When I was eleven, my mother had run into an old acquaintance named Shanna at the grocery store. They’d talked for three, maybe four, minutes tops, but their brief catch-up session left a bitter taste in the back of my mouth. In spite of her sweet demeanor—her giggle and that casual body language that made it look like she and mom had been the best of friends at some point—the other woman’s voice told a different story.
Shanna’s voice was superior, borderline mocking, and I had held my breath as I waited for my erratic, hot-headed mother to fly off the handle. She’d lost her shit over far less, and I just knew she was going to let Shanna have it and tell her to shove her new designer bag up her ass or something even more offensive that would get us permanently banned from yet another store.
That hadn’t happened.
Instead, Mom just smiled.
She’d smiled and nodded at everything Shanna said to her. When they were done talking, she had tossed an armful of ramen noodle packages into our cart as she promised to tell my father that the other woman said hello, even though Shanna’d never asked her to say a word to Dad.
Afterward, when Mom and I were walking out to the old Ford Escort that had been a pity gift from one of her distant cousins, I asked why she had just stood there grinning like a fool when someone was standing two feet from her face, insulting everything from her dark roots showing to the trailer park where we currently lived.
Mom hadn’t given me much good advice growing up—in fact, she was infamous for drunkenly telling me, “Marry rich, but don’t do like I did and marry an asshole named Rich”—but that day in the grocery parking lot she gave me solid gold:
“Because Shanna used to date your daddy, Kinz, and she doesn’t like me one little bit. She never has, so she’ll talk shit to make herself feel better. But there’s nothing in this world that pisses a mean, shit-talking bitch off more than a smile from the woman she hates. Don’t you forget that, understand?”
I hadn’t forgotten, and I was grateful those words had stuck with me for so long.
Because Hazel Hudson? Well, she hated me. There was no other explanation for what she did to me eight years ago.
I stared up at her—at the superior twist of her glossy pink lips, those narrowed green eyes that seemed to be laughing at me, and the way her hands rested on hips that were still slim in spite of her pregnancy. In a sleeveless black wrap dress and tall silver gladiator sandals, she looked flawless and untouchable. Her glossy black hair was parted down the middle without a single strand out of place, exactly how I remembered, and all the memories of our last showdown came rushing back. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if it could be called a showdown.
If anything, the last time we were in the same room, breathing the same air, was a massacre that left me bloodied and defeated.
Hazel had stood in the middle of my bedroom, stood in front of her grandmother and her brother, and had purposely humiliated me. She had told a lie that had irrevocably changed the course of my life, and I spent years imagining what I would say to her if we were ever face-to-face again.
Now, I had that chance.
With my mother’s advice from fifteen years ago playing like a tornado siren in my head, I stood up and dropped my phone into my pocket. I brushed one hand over the front of my white sundress and straightened my spine. Then, I put on the biggest smile I could muster because the woman standing in front of me had screwed me over without warning and without any hesitation.
“Hazel.” I offered her a slight nod of my head. “I want to say it’s good to see you, but then I’d be lying. And I wouldn’t want to do be that person.”
Her black eyebrows shot straight up. “McKinsey, right?”
“That was the name on the police report,” I said coolly. “I’m sure you remember that, don’t you? Unless you make up false ones about all the women who see your brother.”
She raced her tongue back and forth over her straight white teeth, and I couldn’t help but feel satisfied that I’d already managed to get under her skin. “When my daddy called to tell me Emmett had brought his little boy back to Texas, I had no idea…” She rubbed her stomach with her perfectly manicured hand, flashing me a glimpse of a giant, three-stone wedding ring. “Well, I’m sure you understand.”
“No, I don’t believe I do, so maybe you can help me out. You had no idea what? That I would come along to keep an eye on my son?” Shaking my head, I smiled even bigger even as my blue eyes started to narrow. By the time our conversation was over, there was a good chance I wouldn’t be able to see straight. “The last thing I wanted was to feed my boy to a bunch of hungry wolves who probably don’t give a damn about him.”
“Wow.”
I flicked my gaze down to where her hand massaged figure eights over her belly. “I’m sure you’ll understand exactly what I mean sooner or later.”
“What I meant is that I had no idea you’d be the mother of my brother’s son,” she corrected, a spark of anger leaping into her green eyes. “I figured it would be some groupie. Heaven knows he screwed plenty of sluts before he married Rylee. I could barely keep them straight.”
