Change of Plans

Chapter Nine

The man stared at me, eyebrows furrowed. Then slowly, the corner of his lips tugged up into a smirk and he raised an eyebrow in amusement. He looked over my shoulder at Audrey and winked at her. I moved my head to block his view and glared at him. Neither of them had said anything as the man brushed past me. I turned to look at them and caught him as he slid an arm around her shoulder. I gaped at the simple, yet intimate gesture.

“And I’m twenty-eight, not thirty,” he grinned.

Audrey leaned into him and laughed. “He’s only ten years older than me, Beth. And I’m legal. Why can’t you just accept it?”

I pressed my mouth into a thin line. I thought over my words carefully and shrugged. “I mean, I don’t know, I guess if you really love each other then—”

“What’s going on?” A new voice interrupted. Jane strolled into the living room looking exceptionally pretty. She had on a simple, tight black strapless dress that hugged her curves. Her shiny red pumps emphasized her long, lean legs and her usually curly auburn hair was straightened. Parted down the middle, it cascaded around her face and down her back. Seeing her with make-up on was new, though. Jane supported natural beauty one-hundred-percent, but that’s easy for her because she actually had it. Jane had also been blessed with my mother’s blue-eyed genes, while Audrey and I had basic brown eyes.The black eyeliner, mascara, and smoky eye shadow highlighted her cerulean eyes.

She was the prettier sister, no doubt.

“Jane, you look—”

“Beautiful,” the man breathed. He dropped his arm and stepped away from Audrey. In one stride, he was standing in front of Jane, taking her both her hands into his. He softly kissed the back of her hands and she blushed profusely. “Beautiful,” he said again.

“Thank you,” she murmured.

I spun around to face Audrey who was smiling at the two as her date ogled her sister.

“I’m sorry, but I fail to see what’s so amusing about this. Are you guys in some kind of sick, polygamous relationship where you can kiss other people while the other is watching?”   

Audrey looked at me then burst into a fit of giggles. I grunted. I didn’t see what was so funny. When her giggles had subsided, she said, “Holy, Beth. For a lawyer, you’re so freaking gullible.”

I looked at the three, trying to comprehend the situation. My mind pieced together all the facts: the man was here for a date. He was dressed up. Jane was dressed up. And Audrey was wearing, well, her pyjamas.

Oh.

Oh.

“Sorry,” I muttered. I felt a blush creep up my neck. How could I have been so stupid?

Audrey, Jane, and the man laughed at my discomfort.

“Beth, this is Charles. Charles, Beth,” Jane spoke.

The fact that Charles was a handsome man didn’t escape me. The small stubble on his square jaw gave him a rugged look. He had dirty blonde hair that was shaved into a crew cut and he wore a gray suit that fit him well. The last two buttons of the white shirt he wore under the jacket were left unbuttoned and was left sans a tie.  

Charles extended the hand that wasn’t tucked in his pants pocket. “Call me Charlie. Nice to meet you, Beth. Again.”

“Again?” Audrey asked, stepping forward.

“We ran into each other at the airport. Literally. He knocked me over,” I explained, laughing as I remembered the incident. Shook his hand and tilted my head. “I didn’t know you were coming to New York.”