The Breakup Mix (24 page)

“I’m sorry, Michelle,” Katie whimpered. “I was just worried about you. He didn’t know if you were coming back.”

She leveled her eyes at Katie. “Where was I going to go, Katie?”

“He didn’t know! He thought you were seeing someone.”

I interrupted before Michelle flew across the table and strangled Katie. “Well, anyway. Alissa, I know this isn’t exactly the atmosphere you wanted for your big party, but if you have any legal advice for Michelle, I know she’d be willing to listen to anything you have to say.”

Alissa studied her water bottle and shook her head. “There’s nothing that can be done tonight.” She looked at Michelle. “Family law isn’t my specialty; if you’d assaulted him, I could tell you everything you needed to know.” She winked at Michelle.

Michelle smirked, “Don’t tempt me. I may weigh my options based off worst case scenario.”

Katie jumped up and ran to the bathroom. I watched as Dani and Alissa had a mental conversation with each other asking if they should check on her or let her be. Judging by their postures, they seemed just as unsure about how to feel about Katie as I did.

Dani shook her head. “Katie texted us today to see if we’d heard from you, but I figured if it was an emergency, someone would have called us. I’m so sorry this has happened, Michelle, and I wish there was something I could do to fix all of this.”

Michelle sighed. “There’s nothing to be done. First thing I need to do is get my kids back—whatever that takes.”

Alissa asked, “Are you willing to go back to him to do it?”

Michelle winced. “I don’t think after what he did today I can ever forgive him or forget. Every time I think about him, I’ll think of that smug-ass look on his face as he stared down at me like I was some random stranger worthy of punishment.”

I said, “I’ve already offered my apartment to her while we’re gone.”

Alissa nodded. “You’re all welcome to stay here, too.”

Dani said, “I’m not sure it’s appropriate to discuss this right now. Depending on how the next few days go, I’m not so sure we should leave next week.” She stared at Alissa. “We’ll talk about it later, though, okay?”

Alissa nodded and looked at Michelle. “Well, I have gifts for you tonight that might brighten your mood a little. Can I give them now?”

Katie entered the room and slid to the floor. She looked at Alissa. “Oh, are you asking me? That’s up to Michelle.”

Alissa chuckled. “Well, I didn’t get Dani and Chance anything for obvious reasons, but I have gifts for you two.” She stood and went to the Christmas tree and returned with two large gift bags. “Merry Christmas to two of my favorite people. I hope it helps while we’re gone.”

I watched as Michelle and Katie each retrieved three individually wrapped gifts. They tore open their iPads at the same time and gasped in shock. Katie squealed, “Alissa, are you insane?”

Alissa beamed. “Nope, just smart. We can Skype while we’re gone, and you won’t feel so far away.”

Michelle grinned. “This is so great. Thank you.”

Alissa said, “But wait . . . there’s more. Open the other box next.”

The girls got lost in a frenzy of paper and slipped the tops off of the boxes. I grinned when I saw the airline logo in Michelle’s hand and nodded at Alissa.

Michelle gasped, “I get to go to Florida?”

Alissa smiled. “That’s a gift voucher for a thousand dollars, so you can come down once with the fam or twice by yourself—maybe three times if you watch the ticket prices.”

Katie’s shocked face was priceless. “I’m so blown away, Alissa! Michelle, we can go down when the baby’s born.”

Michelle smiled and whispered, “I’m so relieved. I didn’t want to miss that.” She wiped her face and shook her head. “I’m so relieved.”

“Now. Before you open the last one, please understand this is a gesture from me to you, and I want you to know that I love you both and just want to make sure you’re good while we’re gone. I admit I’m kind of having a little anxiety about us all being so far away from each other for so long.”

They slipped the ribbon off the gift box and slid it open as they both gasped in disbelief. I leaned over to see what Michelle held in her shaking hands.

“Holy shit, Alissa! That’s a check for ten-thousand dollars!” I gasped.

Katie shook her head. “Lis, I can’t accept this! It’s too much! I could never take this.”

Alissa put her hand up. “Listen, I’ve done a really good job of not flaunting my money and tried to be just like I’ve always been before I got it. But I really feel like I’m supposed to give this to you. Katie, I leave it up to you—if you want to tell Landon, fine. Michelle, you absolutely cannot tell Brandon I just gave you that.”

