The Secrets of Paradise Bay (4 page)

“How does a Belgian waffle sound?” Francine asked, while filling Clyde's plate.

“Sounds pretty tasty to me,” he said. His stomach was growling, in spite of chowing down last night on fried chicken, mashed sweet potatoes, and apple pie. Add to that, he'd probably had a little too much of the bottle of sauvignon blanc Trey had broken out. If so, he hadn't been the only one. Seemed like Ivana had more than held her own in drinking the wine, though she didn't seem the worse for wear this morning.

“Looks like your brother and I will get along just fine, Trey.” Francine smiled at the two men.

“Never expected otherwise,” Trey said, sitting at the head of the square glass table in the breakfast room. “Clyde always did have a big appetite.”

Ivana was seated at the opposite end, and Clyde in the middle. He couldn't help but think that it all somehow seemed a little too formal for his comfort. But he wouldn't complain. Not after having been forced for so long to eat in a cramped space with a bunch of loud, foulmouthed cons.

“With Francine here to feed you whatever your heart's desire, I'm surprised it doesn't show,” commented Clyde, glancing at Trey and Ivana. “Or maybe because this house is so damned big, I've lost some perspective.”

Trey laughed. “I think your perspective is fine, little brother. The reality is that Ivana can eat almost anything and not gain an ounce. Me, well, I have a pretty good metabolism as do you, but still need a little help every now and then. Having a membership to a good health club does wonders in allowing me to keep the physique under control. Now I just need to find more time to go there.”

Clyde stuck his fork into another slice of waffle. “Maybe I can get a guest pass or something to the club and check it out.”

“I'm sure that can be arranged,” Trey said, sipping on freshly squeezed orange juice.

Clyde eyed Ivana, who had been checking him out but was short on conversation. He wondered if she was simply the beautiful, silent type or if it was just him. Maybe it was the ex-con thing that freaked her out, like she had to be wary of him. He wanted to put her at ease. If this was going to work, Clyde didn't want to have the Missus as an enemy.

“So I hear you were a model, Ivana . . .” he said coolly.

Ivana stopped short of biting into a piece of bacon. “Yes, I did model once upon a time,” she said as if it had been ages ago .

“Cool. Runway or print?”

“Both.”

He smiled admiringly. “I can see that.”

“Ivana worked in all the top international fashion spots,” Trey noted. “Paris, London, Sydney, New York, LA, you name it.”

“Wow.” Clyde wiped syrup from the corner of his lips, gazing at Ivana. “And you gave all that up for my brother?”

Ivana turned to Trey. “It wasn't really that difficult. Modeling can be a hard life. Giving it up for love was a choice I made willingly.”

“Yeah, we all make choices in our lives and have to live with them,” Clyde muttered, suddenly feeling sorry for himself. He quickly recovered, determined to put his best foot forward from this point on.

“Maybe so,” Trey allowed. “But it doesn't mean we have to cling to the past as our lifeline. Mistakes happen and we have to be willing to get past them, if given half a chance.”

Clyde sensed that he'd hit a sore spot beyond self-pity. Seemed as though Ivana wasn't quite ready to forgive his brother for the mistake of fooling around with another woman. His eyes wandered to Trey, Ivana, and back again. They had pretty much what he wanted, and shouldn't let one bad thing ruin it, serious as it was. But that wasn't his call. He had his own issues to deal with.

“Look, I know things haven't been as good as they once were between you two lately,” he said anyway. “Doesn't always have to be that way.”

“Thanks for the advice,” Trey said, wiping his mouth hastily with a cloth napkin. “I'm sure we'll be fine, Clyde. And so will you.”

“He's right,” said Ivana, in what seemed to Clyde more like she was trying to convince herself. “What's important for all of us is where we go from this point forward.”

“Yeah.” Clyde met her eyes and tried to read into them. “I'm down with that.”

Francine entered the room, seemingly on cue. “Does anyone want more waffles? Coffee?”

Clyde waved her off, stuffed. “Now I know what I've been missing all these years, Francine.”

“Flattery will get you everywhere,” she joked.

He wasn't so sure about that, knowing it would take a hell of a lot more than sweet talk to get his feet solidly back on the ground. But every road had to begin somewhere. His was here and now and whatever came with the territory. Or who.

