Chapter 0364

But then I scowl when she laughs at me, because I should have guessed that she would know immediately. I mean, she for sure knows that it wasn't

Daniel.

“Oh, come on, Fay,” she says, laughing again. “I saw how he looked at you the minute you came into that house. I wasn't even jealous! I couldn’t

compete,” she shrugs, “didn’t even want to.”

“So, you're not... mad?” I ask, hesitant.

“It's not like you stole my boyfriend, Fay.” she says, patting my cheek. “Kent and I — we liked each other a lot. but it was more transactional than that.

Nothing close to what I saw between you two.”

“I can't believe you caught it before the rest of us.” Daniel says, shaking his head. Jerome just smirks and I consider him, wondering how long he

knew.

“It wasn’t hard,” Fiona replies, “if you were looking for it. But what the hell happened to that vasectomy I heard so much about?” she asks, frowning

and looking down at my stomach again. “Was that a lie?”

jo.” I sigh, “it was real. It just...got patched up, or something.”

“Wow.” she says, her eyes going wide. “Sounds like I got out of there right in time!”

And then we’re both laughing as she warps her arm around my waist and leads me over to the bar, Daniel coming along. Jerome, as planned, quietly

steps aside and works his way around the room with a little device that’s supposed to detect any places in which the room has been bugged.

I glare at the little device in his hands for a moment as Fiona works her way to the other side of the bar, wishing to hell I'd had that a couple of months

ago to scan my bedroom. It would have saved us a hell of a lot of trouble.

“As much as I love a reunion for reunion’s sake,” Fiona says as Daniel helps me up onto a barstool, “I have a feeling that there’s more going on here.”

“Can't a cousin just come for a nice cup of tea?” I ask, coy.

“They can, CFiona says, leaning

against the bar and studying me. ~

with narrowed eyes now. “But you’ re

not here for that. You're different. No

longer my little baby Fay...you're all

grewn up.”

-

I smile at her, leaning forward and resting my chin in my upturned palms. “Maybe not all the way grown up. I still need my cousin's help.

“Really,” she says, continuing to clean the glasses and raising an eyebrow at me. “With what?”

“Phone, please,” Jerome says, putting his hand out to Fiona and nodding to me, letting me know that the room is clean.

“What?” she asks, a little appalled at the request.

“Just to take into the other room while you chat,” Jerome says, giving her a warm smile. “Can’t risk being recorded.”

“Oh,” Fiona says, looking between me and Daniel. “Oh, so this is a real talk.”

She pulls her cell phone out of a purse sitting near her and puts it in Jerome’s hand. He moves quickly away, carrying it to the next room. Fiona

crosses her arms and looks between us.

“Before you start,” she says, raising a finger. “You should know that I still work for your dad, Fay. Anything that you don’t want him to hear about...you

should probably keep to yourself.”

“Is he good to you, Fiona?” I ask quietly, looking down at the bar and then up into her eyes.

She just frowns at me as Jerome comes back to my side.

“Because it loaks to me,” I continue,

my voice soft,"that he asked you to

take a very dangerous job informing.

on Kent for years, and then — when

you weje found out — he didn’t->

compen sate you very well forall of

thatlabor. Or all of the information

y6u provided.” Content befongs to

Fiona blushes.a little, looking around

the crappy ba’ which can't be paying

her well agdwhich is nowhere nears

the quality of living to which she

becara@ accustomed under Kent's

careWell, she says, a little => .

chagrined, “I was a shit spynwasn't I?

I'got caught.”