Katie asked, “How can I not tell my husband I have ten-thousand dollars? This is a game changer for us.”

Alissa grinned. “Well, you could tell him you have five and hide the other five.”

Katie shook her head. “This is amazing. I’m still not sure I should even accept this.”

Michelle said, “Well I sure the hell am.” We all laughed as Michelle stood and went to Alissa. She wrapped her in a huge hug and wept on her shoulder. She mumbled words none of us could understand, but we got her sentiments.

Alissa said, “I’ll hook you up with counsel in the morning, okay? We’ll get this all figured out.” She pulled away from Michelle and wiped a tear off her face. “We’ll get this all figured out, okay?”

Michelle nodded and chuckled, “I can’t believe you just gave me ten thousand dollars, an airline ticket, and an iPad. I feel so spoiled.”

Alissa smiled and waved her off. “It was long overdue. No matter what now, you’re in a good place to launch.” She clapped her hands. “Who’s hungry? I’ve got a huge feast prepared, and we’ve got a lot of catching up to do!”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Stay

Alissa

I should have given them their checks separately so Katie didn’t know Michelle had one too. After Chance revealed Michelle’s situation, I didn’t trust Katie for one minute to hold that in confidence. And if Brandon got wind I’d given her ten grand, half of it would be legally his in court. Dani ushered Michelle and Katie into the dining room, and I grabbed Chance before she could follow.

I waited for the sounds of scooting chairs in the kitchen before I looked at Chance. “Can you believe all that?”

Chance held up her hand. “Girl, you should have seen her today when she showed up at my place—both times! She was a hot mess; she’s actually pretty chilled right now, mainly because I’m pouring Xanax down her throat.”

I shook my head. “She’ll go mad if we can’t get her kids back to her soon.”

“Legally, can they really keep the kids with their dad? Seems so unlikely.”

“If Brandon can prove she’s unstable, then yes, they can give him temporary custody until they go to court. And, let’s face it; it doesn’t look good for her, Chance. She lost her job . . .”

Chance closed her eyes and sighed, “Oh God . . . she lost her job because her boss said she’d gone off the deep end and was snapping at the kids and her co-workers.”

I ticked off points on my fingers. “So her boss, her husband, and her best friend will all be called to testify in a custody hearing, and if you put them on the stand, she’ll lose those kids, Chance.”

“Won’t they listen to the rest of us? The kids?”

I shook my head. “I really don’t think so. Of course we’re going to back her; she’s our friend. Of course the kids are going to testify on her behalf; she’s their mother. This can’t go to court. We have to figure something out fast. Do you think he really wants the kids, or is he just using them to hurt her?”

Chance bit her lip and whispered, “I don’t think he has any intentions of raising those kids as a single dad. This is all just to prove a point to Michelle in hopes he can get her to tuck-tail and come home.”

I closed my eyes and rolled words through my head to try to gather the correct ones to convey my intentions. “What’s the one thing that makes Brandon tick?”

She scoffed. “His precious reputation; gag me.” Her eyes widened.

“Yes. This would have to be orchestrated perfectly, but I think we can manipulate this whole situation if we’re smart and cunning.”

Chance giggled. “Have you been reading again? Your vocabulary is fabulous.”

I threw my shoulders back. “I’m an attorney, Chance. I know when to show my intelligence and also when to play dumb. Now. Do you have any interns or newbies on the news desk that could contact one Brandon Morehead for an interview regarding the domestic disturbance at his residence this afternoon?”

Chance clapped her hands. “I know just the person. Eddie. He’s on my road crew—well,
was
. . . until I got demoted.”

“Demoted? What?”

She blew me off. “One topic at a time, please.” I watched her pace in front of the Christmas tree and roll her thoughts across her mental cutting board. “Yes,” she said. “Yes, this will work.”

I jumped when I heard the shriek from the kitchen. “Jesus, what was that?” I followed Chance into the kitchen and found Michelle bent over the kitchen counter with her phone in her hand.

Katie stood next to her holding her own phone in her shaking hand with her other hand cupping her mouth. Dani draped over Michelle holding her as tears dripped down her face.

