Third Time's the Charm (5 page)

“Last night at dinner, she made it clear she was willing to
offer herself as a bargain. We get married again, and her father drops all
charges.” Sloane rubbed his neck. “She’s gotten into some hot water with a cop
who was a bit too friendly in the beginning, and her father wants me to ‘restore’
her marital status. Thinks it will look better when she goes to court.”

“Sloane,” Liz said. “I’m sorry I was stupid enough to
think—”

“Don’t even worry about it. It’s my fault.” He reached
across the couch and grabbed her hand. “You already told me you have trust
issues with ex-wives, and I should have been upfront from the beginning.”

“This seems a lot different, though,” Liz said.

Sloane released her hand. “Darci treats every man like a boy
toy, and I’m no exception, despite our history.” He let out a sigh. “I’ve
thought about putting a restraining order on her, but I just can’t do it.”

“It might be your only option,” Liz said in a quiet voice.

Sloane shook his head. “I can’t.” He looked over at her, his
blue-gray eyes serious. “But I need to warn you. She knows about you, and she’s
not happy about it.”

A shiver trailed through Liz. “What do you mean?”

“The last woman I dated, a couple of years ago, was freaked
out enough that we broke up after only a few weeks.” He stared straight ahead.
“Darci followed us a lot. Then she’d come up with excuses to talk to me, or
she’d call me over and over, feigning some emergency.”

“She was stalking your girlfriend?”

“Not her alone, but me more specifically—at least when I was
with Melanie.” His gaze slid to hers. “Darci followed me this morning because I
told her about you last night.”

Liz stared at Sloane. From what she’d heard about Darci,
that was a bold move on his part. “What did she say?”

“Asked all about you, and . . .” He hesitated.

“And what?”

“Well, she wanted to know if you were good in bed.”

Disbelief shot through her. Was the woman giving her ex a
hard time or was she really that demented? “Wow. I don’t know what to say.” She
looked at Sloane. “What did
you
say?”

“I told her it was none of her business, of course,” he
said, his face red.

“Are you blushing?” As crazy as this conversation was, she
thought it was sweet he’d blush about it.

His mouth lifted into a smile, and Liz was glad to see some
of the seriousness dissolved.

“So, I have a plan, but only if you want to,” Sloane said.
“You might already hate me, and you can kick me out if you want.” He was gazing
at her, his eyes pleading.

Liz was genuinely curious. “What is it?”

“I want to introduce you to her. It will make her realize
that we really are serious . . . I mean, I know we aren’t s
erious
and
that we just started dating, but I think she’ll change her focus of attention
if she thinks I’m unattainable.” His hand reached for hers again.

Warmth pulsed through Liz at his touch. The look on his face
was one of hope, replacing the pain that had been there moments before. She let
out a breath. His story was nearly unbelievable, but then again, it made sense.
And she wanted to believe it, because then she could let him back into her
heart.

He’s in my heart already.
The thought rocked through
her. Liz scooted over and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Okay,” she
whispered.

His arms enveloped her, and he pulled her close. His kissed
her lightly as if he were unsure how she’d respond. She ran her hand along his
cheek, then moved her hand behind his head and drew him closer. “Kiss me,
Sloane.”

It didn’t take him long to obey.

Liz pulled her hair back into a twist, but her curls kept
escaping. Finally she let a few frame her face, and the rest stayed done up in
bobby pins. Brittney was already here, coloring with Paisley in the kitchen,
and Sloane would be picking up Liz any minute. Liz added another layer of
mascara then smoothed down her dark brown dress that was a bit clingier than
her regular clothes.

The week had flown by much too fast for Liz, probably
because she was so nervous about meeting Darci, Darci’s father, and Sloane’s
brothers. They had set up a mediator meeting between the lawyers—a last attempt
to reach an agreement outside of court.

Liz had protested her involvement when Sloane asked her, but
he said it would make the biggest impression—both on Darci and her father.
Sloane’s ex father-in-law would see that Sloane wasn’t going to be bribed, and
Darci would come face to face with the new woman in Sloane’s life.

Which is me,
Liz thought, flushing all over again.
She’d been doing that a lot lately, mostly when she was thinking of Sloane,
other times when he was kissing her. He had come to the salon a couple more
times and hung out in her apartment for dinner, and last night they’d gone to a
movie. In fact, it was hard for her to remember a time when Sloane wasn’t in
her life.

A knock sounded at the door, and her heart skipped a beat.
“I’ll get it,” Liz called out, but when she stepped into the hall, Paisley had
already dashed to the door and opened it.

“Hey, Daisy,” Sloane said, looking really nice in dark slacks
and a pale olive shirt.

“It’s
Paisley
.”

