His Belt (Part Twelve), page 1
His Belt
Part Twelve
Hannah Ford
Contents
His Belt
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Copyright © 2019 by Hannah Ford
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
His Belt
(Part Twelve)
Chapter 1
ABIGAIL
Dammit.
Her words are like a tabloid cover, or one of those click bait headlines that show up on social media. You know you shouldn’t click, that it’s not really going to tell you what your fave celebrities look like without makeup, that it’s just going to take you to an ad for some off-brand bronzer and install cookies on your computer that make it impossible to get away from the same annoying ads for the rest of forever.
“Please,” Katherine says again. “Please, Abigail. I just want a chance to explain.”
Her voice is getting louder, and I’m afraid Elijah’s going to hear her through the sliding glass door.
“Shh,” I say. “Please, be quiet.” I scrub at my face with my hand and think about how to handle the situation.
“Abigail!” Katherine says. “Please, just give me five minutes.” She’s really screeching now, and when I glance back through the sliding glass door, I see Elijah turn over in bed before going still again. Jesus. This woman and her crazy big mouth are going to end up waking up him up for sure.
“Fine,” I say. “Fine, I’ll come down, just please stop yelling.”
The promise is out of my mouth before I figure out how the hell I’m going to actually get down to the beach so I can talk to her. Going back into the room isn’t going to work – first, because I’ll risk waking up Elijah, and second, because there’s security covering pretty much every entrance of this place.
On the side of the balcony is a flight of stairs that leads to the first floor, down to the wraparound porch. I descend them quickly, but when I get to the porch, I have the same problem – there’s security at the front of the house, and in the living room, which I’d have to walk through if I went inside.
I glance over the railing.
It’s enough of a jump to the sand that I’m pretty sure I won’t get hurt, yet far enough to be scary.
“Abigail?” Katherine says, scrambling up the beach toward me, her feet sliding in the sand. “Are you coming?”
She’s still talking way too loud, and I resist the urge to yell at her again to be quiet, because it’s going to do nothing except make the problem worse. Instead of one person yelling, there will be two.
Hasn’t this woman ever heard of subtlety? Both of the times I’ve met her, she’s accosted me out of nowhere. She’s lucky I have limited self-defense skills and no weapons.
I take a deep breath and launch myself up onto the wooden railing, sliding on my stomach and doing a 360-degree turn until my legs are dangling over the edge toward the sand. Not the most elegant way to get down to the beach, and honestly, probably a pretty bad idea now that I think about it – I was hoping to not have to actually jump, but now I’m going to have to just drop, and that seems even scarier.
But it’s too late now, I’m dangling over the edge, and I don’t have the upper body strength to pull myself back up.
Not to mention Katherine has now walked even closer to me, and is standing underneath me, encouraging me.
“You can do it!” she’s saying, like some kind of deranged cheerleader. “It’s fine! You’ll be fine! I’ll catch you!”
Oh, for fuck’s sake.
I close my eyes and drop, telling myself that if I end up hurt, I’ll insist on getting knocked out at the hospital with all kinds of good drugs. Isn’t that what they do for people who have as much money as Elijah does? They give them whatever they want, like how he demanded that a plastic surgeon be brought in to stitch up Hailey’s face. I even read an article about it once called something like “Too Posh To Push” about all these rich women who just scheduled C-sections even if they didn’t have a medical reason for it, because –
“Ooof,” I groan as I hit the sand and tip over onto my butt.
“See?” Katherine says, pleased. “You made it fine.”
“Can you please keep your voice down?” I say again, irritated. I start to stalk down the beach, toward the side of the island where Elijah told me they kept the natural wildlife. I’m hoping that he was telling the truth, and that there’s nothing dangerous there.
Although Katherine herself seems kind of dangerous. Now that I’m closer to her, I’m reminded of the energy she gives off, sort of frantic and yet somehow unconcerned. Has she even met Elijah? Does she know how ballistic he’s going to go when he finds out she’s here?
“Where are you going?” Katherine asks. She sounds annoyed. She sounds annoyed with me.
“I’m getting us away from the house,” I say. “Do you understand that there are about five security guards watching the main house, not to mention the extra ones at the resort?”
She blanches. “Because of me?”
“No, not because of you.”
“Then why?”
“It’s a long story.” I continue trudging through the sand until I feel as if we’re a safe distance away from everything. Then I turn around.
“Okay,” I say. “You have five minutes. Talk.”
“Five minutes?” She shakes her head and takes her sunglasses off, opens the beaded bag she has slung across her person, and carefully pulls out a sunglasses case. She places her glasses carefully inside and returns the case to her bag. “Please, can we go up to the resort and have a coffee?”
“Do you know what Elijah would do if he caught us having coffee together at the resort?”
She laughs and shakes her head. “Are you that afraid of him?”
