The Certainty of Deception (14 page)

“I will.”  His towel fell to the ground, as he threw his arms around my waist.  Never in my life had I been hugged so tight.  The boy had the strength of two men.  “Bye-bye, Dwuw.”

At first I was stunned by his affection with me.  I looked for guidance from his family, but they appeared almost as shocked as I was.  So, I turned to Jared.  He gave me a signal to hug the boy back, to which I obeyed immediately.  Happy with my returned sentiment, Justice bounded away toward his parents.  Cody ruffled his hair then placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder, leading him inside.

“I’ve never seen him take to anyone so easily,” Lindsey said in awe. 

“Me either,” Jackie agreed.  She approached me, holding the baby close to her chest.  I gulped hard; the urge to run completely overwhelmed me.  “Thank you for playing with him.  Most people see him for his differences, but you saw him as a person tonight.  I can’t express how much that means to us.”

I blinked several times, trying my hardest to pay attention to her words rather than the sleeping baby she held.  “He’s a good kid,” I muttered; my pulse racing in my ears.  Even outside, the world felt as though it was collapsing in on me.  Having Honor so close sent me into a tailspin of panic.  My throat constricted to the point that I couldn’t breathe.  I either needed to get away or find a bottle of rum. 

Sensing my discomfort, Jackie studied me for a moment.  Her eyes squinted in the pale light, and then moved her focus to the baby.  She hummed, her mouth twitching, as she put some distance between us.  The pressure on my chest eased a bit.  “Well, the boys are waiting on us.  We’ll see ya tomorrow.”

“You can count on it,” I replied, trying to regain my balance in the situation.   

“Granny,” Jackie addressed Glenda, “you ready?”

The old woman patted Gavin on the butt.  Gavin jumped in the air, his eyes wide with surprise.  “Save me a dance tomorrow,” she instructed my brother. 

“I, uh-” Gavin ran his fingers through his perfectly styled hair.  Thanks to the amount of product in his hair and the Texas heat, his hair stuck straight in the air.  I had to stifle my laugh.  It didn’t help when I caught the expression on Jared’s face who was practically dying of unreleased laughter.

Glenda wobbled away from her permanent position at Gavin’s side and made her way to me.  She pinched my cheek between her frail fingers.  “Nice work, boy.”

I looked down at the old woman, seeing Mickie in her eyes.  “You expected less of me?”

“Nope.  But I know my granddaughter.”  She patted my behind and tottered off behind Jackie.  “See y’all tomorrow,” she shouted and waved as they disappeared into the house.

“You look relieved,” Bill said to Gavin.

“I, uh, no, sir.”  Gavin turned a brilliant red, sending us into another bout of laughter.

“Don’t worry, son.  The first time she met Cody; she grabbed his junk and asked him if he was fertile.” 

Gavin stared at Bill, stunned.  “No way!”

Lindsey nodded her head frantically.  “Yes way!  I’m surprised she didn’t-” Lindsey caught herself before finishing her sentence.  I knew she was about to refer to me being fertile.  But with Olivia in the picture, there was no question about my ability to breed.

An awkward silence filled the air.  I folded my towel and placed it on the table.  Lindsey grabbed me by the arm.  “I’m so sorry,” she whispered to me. 

I cupped the side of her face, and placed a tender kiss on her forehead.  “Don’t be.  No harm done.”  But that was a lie.  Everything that stood between McKenzie and me resurfaced.  She slinked back into the shadows, reconstructing the walls I’d broken down.  All our progress seemed lost. 

I shook hands with Bill, thanking him for inviting us and made my way toward the house.  As I entered, I heard Jared address the Evans’.  “It was a lovely dinner,” he proclaimed, “Thanks for having us.”

The sliding door closed behind me.  A blast of cold air from the air conditioner froze me to the bone.

“Andy.”

I turned around to find McKenzie standing with her back pressed against the sliding door, her hands flat against the glass.

“Yeah?”

Small puddles of water gathered at her feet.  She pushed off the door, a visible war raged inside of her.  How I wanted to take the pain away, but there was nothing I could.  Olivia was pregnant, and unless a test proved otherwise, I was going to be a father. 

“Um, what, uh, do you have plans for breakfast?” she struggled.

I smiled, stepping toward her.  “I do now.” 

She hid a smile, not meeting my eyes.  “I’ll call you to finalize plans.”

I patted my jeans pocket.  My eyes widened at the sudden realization that my phone had been in my pocket the whole time we were in the pool.  There was a bit of irony to the fact that I’d considered throwing my phone in the pool to get away from Olivia’s incessant calls.  It appeared fate had temporarily taken care of that issue for me.  With a bit of a struggle, I pushed my hand into the wet denim and pulled my phone out.  It was soaked through and beyond dead.

