Page 70 of Life

“How are you doing, Kat? Really. You’ve been listening to me bitch about my pregnancy and Gigi gloat about how great hers is, but you haven’t said anything about you and how you’re holding up,” Bree asks.

Kat pushes herself up to a better seated position. The three of us are gathered around her, eating pizza, and I’m drinking wine in her bed. The soft acoustic music playing in the background sets a comfortable mood.

“I’m okay. It hurts, sometimes the nerves tingle in the middle of the night, and then it’s as if the entire arm is on fire again.” She shakes her head, letting her blond curls fall in front of her face. “Honestly, I’m frickin’ done with dealing with doctors and future speculations about my prognosis. I need some time to wrap my head around not being able to do what I’ve always done and how that’s going to affect me long-term, you know?”

I nod, but Gigi jumps right into the fray.

“According to my husband, you’re set financially for the next few years while you get back into fighting shape. There’s no rush.”

Kat groans. “Honey, I cannot let Chase pay my way for the next few years while I sit around and mope.”

Gigi put her hand on Kat’s knee. “You’ll be doing me a favor. Chase feels as though we are responsible for all of this. Danny hurt us in so many ways, Chase is making it his life mission to put everything back in order. He’s a fixer. That’s what he does. He will not rest until each and every one of you”—Gigi points a finger at me, and then Bree, and finally Kat—“is back to living happy, healthy, comfortable lives. You’d be doing me an enormous favor if you just roll with it.”

“It’s too much, Gigi. I could never repay him, and I’m not a mooch.” Her tone is direct and lacking any subtlety.

“Do you think I’m avagara?” I ask.

Her eyebrows rise so high into her hairline they almost disappear. “No, of course not.”

“Chase has been paying for my apartment for almost a year now. Since everything went down with Danny, and Gillian moved in to the penthouse. I keep saving up the money, thinking eventually he’ll let me pay, but it hasn’t happened yet,” I admit, a frustration in my tone I can’t deny.

That’s when Bree jumps in. “And I don’t pay rent on my studio space in Davis Industries. I make twenty times the amount I was making when I had the other studio due to Chase paying for the staff in his company to have comped classes as part of their regular health benefits. Plus, we no longer have to pay for daycare for Anabelle, nor will we pay anything for this little one since Chase put in a daycare.” Bree rubs her belly adoringly.

Gillian stands up and paces the room. Her long red ponytail bounces along with each step. “Look, ladies, my husband takes care of what he feels is his. You are now his family. That is a serious position to be in.” She stops and turns to all of us with both hands on her hips. “So many want to take advantage and hurt my husband because of his wealth and the business deals he makes. You three and your extended families are what he lives for. I really need for all of you to accept it and move on. To him, it’s like handing you a couple of quarters for a stamp. It’s a drop in the bucket of his billions. Money might be cause for a disagreement for you, but to him, money is a means to an end. He wants it only to be able to take care of what he loves. Being us. Can you understand?”

Bree rubs her giant belly. “I’m all for it. Phillip and I have never been happier, and having extra is allowing us to plan for the girls’ colleges, and we’re even considering buying a bigger place outside of the city. Chase suggested something with a gate.”

Gillian laughs. “Of course he did. Don’t let him go house shopping with you! You’ll end up with some gargantuan thing with a security guard sitting in a box at the gate. I’m not kidding. He’d wrap all of you up in Bubble Wrap and tissue paper if he thought it would make you safer.”

Kat sighs. “Why is that? I mean, I get that he sees us as part of his extended family, but it’s a little extreme.”

Gigi nods. “Yeah, but he knows you’re all I have and the loss of any one of you would be devastating. In order to ensure I have what he feels keeps me happy, he wants to keep each one of you safe. If I let him, all of you would still have a dedicated bodyguard.”

I groan. “Dios, no. Eli would be all over that in a hot minute.”

All three women stop speaking and all eyes come to me. Kat breaks the silence first.

“Care to elaborate on this Eli fella? I’m unfamiliar with him outside of the fact Gigi and Bree told me he’s Tommy’s twin brother. Start at the beginning because I’ve been out of the loop.” She purses her lips.

“Not on purpose! It’s just with Antonio back in the mix, everything’s been going toinfierno en una cesta de mano.”

Kat squints and her lips flatten. “Antonio is back? When?” She lifts a shaky hand to her chest.

I push my hair off my shoulder. “Right after the funeral. He got out of jail early, has been sending threatening texts, and broke into my apartment and trashed it. I’ve been staying with Eli ever since.”

For the next few minutes, I update them on all the news we’ve received to date, including the fact we know his alibi is bogus but can’t prove it because it will get Eli and his men in trouble with the law.

“So where is he now?” Bree asks.

I shrug. “Don’t know. The guys took my old phone so I wouldn’t get any more scary texts.”

Gillian puts a finger to her mouth, tapping her nail against her lip. “But from what you told me about him, he’s persistent. Will a massive hulk of a man like Elijah scare him off for good?” Her question is filled with alarm.

“No. I don’t think so. He’s biding his time. I don’t know him anymore, but what I do know of him is not good. The man tried to kill me. He blames me for putting him in jail and ruining his career. Those two things together make him volatile. And if he’s been stewing about this in jail for the past five years, he probably loathes the ground I walk on. There’s no telling what he’s capable of.”

It feels so good to admit all the things that are frightening me about this situation. With Eli, I don’t want him to think I’m not strong. I’ve already proved I’m a crybaby with as many times as I’ve broken down the past month. I want him to see me as strong. I need him to.

All three women look horrified, their faces masks of dread and anxiety. “Girls, it’s going to be okay. Eli wouldn’t let anything get to me. He’s promised me.” I smile, thinking about our private conversation when he committed to doing just that.

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