Page 24

“Honestly, I’m not surprised that they want you on the organizing committee,” Melanie replies. “You’ve always had a knack for keeping your cool under some pretty stressful situations.”

“And dealing with hormonal teens on a daily basis, that’s always a challenge,” Makayla chimes in with a light laugh.

“Oh, I love it. It’s just a shame we’re so often understaffed,” Callie says with a sigh. “I’d love it if I could focus exclusively on my kids, not everyone else’s, too. I don’t mind it but… you know.”

“If the school is in need of funding, aren’t there grants that they could apply for?” Kellan asks, subtly frowning.

“They turned down our last application.”

“I know somebody,” Kellan replies. “A friend of ours. He’s pretty high up on the totem pole in the Department of Education. I could make a call…”

“You would? That would be amazing,” Callie gasps with excitement. “We do qualify for at least one of the available grants, truth be told, but the selection is always arbitrary. We’re always at a tie with other schools in the district, yet we just never seem to make the cut.

Makayla gives Kellan a surprised look. “That’s incredibly kind of you…”

“Hey, it costs me nothing to make a phone call if it helps Callie here to be a better teacher to her more vulnerable students.”

“They’ve got it bad enough as it is,” Melanie grumbles.

I honestly still can’t believe we ever considered her attractive. Physical beauty aside, there’s nothing beneath that surface that entices me. There was never anything there. Just an illusion, and we fell for it. Hook, line, and sinker.

“What do you mean?” Makayla asks.

“Well, special ed,” Melanie replies with a careless shrug. “They’re never going to be at the top of anybody’s hiring list. They’ve got food stamps and legal aid to look forward to.”

“Every child has the potential to achieve greatness, regardless of their impairments,” Makayla shoots back, blunt but composed. “Just because they’re in special ed does not make them lesser in any way.”

“I wasn’t saying that, but?—”

“I believe in my kids,” Callie adds, cutting her sister off.

Clearly uncomfortable with where the conversation is going and always eager to keep the mood positive, she changes the subject.

“Kay, you told me you wanted to get your winery off the ground by the end of next summer. How’s that going so far? ”

“You have a winery?” Melanie asks, suddenly intrigued.

“I have a piece of land that was left to me by our parents,” Makayla answers. “I’ve decided to turn it into a winery, but I’m just at the very beginning stages. There’s so much research I have to do before even getting started.”

“From what I can tell, you’ve got the winemaking knowledge down.”

“Most of it, yes. There are some logistical aspects I want to cover, but I’m more concerned with the legal and fiscal side of things.”

“Let me know if you need any legal advice,” Melanie responds. “I could give it to you pro bono, because you’re practically family.”

“I appreciate that,” Makayla says, smiling sweetly.

Crisis averted. When the waitress returns with the dessert menu, we each place our orders.

To ease every craving around the table, my brothers and I order a pastry platter that covers more than two thirds of the dessert menu, albeit in miniature form, while Makayla opts for a chocolate cake whose name makes her crack up.

“No disrespect to the Swedish language,” she mumbles, tearing up from all the laughter that she’s been holding in, “no disrespect, I swear, the language barrier is so real but… come on, Kladdkaka? How can I pronounce that with a straight face?”

I can’t help but smile. “It’s why the waitress pronounced it for you. To spare you.”

“I can’t wait to try my dessert,” Callie says. “I was in the mood for something light and berrylicious, anyway.”

“Berrylicious,” Bryan chuckles, then leans in to kiss her pink cheek.

“This is shaping up to be quite the holiday,” I say, refilling my whiskey tumbler with a double shot of one of Japan’s finest. “It’ll hurt to resume work when we do get back.”

Kellan raises an eyebrow. “Oh, I don’t know, we did manage to wrap up a couple of client meetings. Jan agreed to reschedule. We’ve got two of our account execs taking over the next onboarding phase while we’re out here.”

“Oh, boys!” Callie declares. “No talking shop at dinner.”

“I’m more interested in your personal lives,” Melanie says. “How have you been, gentlemen?”

“I’m sorry,” I reply, feeling directly attacked. “Are you talking to us?”

“Who else?” Her smile sickens me. She definitely has an agenda, but I’ll be damned if I’ll let her ruin anything else.

“How is the corporate law treating you, Melanie?” Alex asks, saving us all.

Melanie’s original buckshot falls flat as she is suddenly at the center of our focus. Something tells me she came here with her guns swinging but forgot who she was dealing with. “Good, actually. A junior partner’s responsibilities are no joke.”

“Junior partner, right. You got a promotion,” Alex replies. “I’m surprised. It’s got to be cool, though, right? All these settlements you have to draft. All the legal aspects that need nitpicking. But then again, you’re quite versed in the art of settlements, aren’t you?”

“I have my share of experience, yes,” she says. “Corporate law is a bit different, though. White collar crime is the boogieman in my field. Manageable.”

“Whereas criminal law is far more complex, isn’t that so?”

“That is correct.”

Alex leans forward. “You know, I’ve got a settlement worth looking over, if you don’t mind? It could use a pair of fresh eyes.”

“What settlement?” Bryan asks, understandably confused.

“Nothing to worry about,” Kellan tells him. “It’s a personal issue.”

“They say settlements are reached when the accused party is guilty but the accusing party doesn’t have proof beyond a reasonable doubt,” Melanie says.

I give her a curious look. “Would you agree?”

