Dangerous Curves Ahead: A Perfect Fit Novel (37 page)

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Every year the University of Durant Science Department rented out Coco’s, a local restaurant, and threw a big Christmas party for the staff and their families. It was an event Ellis went to nearly every year. Scientists were pretty damn fun when they were tipsy, and Ellis was hoping this year she would get a glimpse of her father enjoying himself.

“See if you can get my father to drink tonight,” Ellis whispered to Mike as they entered.

“Most women want their fathers to stay sober at events. My girlfriend wants her father shitfaced.”

“What can I say? I’m a classy lady.”

“That’s why I’m with you.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her in for a quick kiss.

“Yuck.” Dina said. “Do you think you can abstain from PDA tonight? It’s gross.”

“Hi, Dina,” Ellis greeted her sister. “I didn’t know you were here.”

She rolled her eyes. “I came with Walter and Mom. You know he’s such a time freak.”

“I’m going to get a drink.” Mike kissed her cheek. “You want a Bay Breeze, baby?”

“Thank you.”

He squeezed her shoulder and walked away. He hadn’t acknowledged Dina. And Ellis could tell by the look on her face that Mike’s shunning bothered her. She was going to have to talk to Mike later. She only had one sister, and they had to make it work.

“You look great in that dress, sister,” she said, trying to soothe Dina’s bruised pride.

“Thanks,” Dina replied absently as her gaze traveled around the room. “Do you see any hot guys here?” She glanced back at Ellis. “Why am I asking you? You don’t seem to have a type of your own.”

Ellis ignored the little barb thrown her way and searched for her parents. “Do you know where Mom and Dad are? I want to say hi.”

“I think they are sitting at a table in the back room. Why don’t you go find them? I’ll be around.”

*   *   *

Mike watched Ellis as another one of her father’s colleagues led her to the dance floor in the main room. She was a huge hit with the nerdy set. She barely had two seconds to sit down that evening because professor after professor kept asking her to dance. Mike let her go, watching as her face lit up with each invitation. It was one of the few times he wasn’t jealous of other men. He couldn’t blame them for ogling his girlfriend. She wore a red lipstick to match the satin dress that hugged her body and left a large part of her creamy back bare. Vivid images of her nude body flooded his mind. He couldn’t wait to peel her out of her dress. He wondered if he was going to be able to wait long enough to present her with one of her Christmas presents. He was going to take her away to Aruba as soon as she finished with her current orders. It was to be the first time they were going to be truly alone, and he couldn’t wait.

“Who would have thought that my sister would be belle of the ball?” Dina slid into a chair next to him.

Mike looked around the table before he acknowledged Dina. It was empty. The party was well into its fourth hour. Many people had already left, and those who hadn’t left were shaking it on the dance floor. “Your sister is gorgeous. Why wouldn’t she be the belle of the ball?”

He looked into the next room, hoping to catch a glimpse of Ellis in the crowd. He failed to see her through the mass of bodies getting down to “Party Rock Anthem.” After this song was over he was pulling Ellis out of there and taking her home. He had some plans for her tonight.

“Ellis wasn’t a cute kid, or teenager, and don’t even get me started about how she looked from eleven to thirteen,” Dina said offhandedly. “I couldn’t even describe her as a person, more like a blob of chub with a mess of brown hair on top.”

Mike took a sip of his rum and Coke, trying to ignore Dina’s comment and trying not to make one of his own. He didn’t want to engage in conversation with her, but he couldn’t be rude, either. Dina was going to be his sister-in-law one day, and he knew Ellis would want them to be civil. At that moment Mike was finding it very hard to be around her. There was something ugly about Dina Gregory.

“What a difference a few years make.” He glanced at his watch.

“Do you love her?”

The question caught Mike off guard and this time he looked at Dina. “Yes. Very much.”

Dina shifted her chair closer to him and lightly placed her hand on top of his. “I need to know how it happened. How did you end up with Ellis?”

“We ran into each other, Dina. It’s just like she said.”

“But there’s more to it,” she pressed. “I want to know exactly what happened.”

Mike removed his hand from beneath hers and folded his arms across his chest. “I think that’s something you should ask your sister.”

“But I can’t. You’re the one topic we can’t talk about. You have to know how awkward this is. It’s not normal for us to share men.”