Damn, that burned more than it should have. Which, of course, was Hazel’s intention. She wanted to remind me that Emmett had been around the block since he met me, wanted to make me feel like I was insignificant, too. “I bet that’s exactly what you thought.”
“Just what in the hell are you trying to say, McKinsey?”
“That you’re lying.”
“Well, I’m not,” she snapped and flashed her teeth in an angry smile. “And I’ve got no clue what you’re talking about.”
From across the yard, my gaze locked with Emmett’s and when he saw who I was talking to, his eyes looked like they were close to bugging out of that gorgeous head of his. His body language told me he was desperately trying to excuse himself from his father, so I returned my focus to Hazel. I probably didn’t have much time, and I needed to say my piece.
I’d sleep better tonight in that big bed that wasn’t mine if I did.
“Look, I’m about ninety-nine percent sure you know exactly what I meant,” I said evenly, squaring my shoulders. “There were several times I tried to reach out to your brother about his son—several—and every single one of those attempts failed. I think we both know why.”
“Are you saying I—”
“Yeah, Hazel, I’m saying you did. I’ve got a gut feeling you already knew exactly who Matt’s mother was. And I’m saying I’m pretty goddamn sure you knew about Matt well before Emmett did because you’re an awful, selfish person with some sick desire to keep me away from him. You won then, but you won’t win now because it’s no longer about me. You will never keep my son away from his father.”
She shoved her face close to mine, her nostrils flaring. “You can’t talk to me like that. I’m pregnant, and—”
“And I’d never do anything to hurt someone’s child,” I interrupted because the last thing I needed to hear was an excuse. Not when she had landed me in jail up until mere weeks before Matt was brought into the world. “That’s all you, sweetheart.”
“I didn’t hurt your son,” she said through clenched teeth. When I placed a hand on my hip and arched an eyebrow, she ran a hand through her long black hair, ruining that perfect middle part, and continued, “And I didn’t know anything about Emmett having a baby. Do you think I’d go out of my way to do something so terrible to my own brother?”
For a moment, I was stunned speechless and could only stare at her. Was she serious? When I heard footsteps approaching us, and I saw Emmett out the corner of my eye, I slowly moved my head up and down.
“Yes,” I said. “I absolutely believe that. And I’m pretty sure he believes it, too.”
“You little trailer trash hillbilly,” she hissed.
“Hazel,” Emmett said loudly. Moving by my side, he lifted a bottle of beer from a serving tray as a waiter dressed in red, white, and blue flitted by. He tipped the bottle to his lips and didn’t lower it until it was halfway empty. “Didn’t expect you back for another week.”
“Because I missed you so much.” Another fake smile formed on her expertly made-up face as she threw her arms around her brother. He didn’t budge, but she didn’t seem to care when she backed away from him. “But you know how Gabe is. He doesn’t like being away from home for long, and with your big news, I couldn’t stay away.”
“My big news, huh?” A line etched between his brows as he tensed his shoulders. “Did you come back to be nosy or because you were genuinely happy about Matt?”
“Don’t be stupid, little brother. Of course I’m happy about your … Matt.” She drummed her fingertips on her belly as she followed the path his bottle made to his mouth. “What’s the matter with you today? You’re acting like—”
“You lied about her, didn’t you?” he interrupted, and that forced smile showed its first sign of faltering.
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me. You. Lied. About. Her.” This time, it wasn’t a question.
For a moment, I was stunned speechless because he was doing this now. Not even twenty minutes ago, he had reminded me that I needed to relax for the sake of making tonight memorable, and now he was taking a note from the Kinsey Playbook and confronting his sister about the past. But of course, hadn’t he told me that night in my kitchen that he was waiting to speak to Hazel in person?
I just hadn’t realized it would be the very moment he saw her.
She fanned her face with one hand. “You’re being ridiculous.”
“I already know you fucked her over once, but for the life of me, I can’t seem to figure out what you had to gain from it. Did you do something with the letters she sent, too?”
“You just talked to me a couple days ago, and this never came up,” she said through her teeth. Checking to make sure we weren’t drawing any attention, she finally settled a scathing glare on me. “Just makes me wonder why it’s coming up now.”
“It’s coming up now because I didn’t want to call you a liar over the phone and give you time to come up with more bull.”
“I didn’t touch any letters about your son,” she said. “And fuck you and her for claiming I did.”