“I’m not afraid of him,” I say, and now I’m really starting to get annoyed. What I said is the truth – I’m not afraid of Elijah. But I do want to protect him and make sure that his crazy mother doesn’t ruin his time here. He’s been the most relaxed I’ve seen him in a long time.
“How did you get on the island, anyway?” I demand. “I thought there was a list of approved guests.”
She waves her hand like it’s a trivial, unimportant question. “My name was added to that list a long time ago,” she says. “Of course, I wasn’t allowed to bring a guest. Ryan thought Elijah wouldn’t appreciate that.” She holds her hands up and makes air quotes when she says ‘appreciate’ that. “Which is ridiculous. Since when should Eli have a say over who gets invited to Ryan’s wedding? It’s completely – “
“I really don’t have time to get into the nuances of your family’s thoughts about your dating life,” I say, remembering the way she was swiping through Tinder at the speed of light that last time I saw her.
“No, I know.” She sighs, and now the bravado is gone from her voice. She looks suddenly small, standing there with the ocean behind her, and a little sad. “I want you to know, this thing with Eli…I never meant to hurt him. Has he told you what happened? That day with his father.”
I nod, my throat closing up.
“So you know that I was there?”
I frown. Elijah never mentioned that his mother was there. Which means he hasn’t told me the whole story. Blood begins to rush through my body, so hard and fast that a whooshing sound vibrates in my ears. But I don’t want Katherine to know that. She can tell from the look on my face, though.
“He never told you,” she says. “He never told you what really happened.” She reaches out and grabs my arm, her nails digging into my skin so hard I wrench away. “I’ll tell you,” she says excitedly. “Let me explain it to you, and then you can explain it to him.”
“No,” I say. “No, I can’t. I’m sorry, I...I can’t.”
I turn and run then, back to the house, back to the deck, back to Elijah.
It must be sheer force of will, because I’m somehow able to lift myself back up over the railing and onto the deck. I glance behind me as I climb the stairs to the second-floor balcony, sure I’m going to see Katherine following me, calling my name.
But the beach is empty.
I slip through the sliding glass door and climb back into bed next to Elijah.
Why wouldn’t he have mentioned the fact that his mother was there the day of his father’s suicide attempt?
I can’t figure out how I’m supposed to deal with this situation – do I confront him? Let him bring it up to me on his own? How am I supposed to marry someone who won’t let me in?
I’m angry and confused, and pissed off that my seemingly perfect vacation is ruined.
At a little after seven o’clock, the alarm on Elijah’s phone goes off, and he rolls over sleepily and hits snooze. His movements are soft and slow, betraying how relaxed he is. I’ve never seen Elijah hit snooze in my life.
“Hi,” he says huskily, giving me a sleepy smile.
“Hi,” I say.
He reaches for my hand and pulls it to his lips, then frowns. “Where’s your ring?”
“Oh,” I say. “I put it in my pocket.” I reach inside the pocket of my pajamas, hoping that the ring
He nods. “That’s very thoughtful.”
His hands are in my hair and his lips are against my neck, and his body is warm and inviting. Instantly, my body is responding to his, melting against him, hormones and pheromones and emotions swirling into a tornado that threatens to override everything else.
“I need to tell you something,” I say, putting my hands flat against his chest.
“Hmm?” he murmurs, his fingers playing with the waistband of my pajama pants.
I swallow, then slide back across the bed, trying to put some space between us.
But before I can say anything else, Elijah’s phone rings.
He groans and rolls over, checking the caller ID.
“It’s the hospital,” he says, and now he’s sitting up, answering the call. “Yes?” he barks.
I wait, listening to his end of the conversation, knowing that it must be about his father, trying to glean any information I can from the things he’s saying, which isn’t much. Except for a terse, “Okay… yes, I understand.”
Then he’s hanging up.
He’s still sitting up, his legs over the side of the bed, and the shift in the energy in the room is palpable, like someone has flipped a switch.
Silence engulfs us, and I wait for him to say something.
But he doesn’t.
“What did they say?” I ask finally.
“My father has lost the progress he’s made,” he says, standing up. “He’s back to being in a minimally conscious state.”
“Oh,” I say. “Are you… I mean, should we go back?”
He shakes his head. “No. And let’s not mention this to Ryan. There’s nothing we can do about it now, and I don’t want to ruin his weekend. We can deal with it when we get back to the city on Monday.”
I nod. “Okay. We can – ”
“I’m going to take a shower,” he says, cutting me off. He disappears through the door to the adjoining bathroom, and a moment later, I hear the water start up.
I lay back down on the bed, my heart pounding.
Jesus. How the hell am I supposed to tell him about his mother being here now?
There’s a knock on the bedroom door, and I startle.
What now? I’m halfway expecting it to be some long lost ex-girlfriend, here to start more trouble. Or maybe Katherine again.
