“All right. I won’t hunt your dad until the dance is over. For Evan’s sake.”
Jackson’s face lit up. “Really?”
I nodded.
“I really can’t believe you’re doing this.”
I heaved a sigh. “Trust me. Neither can I.”
He reached out and took my hand in his. “I’ll make it up to you. I’ll let you know where my dad is on Sunday.”
I gasped. “Seriously?”
He nodded. “It’s only fair. Evan will have had his perfect night, and then we can all start to move on from this craziness.”
“Wow, I really appreciate it.”
Jackson grinned. “Well, I’m hoping it’ll sweeten the pot for another favor I want to ask you.”
“Uh-oh. Why do I not like the sound of this?” I asked, with a laugh.
“I had planned on taking Bryn to the dance, but since we’re broken up, I’m dateless. Would you mind going with me—just as friends?”
“Man, that is some favor!” I replied. Not only would it require me getting dressed up, which I hated, but there was also someone else to consider. “I’d have to make sure it was okay with Wyatt.”
Jackson nodded. “That seems fair. He’s welcome to come, too.”
My eyebrows shot up in extreme surprise. “Seriously?”
“Sure, why not.”
At that moment, Wyatt and the boys breezed through the office door. The sight of Jackson knelt down beside me, holding my hand, made Wyatt’s face and body taut. Jackson shot to his feet at the sight of the twins eyeballing him.
I gave an exasperated sigh. “Would you three get a grip? Nothing is going on!”
Jackson nodded his head in agreement. “I just came by to talk to Jules about something. Something totally unromantic, I swear.”
“Uh-huh,” Remy replied suspiciously.
With the all the testosterone induced tension in the air, Jackson started inching for the door. “Yeah, well, I guess I better go. Thanks again, Jules. And see you Saturday night.” He then sprinted out the door and to his car.
Wyatt swiveled his head from Jackson’s retreating form over to me. “What was he doing here? And what the hell does he mean by ‘see you Saturday night’?!”
Knowing that we’d have no privacy for the twins, I grabbed Wyatt’s hand. Before he could jerk it away, I said, “Come on. I’ll explain everything to you” I dragged him out of Raye’s office and two doors down to Starbucks.
“Go on and sit down,” I instructed.
Wyatt didn’t need much persuading. He flopped down in one of the plush chairs and crossed his arms over his chest like a pissed off toddler. I guess I couldn’t blame him. I mean, if I’d come in and found him with some chick, I’d have been pretty ticked too.
I ordered us both a caramel macchiato as well as one of those giant chocolate iced brownies. I had the feeling I was going to need some sugar fortification to get me through the next few minutes.
“So what the hell is going on, Jules?” Wyatt demanded as he snatched his coffee from me.
I blew on the steaming foam, not quite wanting to have to give Wyatt all the down and dirty details. “Okay, so I sorta need to ask you a favor.”
“I’m listening.”
I then told Wyatt what I’d promised Jackson. “What do you think?”
He took a thoughtful gulp of his coffee. “So you’re not totally giving up on the case? Just until the dance is over?”
I nodded. “And Jackson’s promised to give me a substantial lead at the beginning of the week.”
“Hmm,” he replied, still lost in thought.
“You can always say no and go tell my dad,” I said.
He scowled. “That would make me an uber douchebag.”
I shrugged. “You heard the tip the other night the same as I did.”
“You really think Jackson will turn his dad in?”
“Yeah, I do.”
Wyatt exhaled noisily. “Fine. My lips are sealed until Monday.”
“Thanks,” I replied, with a smile.
Eyeing my bag, Wyatt asked, “Trying to bribe me with food, huh?”
“Actually this is mine.”
He dug the brownie out and took a huge bite. A clump of icing got caught in the corner of his mouth. When he caught me staring, he asked, “What?”
“You kinda have some chocolate on your lips.”
With a smirk, Wyatt took another giant bite of my brownie, smearing more icing. “Did I get it?”
I giggled. “No, smartass, you didn’t. I’ll get you a napkin before you devour the rest of my food.” I rose off the couch. Just as I grabbed up some napkins, Wyatt hooked his finger into my belt-loop and jerked me back. I squealed as I collapsed onto his lap.