“Back at you,” I heard myself speak up. I hadn’t planned to say anything once he stormed over—God, I should have just walked away to check on Matt as soon as Emmett entered the conversation—but this woman had tried to ruin my life. And now, he was finally confronting her about it.
Beside me, Emmett had gone completely still, looking at his older sister with the same expression he gave me when he thought I’d intentionally kept Matt from him. His sister hadn’t denied lying to send me to jail, and it was apparent the rose-colored glasses he’d worn up until that night in my kitchen were no longer being held up by flimsy tape.
They’d officially shattered to hundreds of pieces—lenses and all.
“Listen, Emmett, I’m sorry. What about if we—” she started, but she swallowed hard when a ruddy-faced man about my height with short, tousled brown hair slipped up behind her. I couldn’t make up my mind if he was good looking; in spite of the cockiness he exuded, he wasn’t my type. All I knew for certain was that he was already drunk. And he was clearly Hazel’s husband or boyfriend or minion. He held a cup of what smelled like pure vodka in one hand and splayed his other over her stomach.
“Thought you said you were going over to the pool to keep Gwen company,” he murmured against her ear.
“I just wanted to catch up with my little brother first, babe.” She looked back at him, and he planted a kiss on the tip of her nose. “Thought you and Kellan were running into town to pick up more fireworks.”
“Don’t worry; we’ll get around to it.” He gave her ass a little slap that made me gag before he stepped around to stand by her side. He cocked an eyebrow at Emmett as he nodded to me. “Who’s this?”
“A friend of Emmett’s.” Running her tongue over her lips, she touched the side of his face to bring his attention back to her. “So when are you leaving? Daddy’s counting on you to do that for him.”
He ignored her question, instead giving me a once-over. No, scratch that—it was a twice-over. I looked away, mortified when his eyes lingered on my breasts for several seconds too long. Emmett must have noticed too, because he pulled me close to his side and glowered. Hazel simply picked at a piece of nonexistent lint on her black dress, a scarlet flush spreading over her skin as she pretended to be oblivious to her partner’s wandering eye.
“Date for the evenin’?” the man drawled.
“Kinsey, Gabe McGhee, Hazel’s husband.” The pleasant tone he’d used all evening while introducing me to his family and friends was gone now, replaced by sheer hostility. “Gabe, my girlfriend, McKinsey Brock.”
In spite of the tension swirling between the four of us, heat melted through me when he said those words. He’d never called me that before, and even though I had no idea what we were or what we’d become, I didn’t correct him.
“Pleasure to meet you.” I held my hand out to Gabe. When he unexpectedly lowered his mouth to my knuckles, I bit my tongue until I tasted blood so I wouldn’t cuss aloud or, worse, slap that leer right off his face. Considering he was openly flirting with another woman in front of his wife, he sure as hell deserved a good knock upside his head. I snatched my hand away and wrapped my fingers around the key charm on my necklace.
“Where I come from, a handshake works just fine,” I said.
“We go for a little more where I come from.”
Once again, I resisted the urge to dry heave.
“You enjoy your teeth, McGhee?” Emmett was smiling, but it was one of the dangerous ones—the same he’d given my ex-boyfriend not even a full week ago.
“I do, but I’ve got a hell of a cosmetic dentist, Hudson.” Gabe’s wink in my direction coiled my stomach into a nauseous loop. “But damn, never thought I’d meet the McKinsey in person.”
The McKinsey? Oh Lord, what the hell had Hazel told her husband about me?
“Babe, you’ve been drinking too much,” she whispered and placed her hand on his forearm. Completely dropping the air of cockiness, she shot Emmett a pleading look that he didn’t notice because he was too busy eye-stabbing his brother-in-law.
“I’ve only had one, I promise.” Leaning forward, he clapped Emmett on the back. For a moment, I was positive Mr. Outlaw Country was going to swing on him, but Emmett shrugged away instead. “You know, I used to tour with this son of a bitch, and you were a legend on his bus, Kinsey.”
The revelation that Gabe had heard about me from Emmett, and not Hazel like I assumed, made my head jerk back. What exactly had been said about me?
“Oh, you’re a singer, too?” I questioned, shoving down the curiosity gnawing at me. There’d be time to ask him myself later, and honestly, I wanted to wrap up the small talk. I’d said what I needed to say to Hazel, and now I was ready to find my kid.