Oh, God, please don’t let it be Katherine again. The last thing I need is Elijah coming face to face with his mother right after he just got that news about his father.
But when I open the door, Kira stands there with Cade and Dmitri.
“Oh, hello, Abigail,” Dmitri says coolly. He and his brother are dressed in matching outfits – striped blue and white long-sleeved t-shirts and matching navy shorts. Their feet are encased in tan sandals. Cade is wearing a pair of neon green sunglasses, and Dmitri is holding a sand pail.
“I’m sorry,” Kira says apologetically. “I know it’s early. But we got in a couple of hours ago, and they’re desperate to see their Uncle Eli.”
“Where are you keeping him?” Dmitri asks suspiciously, peering past me into the room, like maybe I’m keeping his soon-to-be uncle hostage.
“He’s in the shower,” I say. “He’s… um…” I trail off, wondering how I’m supposed to explain to a two-year-old and a four-year-old that Eli’s mood is not exactly the kind of thing they’d probably want to be a part of. Hi, yes, sorry, kids, but your Uncle Eli just found out that his father is back to being in a minimally conscious state, and it’s probably not a good time, because his estranged mother has shown up here as well, although he doesn’t know that yet, even though I do.
I trail off helplessly, and Kira must notice the look on my face – either that, or she’s familiar with Elijah’s mood swings. I’m betting it’s the latter.
“Okay,” she says. “No problem. Boys, we’ll come back later.”
“But we’re supposed to dig to China,” Dmitri says, upset.
Cade nods. “China,” he chimes in helpfully.
“What?” I ask dumbly.
Dmitri sighs, as if he’s having to explain something completely obvious to someone completely oblivious.
“We had a plan. Uncle Eli was going to help us dig a huge hole. A huge, deep hole that will lead us all the way to China.”
“Oh,” I say. “That sounds like a good idea. What will you do when you get there?”
“Take a vacation,” Cade says, grinning.
“Well, maybe he can help you later,” I say helplessly. “I know he would love to. He’s just busy right now.”
Dmitri shakes his head sadly. “We can’t later. Now is the only time we have free in our schedule. There’s a brunch later. And we are expected to attend.” He sounds like an overworked middle-aged businessman trying to fit in a golf game in between meetings.
“You come, lady,” Cade says, reaching out and grabbing my hand.
“What?” I ask dumbly.
“You come to China, lady.” He looks to his older brother for confirmation.
Dmitri considers this, looking me up and down doubtfully. “Okay, fine,” he says finally. “You can come help us dig to China.” He’s resigned, like he knows that I’m not the best person for the job, but he’ll have to make do with what’s available. Not that I blame him. If I wanted to dig to China, I would choose Eli too. And yet somehow his reticence somehow makes me want to prove myself to him. Which is ridiculous. I mean, he’s four.
“You don’t have to,” Kira says. “I’m sure you have things to do.”
“Please,” Cade says, his hand slipping through mine. It’s slightly sticky, like maybe he ate something involving syrup in the not too distant past. “Please, I really like you for my friend.”
The way he’s looking at me, so hopeful and happy, makes my heart melt.
“Um, hold on,” I say. “Let me just check with Elijah.”
I knock on the bathroom door.
“Elijah?”
“Yes?” It’s the same cut off tone that he was using on the phone with the doctor.
“Kira is here, with the boys. They want to dig to China. They, um, they asked me to go with him.”
I wait, hoping that maybe he’ll say that he’s coming too, that he remembers the promise he made to them and that of course he’s not going to go back on it.
But instead, he says, “You should go with them.”
“I wanted to talk to you about something,” I say. “It’s kind of important.”
I try the doorknob, deciding maybe I need to just tell him now, but there’s no way I’m going to do it through a door. The door is locked.
“We can talk later,” Elijah says. “I have some calls to make for work.”
“Come on,” Cade says. He’s come into the room, and he grabs my hand and tugs gently. “Come on, lady!”
“Okay,” I say, trying not to let them see how frustrated I am with their uncle. “Just let me change into my bathing suit.”
It takes all of ten minutes before the boys get tired of digging to China. They abandon their shovels and pails on the beach, then start running up and down the sand, splashing in the ocean.
Kira and I sit on oversized beach towels, watching them.
I’m edgy and tense, and I keep glancing back toward the main house. I pull my phone out and send Elijah a text, letting him know that I need to talk to him before the brunch.
“Everything okay?” Kira asks brightly.
I think about telling her no, but then I realize that she must already know that Katherine is here. The plane that came over was big enough to carry only close friends and family, and Kira must have been on it with Katherine.
“No, actually,” I say. “Katherine came and found me last night.”
“Oh.” Kira sits up straighter and picks at a stray thread that’s come unraveled from her towel. “She wasn’t…she was supposed to stay in her hut until Ryan had a chance to talk to Elijah.”
