Page 17 of Liberty

“It’s all true,” Fate said as he came in and sat down at the table. “I’m the brainy twin. Got the smarts and the good looks.”

Ma laughed. “No lack of confidence there.”

Fate chuckled. “Better not be. I’m a Walker.”

“I hear ya,” Ma said as she sat the teacups out. “My boys and daughter Liv are the exact same. Tease each other. Pranks all the time. Compete in everything.”

“But,” Fate said. “Seems Liberty is smarter than I gave him credit for.”

I raised my brow at him. “This ought to be good.”

“Yeah, you got the girl undressed in less than ten minutes of being alone with her.”

I shook my head. “You are a total dope, Fate.”

He raised his hands. “I know what I saw. You have her clothes on the back of your chair.”

“There were spiders, Fate. In my clothes,” Belle explained.

He paused and looked over at me. “You didn’t.”

I tilted my head at him. “Didn’t what?”

“Itsy bitsy spiders? Come on Liberty!”

I kept shaking my head then I suddenly realized what he was talking about. “Oh, hell no! That is not what happened.”

He tisked. “Come on. You’d think that you were a little too grown up for that trick.”

Belle picked her teacup up and blew on it. “What is he talking about, Liberty?”

I felt my stomach drop. This woman barely liked me let alone trusted me. And we were finally getting along…sort of. Now this was all about to blow the fuck up in my face.

“When we were teens,” Fate explained. “We well… sorta had the hots for these two sisters. Liberty came up with a plan to get them out of their clothes real fast.”

I groaned and lowered my head.

“Are you saying that Liberty set me up with those spiders?” Belle asked in a very quiet voice.

I raised my head and told her, “That is not what happened.”

She glared at me. “Look, if you wanted to get out of the wedding planning thing, I already told you I could do it.”

“No, I don’t want out of it. Come on Belle. When did I have time to plan the spiders?”

“It was you that suggested the anti-room,” she replied.

“After you said we needed decorations,” I defended.

She gave me a beady eyed look. “Yeah, you aren’t smart enough to have planned that far ahead.”

I scoffed. “Gee thanks, but at least you aren’t believing his BS anymore.” I turned my head to glare at Fate. “What the hell is the matter with you?”

He raised his hands up at me. “Hey, that happened way back when and then this? I mean no one could blame me.”

“Well, I am blaming you.” I smacked his arm.

Ma looked back and forth at us. “I have to admit that spider trick was a lowdown deed, son. Even if you were a teen, I still woulda paddled your butt.”