Page 28 of SALT

"Or you could tag along," Parker offers.

She side-eyes him. I can't tell if she's genuinely unimpressed with him or trying not to show her cards. Yes, I know what I said earlier, but Parker isn't one of those guys. He's one of the good ones. I find his cheesiness cute, and he's not bad to look at either. The guy is stacked, has stumps for legs being a catcher, deep blue eyes, and a sandy blond mop of thick waves on his head. The guy is a catch. If my heart didn't belong to someone else, I'd try to steal his.

"I'll stay."

"Parker can drive you home," I offer, hearing the dejection in her tone.

"It's fine. I'm not supposed to leave anyway."

"To live is to break the rules every now and again. Come on, it's just a ride."

Chapter 13

Everett

"Tell me again why you're here," I ask Lauren Rhodes as I sip the old-fashioned I ordered for lunch.

"You already asked me that last week when you followed me out to my car, and I explained that I didn't realize who I would be working for when I accepted the job."

I thought I was seeing a ghost when she walked past my office last week on her way out. At first glance, you'd mistake her for my ex-wife. They have strikingly similar features, which caused quite the controversy back in the day. Immediately, I was out of my chair and chasing her down the hall. That's when she explained that a headhunter got her the job, and she didn't realize who her new boss was until she was shaking his hand and taking a tour of the stadium.

"But you know now, and yet you're still here."

She swirls the cherry around in her Manhattan. "Are we not adults now? This isn't high school anymore, Everett."

"Did you get a DNA test?"

"Seriously, brown hair and brown eyes don't make us blood. Fuck, I've been gone so long I forgot what it's like to come back." She rolls her eyes and takes a drink. Moira's father was rumored to have been cheating, and Lauren's mother was the other woman. Lauren and Moira have birthdays three months apart. Their similar features, birthdays, and rumors made them natural enemies. The rumors intensified when Moira's parents died suddenly from carbon monoxide poisoning during her freshman year of high school while she slept over at a friend's house. Following their untimely death, Moira felt even more compelled to defend their memory. Lauren's mother never commented on the situation and was never seen with any men before or after Lauren was born. You were either friends with Lauren or Moira. There wasn't a middle ground, and now my son has hired his mother's archnemesis. "And I don't need one. I know who my father is. He's alive and well, living his best life in Spain."

"Then I'll ask again, why are you back?"

"Is this about Moira? Because as I hear it, the two of you aren't even hitched anymore, so what is this? Do you dislike me that much because of an ancient rumor?"

I pull in a deep, cleansing breath and settle into the booth. She's not going to make this quick, but ghosts don't just show up for no reason, and I'm determined to find out who she's haunting.

"I don't have a problem with you, Lauren, but your presence here will undoubtedly cause havoc in my life. We both know my son has no idea the history you have with his mother, and since Moira hasn't shown up on my doorstep, I'm going to venture a guess and say she has yet to hear that you are back in town."

Had I not had my hands full with Cameron this past weekend, I may have considered giving Moira a heads-up, but since the divorce, I've been trying to keep my distance and disentangle myself from her. After spending twenty years together, it's easier said than done.

She subtly clinks the ring wrapped around her middle finger on her glass. "I'm not here to raise the dead, but I have roots here too. My business here is mine and mine alone. I don't owe you an explanation, but I'll tell you this: it has nothing to do with your family. As for the job, I'm fucking good at what I do. I can help the organization attract big names, but I think you already know that, which is why I'm still here. So the way I see it, we can keep the past in the past and work amicably, or I walk and take my event schedule with me four days before opening day."

I can't help the subtle smile that tugs at my lips. It's been a while since someone besides Cameron has dared to threaten me.

"I'm not going to fire you." It doesn't matter that Connor hired her. I know he'd trust any decision I made. "But not because of the schedule. Connor built this place without it, and we both know I have the resources to make things happen. That being said, my plate is full, and I've seen your schedule. I don't care to recreate it for the sake of letting you go on the grounds of ancient history…" My phone lights up on the table with a security alert at my front door. When I click into the app and pull up the camera, I see Cameron entering the front door, and I reach for my glass, needing the smoky caramel brew to settle my nerves. I specifically told her I would be driving her, and she left work without me. Annoyance and dread settle over me before I down my glass in one go. I'm out of the booth when my eyes meet Lauren's. "Don't cross me, Lauren. If you do, you'll wish you never crawled out of whatever rock you've been hiding under." I toss cash on the table for our order. "Let's go. I have somewhere I need to be."

The ten-minute drive back to the stadium to drop off Lauren felt like an hour. My skin grew hotter, my heart pounded faster, and what had been annoyance turned into fury as I contemplated why Cameron went against my orders. I specifically told her where she goes, I go. How could she be so careless? I wasn't worried about leaving her at the stadium. She wasn't alone there. It's training week—there are staff around every corner preparing for opening day—and I'm not concerned about her security at my house. It's her intent that has me driving like a reckless fool, breaking every speed limit. If she left work without me, there's a good chance she plans on leaving the house too, and then I can't protect her.

Pulling into the driveway, the adrenaline coursing through my veins settles a notch as I hastily exit my car, knowing she's still inside and I'm home. With my hand on the front doorknob, I breathe deep. I don't want to lose control the way I have been so easily with her lately. The second I pull open the door, I hear laughter coming from the kitchen and immediately follow the honeyed sound. It's like sunshine on a rainy day. Her laugh has always had a soothing effect on me. It's deep, genuine, and real, just like her. I can't tell you a time when her laughter didn't come from her whole heart. It's part of her appeal, one that should have me turning away instead of running headfirst. But here I am, rounding the corner into my kitchen anyway, only to find her talking to another man.

"What did she say after that?"

"She told him the only reason he thought she belonged in the kitchen was because he didn't know what to do with her in the bedroom." A man I've never seen before answers as he opens the refrigerator. My refrigerator!

"Oh my god. I can't believe they said that in front of you."

"It's what happens when people assume they know you based on your appearance. They thought I didn't speak English."

She hops off the counter and places her hand on his lower back, alerting him to her presence before reaching around to grab a coconut water. The move is innocent enough, but he has at least a foot on her, and I see what she doesn't. I see the way his back tenses and his head slightly turns toward her, assessing her intent, looking for his moment. They're so caught up in their conversation that they haven't realized I'm standing at the entrance.

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