“You aren’t sharing me,” he pointed out. “We were over a long time ago. We never were really together in the first place. I’m serious about your sister.”

“I get it.” She rolled her eyes high in her head like a teenager. “Tell me how it happened. Did you know she was my sister when you bumped into her?”

“Not at first.” A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth when he thought about their first meeting. “But…” He was about to share the events that threw them together but he remembered who he was with and thought better of it. “Ask your sister.”

“No, Mike.” Dina slid her hand up his arm. “I want to talk to you now. Tell me what it is you love about her that you couldn’t love about me?”

He moved back in his chair. He wasn’t expecting that question and sure as hell didn’t know how to answer it.

“Tell me the truth.” She inched closer to him, and he could smell the alcohol on her breath. Her eyes were glassy. Her speech a tiny bit slurred. She was drunk. “I need to know what’s so damn lovable about her.”

Shit.
Why hadn’t he noticed sooner? This conversation was over.

“You can still have me. I can see why you like my sister. She’s normal and steady and boring. She’s who you can go home to every night. But I’m who you can sneak around with during the day.”

Mike shook his head. Dina looked as if she didn’t believe what she was telling him. Like she hated herself for saying it. “You’re drunk. You don’t know what you’re saying.” He looked around the room, hoping to find Walter and Phillipa so that they could get her out of here. “Where are your parents? They need to take you home.”

“I’d rather go home with you.”

He turned back to tell her no when her lips came crashing down on his and her arms twined themselves around him.

Chapter Twenty-seven

Men Who Got Fat …

Why doesn’t anybody ever talk about famous men who gain weight? Kirstie Alley puts on four pounds and it’s on the cover of every magazine. Double standards piss me off. Nobody snaps a picture of Jack Black every time he shoves a doughnut down his pie hole. So here’s a list of actors who’ve gotten fatter.

Alec Baldwin.

Marlon Brando. (Well, actually people did talk about it but not as much as poor Kirstie.)

Steven Seagal.

Dr. Marlon Bradshaw sure could cut a rug at seventy-two years old. Ellis’s father’s oldest colleague had spun her across the floor for nearly ten minutes before Ellis cried exhaustion. He reluctantly let her go, telling her that if he was thirty years younger he wouldn’t stop until she was his wife. It made her smile. She would gladly return to this Christmas party next year.

Ellis Garret. Nerd sex goddess.

“Ellis.” Phillipa grabbed her hand as she made her way off the dance floor. “I think we’re going to head home. Can you ask your sister to meet us at the entrance?”

“Sure. I’m exhausted. You nerdy people sure know how to have a good time. I’ll get Mike and we can walk out together.” She paused before she left. “And I’m burning that pantsuit later. This is your last function in that thing. You’re a size four, for heaven’s sake, and you can’t find something a little more flattering?”

“I don’t know why you keep calling my suit ugly!”

“Because it is.”

“Walter!” She sniffed at Ellis and turned to find her husband, who was never more than five steps behind her.

“Yes?”

“Do you think my suit is ugly?”

Walter glanced at Phillipa and then to Ellis. His mouth smoothed into a straight tight line.

“Walter!” Phillipa gasped as Ellis walked away laughing.

She entered the back room where her family had camped for the night and saw only a few people there, including a couple making out at a table in the corner. She frowned, wondering where Mike had gone off to. He was supposed to be watching her bag. Knowing he wouldn’t take it with him to the bathroom, she journeyed farther into the room. The couple making out was sitting at the table they had occupied all night. How the hell was she supposed to look for her bag with two slobbering people in the way? She shrugged. The way the women had her hands gripped on the man’s face, Ellis was pretty sure they wouldn’t notice her at all.

But as she got closer the man seemed familiar. Dark hair. Broad body. Chiseled jaw. He looked like her Mike. The woman wore a black dress. Her hair was auburn.

No. It can’t be. This isn’t happening.

Everything slowed in that moment, including her heart. A physical pain ripped through her. Starting at the pit of her feet, it shot up to her brain until she wanted to scream. She trusted him … but secretly she always wondered if part of him still thought about Dina. She always wondered if he was really ready to devote himself to her. How could a man who never had a serious girlfriend be ready to make such a big commitment?