“Sorry, I meant Maisy. How are you?”

Paisley giggled. “It’s
Pais-ley
!”

“Pais-ley? Where’d you get that name?” Sloane said, smiling.
He glanced over her head at Liz.

“From my mom, dummy!” Paisley said, crossing her arms.

“Don’t call him dummy,” Liz said, walking toward the pair of
them.

“But he is. He never gets my name right!”

Sloane laughed. “Maybe you’ll have to write it down for me.”

Paisley set off toward the kitchen, and Liz met Sloane’s
gaze.

“You look beautiful,” he said. His hand reached for hers,
and he drew her close.

Liz inhaled his musky scent. If only tonight could be the
two of them.

Paisley bounded into the room. She held up a torn-out page
from her coloring book with her name printed at the top. “You can keep the
picture too!”

Sloane grinned and took the picture. “Thanks, Pais-ley. I
love Cinderella.”

Paisley wrapped her arms about his waist.

Sloane looked stunned for a second. Then he hugged her back.

“Will you bring me back Popsicles?” Paisley asked, pulling
away and looking up at him.

Sloane glanced at Liz, then bent down. “Tell you what. If
you go to bed good for your babysitter tonight, I’ll take you and your mom to
Balboa Island tomorrow, and we’ll ride the Ferris wheel and eat all the Popsicles
you want.” He straightened. “If that’s okay with your mom?”

Liz thought her heart would burst. “Sure, that’s fine with
me.” She could hardly keep the grin off of her face.

She said her good-byes to Paisley, then left with Sloane.

“You sure made a little girl happy,” Liz said as they walked
to his car.

Sloane chuckled and grabbed Liz’s hand, then pulled her
toward him into a tight hug. “She’s a riot.”

Liz wrapped her arms about him and breathed him in, wishing
they didn’t have to be around other people tonight. “So what’s the plan, Mr.
Branden?”

He released her and threaded his fingers through hers. “My
brothers have been updated. They’ll treat you like you’re already best
friends—practically a part of the family.”

When they reached Sloane’s car, he pulled out something from
his pocket. “Do you want to wear this?”

Liz stared at the diamond ring in his hand. “That’s the
worst proposal I’ve ever received.”

Sloane laughed. “My brothers said it would make it all look
more official if you’re wearing a ring, and Darci thinks we’re engaged.”

She lifted her eyes to his. For a split second, she wished
he really were proposing. But that would be insane. Plus the ring was obviously
fake. She’d never seen a diamond so large. Wouldn’t Darci know it wasn’t the
real thing? “Do you think she’ll buy it? I mean, how long does she think we’ve
been going out?”

Sloane shrugged, his eyes twinkling. “We’ll just keep her
guessing.” He took her hand and slipped the ring on her finger.

A warm shiver traveled along Liz’s arm at his touch. And the
warmth only increased when he lowered his head and gave her a lingering kiss.

“Was that kiss acting or for real?” Liz asked.

“Definitely for real.” He grinned. “Come on, or we won’t
make it past the parking lot.”

Darci was decked out in red. She wore a red blouse with a
tight, black skirt, red lipstick, and red strappy sandals. Her dark eyes honed
in on Liz as soon as she stepped into the conference room. They were meeting
after-hours at some law office.

Liz wished she could have met Sloane’s brothers beforehand,
if even for a few seconds. But they were already in the conference room with
Darci and her dad. It seemed no one was late in the Branden family.

Liz’s saving grace was that Sloane kept a hold of her hand
as he made the round of introductions.

“Liz, this is Darci and her father, Mr. Henderson.”

She shook the man’s hand. Liz didn’t know who creeped her
out more, Darci, or her gaze-piercing father. He was about 6’3” with jet-black
hair obviously dyed, and nearly black eyes like his daughter’s. His gaze combed
Liz, and she felt even more creeped out.

Sloane released her hand as his brothers stepped forward.
One was named Rocky, the other Jack, although Liz wasn’t sure who was who, and
she couldn’t very well ask in front of Darci. They looked like younger versions
of Sloane—quite endearing truth be told. The older one, probably just a couple
years younger than Sloane, wore a full suit. The youngest one was dressed more
like Sloane, but Liz sensed he’d be more comfortable in shorts and a t-shirt.
His hair was on the messy, but stylish, side. He hugged her first. “Good to see
you again, sis.”

“You too,” she said with a smile, hoping it looked genuine
over the nerves coursing through her.

The older brother hugged her as well, then kissed her on the
cheek. “How was the movie the other night?”

“Loved it,” Liz said, hoping she wasn’t completely failing
at improvising.

“It looks like congratulations are in order,” Darci said,
her low voice cutting through. It had a sultry edge to it, which didn’t exactly
surprise Liz.

