Page 102 of Terms + Conditions
“Shut the fuck up, Alex.” Nick’s smirk falls, and he rolls his eyes, but I can’t hold back my laugh. “You, too.”
“You have to admit, it was kind of funny.” I still chuckle.
“There you boys are!” Dad walks into the movie area.
I expect to see Brie following behind, but she doesn’t.
“Brie is with Elizabeth,” Dad says, noticing my confusion. “She whisked her away as soon as we arrived, something about books.”
The thought of them bonding makes my heart feel a little lighter. If she is my daughter, at least I know they can get along…Right?
“Y’know Bub, I think she’s a lovely girl, but there seems to be some hesitation when it comes to talking about her home life.” Dad lifts his hat and runs a hand through his hair before replacing it. “You noticed that?”
Yes. Anytime I bring up home, Brie tries changing the subject almost immediately.
“Have you had any more luck getting ahold of her mother?” Dad asks.
“No, she still hasn’t answered.”
Dad hums in response but doesn’t say anything. I know what he’s thinking; I need to do something more than just sit aroundand wait for Juliet to answer the phone. But what am I supposed to do? Call the police? Brie doesn’t seem concerned about her mother’s lack of communication. In fact, to her, it seems to be perfectly normal. Not to mention, we have a private investigator looking into Juliet, Brie, and the entire Sinclaire family. If there is anything suspicious going on, I have no doubt Ed Brown is going to find it.
“Well, your Mom and I are ‘bout to head out. Got a long drive ahead of us. You’ll let me know when you hear something, wont’cha?” Dad asks, and I nod.
Things have still been a little off between me and Dad, or maybe it’s just me. There are times when I feel like he wants to ask me about what happened, but he holds back. He nods toward my cousins and heads for the door when I call after him.
“Can we talk for a second?”
The walk outside is quiet. Even as I step out the front door, it’s hard to know where to begin. I follow Dad down the steps toward the driveway, taking each step one at a time until I reach solid ground and he is already halfway to the car. Elizabeth and I are supposed to go back to Winchester next week to discuss our options with the house. We’ve considered keeping it, but don’t see a reason to. Jupiter Beach welcomes a fresh start all the way around.
With his back to me, Dad opens the back seat and asks, “What’s on your mind, Son?”
It’s hard to find the right words, but the best ones I come up with are: “Are we okay?”
No answer. His movements inside the backseat of the car have paused, and after a brief moment that feels like a lifetime, he sighs. It’s a long, hard sigh. The kind of sigh that signals you’re not about to like the answer on the other side of it. A sigh is not the answer I was looking for. When he straightens, he turns to face me—his gaze narrowed, his lips pursed slightly—and he rests his arm over the door pane, tapping his fingers on the black exterior. “Josh—“
“I’m sorry.”
“I know that, but this whole thing has been…difficult. I feel like I don’t even know you or Elizabeth, not really. Hell, I feel like I don’t even know my own wife.”
“Wait, you know? I thought she didn’t tell you.”
“I have two ears to hear, son.”
Now, it’s my turn to sigh. “I’m sorry, Dad.”
“What in God’s name would make either of you think going to Brina Villa for an arranged marriage was a good idea?”
My tongue swipes across my teeth before I suck my bottom lip between them. He knows the truth, but not thewholetruth. Do I tell him?
“I’ve asked your mother a hundred times, but she just tells me not to worry about it. Says it’s none of my concern because it was handled, but that’s the problem. I don’t knowwhatwas handled, and it makes me feel like I don’t know my own damn family!”
My heart jumps out of my chest when his hand pounds down on the roof of the sedan. My blood is going a million miles a minute, the adrenaline pounding through me.
“Does your sister know?” He chuckles when I don’t answer. “Wow, so I’m the only one who—”
“MJ didn’t know before. She just found out.”
“So, you can tell your sister, but not me?”