 

 

That afternoon, Trey called Clyde into his study for a little private conversation, feeling the need to brother-to-brother.

“I hope you're starting to settle in.”

“Yeah, man, I am,” Clyde said, glancing about at walls of built-in bookshelves, walnut furniture, and a wet bar. “You've got one nice place here, if I haven't already told you that enough.”

Trey grinned slightly. “Thanks. I worked hard to get it.”

“Too bad Mama never lived to see this.”

“I know. To tell you the truth, I think she was much more interested in what went on inside of us than our possessions.”

Clyde looked at him defensively. “I know I messed up. Let her down, you, the whole world. Wish I could do it all over.”

“No one's pointing fingers, Clyde—not anymore.” Trey hoped to put them both at ease.

“Sorry. Guess it's hard to let go sometimes.”

Trey met his eyes. “It's all right. You've been through some rough times.”

“Yeah, guess I have,” Clyde said, pinching his nose.

Trey grabbed a couple of beers from the mini-refrigerator and tossed one to Clyde, who caught it without blinking an eye.
Might as well get to the nitty-gritty
, Trey thought.

“So, thought about what you want to do with your life now?”

Clyde opened the beer and took a swig contemplatively. “Yeah, I have. It's practically all I've thought about for the past few months.”

“And what have you come up with?” Trey asked curiously.

“Oh, just some ideas about going into business for myself.”

“That so? What type of business?”

Clyde hesitated. “The people business. I'm still working on the specifics in my head.”

“That's cool.” The last thing Trey wanted to do was put any pressure on him to get a job. It could have a detrimental effect. “Take your time sorting it out.”

“Thanks.” Clyde sipped more beer. “Just so you know, I don't intend to freeload.”

“Never thought you would.” Trey narrowed his eyes. “What I don't want you to do is fall back in with the wrong crowd.”

Clyde's jaw set. “Is that what you think I plan to do?”

“I sure as hell hope not. It's what got you into hot water in the first place. The Willie Munroes of the world are still out there, looking for nothing but trouble. If you let them, they'll pull you down into the gutter again.”

“Seems like some things never change,” Clyde said, an edge to his voice. “You preachin' to me about how not to ruin my life.”

“You're missing the point,” insisted Trey. “I care about you, Clyde, and just want to make sure you have a fair shot at getting a life that doesn't include violence and property crime. Is that really so wrong? Or should I just keep my mouth shut like a good brother and not tell you what I think?”

Clyde breathed out his nose. “It's not wrong. I know you're just trying to help. Believe me, I have no desire to get back with the ‘wrong crowd,' as you put it. I had a lot of time to think in the pen. I know I don't have many chances left to do it right and I don't plan to blow it this time around. There's definitely something out there with my name on it that doesn't include turning back to a life of crime.”

Trey nodded, pleased. “Well that's good to hear.” Maybe he was finally beginning to reach him after all these years.

“I mean it,” Clyde reiterated, his features softening.

“It's still there, isn't it?” Trey asked intuitively.

“What's that?”

“That infamous Clyde Lancaster temper.”

Clyde cracked a half grin. “I suppose so. But I'm different now. I know how to control it, channel in a positive direction.”

Trey hoped that were true for his sake “Then you have changed.”

“I think we both have.”

“You're probably right about that.” Trey decided this was as good a time as any to spring his next surprise on Clyde. “I've got something for you.”

“Oh, yeah?” Clyde met his gaze curiously.

“Yeah. Follow me . . .”

Trey led them through the twists and turns of the house to the front door, opening it. Both men stepped outside.

Clyde spied the shiny, sapphire-metallic BMW. “What's this?”

“It's yours,” Trey said, pulling the keys from his pocket and putting them in Clyde's hand. “I had someone from the dealership drop it off this morning. It's a 650i Coupe that's got just a few miles on it.”

Clyde shook his head. “You don't have to do this, man.”

“I want to,” stressed Trey. “You need some wheels to get around, and I can afford to supply you with them. Seems like the perfect marriage to me.”

Clyde was speechless. “Not sure what to say.”

“Don't say anything other than you'll take good care of it.”

Clyde showed his teeth. “Yeah, I'll definitely do that.”

Trey chuckled. “And while you're at it, you'll probably be needing this, too.” He took an iPhone out of his pocket. “It's got all the fancy stuff you've been missing. The instruction booklet is in the car if you need help figuring things out. The cell phone has our home phone, my office, and my own cell numbers.” He handed it to Clyde. “Now you should be all set to get back on your feet.”

