Page 31 of Lawbreaker

And there was; a big, blue one, heralding a possible nor’easter. They came at the most unexpected times. At the most unwelcome ones, too.

When they got back to the house, the weather channel was blaring out. People needed to batten down or head for the mainland; it was going to be a bad storm.

“I’ll drop you and Stasia off at your apartment,” Tony told the women. “Get your stuff together while I arrange to get the rest of my guests to the airport.”

“Will do,” Stasia said, drawing a disappointed Odalie along with her. “You and Tony were getting along so well,” Stasia said sadly as they packed. “I’m really sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Odalie said on a sigh. “He’d already warned me off.”

“What?!”

“I guess I was wearing my heart on my sleeve. He said he had a mistress and he didn’t start things he couldn’t finish,” she replied. “So going home is not a bad thing. In fact,” she added before Stasia could speak, “I think I’d like to go spend a couple of weeks at home. I need a break.”

Stasia just smiled. Things were looking up, although Odalie might not think so. If Tony had to pull out his long-unvisited mistress to ward off her sister-in-law, something was truly in the works, even if Tony was fighting it tooth and nail. It gave her hope.

“That would be great,” Stasia said. “We can pick up Tony’s fairy from Maddie Brannt and you can take it home with you when you go back to New York.”

“She did a really wonderful job on it. But Tony will never sell it,” she added. “He’ll tuck it away somewhere at home. I’d bet on it.”

Stasia chuckled. “So would I. It might be a good idea to commission Maddie to do one of some pretty girl instead, one that he can display.”

“I’ll ask her,” Odalie said. “But you’d better clear it with Tony first, right?”

“Right. I’ll do that.”

It was a quick trip back to the city with the cloud on their tail all the way.

“This is going to be some storm,” Odalie said on a sigh. “We got caught up in Dallas in a hotel at a cattlemen’s convention once. The whole building shook every time it thundered, and the lightning was so nonstop that it looked like daylight. Until then, I thought our storms in Big Spur were really bad.”

“We’re not that far south of Dallas, but the weather doesn’t seem to reach us as much,” Stasia agreed. “Storms anywhere in the plains are bad, though.”

“There have been some terrible ones in recent years,” Odalie sighed. “I don’t like storms that hurt people and change lives, but I love storms,” she added softly, smiling to herself.

“Of course you do. You like wrestling and snakes and...earthworms,” Tony said.

Stasia burst out laughing while Odalie flushed. “Oh, do I remember hearing that story!” she chuckled. “Odalie and John got into more trouble, trying to one-up each other. We won’t even go into the spider incident,” she added with a wicked smile at Odalie.

“Well, I didn’t know he was afraid of spiders,” she argued. “Honestly, he never even told Dad, he was so afraid of being made fun of. Dad didn’t like weakness in those days,” she explained. “We were expected to toughen up and do what needed to be done.”

“Which is why, when you were twelve, Dad gave you a handful of rubber bands...”

“We should really forget that,” Odalie said, and flushed even more.

“But...”

“No butts.” She flushed more. “Just...drop it, okay?”

Stasia laughed. “Okay. If you say so.”

“Am I missing something here?” Tony teased.

“Not a thing. Honest. Just a misunderstood episode that we should never, ever repeat in mixed company!” Odalie told her sister-in-law firmly.

“Come on,” Tony teased. “Tell it.”

“If you do, I’ll present you with your very own hive of hornets the very minute you’re not pregnant anymore!” Odalie promised.

Stasia chuckled helplessly. “All right, but you’re stifling my creativity.”