Page 30 of Tell Me Again
“Not with someone who lied to my friend,” Jenny shot back.
“I’m Kendall, a friend of Sam’s,” Kendall said, ignoring the petite spitfire.
Trevor shook her hand—he at least had better manners than Jenny. “You’re the Denver newscaster.”
She nodded. “This is Chloe Haddox.”
The raven-haired woman, Chloe, flashed a wide smile. “Nice to meet you.”
“And Jenny Castelli,” Kendall added.
“I can’t say it’s nice to meet you,” she told him with a curl of her lip.
“Likewise, I’m sure,” he answered and earned a more genuine smile from Kendall. What the hell kind of whacked-out friends did Sam have?
“We came up today to talk wedding plans,” Kendall explained.
“And Claire and Cooper wanted to meet Grace,” Chloe added. “Claire is my stepdaughter and Cooper belongs to Jenny.”
“Lucky boy,” Trevor mumbled.
“Damn straight he is,” Jenny answered, ignoring the sarcasm in his comment. “Just like Grace is lucky to have Sam as her aunt.” She pointed that finger again. “You shouldn’t have kept them apart this long.”
“Jenny, stop.” Kendall’s voice was low with warning. “This isn’t our business and we promised Sam.”
The redhead let out a quick laugh. “I promised Cover Girl nothing,” she told the other two. “But I have her back.” She came toe to toe with Trevor. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re a jackass for keeping that girl a secret. I don’t care what kind of mistakes Sam’s sister made. Sam shouldn’t have to pay the price for them.”
Trevor felt his temper flare, both in being called on the carpet for something that these women knew nothing about and for the truth in Jenny’s reprimand.
“I did what I thought was best for my daughter,” he said through clenched teeth.
Chloe put a hand on Jenny’s shoulder and forced her to step away from him. “We get that you thought it was best when Grace was a baby, but you must see now you were wrong.”
Her gentle tone was far more devastating than Jenny’s blatant attack had been, because it stripped him of his anger. Anger had always been his best defense.
Kendall moved to stand next to the other two. “We want to make sure you give Sam a chance with Grace. She’s good at playing tough, but underneath that perfect mask she’s a whole bunch of tender goo.”
“Eloquently put,” Jenny said with a wry smile and a glance at Kendall. “Especially delivered in your broadcaster voice. That was a nice touch.”
“Thank you,” Kendall whispered as she continued to stare at Trevor.
“She really is soft and tender inside,” Chloe said.
Jenny nodded. “And gooey.”
Trevor wasn’t sure whether to growl in frustration or laugh at the trio standing in front of him. He’d never been one for classic literature, but he was reminded of Shakespeare’s Three Witches.
Suddenly he was glad for Sam. She’d been so close with her twin growing up, and he knew losing Bryce had been a huge blow. In a strange way, her beauty set her apart from other women, made them less likely to want her as a friend. At least that’s how it had seemed when they were younger. The fact that she had friends who were willing to stand at her back made him inexplicably happy. It also gave him a grudging respect for this triumvirate of grown-up girl power.
“What the hell is going on in here?”
Trevor hid his smile as the three women in front of him cringed and turned to where Sam stood scowling in the doorway.
“So much goo,” he said under his breath and was rewarded when one of them—his money was on the redhead—kicked him in the shin.
“Seriously,” Sam said, stalking forward. “You three look like you’re about to boil him alive.”
TheMacbethreference wasn’t too far off. Good to know.