“Oh, no!” she exclaimed, closing the distance between us.  Her hand covered mine, turning the phone to her.  The warmth of her hand felt wonderful amidst the chill of the house.  “I’m so sorry.  I didn’t even think.”

I laughed.  “Don’t you worry about it.  Maybe I’ll get a little peace and quiet now.”

Her steady blue eyes weighed me carefully.  “You’ll need a new one.”

I cocked my head to the side, realizing what she was getting at.  The last time we had a tryst in the water like this, she ended up buying me a new suit.  That was not about to happen again.  “Don’t even think about getting me a new phone.”

Her response came automatically.  “But it’s my fault.”

“We were having fun, Mickie.  It’s only a silly phone.  I can get a new one tomorrow.”

“But, I...” 

I placed my fingers over her lips, stopping her.  “How about you tell me where to meet you in the morning.”

She wrapped her fingers around my wrist, pulling my fingers from her lips.  “Andy, please, let me fix this.”

“Not going to happen, baby girl.  Now tell me, where do you wish to meet?”

She released my hand with a sigh.  “Meet me at my apartment.  We’ll go from there.”  She wrote down the address on a grocery list sheet that she pulled from the fridge and handed it to me.  “I’ll make this up to you somehow.”

I held the paper up, shaking it.  “You just did.” 

“That’s not enough,” she whispered so softly that I almost didn’t hear her. 

“It is to me,” I replied, as I gently tucked her damp hair behind her ear.  She closed her eyes and leaned into my touch.  All at once, the chill of the air turned warm, and electricity crackled around us.  I cupped her face in my hands, brushing my thumbs along her cheekbones.  I wanted to kiss her.  I wanted it more than anything, but my gut told me to restrain myself.

It was a good thing I listened to myself, because in that moment the back door opened.  McKenzie opened her eyes, those big blue orbs seemed lost, yet a flicker of anger passed over her features.  I released her, shocked at what I’d seen. 

Jared slammed on the brakes.  An oomph came from Gavin who ran into him.  Jared mouthed an apology, nearly ready to push Gavin back out the door when I shook my head, letting him know not to go anywhere.  “I’ll see you in the morning,” I said to her, motioning to Jared and Gavin that it was time to go.

“I said I’ll walk you out,” she countered.

“Go change, Mickie.  I don’t want you getting sick.”

I leaned in and brushed a tender kiss to her cheek, and then left the house without so much as looking back. 

Back at the hotel, I was happy that the three of us had opted for individual rooms.  The whole drive back, Jared and Gavin wanted to chat about the night’s events.  I, however, was in no mood for hashing out the details of my ridiculous love life with those two. 

As soon as I was alone in my room, I stripped down to take a long, hot shower.  I removed my contacts, blinking away the discomfort I felt.  Chlorine and contact lenses don’t mix well.  The pounding of the water on my back should’ve relieved the tension I felt, but sadly it didn’t.  My mind was lost in the big blue eyes of McKenzie Evans.  Normally, I’d shrug shit off, but tonight I saw something in her that, for lack of a better word, frightened me.  Was it sadness?  Was it animosity?  Maybe anger?  Heaven forbid, hatred?  Whatever it was, that look stuck with me.  I couldn’t shake the feeling that I missed something rather important. 

I jumped out of the shower, toweled off, then quickly slipped into a comfy pair of boxer briefs.  My mind reeled with the night
’s events, instantly replaying every scenario, stupid move, and what could have been.   It was enough to drive me crazy, and let me tell you, that’s a short trip.  Women are far too confusing and complicated for me.  There was only one way to appease my befuddled mind. I needed a woman’s perspective. 

I plopped down on the bed, ready to rip my hair out.  There was only one person who could help me with this predicament.  Out of their own fruition, my fingers began to dial my sister’s number.  Andie was the only woman in the world who could set me straight.

“Hello?”  The sound of Andie’s voice brought back my Bostonian roots in one quick blow.  Her Northern accent was nearly as thick as Mickie’s Southern drawl. 

“Hey there, little sis,” I replied, leaning back, resting my head against the headboard, as I crossed my ankles.  The cotton linens on the bed rustled softly beneath me with each move I made.

“
Little
, hmm?  Last time I checked, I do recall you being my
little
brother.”

