Page 36 of Fighting

Lily, pink cheeked, bursts into laughter. “They don’t buy it, darling.”

Kissing her temple and sweeping her hair back, he whispers, “I knew that, but I was trying to not give them what they wanted.I save that for you.” He punctuates the statement by playfully grabbing at her ass.

That move only causes her to have to adjust her skirt all over again.

“Speaking of knowing things.” River pulls out a seat for her beside Nessa. “I swear when I had my accidental front-row seat to your—” River clears his throat.

Lily perks up and takes over for him. “Your supposed one-time-only pre-wedding festivities.”

“Darling,” River says, his tone laced with hesitant devotion.

“What? We all know you walked in on them.”

With a smug sigh, River says, “I guess congratulations are in order. I could tell you were smitten then. Called it when I said there’d be a repeat. Pony up, darling.” He opens his palm, and she drops a bill onto it.

He looks at Nessa, then at me again, and I start to sweat. Will she contradict him?

Before he can go on, the door to the private dining space opens.

“Okay, lovebirds. Enough for now.” Prudence enters with the strong floral and spicy scent of her tea shop following her. “We need to talk before the others join us.” She eyes us conspiratorially. “What can we do to scare this man away? Nessa, that’s your territory. What does Satan hate? Last-minute menu changes? Mateo, how are the meetings with the bank going? Do you need additional investors?”

As she digs through her enormous bag of items, the usually rock-solid woman’s hands tremble. She mutters to herself, peering over her shoulder at the door.

Something feels off. Yet part of me questions if I’m projecting. Maybe she’s changed with age?

A moment after that thought crosses my mind, River reaches a hand out to her, affirming my concern.

Pru locks eyes with Nessa, her face shifting from red with fury to white as a ghost, then green with nausea. “I knew his ancestors in Massachusetts. I don’t like them.”

Confident that I finally have my moment to one-up Caleb, I say, “There’s nothing to worry about, ladies. If anything, we have the home court advantage.”

This is the meeting I’ve been waiting all summer for, a blessed second chance to prove myself while also telling Merrick Paul off.

Jim Kelly enters, his face fixed in an apologetic frown. “Caleb can’t make both this meeting and another he and I have scheduled and has requested to combine. I know this isn’t ideal, but he’s down at the bar having a drink, so we’ll go over a few things up here first, then bring him in to join us.” His tone is decisive. This isn’t a question but a command.

Beside me, Nessa stiffens. With none of her usual grace, she pushes the chair back and rushes toward the door.

“Excuse me, just need to go to the ladies’ room,” she says with a trembling voice.

Lily meets my eye across the table, and I tip my head toward the door in silent request.

She blinks in confusion. River nods and lifts his chin, then leans over and whispers in her ear. A second later, Lily stands and excuses herself as well.

Once he’s rounded the table, I stand to shake Jim’s hand and make eye contact. Given the twins’ relationship challenges and my known alliance with Liam, I aim to stroke his ego. “Finally, I’m with the good twin,” I tease, clapping him on the shoulder. “Women,” I sigh. “Always need to go to the bathroom together. Am I right?” It goes against my beliefs to say such a thing, but his hearty laugh signals that I’m playing to his nature.

“We can always adjust. Maybe just us gentlemen and a bottle of scotch?” Jim suggests with an oily smirk.

“As much as I love that idea, Lily and Prudence are council members. We can’t really exclude them like that.” I eye River, hoping he understands that I set him up for an assist.

“Plus, Lily and dark alcohol do not mix. Remember the proposal? We only got her to stop calling you Narc a few months ago. Let’s not undo the progress,” River adds.

I sag in relief, grateful for the support.

“Fair point, gents. Please…” He waves his hand toward the table.

As I settle in my chair, Nessa’s phone vibrates from where she’s left it on her chair. When it buzzes for the third time in a row, I finally peer over at it.

Group Chat: Bad Bitches [Stef Carter, Lily Long, Delia Shane, Nessa Rabin]

---