Page 16 of Terms + Conditions
“And for what? To cause problems? To start a fight? So you could make me look like the asshole, and you could swoop in and play hero?”
“Doing a pretty good job of that yourself,” Finn mumbles. William glares at him, but Finn simply shrugs in response. Finn is used to William; used to his tantrums. They’ve known each other for a long time. And even though he has always rubbed Finn the wrong way, sometimes you put up with people like William because they’re the only ones around.
“Stay the fuck out of this, Sheffield.” The fist at William’s side clenches. This is going to get a lot uglier if we don’t do something to defuse the situation.
“You’re the one who leftyourgirl stranded in front of the entire guest list. So, if you’re looking for someone to blame for your problems, take a look in the mirror.”
William starts to lunge.
I step between, trying to keep them apart, and the blow lands on my cheek.
Fuck.
The thought enters my mind, but I don’t register it at first, the hit dazing me for a moment. I can hear distant yelling from Elizabeth, but I don’t know what she’s saying. When my sensesfinally return, I take a deep breath and glare at William. He’s in the process of rolling up his sleeves, readying himself for the fight sure to come. My gaze is ripped from his, and I’m met with concerned brown orbs. Elizabeth. She gingerly touches my cheek, examining it before offering me a tentative smile. She’s apologizing.
“Can’t take a hit, Joshy boy?” William taunts when the last of his shirt sleeve is tucked away in the fold at his elbow.
I scoff. “Will, unless you want to get laid out in the middle of your own party, I suggest you go back inside. I’ve given you your one hit, now it’s my turn.”
William starts to lunge at me again, but Finn steps between us, managing to avoid the right hook William throws.
“Stop it,” Finn hisses. “Do either one of you really want to cause a scene on a night like this?”
“Get the fuck out of my house!” William shouts. “I never want to see either of you again. If you ever so much as—”
“Oh, for once in your life, shut the fuck up, Will,” Elizabeth interrupts him.
Will’s burning gaze turns on her and my feet move on their own to put myself between the two of them. I watch the wheels of his mind turning, mulling over what she just said. I don’t know if I’ve ever heard Elizabeth talk to him that way.
Despite his unwavering gaze, she stands tall, until finally his eyes narrow. William opens his mouth, ready to spew whatever vile line he’s spent the last two minutes coming up with, but his gaze flickers to me and the words escape him. Looking between us, he tries to think of something else to say, but the best he can come up with is: “You deserve each other!” before he runs back to the house like a little kid who didn’t get the toy he wanted.
Has he always been so dramatic?
A few guests who had just stepped out onto the back porch watched him stomp inside before they turned in our direction. Iturn toward Elizabeth, whose narrowed gaze has yet to leave the backdoor.
Damn, I really made a mess of things. I should’ve just kept my mouth shut.
As if she can hear my thoughts, Elizabeth looks at me, gaze still narrowed. I ready myself for her fury to unleash, but it never comes.
“It’s his loss, Sugar,” I say, repeating the same words I said to her on the dance floor.
The corners of her red lips lift briefly. With a deep breath, she mentally prepares herself for her next task: distracting party guests. She leaves us to join them on the balcony, greeting them with a polite smile and starting a conversation to clean up the mess we’ve made.
CHAPTER EIGHT
NOW
IT’S BEEN A WEEK since Halloween, and it’s been radio silence from my sister since I left New York on Sunday morning. Normally, we talk a few times a week—whether by text, phone call, or the occasional FaceTime because she justhasto show me something—and I would never admit it to anyone else, but I’ve missed our conversations. At least the group chat between Finn, Nick, Alex, and myself has been moving at a pretty normal pace. Finn and I had a conversation two days ago about the fantasy football league we’re in. Things seem fine on that front, but I don’t want to ask him. I know what the problem is…Michaela is still trying to digest everything, and I get it. I’ve had ten years to process all this information, but they’re just figuring it out.
Falling back into my desk chair, I stretch and pull my glasses down onto my nose. I begin digging into the presentation my team sent over earlier. We’ve been trying to acquire a new client with quite a reputation, a client that the firm has been trying to acquire since I started working here nine years ago. This presentation has to be perfect.
I flip through the slides and make note of small things here and there, but overall it looks fine—though, I can’t be too sure because I can’t stop thinking back to Halloween. FindingElizabeth in my room. Being so close to her after all this time. The smell of her perfume mixed with a twinge of red wine…It was intoxicating. Had the girls not knocked over those letters, I can only imagine what might have happened.
Checking the clock, I see I have three hours until the end of the work week, and then I’m supposed to meet Nick and Alex at the house for a guys’ night. Nina is kicking Nick out of their house for the night so she can get some peace and quiet. I’m not sure how much peace and quiet she’s getting with a newborn around the house, but Nick said not to question it when I asked.
As much as I could use a night with the guys, the only thing I can think of is the amount of time it takes to get from here to Jupiter Beach, a small town on the coast about thirty minutes outside of Charleston. The small town Elizabeth moved to after she officially moved out of our shared home in Winchester. And if I leave now, I’ll be there just after five o’clock. Surely, she’d be home by then, right?
“Fuck it,” I whisper and log off. I haphazardly throw my stuff into my bag and close the office door behind me. My assistant, Sienna, sits at her desk, and her bright blue eyes meet mine when I walk out. “Cece, I’m leaving a little early. Anyone needs anything, just forward it to my email, but you can leave if you want.”