I brought my thumb slowly across his lip, wiping off the chocolate. I shivered when Wyatt’s tongue flicked out, licking off the chocolate. Without taking his eyes off of mine, he took my thumb into my mouth to suck off the rest of the chocolate.
My voice was barely a throaty whisper as I said, “I really appreciate you backing me up on the Marshall case.”
“No problem, Julesy.”
“And for what it’s worth, don’t ever worry about me and Jackson again.”
With a crooked grin, he replied, “I’ll try.”
And then he brought his lips to mine for a deep, passionate kiss. Damn, why did he always have to taste so sweet?
Chapter Nineteen
Mood music emanated from the iHome in the corner. With our bodies inches from each other, I could feel the heat radiating off of Wyatt. I glanced up at Wyatt. He winked at me, and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. “Are you going to take this seriously or not?” I asked.
“I am taking it very seriously. Jeez, can’t a guy wink if he feels like it?” he argued, with a grin.
“Yeah, well, whenever you start acting all player, I lose my focus.”
“Don’t lie. You know you like it,” Wyatt said, nudging me playfully.
“Stop it!” I protested before he could start tickling me. I couldn’t help giggling.
We were interrupted by Evan tugging on Wyatt’s sleeve. “Show me what to do!” he demanded.
“Easy, slave driver,” Wyatt replied, with a grin.
Evan sighed with exasperation and turned around to where Jackson leaned against the desk. “Jay-Jay, the dance is tonight, and I have to dance good for Rachel.”
Jackson reached out to ruffle Evan’s hair. “You will, buddy. I promise. Jules and Wyatt are going to show you.” He shot us a both a “Would you two get a grip and get on with it!” look.
It was all kinda comical when I thought about it. The guy I really liked and the guy I once thought I liked all holed up in Evan’s room. It was t-minus one hour until the Summer Sweethearts Dance started. The guys were outfitted in their tuxes while I was in a formal dress. At least this time, the dress didn’t make me feel like as much of a poser as I had in the pink, poofy one. It was made of a satiny, clingy material in deep purple and had silver beading along the bodice. I actually felt sexy since it had a plunging, halter-like top part and a daring slit up the side.
“All right, one dance lesson coming up,” Wyatt said. He nodded to Jackson who restarted the music. “Okay, so you take your hands and put them on the girl’s waist.” Wyatt illustrated by putting his hands on me. “And then she puts her hands here on your shoulders.” I brought my hands to Wyatt’s shoulders. “Now you just sorta sway back and forth to the music.”
Evan cocked his head. “That’s it?”
“Yep, that’s it,” I replied.
After processing for a moment that this was really all there was to dancing, Evan wedged himself between Wyatt and me. “My turn!”
Jackson laughed behind us. “There’s a more polite way to cut in, ya know.”
I brought my hands to Evan’s shoulders as he gripped my waist. “A little too tight,” I wheezed. He eased up, and I nodded. “Much better.”
Suddenly, Evan snatched
his arms from my waist. “Dad!” he cried.
And there he was, in the flesh. Emmett Marshall—bail jumper and the man my mother had an affair with. I couldn’t deny that he was very attractive. You know, in an older George Clooney kinda way. I guess I could see what had attracted Mom to him. But in the end, I still thought Dad was way better looking.
Evan ran over to the door and threw his arms around Emmett’s neck. “I missed you so much!”
Emmett hugged Evan back and then kissed his cheek. “I missed you, too. I’ve just been so damn busy lately.”
Jackson snorted contemptuously beside me. Emmett glanced from Evan to Jackson. “There is no excuse for my behavior, but I am sorry.”
“I forgive you,” Evan said, hugging his dad again.
Jackson shrugged. “Yeah, whatever.”
Emmett then turned his attention to me. “And who is this lovely young lady?”
Jackson finally smiled. “This is Bryn’s cousin, Jules St. James, and her…” he appeared to be having a hard time forming the words, “boyfriend.”
Emmett shook my hand and peered closely at me. “You must be Annabel’s daughter.”