Clyde made a face. “You know, though we've had our issues, it's getting really hard not to like you, big brother.”

“I think it's time we started liking each other, little brother,” Trey countered, and meant every word. Both were in their thirties now and needed to respect the other for their differences, even if it might still be challenging at times. “Now why don't you give the car a spin?”

“Good idea.”

“Got a full tank of gas, so break her in like a thoroughbred.”

“I'll give it my best shot,” Clyde promised.

Clyde was about to hop inside the car when he looked up and saw Ivana peering from a bedroom window. From the start, he'd sensed there was some sort of connection between them. Or was it more his imagination? Or wishful thinking? Their eyes met for a long moment before she disappeared behind vertical blinds.

It happened so quickly, Clyde doubted Trey was aware of the moment. Probably better that way. No need to stir up any trouble by suggesting there was something going on with him and his brother's wife. Not after all Trey had done for him while asking for little in return. He'd ignore the Ivana vibes, hard as it may have been. Even so, Clyde couldn't help but wonder when it would come time to pay the piper. And if he would be able to step up to the plate.

He got in the car and took a few seconds to familiarize himself before starting it and heading out into the real world again, not quite sure what lay around every corner. Or whom.

Willie Munroe entered his head. Clyde wondered what the man was up to these days. Was he even still in town? Clyde regretted that things between them had ended violently after what had once been a good friendship, if not an unhealthy one. But Willie had brought this upon himself by stepping over the line. Had he changed his bad ways—or was he same old Willie?

Somehow Clyde doubted the man had become a model citizen. Willie was the type of person who never seemed to know when enough was enough. Not while he was still able to walk on his own two feet. If he were smart, Clyde would steer as far away from Willie as possible. This one was a no-brainer. He was happy being out of prison and into a slick BMW. No reason he could think of to make things tough for himself on the road ahead.

“Don't you think you're overdoing it just a bit?” With a drink in hand, Ivana confronted her husband the moment he entered the house.

Trey gave her a dumbfounded look. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”

“Like hell, you don't. You've already given your brother the key to our home. And now you're giving him a damned
car
?”

“It's not like we don't have enough of them. Loaning Clyde one to get around in hardly seems like overdoing it.” Trey headed toward the stairs with Ivana matching him step for step. “And I don't recall giving him a key to the house—yet.”

Ivana fumed, though not quite sure why. She hadn't expected any less of Trey than to lay out the red carpet to try and impress his ex-con brother. Or win him over through expensive toys. Whatever. Didn't mean she would roll over and pretend to go along with every move he made like a China doll. Even if that was what he obviously wanted.

“You can't buy his love, no matter how much you throw at him,” she said brusquely.

Trey rounded on her as they reached the second floor. “Is that what you really think: that this is about—
buying
love?”

“You tell me,” Ivana shot back, while sipping her martini.

“All I'm trying to do is help Clyde while he tries to sort out his life. If that's simply too much for you to understand, then I'm sorry.”

Ivana followed Trey to his bedroom, stepping into the room he'd claimed as his own for the first time in months. Ever since deciding she no longer wanted to share a bed with him, Ivana had welcomed Trey being on the opposite end of the hall. Only once had they made love in that room, which he'd hired a decorator to turn into his mini-palace. She succumbed to his advances while inebriated, hoping it would be enough to keep him at bay. It had worked for a while, but now he was showing signs of wanting more from her sexually. At this moment, that was something she definitely was not interested in. Not with him, anyway.

“You're not sorry one bit,” she voiced sharply. “The reality is that you make the rules and just expect me to abide by them, such as inviting your brother into our home whether I gave a damn or not.”

Trey sniffed. “You've been drinking.”

Ivana saw no reason to deny it. “So I had a drink. I'm entitled.”

“Maybe more like two or three.” Trey gave her a look of disgust. “Can't you try and lay off the alcohol—at least while Clyde is here?”

Ivana sneered. “And just how long will that be, Trey? A week? Month? Year?”

“However long it takes for him to get his life in order.”

“Well, you know what?—that's not good enough,” Ivana declared theatrically. “I'm not interested in babysitting your brother 'til he decides to be a man and get his own place and life.”

