Page 46 of Absinthe Minded

Gee, I hadn’t noticed. “I know.”

“Check to see if the boys have a fever. If not, send them to my mom.”

“Would it be all right if they went to my parents’ instead?”

“Why?”

“The look Nadine gave me on her way out…”

She nodded against the pillow and whispered, “Call your mom, but promise me you’ll testify if she uses this against me in the custody hearing.”

16

Maggie

With Chloe sleeping,and the rest of the kiddos at their grandmother’s for the night, the house was quiet—too quiet. I had nothing to do, so I’d spent the day feeling like garbage and thinking about my life. Under the circumstances,thatwasn’t a good idea. To distract myself, I retrieved my laptop from my room. Maybe I could squeeze out a couple of chapters on my new book before I went back to sleep.

An email from Shanna caught my eye. From the looks of it, she’d spent a considerable amount of time researching the Marchionni family. I scrolled through genealogy records that made my head spin. Names and dates and places. Births and deaths and marriages—too much to comprehend in one sitting.

My phone rang, and I nearly toppled out of bed trying to reach it. “Hello?”

“You’re going to die, bitch.” The caller hung up.

I glanced at the screen. Blocked number. “I thought prank calls died sometime in the nineties.”

“Mags?” Gabe knocked and opened the door.

I dropped my cell and snapped the laptop closed. “Is Chloe okay?”

He gave me the same look he had when he’d stared at my boobs. Crazy man. Sure, I was in bed, but there was nothing sexy about my reading glasses and ponytail.

I pulled the blanket higher on my chest.

“She’s sleeping. Can I come in?” His gaze drifted to my shoulders.

“Sure, it’s your room.”

He plopped down in the chair near the window. “Want to watch a movie?”

“I’m really tired. I’m going to sleep once I finished checking my email.”

“We could watch a chick-flick.” He wiggled his brows.

“Just so you know, porn isn’t the same thing as a chick-flick.”

“I beg to differ, but that’s not what I had in mind. Come on Mags. You can pick the movie.” Biting his lower lip, Gabe dipped his chin and peered through his lashes. The expression would have looked feminine on most men, but he wasn’t most men.

“Don’t give me puppy-eyes. We’ll do it another time. I promise.” I wanted nothing more than to curl up beside him, but I had work to do. “Oh. I’ve been meaning to ask you. What happens to your bar once you take over for your dad?”

“You know…I asked Joe a similar question in this exact spot.” He stood as if to leave.

My reporter’s instincts kicked in. I’d hit a nerve. “When was that?”

Gabe hesitated and picked up a photo of my sister and her husband. “Shortly after Zach was born. Joe planned to start working with our father. I pointed out he’d be traveling a lot.”

I nodded, though I couldn’t shake the feeling he’d lied, or at very least, held something back.

“How can you stand to be in this room?” Speaking through gritted teeth, he slammed the picture face down on the dresser.

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