“Yes.”

“What about situations where the accused party doesn’t have enough to prove that the accusing party is lying through their teeth?” I shoot back.

“See, that’s what I wanted to go over,” Alex adds with a wry smile. “There are some chapters in this settlement I mentioned that are worth looking over. I could really use your help, Melanie.”

It dawns on her that we never abandoned our suspicions nor our determination to pay her back in kind for what she did. Good. I like the look on her face. Insecurity and fear flicker in her pretty eyes, and dinner suddenly tastes better.

“Hey, Alex, hold on,” I say. “If we’re talking about perjury, then that’s under criminal law. It’s a criminal offense, right?”

“Right.”

“Then Melanie wouldn’t be able to help us. She handles corporate.”

“What is going on here?” Makayla mumbles, giving me a side eye.

I reply with a wink. “Just making conversation. Should we order more wine? You’re running out of Bordeaux, ladies.”

“Sure…”

“Well, I’m going to steal Bryan for the rest of the night,” Callie announces. “Don’t any of you dare worry about the bill. It’s on us.”

“This early?” Makayla asks.

“This has been wonderful, Kay, but we can pick this up tomorrow, easily. Melanie, text me later on, we can figure out what we’re doing tomorrow,” Callie says.

“Will do,” Melanie agrees. “You kids have fun.”

“See you all tomorrow,” Bryan says.

“And thank you,” I reply. “We’re buying next.”

Bryan and Callie stand up and bid us all goodnight. Now we’re left with Melanie and she feels like the proverbial thorn in our side. I rack my brain for a good excuse to retreat, but she beats me to the punch.

“Makayla, do you want to stop by the spa and see what their appointment options are?” Melanie asks diplomatically.

“I would like that, yes,” Makayla answers.

“It was nice seeing you guys,” Melanie says, getting to her feet.

That dress is supposed to be a showstopper. I’d be surprised if she thought it would actually work on us after what happened. There are things that cannot be wiped away with a revealing dress and naughty stilettos.

“I’ll see you back at the suite,” Makayla says, joining her rival. There’s no way to warn her—nothing more than a friendly goodbye—as the women exit.

I look at my brothers, despair clawing at my chest.

“What the hell is she doing here?” Alex demands.

“I don’t know,” I respond. “The worst part is that Kay is picking up on something.”

“Yes, I figured that’s why she went with Melanie in the first place…” Kellan remarks.

“How can we tell Kay without putting ourselves at legal risk?” I wonder. “Worth talking to our lawyers about this…”

Alex runs a hand through his hair, closing his eyes for a moment. I can almost hear him breathing. “I’ll reach out in the morning and see what they have to say about it. I’m pretty sure there was a no-contact clause in there.”

“Which is kind of moot since she’s Callie’s sister,” I reply.

“We can’t prove it was intentional, either. Melanie could say that she didn’t know we’d be here,” Kellan says. “This whole thing is a clusterfuck. And she’s up to something. I know it!”

“Whatever it is, we need to make sure she doesn’t get it,” Alex says. “Most importantly, we need to figure out how we’re going to loop Kay in without giving away non-disclosure-bound details. There’s no telling how Kay will react. We have no control over her.”

“Nor should we,” I sigh deeply.

“If Melanie gets to Makayla first, we might have to divulge everything,” Kellan insists. “We need to get ahead of this.”

I shake my head. “If we were to keep Kay from leaving with Melanie, you know that would’ve opened the gates for precisely what we’re trying to avoid.”

“I’m trying to understand what it is that Melanie wants. It’s been a few years, now. I thought it was well and far behind us,” Alex says. “I thought we’d only see her once in a blue moon, and that’s it. I certainly didn’t expect to bump into her HERE.”

“She could create much bigger problems than simply poisoning Makayla’s opinion of us,” I admit. “She could screw the NDA altogether and go public, just to stir shit up.”

“Didn’t she just make junior partner at her firm?” Kellan surmises. “Would it even be in her best interest?”

“People like Melanie are both inconsequential and terrifyingly unpredictable,” Alex says. “There’s no telling what she is capable of.”

“Dammit!” I snap, slamming my fist against the table. “You’re right. We need to go back to the legal agreement and see what can be done. Maybe get the police involved.”

“It was the police who suggested we settle in court because they didn’t find enough proof of her deception,” Kellan reminds me.

“We get a new detective to reopen the case. Fresh eyes, man, someone hungry enough for recognition that they might want to take it up,” Alex says.

“Another option would be to try to talk to Melanie in private and remind her that her sister might be affected by whatever she’s got planned,” Kellan suggests.

“Maybe she’ll leave before our trip here is over.

I want to believe that Melanie still has some redeeming qualities and that she cares enough about Callie to back off. ”

“Our options come with considerable risks, no matter how we look at it,” I conclude.

“So what can we do?” Alex asks.

“We need to keep Makayla and Melanie apart,” I say. “Get her back up to our suite sooner rather than later, for starters.”

“This is so wrong… We’re keeping our relationship a secret from Bryan, we’re keeping Bryan’s proposal a secret from Callie and now we’re keeping our past from Makayla. That’s too many secrets,” Kellan replies.

All we can do is trust that Makayla is able to figure things out on her own, that she is able to see through any lies and half-truths that Melanie might want to spin about us. I would hate to lose her after just getting her back, yet I cannot force anything, either.

I’ll do my part and pray the pieces land where they should.