t have other plans, I mean.”

Hannah glanced over at me. Then Brad looked at me as if he just remembered I was in the office with them.

“I’d love for you to join us, too, Lexie,” Brad said.

Never in a million years did I think I would be going to lunch with Brad and definitely not with Brad and my sister. My world got more interesting by the hour.

“That would be great,” I said. I looked over at Hannah and she gave me a huge smile.

“Great,” Brad replied. “I’ll see you at 11:45.”

As we headed toward Tom’s office, I quickly texted Daniel.

ME:
I won’t be able to meet you for lunch today. Sorry.

DANIEL:
Is everything okay?

ME:
Long story. Tell you later. I’m having lunch with Brad and my sister.

DANIEL:
The therapist Brad? And your slutty sister?

ME:
I told you it was a long story.

DANIEL:
Okay. See you tonight?

ME:
Let’s go for a walk on the beach.

DANIEL:
Sounds good.

***

I introduced my sister to Tom. “Hannah is interested in doing some volunteer work,” I said.

“We can always use more volunteers,” Tom said. “Do you have any special skills you’d like to share?”

Hannah glanced at the floor and I shook my head at Tom.

“That’s okay,” Tom said. “We can use someone in the office to help with photocopies, filing, stuffing envelopes for mailers. How does that sound?”

Hannah glanced back up at him. “Okay,” she said softly.

“Do you want to start today? I can have Lily at the front desk train you.”

Hannah nodded.

Tom glanced at me. “Why don’t you leave Hannah with me and I’ll introduce her to Lily? I’ll also have her fill out some paperwork so we can get her into the system.”

I rose. “Thanks so much, Tom.”

He gave me a knowing smile. “No problem.
Leave Hannah to me and worry about your clients.”

***

A
t 11:45 on the nose, Brad came to my office to pick Hannah and me up for lunch.

“Where’s your sister?” he asked anxiously.

“I believe she’s in the reception area helping Lily stuff envelopes for the fund development drive,” I said.

“Does she still want to join me for lunch?” he asked, his tension level rising.

“I’m sure she does,” I said as calmly as I could. “She seemed really excited about it.”

“Okay,” Brad said, but I could tell he wasn’t convinced. He began pacing the small space between my desk and my door.

A few minutes later, my sister arrived and Brad breathed a sigh of relief.

“Are you ready for lunch?” Hannah asked Brad. She literally batted her eyelashes at him. My sister was a walking cliché.

Brad returned the gesture with a huge smile. “I’m ready if you are.”

The two were so enamored with each other’s
presence, it was like I was invisible to both of them. “Where are we going for lunch?” I asked, hoping to break the spell between them.

“I have something very special planned,” Brad answered.

***

F
ifteen minutes later, we were standing in front of the most expensive restaurants in town. Definitely not a place I would ever see myself at for lunch, or even dinner for that matter. When I glanced over at my sister, she looked awestruck. The exterior of the lavish place was ornate with beautiful palm trees and flowers everywhere.

Not surprising that every car in the parking lot was a luxury vehicle. Even Brad’s car was a Lexus, which surprised me. I wondered how he afforded such an expensive vehicle on a therapist’s salary. I knew he was a little older than me, so he was probably higher up the pay scale, but could it be that much higher? I could barely make the payments on a Kia Soul after paying for my dump of an apartment.

As we entered the restaurant, I noticed my sister’s eyes went wide. The place was stunning and certainly inspired awe. The grand entrance had a beautiful fountain that was glistening with blue and gold underwater. There were small sparkle lights all over the ceiling that twinkled like stars. I suddenly felt a wave a nausea as I thought about how much the meals at a place like this would cost.

Maybe Brad could see my expression had changed, because he leaned over to Hannah and me and whispered, “I’m sure it goes without saying, but lunch is on me.”

“This place is amazing,” muttered my sister as she stared at the twinkle lights above her.

“This is one of my favorite places,” Brad said.

My sister’s face fell, but she quickly recovered. “So, you come here often?” The way she asked it insinuated that she didn’t want to be one of many women.

Brad’s face went white. “I do,” he said cautiously. “But not on dates. I don’t go on many dates. I just don’t like to cook, so I go out a lot.”

“I can cook for you,” Hannah blurted, then looked at Brad hopefully.

When Brad returned my sister’s gaze, I could see a sparkle in his eyes that I had never seen before. “You would do that for me?”

“Of course,” she said. Then, as if remembering she was living in my house, she turned to me and said, “If it’s okay with Lexie.”

Far be it from me to stand in the way of a budding romance. “No problem,” I said and gave my sister a reassuring little smile. Now she was the one with a sparkle in her eyes; it was a sparkle I had never seen there before either. 

A host came and took us to our seats. I was surprised that he addressed Brad as Mr. Collins. He said he came here a lot, but enough for them to know him by name?

We had a lovely view of the water, which didn’t surprise me. What did surprise
me, was how many people filled the restaurant during the lunch hour.

“This place is always packed,” Brad told us. “But I know the owner, so I can usually get a table.”

Just as I suspected, the prices were way out of my league. This was one of those places that I might go to for a very special occasion. I wondered how Brad could afford to eat here on a regular basis. Maybe knowing the owner qualified him for some kind of discount.

When I looked at my sister, I saw she was glancing at the menu, but also peering over it every few seconds and eye flirting with Brad. He was certainly returning the gesture.
I suddenly felt very much like the cliché’ third wheel.

“What’s good?” I asked, hoping Brad would respond. I didn’t want to interrupt the lovebirds in action, but I didn’t have a clue what to order.