I closed my eyes, propping my arm above my head against the leather headboard.  The perfect image of my twin sister danced behind my eyelids.  At this time of night, Andie would’ve
just finished a performance.  She’d be locked up in her dressing room, coming down from the immense high she always got from completing a show.  I imagined Andie sitting at her dressing table, rubbing the arches of her feet, as she often did after a performance.  Her soft brown hair hung in curls around her heart-shaped face, having been tied up in a tight bun while she danced.  Maybe she picked up a cleansing cloth to remove her stage makeup, exposing her deep blue eyes and plump pout.  Andie could easily be described as tall, slender, toned, but most of all, extremely beautiful.  And while she secretly dreamed of finding her one true love, life had made her cynical.  Not that I blamed her.  Her experiences in love were as bad as mine.  Possibly worse. 

“By fifteen minutes.  Besides, I believe it’s customary for women to discourage the topic of age.  I was only thinking of you and didn’t want to damage your delicate sensibilities regarding your advanced age.”

“Ha!” Andie squawked.  “Said sensibilities are only taken into consideration when apprehending the attention of a companion.  You, my dear brother, are not in that category.  Therefore, my
advanced
age, as you put it, is not something to shrink away from.  In fact, it is to be admired, because it gives me the right to kick your scrawny ass.”

My head fell back in laughter.  “I swear you should’ve become a lawyer.”

Andie joined in my laughter.  “Right.”

“Oh, c’mon,” I teased, pulling my arm away from the headboard.  At first my skin stung from fusing with the leather.  I rested the receiver on my shoulder, and rubbed my arm.  “Dad would’ve been so proud.  You could’ve been the first Wise female to become an attorney.”

Andie had it easy growing up in comparison to me.  Dad seemed to hate me from the moment I entered the world.  I could never do anything right.  Andie, being a frilly little girl who loved to dress up and dance around the house, was coddled, which drove her crazy.  When it came time for us to attend college, she immediately chose to go into the arts.  There was no way she’d become a lawyer and have Father treat her like the princess of the office.  I, on the other hand, was forced to follow family tradition. 

“Bullshit, Nova.  We both know he wanted me to marry a lawyer, not become one.”

I reached down and tugged a string on the hem of my boxer briefs.  “Are you ever going to quit calling me that?” I grumbled.

No teenage boy should ever share the same grade level as his sister.  It’s simply cruel.  While Andie and I attended different prep schools, we were subjected to the same mixed gatherings, such as proms and spring formals.  It was during one of those events that the stupid nickname emerged. 

Back in high school, I had a reputation of being a ladies’ man.  Granted, not much changed afterward, but the truth was, I only had two real girlfriends in high school.  Neither of which were involved with the rumor.  According to legend, I had a tryst with the captain of the lacrosse team’s girlfriend during the winter formal.  Did I mention she was a senior and I was a sophomore? 

The rumors were untrue.  Not that I wouldn’t have minded having a go at her, but I wasn’t the type to cheat, so she held no appeal to me.  But the damage was done, and I inherited the awful nickname
Casanova
out of the deal; on top of a bloody lip and a black eye from her boyfriend who believed what was being spread around the two schools.  Andie got wind of the nickname and had her fun with it.  She shortened it to
Nova
and spread to every girl she came in contact with.  Much to my dismay, it stuck, and to make matters worse, since many of my high school chums followed me to Harvard, so did the nickname.  It wasn’t until I moved to Sarasota that I was able to abandon it, but Andie has never let it go. 

“Nope.  Nevah gonna happen.”  I rubbed my hand over my face, feeling the vein pulse in my forehead.  Before I could respond, she asked, “So, how’s Vegas?”

I shot up straight in the bed, nearly dropping the phone.  “Who told you I’m in Vegas?”

Andie laughed, her voice carrying long and hard.  “Who else?”

Olivia!

“Why the fuck is she calling you?”

“Hell if I know.  What
I
want to know is who gave that bitch my number.”

“Wasn’t me.”  I thought for a moment.  “But I bet we can probably thank my former secretary for that it.”

“I never liked that witch,” Andie groaned.  “I never understood what possessed you to sleep with her.”

I threw my hand in the air, as if she could see me.  “I was drunk!”

“Psh.  That’s such a lame excuse.”  She chuckled lightly.  I knew it bothered her that I suffered with alcoholism as I did.  Deep down, I think she worried that she could easily fall into the same trap, especially since our mother was a closet drunk.  There was no doubt in my mind that she’d ever have my issues.  Andie was strong.  Stronger than anyone I knew.  Not that I’d ever tell her that.  She’d never let me hear the end of it.

“Let me present the evidence,” I stated in my most legal sounding tone. 