Gabe gave me a funny look that clearly said don’t you know who the fuck I am? “Where the hell have you been, sugar?”
“In Georgia,” I answered. Gabe clutched his chest like my lack of knowledge on Country Music: Who’s Who offended him, and I made up my mind that I was staring at the second biggest scumbag I’d ever met, right under Dylan. “I’ll just assume that you’re a singer, too.”
“I was backup on the first tour. Opened for his second one and gave him a run for his money when I headlined my own.” Gabe flashed me another grin while Emmett muttered a curse under his breath. “I’m hurt you’ve never listened to me because like I said, I know exactly who you are. All this one ever did was compare every other girl to you. I’m shocked as hell to see he wasn’t just blowing smoke up all our asses about just how damn—”
“Gabe, just shut up already!” Hazel snapped as her younger brother seized her husband by his upper arm.
“You say one more word to her, and I’ll break that pretty smile like I should’ve years ago. Then you really will need to give that cosmetic dentist a call.” As soon as the threat came out, Hazel stepped between them.
“Would you two just stop it already.” She cast me a withering glance, and I returned it with a frigid look of my own. “This is ridiculous and embarrassing and you’re drawing attention all because of her. You should be ashamed, Emmett.”
“Hazel,” he breathed, turning his head slowly until she was the recipient of the coldest stare I’d ever seen. “You’re the last person I want to hear those words from. It’s ridiculous and embarrassing that my own sister lied to send someone to jail. It’s ridiculous and embarrassing that my brother-in-law is”—he let out a bitter laugh and a shrug as he released Gabe— “well, you know exactly who and what you married. And the only thing I’m ashamed of is that I was too blind and stupid to see your crazy ass for exactly what you are.”
She flinched. Swallowed hard. Took a step backward as her light green eyes darted from Emmett to me. “Whatever she’s told you about me, it’s—”
“Do me a favor? Don’t lie to my face anymore. That goes for you and your babe.”
“Shit, brother, calm down.” Gabe held his hands up in front of his chest in mock surrender, and he was laughing. His stance, however, was wide and a vein in his neck twitched. “I was just messing with your girl. And I don’t have a damn thing to do with whatever you and your sister are fighting about, so don’t take it out on me.”
“We’re not fighting. I was just letting her know where we stood. She’s lucky I’m willing to give her even that much.”
Gabe waggled his thick eyebrows at me, but his face was nearly the color of the red lipstick I put on earlier this evening. For a moment, I almost expected him to defend his wife. To call Emmett out for snapping at Hazel. When he spoke, however, it only confirmed my suspicions about him. “It’s all fun and games until your boyfriend here gets his panties in a twist.”
Yep, the guy was a dick and a half.
“Thanks for the heads up.” I sucked in my cheeks as I took a step away from Hazel and Gabe. This conversation had run its course the moment I told Hazel what I thought of her, and I was ready to get away from the toxicity leaking from these people. “I’ve got to check on my son, but it was…”
It was something I never wanted to repeat.
“You be sure to look me up, sugar.”
“Unbelievable. Never thought I’d say this, but you two deserve each other,” Emmett ground out, shaking his head. His touch was gentle when his fingers found the base of my spine, but I shivered nonetheless. “I’ve had enough lies and bullshit served to me tonight to last a lifetime. I’d rather spend the rest of my evening making sure it’s not rubbing off on my son.”
As we walked toward the pool, I released a breath. “What the hell just happened?”
“Clarity and closure. At least the start of it,” he said. “I’m so sorry, Angel.”
“It’s … fine.” Pausing, I turned toward him and rested my hand over his chest. His heartbeat was erratic beneath my fingertips, so I lifted my other hand to his face. He smiled, and it did something crazy and beautiful to my own heart. “It’ll be fine,” I said hoarsely.
He moved his head a touch until his warm lips connected with my palm. My breath hitched, causing his smile to widen. “It will be. Now come on, Angel, let’s go find our boy.”
As we reached the pool gate, Hazel’s voice called out to him, frantic and high-pitched. “What the hell do you mean by lies and bullshit rubbing off on your son, Emmett?” I looked over my shoulder to see that several heads were turned in her direction, their stares curious. So much for ridiculous and embarrassing. “Are you trying to say you don’t want me to see my own nephew?”
“You know what, Hazel? You figure out what I was trying to say.”
Unlike me, he didn’t look behind him. He just opened the gate and moved forward.