Mike shoved Dina off him, and she landed inelegantly on the floor.

“What’s your fucking problem?” she shouted at him. “It was just starting to get hot.”

“Are you insane?” he bellowed. “I’m with your sister.”

“Are you, Mike?” Ellis choked.

His head snapped up. He stepped over Dina and reached for her hands, but Ellis pulled away.

“Ellis, don’t.” He grabbed her. “She kissed me. You know I would never cheat on you with Dina.”

“With Dina?” She yanked herself away from him. “
Ellis, I would never cheat on you period
. That’s what you should have said.”

“I’m sorry.” He shook his head, his expression somewhat like a wounded animal. “But you should already know that.”

“Ellis?” Dina stood up, smoothing her dress over her hips. She had tears in her eyes and for once Ellis didn’t care. Her sister, her only sibling, the person she had always loved more than anything had betrayed her.

“I don’t want to hear it.” She screamed it. The words flew from her mouth, and Dina recoiled as if she had been punched. “Why do you hate me so much? I’ve spent my whole life trying to love you while you’ve spent your whole life trying to make me feel insignificant. You’ve ruined every important thing in my life and I have forgiven you time after time but this time it’s too much. Why Mike? You knew how I felt about him. Why don’t you think he’s good enough for me?” She shook her head. “I don’t want to know the answer. I never want to see you again.”

“Ellis, no!” She rushed forward. “I’m sorry. I love you, but you don’t understand. I—I—”

“Your sorrys mean shit to me,” she spat. “You don’t love me. If you did you wouldn’t be able to do this to me.”

Mike gingerly placed his arm around Ellis’s shoulder. “Baby, let’s go home. You don’t need to be around her anymore.”

“I can’t do this anymore.” Her heart had hardened and slammed shut. She couldn’t take one more heartbreak.

“Ellis, look at me.” He cupped her face in his hand and forced her to make eye contact. “I didn’t kiss her. She forced herself on me. You know me. You know I would never do that to you. With anybody.”

“In my head I know that, Mike.” Her tears started, running down her cheeks and over his hands. “But when I saw you with her I was transported back to four years ago when you walked past me for Dina. I keep waiting for that day to happen again. I keep waiting for you to break my heart and I’ve decided I can’t live like that anymore. It’s not fair to you.”

“No, this isn’t fair to me.” He backed away from her and slapped his chest. “Your reasons are bullshit. You can’t let the past dictate the rest of your life. You can’t let fear ruin a good thing. I’m committed to you. For the first time in my life. I don’t know how else I can prove it to you. But I swear to God, Ellis, if you walk out on us I’m not coming after you. I won’t chase you anymore. You have to trust that I’m not going to hurt you.”

“I can’t. I’m so sorry.” She pushed herself away from him and fled the room. Her parents were waiting by the door, and as soon as they saw her they circled around her.

“What happened?” Phillipa’s eyes immediately filled with tears. She shook Ellis. “Tell me what happened to you?”

“Dina.” She choked on her sister’s name. “I caught her kissing…”

She couldn’t say the rest. Her father took her by the arm and led her out, Phillipa hurrying behind them.

“That’s it,” Walter snapped. “I’m done with her—her bullshit. You’ve let it go on for too long, Phillipa. We are done supporting her. I do not want to see her in my house. Do you understand me? I want no arguments out of you.”

“Walter, she’s my daughter! You don’t understand what she’s been through. I can’t cut her out of my life.”

“Ellis is your daughter, too, and she’s hurt. I can’t stand by and watch it happen anymore. I am taking her home. You make your choice. Are you going to put her first this time or not?”

Phillipa looked tortured for a moment, but she took Ellis’s hand and nodded. “Of course, Walter. Of course.”

*   *   *

Mike picked up the nearest glass and flung it at the wall. The glass shattered but didn’t put a dent in his anger. She had no faith in him. How could he have fallen so hard for a woman who didn’t trust him?

“Shit.” Dina walked back into the empty room. “My parents left me here. How am I supposed to get home?” She looked at Mike. “Could you…”

“Go to hell.” He clenched his fist. He would never hit a woman even though this one deserved it. “Don’t you get it, Dina? Don’t you get how big this is? Your sister is done with you. You went too far.”