Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 160684 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 803(@200wpm)___ 643(@250wpm)___ 536(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 160684 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 803(@200wpm)___ 643(@250wpm)___ 536(@300wpm)
“They are,” Grady confirmed. “She has an old injury that she sometimes has to take painkillers for.”
“Well, maybe she got addicted to them. That happens.” She gave them a look of fake sympathy. “Poor Effie.”
“Effie isn’t addicted to her painkillers,” Grady told her. “And she knows better than to drink alcohol with them. Because it says on the bottle not to and Effie is a rule follower.” Mostly. “Actually, Effie doesn’t drink at all beyond some Baileys at Christmas.”
“If that’s what she told you—”
“She didn’t tell us jack shit, woman,” Steele snarled.
Okay, Steele was about to lose it.
“You set her up,” Grady accused her. “You saw those pills in her handbag, read the label. Then you saw her take them, and when she told you that she didn’t want any alcohol in her drinks, you put some in them anyway.”
“You have no proof of that.”
Now the bitch had smartened up. Her face was pale.
“Actually, we do. Got Nate, who witnessed Effie telling you no booze, and we have you on camera, putting fucking booze in her drinks!” Steele thundered.
She jumped with a squeal. Yeah, she’d never encountered Steele like this. Mostly because Steele had never had much to do with her.
How she ever thought she was going to catch Steele’s eye, Grady had no idea.
“But . . . how?”
“I had other cameras installed,” Grady told her. “I’m just not very trusting.”
“Thank fuck,” Steele said. “Now, go gather whatever shit you have here because you ain’t never coming back. Lex is gonna go with you to make sure you don’t grab anything you’re not supposed to. And to make sure you fucking leave. Don’t ever let me see you here again.”
That’s when a calculating look came over her face.
And the real Lucy appeared.
“Are you threatening me?” she asked. “Because that would be a very bad thing.”
Turning, he took in Steele’s smile. Which wasn’t a smile at all, but a promise. And if the stupid bitch didn’t realize that . . .
“Go. Now,” Grady snarled.
“I can make things difficult for you . . . for this place . . . all it would take is a word in the wrong people’s ears.”
“Get . . . out . . . now!” Steele thundered.
She jumped again and Lex took hold of her arm. She shook his hand off her. “Get your filthy hand off me.” She stormed out.
“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she goes,” Lex said.
“Make sure she goes quietly. And not out the front,” Grady said. “She’s likely to try and make a scene.”
“Oh, I know. That bitch is all about the drama.” Lex turned and walked away.
“Think she’ll be trouble?” Grady asked.
“Her? No. What’s the worst she can do?”
Hmm. A woman scorned? Probably more than they thought.
27
Effie woke with a thumping headache.
Opening her eyes, she glanced around, unsure where she was.
She was in a bed. In a dark room. Her heart raced until her brain fully understood that this room was familiar.
This was Brooks’ bedroom.
But why was she in his bedroom and not her own bed? And where was Brooks? And why did she have a bad feeling in her stomach?
There was a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
She sat up as Brooks entered the bedroom, carrying a tray. On it was a plate of buttery toast. Yum. And coffee.
“You made me breakfast in bed? You didn’t need to do that. You’re too good to me.” She reached for the coffee as he set the tray down on the nightstand and took a sip.
Ahh. That was perfection. Brooks knew exactly how she liked her coffee.
“Um, actually, I figured you’d probably need coffee this morning,” he said hesitantly.
She watched him closely. “Does whatever you’re about to tell me have something to do with why I’m in your bed? And why I have a bit of memory blank about how I got here?”
“Ah, yeah.”
“Oh God, just tell me.” The dread was almost too much to bear.
“You don’t remember getting into my bed because, uh, you were asleep.”
“Asleep?” How could she get into bed if she was asleep?
“Uh-huh, and, uh, Mr. Steele carried you to bed.”
“Oh my God, no,” she breathed out.
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Uh, yeah, Aunt Effie.”
“Fuck. Sorry, shouldn’t have said that.”
Brooks’ lips twitched. “I’ve heard the word fuck before.”
“But not from me.”
“What about that time you stubbed your toe against the coffee table? Or when you spilled spaghetti all down your shirt? Or when you saw a mouse in the pantry?”
“All right, I get it. How come you have to have such a good memory? Why couldn’t you be one of those unobservant kids?”
Brooks just grinned as he sat on the side of the bed, watching her.
“You want to do me a favor and forget all those times?” she asked.
“Sure, Auntie, I’ll get right on that.”
She sighed and ran her hand over her face. “What the hell happened?”