“Yeah, I am.”
“You look just like her,” he said, almost wistfully. He kept hold of my hand until I finally pulled it away. Giving a jerk of his head, he glanced around the room. “And where’s Bryn tonight?”
Jackson and I both snickered. At Emmett’s curious expression, Jackson said, “You could say we’re history.”
“I see,” he replied.
“Feel free to celebrate. I can’t stand her myself!” I said, with a grin.
Emmett chuckled. “Well, okay, then.” He patted Jackson’s back. “Glad to hear the good news.”
A knock at the door signaled Rachel and her parents. Wyatt and I went ahead and escaped downstairs, so the families could do their thing. We headed out of the ballroom and onto the lawn. The actual dance was being held under a massive tent. There was a DJ (I would much rather have had one at my party!), and they’d even brought in a wooden dance floor.
As we walked through the doors, they had just begun to serve dinner. Waiters decked out in white tuxes buzzed around the room with trays and serving pitchers. Wyatt steered me over to one of the round tables draped in white linen table cloths. The Brandewine Institute had really gone all out, including a champagne fountain, crystal goblets, and fine china. I was totally impressed.
Jackson joined us after a few minutes. “Man, I’m totally blind from all the pictures Dad and Rachel’s parents were taking.”
Of course, it took only two seconds of being wedged between Jackson and Wyatt for me to start to sweat. Fortunately, a tall, voluptuous looking blonde appeared. “Is this seat taken?”
With Jackson now blinded by the girl’s beauty, rather than the camera flashes, I quickly answered for him. “No, please sit down.”
“Thanks.” She smiled. “I’m Frannie’s niece, Laura.” Before we could make our introductions, she said, “You’re Jackson Marshall, right?”
I cringed as I anticipated some kind of reference to Emmett. Jackson bobbed his head. “You go to Benedictine Prep with my brother, Luke.”
Jackson’s eyes widened in recognition. “Yeah, we played soccer together.”
Once they started chatting each other up, I exhaled the breath I’d been holding. After we’d stuffed ourselves from the sit-down dinner, Wyatt turned to me with a smile. “Wanna dance?”
“We’re supposed to be chaperoning.”
He snorted. “I think we can eyeball the kids and dance at the same time. If anybody gets out of hand, I nominate you to take them down!”
“Ha, ha,” I replied, rising up from my chair.
Taking my hand, Wyatt led me onto the dance floor. He wrapped his arms around my waist and drew me close to him. We swayed to the music for a few moments. I watched as Evan and Rachel abandoned the dance floor to raid the chocolate fountain. Jackson was smiling and nodding as he talked to Laura while Emmett, ever the player, was talking up an attractive woman.
We were interrupted by someone tapping me on the shoulder. It was Patricia. “Julianne, this is quite strange, but a young man asked me to give you this note.”
My heart thudded in my chest when I glanced down at the folded up piece of paper. It read “Jewel of the Nile.”
I didn’t even murmur a thank-you when I snatched the note out of Patricia’s hand. I tore it open. There was one lone sentence.
You have five minutes to get out of there before we come in.
Oh, my God. Dad had found Emmett. And if I didn’t do something, he and the boys were going to come busting in the Summer Sweetheart Dance to arrest Emmett in front of everyone. But how had he…I jerked my head up to glare at Wyatt. “You told my Dad, didn’t you?”
His face drained of color. “What? No! I swear I didn’t!”
I shoved him away. “I trusted you. I thought you cared about me enough to…” I clamped down on my lip. Tears pricked my eyes at his betrayal. I whirled around and started pushing couples out of my way. I weaved across the dance floor to reach Emmett. He was nursing a glass of wine when I raced up to him.
“I don’t have time to explain, but you have to leave. Now!”
“What in the world are you talking about?” Craning his neck to survey the couples, he asked, “Is something wrong with Evan?”
I furiously shook my head. “No, nothing is wrong with him. You just have to trust me, okay?”
When Emmett still looked skeptical, I grabbed his sleeve and started dragging him to one of the exits.
“Jules, what in the hell is going on?”
