Page 201 of Dirty Rival

I laugh. “This bitch?”

“She fucked you, but now it’s turned into fucking us and I’m not into ménages. I’m done with this. I want it over. That’s why I wanted to meet her in the first place. I wanted to get you ammunition to do what you need to do. Or at least that validation that he’s not crazy. If we know he’s not crazy and about to shoot everyone up, you can leverage him.”

“That I can,” I assure her, stroking her hair. “Let’s go do this.” I knock on the window and our driver joins us, who just happens to be Savage.

“I couldn’t miss the party,” he says, glancing over his shoulder. “I love a cheating bitch as long as she’s not mine.”

We laugh, though it’s strained. There’s no way around the awkwardness of a woman I fucked whose husband is trying to fuck me, and her with me, in our path. The drive is about three minutes and Savage valets. “I’m staying close,” he says joining us for the walk to the building. “And so are a number of our men, just in case it’s a setup.”

“Well that suddenly made me more nervous,” Carrie says, as I give Savage a hellish look for saying what I’d been thinking, but didn’t want to voice. I knew Walker had us covered. Carrie didn’t need to think about guns and crazy men on top of ménages.

I pull Carrie closer and slide my hand in her opposite pocket. Once we’re at the building, Savage grabs the door. “I’ll stay inside at the door, but let me go in first. Give me sixty seconds. If I don’t come back out, you’re a go.”

I turn to Carrie. “You can stay out here. I can do this alone.”

“You and her, no. Not happening.” She grabs the door and opens it and here we go.

I follow her inside and quickly grab her hand, scanning to find Tabitha sitting on a bench to our right. “I didn’t know you liked gorgeous redheads,” Carrie murmurs.

“Obviously, I don’t,” I say. “I’m marrying a brunette ten times prettier with better brains, morals, and personality.”

“Well played,” she approves. “Well played.”

I’d laugh but Tabitha stands up, stuffing her hands in her expensive trench coat, waiting on us, which works for me since her spot is private. Carrie and I cross to meet her and Tabitha homes in on Carrie. “And you are?”

“His future wife. And you are?”

“Fucked,” she says. “And so are you if you’re with him.”

Chapter one hundred three

Reid

Tabitha’s “you’re fucked” comment aimed at Carrie sets me off. I read it like a threat and I react like it’s a threat. I grab her arm and pull her closer. “Are you threatening my woman? Because I promise you, that’s not a place you want to go.”

Tabitha’s eyes go wide and she grips my hand. “Reid. God. Stop.”

“Reid,” Carrie demands urgently, grabbing my arm. “Reid, let her go. Give her a chance to explain.”

“I came to warn you, not threaten you,” Tabitha insists urgently. “I swear to you, I’m not the enemy.”

“Says the woman who fucked me to fuck with her husband,” I growl.

Carrie turns around to face me and twists my T-shirt in her hands. “Let her go. The security guard started to come over here. Savage had to stop him.” There’s anger and panic in her voice and I let the little bitch go. For now, and for Carrie.

Carrie lets out a breath of air and faces Tabitha, her back to my front as if she’s blocking me from grabbing Tabitha again. If I want to grab her, I will, and next time I won’t let go until she talks or I’m arrested, or both. “I’m waiting, Tabitha,” I say. “Elijah came at Carrie today. He followed her. He put his hands on her. Why is he obsessed with me and my woman after all of these years?”

“I’ve been seeing Mick Sands, who I know you know. He hates Elijah. Elijah burned him on a money deal in a big way. I made the mistake of telling him about you. You know, we were just talking about ways I made Elijah pay for being so damn brutal over the years. Mick decided he wanted to take Elijah down and get his money back and that you were poetic justice. He’d get Elijah’s woman and his money. There was a plan. We’d cash out and leave.”

“How did he get fixated on us as the true villains?” Carrie asks. “I mean I get you used Reid, but he’s fixed on us like Reid was in Mick’s role. Does he think Reid knew and helped with active intent?”

“Elijah found out I was cheating and Mick’s name floated around,” Tabitha says, “I’ll spare you the details of how. They don’t matter. Bottom line, he knew Mick did that deal that you brokered, and that deal hurt Elijah in ways that aren’t obvious. He had huge money and business partnerships riding on that deal. It connected dots. He lost all of it with the deal Reid brokered. He went at Mick, confronted him and Mick turned into a little bitch that couldn’t own his own bad deeds. He said you brought the deal to him and he wasn’t with me. I told Elijah no one had an affair because what else could I do? He’s losing his mind and he hates you. He wants to believe it’s you.”

“This is nuts,” Carrie says. “Reid is with me. Elijah knows that.”

“He’s fixated on Reid,” she says. “And come on, Mick couldn’t do that deal without Reid. Reid was the brains.”

Carrie turns to face me. “Wouldn’t Elijah have known you brokered it before this affair talk?”