“I think I can take her.”
I laughed softly and shook my head. “Godspeed, Mr. Branson.”
“It’s Todd,” he reminded me before focusing on my shark-in-the-water sisters.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Thaddeus
Nori’s red-painted lips moved, but I could barely keep up. It wasn’t because she was rattling off a list of demands, but because the scent of Kiyah’s floral perfume, paired with the warmth that radiated off her, was spellbinding. We were squeezed into the booth, and my leg occasionally brushed against hers because of the proximity. I apologized, of course, not wanting her to think I was doing it purposely, but she didn’t mind.
She probably doesn’t notice because she’s so wrapped up in my son.
Every so often, my eyes would wander to Kiyah and Pete. They were smitten with each other. She softly sang nursery rhymes to him, and he grinned and patted her cheeks appreciatively like he would with my wife.
And now, with Grant out of the way, I can woo Kiyah without any interruptions.
According to the text messages I read, that asshole would be locked up in rehab for the next three months, and the forbidden couple would be divorcing. Kiyah would be heartbroken, grieving the dissolution of her marriage, and what better person to comfort her than a man wallowing in grief from the unfortunate and tragic passing of his wife?
“Can it, Nori. We have to go,” Daisy suddenly mentioned as she waved down the server for the bill.
“Why are we leaving? I’m in the middle of my four-year property tax deduction program proposal,” Nori protested, nearly whining like a petulant child.
“We’re leaving because I need to swing by the office to put out a small fire, and he doesn’t care about your program proposal. I’m sure he already has an economist on his team—he doesn’t need another.”
“I have three,” I answered cordially.
“See there. He doesn’t need a fourth.”
“I guess I’d better be going, too,” Kiyah chimed in.
“Nonsense. You should stay. Mr. Branson hasn’t finished his meal, and it would be rude to leave early. This should cover it,” Daisy said, tossing four crisp $100.00 bills onto the table before dragging her wife and their designer handbags out of the booth.
“Did she truly have a work emergency, or am I that boring?” I joked, earning a sweet titter from Kiyah.
“Knowing Daisy, she probably did have a work emergency. I was shocked when I found out she agreed to a two-week honeymoon. She’s an absolute workhorse.”
“She’s quite intense; they both are. Have they always been like that?”
She snorted, “Since day one. Believe it or not, they’re a lot tamer now than when they were kids.”
“I can’t imagine.”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
“Try me,” I urged with a teasing smile.
“It was Thanksgiving Eve, the first year we were with the Bakers. I was three, Daisy was two, and Nori was one. Nori was sitting on the floor, minding her business and watching TV. Daisy thought it was a good idea to climb onto the back of thesofa and jump on top of Nori. She leaped through the air like a flying squirrel, and Nori rolled out of the way at the last minute.”
“Ouch,” I commented as I pictured the scene.
“Nori toddled off triumphantly while Daisy was left gasping for air like a fish out of water. It was a mess, and I was nervous around Daisy for a while. I was so paranoid that I kept checking over my shoulder when we’d watch TV.”
“Days like that make being a single child less painful.”
“No shit,” she replied before sipping her wine. I used that brief moment to study her profile.
I wonder if she’s aware of what she does to me. I wonder if she knows that every time she smiles at me, she’s pulling me in deeper, sucking me into a twisted abyss of obsession and wicked desires.