I felt every particle in the air as it stood still and sucked the oxygen out of the room. I made eye contact with Dani who stood. “Katie got a text message to relay to Michelle. Brandon has shut off her phone and taken the boys’ iPods and Del Ray’s cell phone to prevent her from being able to contact them.”

Chance mumbled, “What did the text say exactly?” Katie handed her the cell phone, and Chance read aloud, “Please read this to Michelle since she no longer has cell service. I’ve taken the kids’ phone and iPods. See how you like being unable to reach your children. Maybe now you’ll know what it was like for me today. I finished reading your journal, too. Very interesting.”

I looked at Chance and nodded. “We need to work fast. Tonight would be too soon and he’d get suspicious. Tomorrow morning, though.” I walked over to Michelle and wedged myself between Katie and her. “This part is an easy fix. We’ll go get you a new cell phone tomorrow on my account. It’ll be cheap and easy. Poof, done. He may have them on lock-down right now, but this is temporary. He’s trying to strong-arm you because he’s angry, but I have a feeling this won’t last long.”

She looked up at me. “I wish I felt your confidence right now. He’s a completely different person. I had no idea he was capable of all of this!”

“What kinds of things did you say in your journal?”

She sighed. “Oh you know, the usual thoughts women have about wanting to peel off their husband’s faces and fry them like bologna.”

Dani stifled a giggle. “Well, that’s not completely unheard of but eloquently phrased.”

Michelle cracked a smile. “If Del Ray finds out he read my journal, she’ll take full blame for all of this. She’s the one who encouraged me to write my thoughts down and said it would help.”

“We’ll get that journal when we get your kids, Michelle,” Chance said.

Her eyes brightened. “Do you really think that’s going to happen?”

Chance nodded. “Yes, I absolutely do. I’m saying by noon, he’ll have a new tune to sing.” She turned to Katie. “And this is the end of your involvement in this, got it? You will not relay any messages, will not tell him anything, and you will not talk to Brandon Morehead ever again. I need you to nod to show you understand what I’m saying, because our friendship is at stake. Katie, I’m not even joking with you right now. You’re in way over your head and are too naïve to get the magnitude of how deep you’re digging yourself into this mess. I mean it.”

Katie tried to defend herself but I cut her off. “Katie, she’s right. All you know about family drama is what you’ve seen on television. Take it from someone who A) lived it, and B) works in the legal system; you need to cut him off completely.” I went to Michelle and hugged her while whispering in her ear, “Trust me.” I pulled away from her and held out my hand. “I hate to do this, but I need my check back.”

Michelle’s shocked face shredded my heart, but I knew she’d understand once I explained it to her. “Alissa, please don’t—”

“I can’t take the risk that Brandon will find out about it, so give it back to me until this whole mess is straightened out.”

Katie cried, “Alissa, don’t do that. I swear I won’t tell anyone about the money. She needs that! You know he’s going to cut her off the checking accounts next, so how can you do this?”

I looked at Katie. “The legal system is a tricky process, Katie. I don’t have any choice. I can’t take the chance that Brandon will find out and drag me into all of this. Which if he drags me in, then he drags Dani in, and that woman has been through enough. It’s too risky, so we’ll make good on this once the dust settles, okay, Michelle?”

She handed me the check and nodded. “I understand. I don’t want to drag any of you aboard my sinking ship.” She looked at Katie. “For the life of me, I can’t figure out why you’re in bed with Brandon, unless you’re really in bed with Brandon.”

Katie shoved off the counter. “What is with you guys? I was trying to help her! I was trying to find her because I was worried about her!”

I looked at Dani. “Do you have Brandon’s cell phone number?”

Dani scoffed. “No way.”

I looked at Chance. “Do you?”

“Hell no,” she chuckled.

I looked at Katie. “I don’t have his cell phone number, either.”

Michelle put up her hands. “Okay guys, now wait. I gave her Brandon’s number because they’ve kept the kids before, and my cell phone sucks.”

Katie breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks, Michelle.”

Chance looked sideways at Katie. “Did you see what just happened there? She had your back.
That’s
what friends do.
That’s
how we work. You need to remember that.”

Katie said, “You know what? I think I better leave. I . . . I’m going to go.” She looked at all of us as though she was expecting us to convince her to stay.

