Page 62 of My Brother's Best Friends

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-bounddetails. 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.”

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