Sisters by Choice (Blackberry Island #4)(73)

“Dammit, Amber.”

Sophie closed the email program and logged in to the security system. She opened the camera views and searched for the ones that covered the outside of the warehouse. She could see the main entrances, the loading dock and the back of the building. But that side door didn’t show up anywhere. They had a blind spot.

She returned to her email and sent a note to Tina to contact the security company and have their rep get his ass out here to fix the blind spot and to check if there were any others. Then she wrote Bear and told him she would talk to Amber but he needed to change the lock on that side door and make sure the key was more secure. Then she shut down her computer and walked out to her car.

Once she was home, she walked directly into the cat room and stretched out on the floor. Lily and Mrs. Bennet immediately came over to greet her. Lily’s kittens were nearly four weeks old and while they were curious about her, they were still too young to find her all that interesting.

“How was your day?” she asked, petting both the cats. “Mine was great until about an hour ago. My cousin Amber is stealing. She always talks about family and she’s stealing from me. What does that even mean?”

She already knew the answer to that. Amber was who she always had been—a professional victim. If confronted, she wouldn’t see what she’d done as anything but taking care of herself when Sophie hadn’t bothered.

Under any other circumstances, Sophie would totally fire her in a heartbeat, only Amber was her cousin. Plus, there was Heather to think about. Firing Amber would affect her and Sophie didn’t want that.

She sighed. “Never become human,” she told the cats. “It probably seems really cool, but it’s not.”

She sat up and pulled Lily close. The steady rumble of her purr was comforting. Unfortunately, it didn’t provide an answer about what she should do when it came to Amber, but she would take whatever small win she could get.

  Kristine got home a little after two. With Jaxsen gone and the boys spending half their time at their grandparents’ house, there wasn’t as much for her to do, so she’d started working at the winery from ten until two. She planned to put every penny into her bakery fund.

The work was easy—talking to tourists about the different wines and pouring samples. She’d always liked the interactions and told herself she should have gone to work part-time years ago. So what if Jaxsen had been upset? She deserved a life.

Brave words, she thought, pulling out ingredients for the carnitas she was going to make for dinner. Especially considering how much she was starting to miss Jaxsen.

He’d been gone over a week. She hadn’t heard a word from him. Friday his paycheck had been automatically deposited into their joint account—something she hadn’t been sure would happen. But it was still there, so last night she’d paid bills, as per usual. The only withdrawal had been a hundred dollars from the ATM. No doubt for walking around money, she thought. It was the same amount he took out at this time every month. Whatever he was up to, so far it didn’t seem to include destroying her financially.

If only he would come home, she thought as she sorted through the various chilies she would need for the recipe. She wanted him to walk in the back door and tell her he was sorry and he wanted to come back. That would be—

Suddenly, the back door opened and Jaxsen stepped into the kitchen. She was so startled she dropped her knife. It clattered to the counter, nearly cutting the side of her arm. She jumped back, staring at her husband.

He looked good. He was tall, with broad shoulders. He kept himself in shape. His belly was flat, his hips narrow. He wore a plaid shirt tucked into jeans. His hair was too long, but even that was kind of sexy.

She felt relief and a little hope. He wanted to talk. They would work things out and—

“Are you ready to give up?”

So much for working things out, she thought grimly.

“That’s your opening line?” she asked. “Really? No greeting, no ‘I’ve missed you.’ Just a sarcastic challenge?”

“I wasn’t being sarcastic. It’s a genuine question. Are you done with your ridiculous game?”

She shifted her weight so her feet were slightly parted. She consciously lifted her rib cage and deepened her breathing. She wanted to respond from a grounded position where she was centered in herself.

“I’m sorry you feel the dreams I have for myself are a game. And to clarify that, I mean I have genuine regret, not that I’m apologizing. This is what I want, Jaxsen. I want to open the bakery and sell my cookies and brownies. I want to work hard and stay up late if need be because the idea of it excites me. I want to grow the business because it will be both personally fulfilling and good for the family. Not only because I’ll be bringing in money, but also because it’s a great life lesson for the boys. I love you and I love the boys, but it’s not enough. I need more. I need to have goals and feel as if I’m working toward achieving them. I need to know I’m making a difference.”

His mouth twisted derisively. “With cookies?”

“In business.”

“So that’s a no.”

Her heart cried out in pain. “I have always supported you. Now it’s your turn to support me.”

He looked at her for a long time, then slowly shook his head. “That’s not going to happen.”