Dani walked toward the door and grabbed Katie’s coat. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Have a good evening.” She helped her into her coat and hugged her before she guided Katie out the door and locked it.

I looked at Chance and bit my lip to keep from laughing. Every now and then, Dani surprises me. And her demure way of handling situations just baffles me. I looked at Michelle and handed her the check. “Under no circumstances does anyone know you have this. Got it? Monday morning, we’ll set up a different account for you under a different name or something. I don’t know how all that works, but we’ll get it figured out. Something tells me Brandon would have known about that check by morning if I didn’t do what I did. Eventually, I’m sure I’ll feel bad about hurting Katie, but right now, my focus is on you.”

Chance chimed in. “And you probably don’t want to pick the same bank that Katie works at . . . just sayin’.”

Michelle smiled. “Thank you. You scared me to death when you took that check back. For the first time in a long time, I felt like things were going to be okay then whammo . . .”

“It’s okay, honey. We’re all going to help you get through this, okay?”

She nodded. “I know, and I’m so grateful.” She started to cry. “I don’t know what I’d do without you guys.”

Chance said, “Here, here.”

Over dinner, we took turns filling Michelle in on what has been happening in our lives over the last three months. I watched as she morphed into the friend we’d known for over twenty years and shed the horrible events that had transpired over the last twelve hours, even if it was only temporary. She listened as Chance gave an extremely condensed version of her encounter with Tony in St. Louis; I held Chance’s confidence and didn’t call her out when she blew it off as no big deal. We all knew she’d been crushed all over again, and she knew we knew, but everyone deserves an opportunity to maintain their ego at some point.

I let Dani take the lead on the baby talk and threw in quips here and there about how I was a great hostess for her baby. I know Chance was intentionally not making eye contact with me during this conversation; she has an unnerving ability to read right through me, but I know she’ll have her say when we’re alone.

Listening to Michelle talk about her experiences at the gym was hilarious as she told stories of being so sore she nearly crawled to the car, but my favorite was the story of the commando queen.

She said, “Oh my word, this woman is unbelievable. She’s a six-pack mounted on a popsicle stick with biceps that won’t quit. But, apparently, she has a real aversion to panties, because she never wears them to class. Like ever. And somehow, I manage to always be in line behind her. She wears these little shirts and yoga pants that creep halfway down her ass every time we bend over to stretch. I can’t help it—every time I see that, I start singing ‘Bad Moon Rising’ in my head, then I get off count. One day, it was all I could do to stand up and pull that woman’s pants up after spanking her ass for being an idiot. So annoying.”

We all covered our mouths with our napkins to prevent half-chewed food from spewing across the table. Dani’s face turned three shades of red as tears brimmed her eyes. She finally got her food swallowed and gasped, “Oh my gosh, that’s the best story I’ve ever heard in my life.”

Chance said, “Oh, I don’t know. I’m pretty sure the stories about Alissa’s colossal farts rank right up there, no pun intended.”

Dani put her hand on the table. “Girl, they were like seven point five on the Richter Scale. If it hadn’t been so offensive, I probably would have been proud. I was just concerned she was going to shoot the kid out through her colon if she kept it up.”

Michelle howled with laughter and nodded. “I was like that with all three of my pregnancies. I don’t know what it is about that first trimester, but I’m pretty sure I altered the foundation of the house a time or two.”

Dani said, “You guys should have been there for the first ultrasound. The awkwardness of the whole situation gave Alissa the giggles, because you know, it was an internal exam, so he whips out this long instrument, and out came the one-liners.” She gasped for air. “I’m not sure when I’ve ever laughed so hard in my life, except for maybe tonight.”

I shrugged. “I should have asked him for his phone number and told him to come see me in eight months.”

Michelle asked, “So how is this whole thing going to work, Alissa? How will you find a decent doctor in Florida?”

I waved her off. “I already did. I made some phone calls and my appointment is all set up. My files have already been sent, so I just have to show up and continue where I leave off here.”

“You’re the queen of efficiency, my dear,” Michelle said. “Have you felt it move, yet?”

“Oh, yes. It’s the sweetest thing ever! Definitely a morning person; just like ol’ Dani.” I smiled at her.