I spun around. “Look, my dad, who is one of the best bondsmen in the state of Texas, is outside right now, ready to arrest you. So you gotta get the hell out of here!”
Emmett’s face paled. “Jesus,” he muttered under his breath.
“Where’s a back way out of here?” I asked.
“Through the kitchen and out the side door,” Jackson replied. Emmett and I both turned around to face Jackson. “It’s your dad, isn’t it?” he asked.
I nodded. “But I don’t have time to explain. We just have to get your dad out of here.”
Jackson glanced between me and Emmett before pushing ahead of us. “Follow me.”
He started trailing back through the couples dancing. I kept glancing over my shoulder as we dodged waiters with their silver serving trays. Inside the kitchen was a flurry of food and drink preparation. We only got a momentary glance from the caterers as we flew passed them in our evening wear.
At the back of a kitchen, Jackson started down a hallway. One side led to a walk-in freezer while the other led to the backdoor with an alarm. He threw it open, and we stepped out into the pitch black night. “Where are we now?” I whispered.
“We’re on the left side of the mansion.”
“Shit, my car is on the other side,” Emmett murmured.
Even though he probably couldn’t see me in the darkness, I shook my head. “I’m sure they’re watching it. You’ll have to leave it and take a cab.”
“Leave it? It’s a Jaguar XJE convertible!” Emmett cried a little too loud.
“Shh!” Jackson and I both said.
“Fine. I’ll get a cab.” He started creeping off when he turned back. “Jackson, I’ll talk to you as soon as I can.”
“Fine,” Jackson muttered.
Emmett gave me a weak smile. “Thank you, Jules,” he whispered.
“No problem,” I replied, even though it was far from the truth. What I had just done was a major problem, and I didn’t even want to think about how Dad would react when he found out that Emmett had gotten away.
As I heard Emmett making his way along the side of the house, Jackson grabbed my arm. In the moonlight, the hurt etched across his face. “Jules, how did this happen? You gave me your word!”
“I know, I—”
But I didn’t get a chance to finish my sentence. Instead, I heard raised voi
ces ringing all around us. “Freeze! On the ground now!”
“Put your hands on your head!”
My heart sunk into my stomach. Dad and the boys had gotten to Emmett. At the sound of the voices and scuffling, Jackson dropped my arm and raced forward.
“No, wait!” I cried after him.
When Jackson spun around the corner, Colt immediately knocked him to the ground. “No, stop, don’t spray him!” I screamed, running as best I could in my heels.
By the time I reached Jackson, Colt had retracted his pepper spray, and Jackson had gotten back on his feet—although his nose was bleeding. Colt shook his head at me. “Guess you got our note, huh?” he sneered.
I cringed at his words. I glanced over to see Dad and Remy pulling Emmett up while Raye and Wyatt hung back. Emmett appeared quite ironic being handcuffed in his tux. “Jackson,” he called.
Dad nodded at Colt, so he let Jackson go to Emmett’s side. “What Dad?”
“Will you promise me to look out for Evan and take care of his paperwork? I’ll have my attorney draw up the necessary papers to make you, along with Papa, my Powers of Attorney while I’m gone.”
Jackson bobbed his head. “Sure,” he croaked. “And I’ll go see him every day.”
Emmett smiled. “I knew I could count on you.”
“Whatever, Dad,” Jackson mumbled, casting his eyes on the pavement so his father wouldn’t see his tears. I felt so bad for him that I wanted to go to his side, hug him up and tell him everything would be okay...somehow.
“All right then. Guess it’s time to pay the piper,” Emmett said.
“Dad, I…” Jackson chewed his lip. “I love you.”
Tears shone in Emmett’s eyes. “I love you, too, son. I love you very, very much.”
At their words of affection, Dad eased up on his grip of Emmett. “Go ahead and hug him,” he said softly.
With his hands cuffed, Emmett could only lean in and let Jackson wrap his arms around him. “It’s not all bad. We’ll strike a deal, and I’ll be out before you know it.”
“I hope so,” Jackson replied, squeezing his dad.
Emmett pulled away. He gave an appreciative smile to Dad. “Thanks.”