“No one's asking you to,” Trey insisted. “Clyde can take care of himself. If it makes you feel better, I'll ask him to try to avoid you at all costs.”

“I'm not sure he could even if he wanted to,” she snorted and thought about their eye contact at the window. It was as though he had a sixth sense in looking directly up at her as she'd watched him and Trey carry on as though suddenly the best of friends. “Men who've been holed up like he has for so long always find a way to make their presence felt.”

“What is your problem?” Trey asked pointedly. “The man hasn't been here a day yet, and you're acting as though he's the scum of the earth. Clyde's not here to cause you trouble. I'm asking you not to cause him any. Just give my brother a damn chance.”

“Like you gave our marriage a chance when you decided to sleep with that whore?”

Trey sucked in a ragged breath. “I'm not going to talk to you about this right now.”

“Why not?” Ivana challenged him. “Or is it easier for you to talk about the long-lost brother you now suddenly want in our lives?”

“There's not much more I can say about something I regret deeply that hasn't already been said. Trying to somehow equate that with wanting to help Clyde make a smooth transition to the outside world is grossly unfair.”

“To whom—you? Or your brother?”

“Take it whichever way you like. In the meantime, don't drink anything else today before you end up making a fool out of yourself.”

“And what the hell does that make you?” Ivana tossed at him. “Who's the bigger fool in this house?”

“I'm not going to argue with you right now, as it's obvious that you don't know when to leave well enough alone.” Trey grabbed his wallet from the dresser. “I'll be at the office if you need me for anything urgent.”

“Don't hold your breath,” Ivana said icily, deciding not to take it any further for the time being. Besides, it hurt too much to dwell on the past that had all but destroyed the love and lust between them. It was somehow easier to focus on Trey's brother, an allegedly reformed bad boy. Ivana wasn't sure she bought into that. Or how much it truly mattered either way.

Trey left the room, expecting Ivana to continue to make a scene after she had been on her best behavior in Clyde's presence, which Trey appreciated. But she did not follow him. He took that as a respite to be resumed at a later time when Ivana was in the mood again to be argumentative.

Now that she had decided to grace his bedroom with her presence for the first time in ages, Trey considered that maybe Ivana might want to do so more often—as a wife wanting to be with her husband in the biblical sense, rather than bitching at him. Whether that was the case remained to be seen. But he wouldn't stop trying to win his wife back in heart, soul, and body, even if she was making it difficult and seemed in no hurry to put the past behind them.

Trey found Emily downstairs, dusting the custom hand-carved stone fireplace mantel in the living room. He knew she had heard everything. How could she not?

Emily stopped cleaning when she saw him. “Is Ivana out of control again?” Her voice was filled with worry.

The last thing Trey wanted was to involve the staff in their personal squabbles. Fact was, Emily had been there with them from the start and had proven to be a valued and trusted employee. She knew he'd screwed up big-time and didn't pass judgment. He respected her even more for that.

“Ivana's just going through some things right now,” he said as an understatement. “She'll be fine.”

Emily's eyes narrowed. “I'm probably overstepping my bounds, but I hope having your brother here won't make matters worse between you and Ivana.”

Trey appreciated her candor, while choosing to sidestep the issue. “I doubt that. Ivana is good at putting up a front, even if struggling within. She'll deal with Clyde for as long as she has to. With any luck, that won't be for too long.”

“I think it's good for you to have Clyde around,” Emily said, “even if for only a short time. Family is always important, no matter the baggage.”

“I feel the same way.” Trey gave a tiny smile and glanced at his gold watch. “Have to run. You know where to reach me if anything comes up.”

Emily nodded. “Drive carefully.”

“I will.” Maybe that sentiment would be better directed to Clyde, Trey thought. After all, the man hadn't driven a car in nine years and just might be a bit overzealous on the streets of Paradise Bay. The last thing he wanted was to see Clyde wrap that car around a tree. Or was he selling his younger brother short?

Ivana watched from her bedroom window as Trey left the house and got into his car, just as she had when Clyde left a few minutes earlier. He had caught her spying on him. Strangely, it turned her on even if she turned it off just as swiftly. She sipped on a martini and pondered what it was about her husband's brother that fascinated her so. Maybe it was the sexy shaved head. The rock-hard body. Or the bad-boy thing, even if he seemed to be legitimately trying to turn over a new leaf. But zebras never changed their stripes. Once bad, always bad.