Sloane simply smiled and pulled out a chair for Liz to sit
in. Was she supposed to answer Darci?

The woman was staring straight at Liz with her cat-like eyes.
“So when’s the big day?”

Liz forced herself not to look to Sloane for help. In as
smooth of a voice as she could manage, she said, “August.”

Darci’s red lips curled into a smile. “Oh, how sweet,
Sloane,” she said although her gaze was still on Liz, “the same month we were
married.”

Liz felt her face drain of color, but Sloane grabbed her
hand. “It might be September,” he said. “We haven’t called the reception halls
yet.”

“Most people don’t have a reception for their
second
marriages,”
Darci said.

This woman is a nightmare.
How could Sloane stand it?
No wonder he was refusing to negotiate with her father. The only thing that
saved Liz from saying something snarky was the lawyers picked that moment to
walk into the conference room.

Both of them stopped to shake Liz’s hand, then made their
rounds with the others in the room. If they thought it was strange that she was
there, they didn’t act like it.

She tried to concentrate on what was said in the meeting,
but it was difficult when Darci and her father kept throwing cutting glances at
her.

The lawyer representing Sloane and his brothers stated his
terms, 5 percent interest on the original loan, and no equity. Then Mr.
Henderson’s lawyer countered with 15 percent interest and 10 percent equity.

Each brother had his turn to say something, as did both
Darci and her father, and Sloane.

Liz had to admit that they all made a good case in their own
way, though she was a bit biased toward Sloane.

Her head was spinning when about thirty minutes later, the
two sides had reached an agreement. By the tight look on Sloane’s face, she
could tell he wasn’t entirely happy with the 10 percent interest he’d have to
pay Mr. Henderson, but she could also see that Darci wasn’t all that happy
either. So overall, it had been successful.

Agreements were signed, and hands were shook. Liz made her
escape to the ladies’ room, and when she came out of the stall to wash her
hands, Darci was leaning against the sink, her sculpted arms folded.

“Congratulations, Liz,” Darci said in a voice with a distinctive
edge.

Liz turned on the faucet in the sink and ran her hands under
the warm water. “Congratulations to you too. It sounds like your father got at
least most of what he wanted.”

“How do you know what he wants?” Darci asked.

Liz just wanted to get out of the bathroom and away from
this woman. She pumped out soap from the dispenser, scrubbed quickly, then
rinsed off. As she reached for a paper towel, she said, “I think we can leave
the details to the lawyers. There’s no sense in arguing about them.”

As Liz tried to step around Darci, the woman faced her,
blocking the door.

“Sloane may have won this round, but I’ll win in the end,”
she said.

Liz felt like choking, or maybe choking Darci instead. “You
had your chance, Ms. Henderson. Sloane is with me now.”

Darci’s mouth fell open, and Liz took the opportunity to
scoot around her and push through the door.

Liz walked quickly away, trembling with anger.

“My name is Darci
Branden
,” Darci called through the
door before it closed.

Liz ignored her and hurried down the hall. When she turned
the corner, she was glad to see Sloane and his brothers still at the conference
room door. The lawyers and Mr. Henderson were nowhere in sight.

When she came to stand by them, Sloane reached for her hand.

“You did great in there,” one of his brothers said.

Sloane squeezed her hand. “Well, it wasn’t totally an act,
right?”

Warmth buzzed through Liz, and she smiled.

“Darci’s coming,” his brother muttered.

Liz kept her back to the hall as the men continued to talk. Darci
walked by without a word to any of them.

When Darci left through the main office door, Sloane let out
a low whistle. “Was she in the bathroom with you?”

Liz looked up at him. “Yes, and she wasn’t too happy about
any of this.”

His brothers laughed. The older one said, “She’ll get over
it quickly enough—as soon as the next good-looking man crosses her path. She
might not even make it out of the parking lot without securing a date.”

If Liz hadn’t just had the encounter from hell with Darci,
she would have thought Sloane’s brother was being cruel.

“Come on,” Sloane said, draping his arm over her shoulders.
“I’m starving. Spending money always makes me hungry.

“Are we invited?” the younger brother asked.

Sloane glanced at Liz.

She decided she liked his brothers. “Sure, I’m fine with it
if Sloane is.”

“Just behave yourselves,” Sloane said.

Twenty minutes later they were at a small Thai restaurant.
“I’m seeing a pattern here,” Liz said. “Do you eat anything else besides Thai?”

Rocky spoke up. Liz had figured out he was the younger one.
He’d taken his tie off already and looked more comfortable. “Sloane eats Thai
at least several times a week. But I’m a burger guy.”

Jack looked up from his cell phone. “Just you wait until you
hit thirty. All of those burgers will go straight to your gut.”