Page 15 of Falling for the Unexpected

And even though I tried to stop myself from looking back at her once she started walking toward us, I was mesmerized once again. I watched as she walked over to the steps to make her way into the pool. I swear it was like she was walking in slow motion, all the while torturing me with her smoking hot body.

I felt someone staring at me and caught Erik watching me with an unreadable expression from the far side of the pool. I looked away, but in the next moment, something else caught our attention.

“Simone, couldn’t you find anything to cover your ass better than that? Maybe you need to buy something that actually fits,” Brad said from where he was lying on one of the lounge chairs on the deck.

A fiery blush crept up her neck and cheeks, showing just how much Brad’s words embarrassed her. Her shoulders slumped and I could see her cringing. Instead of stepping into the pool she changed direction, grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her body before sitting on one of the chairs. I couldn’t believe he was making such a beautiful woman feel ashamed of her body.

“Hey! Stop being a dick,” Trent yelled back at his brother.

“Fuck off!” Brad returned, seething.

“Boys! Let’s not do this in front of Stella again,” Marla scolded, reprimanding both of her sons once more. Jim had been inside, getting some water toys for Stella, and came back out just as Marla had finished her scolding. He raised his brows when he noticed all our unhappy faces. Marla got up to deflect, grabbing some toys from his arms, and leading him to their chairs.

Brad opened his can of beer and had his phone in his face. It was like the guy was glued to it, as if whatever he was doing on it was more important than anything else. I hoped he didn’t plan on drinking much. I didn’t think any of us could stomach a drunk Brad. I continued to think Addie had dodged a bullet; but, regrettably, Simone had taken a direct hit. I’d always hoped Simone would have been the female version of Brad—in which case, they’d have been perfect for each other. But Simone wasn’t. And that made me feel for her situation, and for her daughter even more. I believed there was nothing but bad things to come if Simone stayed with him. I could guess she was staying with him for some concept of stability. My assessment wasn’t just based on personal experience of having absent and uncaring parents, but also from my work as a lawyer. But fate didn’t care about good intentions or decent people getting saddled with shitty luck, and I was afraid fate was going to hit her hard in the near future.

Erik had brought a portable speaker and started playing some music from his phone. Everyone pretty much broke into groups at that point. Trent and I spent the next hour swimming and playing with Stella, while Erik and Addie talked at the other end of the pool. Jim and Marla were on the other side, talking quietly to each other. Brad didn’t move other than to use his thumb to swipe at his touchscreen or sip from his beer can. Simone sat on her chair, towel still wrapped around her protectively, and merely waved at Stella whenever her daughter called out to her. She at least seemed to enjoywatchingus play with Stella even though she didn’t join us. In hindsight, that was probably for the best because seeing a wet Simone might have had my brain going to places it had no right to.

It didn’t take long before we exhausted the little one so Simone came to the edge of the pool to grab her. I watched as she dried her off and told her it was time to go lay down for a nap.

“I want Daddy,” Stella cried.

I looked over at Brad, who didn’t look up from his phone at his daughter’s request.

“Brad,” Simone called over to him while cradling her daughter. Her tone was weary as she addressed her husband, who didn’t look up at all. “Stella wants you to put her down for her nap.”

I could hear his sigh even though I was a good twenty feet away from him. He threw his phone down on the lounge chair and got up.

“Fine, let’s go,” he huffed as he led his wife and daughter into the house.

I looked at Trent, who appeared just as flabbergasted as I felt. Erik seemed slightly uncomfortable, eyeing everyone else while Addie had turned around and was hanging off the side of the pool. She faced the fence so I couldn’t see her reaction.

“Mom, you have to see that he’s getting worse with Simone and he barely speaks to Stella. What the hell is going on with him?” Trent asked, hoping his mother would have the answer. “I’m trying to understand how you and Dad can accept this because I can’t!”

Marla hung her head. “I honestly don’t know,” she said with tears in her eyes.

Trent and I exchanged another quick look. His was one of complete shock. For the first time, Marla wasn’t going to put on a happy face and try to explain Brad’s awful behavior away. Jim sat next to her, holding her hand and his expression was also one of sad disappointment.

I knew Jim and Marla loved their daughter-in-law and granddaughter just as much as they loved their boys. It had to hurt them to see Brad as a poor excuse of a husband and father. I knew he hadn’t been raised that way. On the other hand, it wasn’t like Brad was any different today than any other time. But I think, Brad not even trying to be tolerable on his own dad’s birthday was the final straw.

My mood had soured a bit and I decided to get out of the pool. I dried off and headed to the bathroom to just get a few minutes to myself. Making my way down the hall, I could hear muted arguing.

As I got closer, I could hear Brad questioning his wife. “What the fuck did you say to my parents? My mom called me in tears, upset that I wasn’t coming over.”

“I told them you were sick, but no one believed me. I’m sorry,” Simone said, apologizing. Again. She was so quiet I could barely make out what she was saying.

“Whatever. At least coming here gave me the opportunity to check Addie out. Damn, she’s looking good. I can’t believe I left that for you. I doubt she would have let herself go after having a baby,” he mocked.

For a second time, Brad had me seeing red. That was it. I’d heard enough. First of all, he’d lost all right to look at my sister that way when he broke her heart. Second, he was a complete dick to treat his wife that way. Simone was gorgeous, and there was nothing wrong with her body. The guy was blind on top of being the biggest asshole in San Diego.

I rounded the corner and cleared my throat. Seeing Brad’s tight grip on Simone’s arm pissed me off even more. Brad turned around and his eyes widened at the pure rage I knew was showing on my face.

“Is there a problem in here?” I growled. My fists clenched at my sides just waiting for him to say something stupid.

“Nothing that concerns you, O’Neill,” Brad said as he walked out of the hallway, giving a wide berth as he passed me.

It was mildly satisfying that he still feared me. I wasn’t a violent or aggressive person, but Brad brought out my protective side. I turned toward Simone, who now had a stream of tears running down her face. As soon as she met my gaze she turned away from me and walked toward the bathroom. I reached out and touched her shoulder. She flinched away from my touch, which raised my suspicion immediately.

“Simone,” I said, trying to temper my tone but it came out in a pained whisper instead. I could see her shoulders shaking, crying softly. How often had she cried over something her asshole husband said? Because I knew she had. Probably too many times to count.