TENACITY

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Saturday, July 2, 2016
Beau Estate
21 weeks...

Trey smiled as he pulled his silver Rubicon wrangler jeep to a stop in front of his dad's beach house. Nervous, Lexi tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear just as Trey asked, "You ready?"

"I'm nervous," she muttered. "A lot of things could happen."

He leaned over to press a kiss to her lips. "I told you on Thursday and yesterday that no matter what happened, I've got you; don't forget that."

When she nodded, he leaned back, setting his hands on his hips. "You look really good by the way. Gorgeous."

She blushed, looking down at her outfit. "You're serious?"

"Dead serious," he replied immediately, his eyes going to the bump. She blushed even harder under his scrutiny and cupped her bump, rubbing it absently. "You know it starts when we walk out. I'm sorry again in advance."

"Trey, I'll be fine."

He grabbed her face and kissed her again. "Talk to you later." He opened the door and jumped out, heading towards the guys and left Melissa to help Lexi down as planned. "Is everything set? Are all the devices online?" he asked, popping the small earpiece in his ear.

"Yes," Dustin replied, closing the back door to Mitchell's truck. "What am I to do again?"

"You follow Valerie everywhere; especially when she and Nicolysse leave together—I have a feeling she'll be here. Get close enough so the live cam can record an audiovisual," Trey replied as they began walking towards the girls, carrying baskets and blankets to give whoever was possibly watching they had gathered around Mitch's car to pick up those.

"Yes sir," he replied in an undertone with a nod.

"I'll be alone because I need to make it believable," Trey continued. "Mitch, Nicolysse is your target for today when she isn't with me."

"Got it," Mitch murmured.

"Jason, keep an eye on Alexandra for me. I've told her what's going to be happening but not in specific. Be her cheerleader and get her act perfect? To make it more believable."

"Okay," Jason replied. He walked alongside Trey and towards the girls, hoping for the best.

Valerie answered the door, plastering a smile that looked too cheery to be true. "Welcome! Come in, come in." She stepped back, holding the door wider to allow them entry.

"The others are already on the beach at the back of the house," she said when Trey made a show of looking around. Then she closed the door after everyone had walked in. 

Melissa chatted with Sierra while Jason walked beside Lexi. When they made it out back, the first thing Lexi saw was Nicolysse's hand traveling up and down Trey's arm while he openly checked her out.

Alexandra stopped in her tracks; her eyes glued to the scene ahead of her. The other ladies had similar reactions and it took all the men to herd them away. They all conceded and left, except Lexi.

No matter how much they'd persuaded her, she refused to budge. She stood rooted to her spot, not batting a lash. The other men left her to Jason, moving towards the setup to keep the ladies company. Jason placed a hand on her shoulder. "Come on."

She blinked, severally, then looked up at him. "What is he doing with her?" she asked in a voice that was barely a whisper. It sounded strange to her own ears.

Jason closed his eyes briefly, then opened them to look down at her. "Did Trey tell you  anything about having to do something?"

"He said I should trust him and he has to do things he doesn't like to corner Ethan." She paused, frowning. "He said he was going to corner Ethan," she repeated, "What has flirting with her got to do with that?!" she hissed.