“Please don’t.  What I really want to know is why you’re calling me so late.  Shouldn’t you be out dropping loads of cash into a stripper’s g-string or at the craps tables?”

“Could you imagine Gavin at a strip club?”  I fluffed the pillows behind me and scooted down the bed, resting my head on the soft clouds. 

“It might be kind of fun to watch him turn a million shades of red.”

“A million shades of red is an understatement.  I remember the last time he and I went to...” I stopped mid sentence.  It had been over ten years since the last time I accompanied Gavin to a gentlemen’s club.  I was about to graduate Harvard Law and start the next stage of my life with the woman I loved.  I closed my eyes tight, fighting back the pain and anger the raged within me at the memories.  I hated to admit that my father was right about anything, but he’d been right about Rebecca.  A fact that he continues to hold over my head to this day.

Andie breathed a tender sigh.  “I remember.”  Moments passed without another word said.  “Since I know you’re not really in Vegas,” Andie quipped, to break the oppressive silence, “and since you’re calling me from a phone that’s obviously not yours,” -she took a deep breath- “and since you’re calling me so late at night, something’s wrong.  So, how about you cut to the chase, and tell me what’s going on, Drew?”

A chill resonated down my spine.  I rubbed my chin; the stubble scratching against my fingertips.  “Can’t a brother want to talk to his sister without something going on?”

“Sure he can, but I know you.  So, talk to me, little brother.”

I lowered my voice, covered my hand over my mouth and started breathing heavily.  “‘I find your lack of faith disturbing,’” I quoted Darth Vader. 

“‘Enough of this, Vader!’” Andie returned Lord Tarkin’s response right on cue.

“I can’t believe you remember that.”

“How could I forget?  You forced Gavin and me to watch
A New Hope
every day for an entire summer.  Now stop stalling, and tell me what’s on your mind.”

I lifted my head from the pillow and dropped it back down as hard as I could in frustration.  Call it twin intuition or sisterly annoyance, but Andie had me. 

“You’re right.  We’re not in Vegas.  We’re in Amarillo, Texas,” I sulked.

“We’re?  As in you and Gavin?”

“And Jared.”

“Ah, yes.  The illustrious Jared Christopher.  I hate that I didn’t get to meet him the last time I was in Sarasota.  The way Gavin talks about him, you’d think he was a god among men.”

The first week after McKenzie left, Andie flew into Sarasota to stay with me.  Sobering me up has never been an easy task, but I was lucky enough to have two siblings who cared about my well-being.  Gavin kept things under wraps with my father, while Andie kept me from falling back into terrible habits.  The only downfall was she had been stuck with me the entire time she was there.  This prevented her from meeting Jared or Olivia, but didn’t stop me from spilling my guts to her about my exasperating love life. 

“Looking to add another notch to the old bedpost?” I jabbed.

“Quit stalling, Nova.  Tell me what’s going on and why the hell are you in Amarillo?” she paused, “Never mind.  I already know.  Our darling McKenzie.”

I tapped the side of my nose.  “Bingo.”

“So you finally decided to get up off your lazy ass and get her back.”

“Hey, now!  You agreed with Gavin that I needed to give her space.”

“Semantics.  So, I guess things aren’t going according to plan.  She didn’t fling herself into your arms, declaring her undying love for you, did she?”

“I might be a romantic, Andie, but I’m not an idiot.  I knew she wouldn’t do that.  I just thought,” I sighed, “honestly, I don’t know what I thought.”

“You thought you’d arrive there to find her pining away for you.  Instead, you found walls built up so tall and so strong that your scrawny ass can’t climb over them, let alone break them down.”

What could I say?  Andie hit the nail straight on the head.  “Yeah.”

“Now, you want to know what you should do.”

“Um, yeah.”

“And you need my help.”

“Thank you, Captain Obvious,” I grumbled.  Springing off the bed, I began to pace the small space allotted by the phone cord.

“Tell me what happened,” she encouraged.

The flood gates opened and the whole day’s events spilled out of me.  Everything that I’d bottled up inside spewed out in the worst case of verbal diarrhea imaginable.  At one point I felt as though I might breakdown and cry.  Not that I would give anyone that satisfaction, but still, the urge was there.  I even gave
face time to Gage, which left my mouth feeling dry and my stomach churning.  When I finally stopped to take a breath, Andie hummed that
‘I see the issue, but how can you be so blind?’
sound.  My chest felt heavy, as I sank back onto the bed.

“What am I missing?” I asked in a huff.

“For being such a smart man, you really are stupid,” she observed.