***
“Oh no, not her.” Kayla heard Lucy Broody mutter but wasn’t too sure whether she’d heard her right.
They were sitting in a really huge dining room, with assorted scrumptious meals laid out in front of them. Kayla had never seen so many assorted dishes on one dining table before. It was simply amazing. She was seated between Dean and Michael, the latter having insisted he wanted her by him. Everyone was busily eating and conversing. Alan, the brother who came before the twins, was cracking them up with stories about a village he and some other doctors had gone to do volunteer work a month earlier. Everyone was having fun. Even the help came to stand at the table to laugh at the stories.
Then they all heard the high-pitched voice of a female call out, “Hi Broodys.”
Kayla felt Dean stiffen beside her just as his mother passed the ‘oh no’ comment. Tyler and Sam rolled their eyes just as Josh and Ron groaned. Alan went right on talking and Jean didn’t react at all. She was suddenly very curious to know just who the woman was. The only ones who seemed to be happy were the four-year-old twin girls of Sam and Pamela. They squealed and jumped off their chairs, screaming;
“Auntie Alice.”
Then a beautiful redhead entered the dining room and spread her arms wide to catch the twins. “How are my favourite twins doing?” She asked with a delighted laugh.
“Where is Mr. Rabbit?” They both asked instead of answering her question.
“She told them she was Alice from Alice in Wonderland,” Michael murmured to Kayla, explaining his granddaughters’ question.
“Oh…” Kayla chuckled.
“She’s a friend of the family.” He added. “Our family and hers go way back.”
Kayla nodded and turned to look at Alice. She was a beauty. After hugging the twins, Alice went around the table hugging everyone, starting with Dean’s parents. When she eventually got to Dean, Kayla felt the tension. It was so thick one could cut it with a knife.
“Hi.” She said huskily, and bent down, aiming for Dean’s lips but he turned his head at the last moment so that Alice’s lips landed on his cheek. “Your call never came.” She accused softly. Her boobs were nearly falling out of her ridiculously low-necked dress. Talk about dressing to kill, Kayla thought.
Dean cleared his throat. “I was busy Al. How was your flight?” He had a guarded look in his eyes.
“Good. Missed you like crazy, Dean. Have you any idea how lonely I felt in that huge bed when I realized you had left for your hotel?” Her voice had turned real husky now. “You have to make it up to me Sexy. What do you say we skip all this and move to our usual place?”
“Listen Al…” Dean started but Alice cut him off.
“Come on baby, you know you want to.” Then in a whisper, which Kayla heard anyway, she added. “I’m so wet right now just think…”
“Alice, meet my girlfriend, Kayla,” Dean said in a tight voice. “I did tell you about her didn’t I?” Dean asked staring Alice down. He knew what she was trying to do. She did it all the time whenever she saw him with any woman. It had never bothered him before but this time, it pissed the hell out of him. “Kay, Alice is a friend.” Dean’s voice had gone low.
“Hello,” Kayla said politely, feeling numb inside. When exactly had Dean left this beauty in bed alone? It sounded like a very recent incident. She also had a feeling Alice deliberately wanted her to know that detail.
Hostile eyes turned on Kayla. Then Alice’s lips widened with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“Oww the latest flame.” She drawled. “Enjoying yourself honey?” If only looks could kill, Kayla knew her corpse would be on its way to the morgue that very moment.
“I can assure you she’s not the latest flame Alice darling.” Jean drawled from beside them. “She’s the hottest and final flame.” He added, giving Kayla a slow wink.
Alice straightened up and turned to look at Jean with an even wider smile. “Oh, I get it. Shared her already haven’t you?”
“That’s enough Alice.” Lucy Broody said in a loud voice. “Sit down and eat. How’re your parents doing?” Conversation started to flow again around the table.
“They’re good Auntie Lu. Spoke to mum about an hour ago. She sends her love.” Alice said, pulling out the chair beside Tyler, to sit. “I’ve been in Dubai with Dad for the past week.”
“Oh I see,” Lucy responded with a raised eyebrow. “When did you come back?”
“Yesterday.” She responded with a quick look in Kayla’s direction. Alice didn’t miss how Kayla stiffened at that information. She smirked. “God, I’m famished.” She started dishing food onto her plate.
“Hey, are you okay?” Dean asked Kayla softly. He noted how tensed she looked.
“Peachy,” Kayla responded, playing with the food on her plate. All her appetite had fled. To where she didn’t know.
From then on, Kayla didn’t say a word to Dean. All her attention was focused on Michael, who insisted she addressed him by his first name. Initially, she could scarcely get any word out through her constricted chest and throat. But eventually, she tried to suppress how she was feeling and conversed with the older man. There were no words to describe how she felt that very moment. She felt inadequate, jealous, hurt, insulted, betrayed, sad…all combined.
No wonder Dean wasn’t eager to have sex with her. He had obviously been fucking Alice the whole time they were in Dubai. And she had stupidly thought he wanted them to connect on other levels besides sex. Why would anyone want her when they had that? Look at that beauty…how was she to compete with that? Nothing was stopping Dean from making mad sweet love to her now that they were in a committed relationship…right? So why was he holding back?
He obviously simply didn’t feel like it as he was getting it from the beautiful obviously experienced Alice. Kayla felt sick inside but was damned if she was going to give that woman the satisfaction of seeing her rattled. Kayla held her head high, praying the meal would end quickly so that she could go home, climb into her bed and cry her eyes out. She had been so stupid to think Dean would change for her.