Bad could be dangerous, she told herself. Especially as a lover who hadn't known the touch or feel of a woman's body in nearly a decade. She could only imagine the pent up desire in him, having little doubt that Clyde Lancaster could wrap just about any woman around his little finger.

But then so could Trey. Only he'd chosen to direct that hot-blooded passion toward another woman, leaving his own woman hurt and confused.

Now Trey had decided to give his brother the royal treatment, as if to make up for past friction between the two. And Clyde seemed to have swallowed his pride and was eating up everything Trey threw at him like candy. Or maybe as someone who desperately wanted to make up for lost time and with opportunity staring him in the face.

Ivana wondered if Trey was ready to give his wife away too, just to make his brother feel perfectly at home. Would Clyde swallow that bait also?

And just how would Trey feel if betrayal were on the other foot? Would he be so easily able to sweep the stinging humiliation and disloyalty under the rug?

Ivana tried to turn off such thoughts, knowing they did her no good. Just the opposite. Yet, it was hard to ignore that there was a very sexy, good-looking man sharing their house, who happened to be her brother-in-law. But a man, nonetheless, with needs as great as hers, if not greater. It gave Ivana a tingle between her legs. Something she hadn't felt in so long that Ivana savored the experience.

She sipped her drink, allowing her suddenly vivid imagination to run wild.

Clyde stood at the gravesite of his mother. She had long ago paid for the spot, which was right next to his father's grave. Clyde never knew him, as he was only two when his father died in a car accident. Now he was without both parents and had no elders to lean on during tough times. At least there was Trey to share the bloodline. They might never see eye to eye on everything, but at least Clyde believed they had a decent chance to become real brothers. Something that their mother had wanted 'til the day she died.

Clyde felt a warm tear creep down his cheek. He put flowers on his mother's headstone, wondering how many times Trey had done the same thing. He stepped over to his father's grave marker. It was barely visible within overgrown grass.

With that, Clyde walked away, content that he'd made his peace and was ready to see what else life had to offer him as a free man.

Across the street from the cemetery, Willie sat in his old Chevy Blazer observing as Clyde sauntered toward his car, a fancy BMW. Willie had followed him after spotting Clyde leaving the big house his brother lived in.

But somehow Willie considered that too easy for his onetime best friend-turned-nemesis. No, he wanted Clyde to suffer the way he had all these years. If that meant waiting until the time was right, then so be it.

Willie started the engine and drove away. He put on a rap CD and tried to focus on the words, but couldn't get his mind off Clyde Lancaster. The man had taken something very valuable away from him, and he intended to make Clyde pay big-time.

Willie believed that his streak of bad luck was just about to change. Clyde Lancaster had seen to that the moment he walked out of prison.

“Trey's gone to work,” Emily informed Clyde when he stepped in the door.

“Oh, yeah?” He had to remember that Trey was a big man in Paradise Bay and had more on his plate than merely watching over him. But what about the Missus? “Is Ivana around?”

“She's here. In the pool. But I wouldn't cross paths with her right now if I were you.”

“Why is that?” Clyde asked curiously.

Emily seemed to consider her words carefully. “Let's just say that Ivana has not been herself lately, so you never know what you're going to get.”

Clyde thought about the friction between Ivana and his brother. Or was there something more?

“Sounds to me like the typical woman, present company excluded,” he suggested. “I'll keep that in mind, though.”

“Good. Francine left you some lunch on the stove.”

“I appreciate that. I'm starving!”

In the kitchen, Clyde found some macaroni and cheese and wheat bread. He helped himself, downing it with soda and using the alone time to take stock of his life.
What do I do now?
Realistically, he didn't expect that many people would be willing to hire an ex-con, except maybe jobs on the lower end of the scale or hard labor. He wasn't much cut out for either. Working for Trey was always an option, should an offer come. But Clyde wasn't eager to have his brother looking over his shoulder every step of the way.

What Clyde saw in his future was being his own boss. That would make his life easier, and he wouldn't be subject to overbearing authority that had proven to be difficult in previous jobs. It would take money to go into business, something he had far too little of these days. Maybe he could get a loan from Trey, so long as it was understood that he would pay him back every penny. Trey had done enough for him. Now it was time he did for himself.