“You’re gonna have to, sis. It’s her choice. She doesn’t love him, but she does love her dad and everyone else in her life who Robert threatened to destroy. It will all work out in the end. I promise.”
“I don’t see how it can with the wedding happening,” she mumbles, and I tense. Everleigh notices the mood change and thankfully talks about something else. “Next week, you wanna help me decorate the trees at the shop?”
A small smile touches my lips. “Trees?”
She nods. “Yes, trees. You can’t have just one. Come on.”
This makes me chuckle. “Maybe, but isn’t it tradition for it to be put up after Thanksgiving?”
“Not when you’re in the business of slinging candy cane leggings like they’re drugs.” She laughs at her own joke.
“Okay, okay. I’ll help.” I agree just to appease her.
Everleigh’s satisfied with my answer and turns up the volume on the radio. Taylor Swift blares through the car, and soon, it’s followed by Lady Gaga and Nicki Minaj. But instead of complaining, I deal with it because it’s much better than talking about Gemma.
We eventually make it to the airport, and soon, we see Eric exiting with a duffel bag swung over his shoulder. I honk, and he waves, then gets inside.
“Thanks, man, appreciate you letting me stay with you for a little while.”
I look over my shoulder at him, and he doesn’t look any better than the last time I saw him. “No problem. This is my sister, Everleigh.”
Everleigh shifts her body and turns and gives him a grin. “Nice to meet you,” she offers. On the way home, we stop and eat at a diner because we’re starving. He doesn’t bring up Victoria, which I’m grateful for because Everleigh would ask too many questions.
Once we walk inside the condo, Everleigh showers and packs a bag.
“Leavin’ already?” I grab a beer from the fridge and hand one over to Eric.
“Yeah, Ruby and I have a date with The Challenge on MTV, and it starts at eight, so I don’t wanna be late. Be back on Saturday, or maybe I’ll see you when I come see Sassy after work each day,” she explains, giving me a quick squeeze, then leaves.
Eric and I sit on the couch, and I flick on the TV for background noise.
“Glad you’re here,” I offer with a smile.
“Yeah, me too. Sorry to bring this up, but I’m just gonna come out and ask. Have you run into Victoria lately?”
I turn to him. “No, is she here still?”
“Yes. I hired a few trackers in Nevada, and no one has seen her since Sunday. She returned here a few days ago. My source told me her private jet is currently sitting in a hangar in Birmingham, which means she’s close. I don’t know what she’s planning, Tyler, but I can guarantee nothing good will come out of it. So, I’m doubly glad I’m here.”
He gives me a serious look, and I take a swig of my beer, processing the information he shared. She might be in town, but she better keep her ass far away from Gemma and me.
“It’s not surprising. She’s already meddled with people who are in my life. I figured she was still scheming, working out her next move to take me down. I wonder where she’s staying.” I trail off, allowing my thoughts to get the best of me. “Do you know why the case was thrown out?”
Eric huffs, and he looks like he’s chewing on rocks. “They told me it was because of a technicality, but my lawyer got with me off the record and said her alibi was sealed airtight, and no weapon was found. It’s essentially my word against hers. Victoria claimed I blamed her as revenge for firing me. I couldn’t believe how she was able to twist the fucking truth and how people took her word as the Holy Grail. She’s a goddamn murderer who’s freely walking the streets because she’s rich.”
“Money makes people turn a blind eye on unethical things, even those who are supposed to protect and honor the law. All of it is bullshit, and I’m sorry you have to go through this,” I say, putting myself in his shoes and thinking about what he’s lost. Though I spent time in prison, the woman I love is still alive, even if she’s not with me right now.
“It does. And that’s exactly why I need to end this. Because if I don’t, she’ll continue this destructive path of ruining other people’s lives. I can’t allow her to get away with what she did, Tyler. I won’t.” He’s tense as hell as he tightly holds his beer bottle.
I suck in a deep breath and nod. “I know there’s nothing I can say that will stop you from going down this road. I’ll help you however I can, Eric, but I can’t get locked up again because of her. I lost too much already.”