Page 73 of Exit Strategy
“Did any of your bills pass or succeed?” Sadie asked curiously.
“As I rightly recall, they did not.” I startled at the voice too close behind my chair. “As I live and breathe, Calanthe Hardy. Oh! Excuse me, it’s Rex now, innit?”
I put on a tight-lipped smile and cast a look at Kurt that saidI told you so, before I turned my face to the Texas senior senator, Hiram Emerson, the August’s much older brother. As in there was an almost twenty-year difference between the two. Still… the brothers were close, and I was certain before Hiram even left the restaurant that the August would hear of this.
“It most certainly is, you know that, Senator,” I said lightly.
He chuckled deeply and rested a hand on my shoulder, giving it a squeeze. Kurt bristled beside me, and Sadie and Kyle gave Hiram a flat and almost unfriendly look. Kyle’s smile almost glacier in its coldness and certainly in its pace where it spread on his lips.
“Senator Emerson,” Kyle drawled, and it was a sudden and almost too-perfect middle American, midwestern accent where there had been none before.
“I do apologize, sir, but I do not think I have had the honor of your acquaintance.” Hiram smiled at Kyle, his friendly grip on my shoulder tightening to something almost painful.
“I don’t have the honor of representing any of our fine states, but I do represent a number offinancial interests,” Kyle said and that sounded downright chilly. He introduced himself with some fake credentials or other and I sat mute. Sadie’s gaze fixed on mine, silently asking if I was okay. I telegraphed back silently, to the best of my ability, that I was alright and to not make a scene.
Hiram laughed and I jumped.
“Well, Miss Calanthe,” he said. “You sure are keeping interesting company these days. I’m sure your husband knows all about it?”
“Of course, he does,” I said smiling. “I don’t do anything without Arik, you know that. It’s just a shame he couldn’t join us tonight. You know how Hollywood schedules are.”
His thumb pressed the back of my neck over my collar, and he laughed. “Oh, I’m sure,” he said. “I can’t wait to tell Lil Eli I have seen you,” he said. “Y’all have a nice dinner now, y’hear?”
“Of that, there is no doubt,” Kyle shot back with a wink over the rim of his glass. Hiram almost paled under his spray tan at the mockery in Kyle’s voice.
“Well, I’ll let you be, MissCallie. I’m sure I’ll see you around New Eden real soon,” Hiram said. “I’m still trying to get that brother of mine to put that next complex down in the Lone Star state. It would look right nice. Ought to get that Hollywood husband of yours and you down for the ribbon cutting.” He let out another chuckle.
I gave him my brightest, emptiest smile and said back, “I’m sure it will,” even as my stomach rebelled at the very thought.
He was several tables away when Kurt muttered for our table alone, “Over my dead body. Bloody git.”
I pressed my lips together in a tight line.
“Cal, are you okay?” Sadie asked softly.
I shook my head and met Kurt’s eyes. His expression softening some as he read what was in my heart.
I didn’t want that. It had to be my worst fear at this point.Over his dead bodywas a distinct possibility and I was terrified of that eventuality.
Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on how you looked at it, Kyle was keen on reading faces and mine was no exception.
“It’s not going to happen, Callie. You can trust us on that,” he said, downing the rest of what was in his glass and holding it up and catching our waitresses’ eye. She nodded from where she was taking an order across the room and he lowered the base of the glass to the crisp, white tablecloth.
“What are you doing?” Kurt asked, taking my attention off Kyle and causing me to turn to Sadie.
“Texting Roan,” she said lightly.
“The board is set, and the pieces are in play,” Kyle said with a chuckle, and Sadie arched one delicate eyebrow in his direction.
Kurt’s scowl got a scowl as his eyes bounced between the man and woman.
“Just what the devil are you playing at?” he demanded.
“That you’ll have to ask Roan,” Kyle declared as the waitress set down a fresh drink in front of him. “He’s the mastermind of this job. And he wants to know if they will pack up an osso bucoto go for him.”
Kurt didn’t look happy, which in turn made me nervous. Sadie smiled and patted my hand.
“It’ll be fine, I promise,” she said. “Roan will have it all in hand.”
