Spied and I were still sitting against the wall teasing each other and fiddling with the chords on my newest song when Tommy and Kwest suddenly exited the studio looking both tired and a little frazzled. Something told me that there had been much more going on in that room than just mixing. Oh, to have been a fly sitting on that wall! No, or better yet, a fly in Tommy's Q's bathroom. 'Okay, stop it, Jude,' I scolded myself firmly while feeling as if I had two little invisible devils perching on my shoulders.
I was still watching their progress as they made their way across the room when I heard Sadie clear her throat in that annoying 'I'm standing here and you better look at me' guttural growl, and I found myself suddenly looking at her satin wrapped legs and impatient high heeled toe as it tapped insistently in my direction. What? Did she think I was impressed? I know Spied was. He coughed and choked as he tried to look in any direction but at the swinging skirt that flowed in front of his nose, and I found myself clearly not impressed by his behavior. I looked at him murderously as he excused himself before standing up and walking across the room to stand next to Tommy and Kwest. The boy was smarter than I gave him credit for—he knew when to get the hell out of dodge.
I mean give me a little credit. I had enough problems with the men in my life—one of which happened to be this nasty little habit of theirs of being overly attracted to my gorgeous older sister. I mean I was fairly sexy right? I might be missing a few necessary assets but it wasn't something to sit on my bed and cry over. Was it? Sadie must have been tired of waiting for me to respond as I sat deep in thought because she took that unfortunate moment to lift that same mesh covered toe that had been tapping the floor in a rather catchy beat and kicked me lightly in the leg.
"Hey! What's you're problem?" I asked haltingly before standing up to swipe the dirt off the back of the short skirt I was wearing. Sadie just shrugged as nonchalantly as she could.
"Dad called." She said softly, and I knew just in the pretentious way she said those two small words that her simple statement was a loaded one.
"And?" I asked rather breathlessly as I waited for her to tell me something else that was guaranteed to knock me on my ass. Sadie just stared at me a moment before glancing over her shoulder at the people strolling around the studio. Obviously, she wasn't keen on anyone overhearing her because she leaned down close to my ear before saying anything else.
"He talked to mom, Jude. And she's already tied the knot with Don. It seems this was some sort of mad, spur of the moment decision for her, and after talking it over with dad, they've decided that dad will be named our guardian and your trustee again." Sadie answered quietly as she looked over her shoulder at Tommy and Kwest with an unreadable expression etched across her features. Something told me I should buckle my seat belt. My next question could lead to a very bumpy ride.
"And the house?" I asked with an audible 'gulp' as Sadie just stared at me a moment, looking suspiciously as if she were having a very hard time trying to find the right words to say to me.
"The house was sold this morning, Jude." She said in an even tone as I just looked at her in disbelief. So soon. It couldn't be. I looked around me for a moment trying to clear my thoughts before letting my gaze fall back onto Sadie's serious, mellow face. Okay, so it wasn't a joke.
"By who?" I asked almost in a whisper as Sadie sighed before crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against the wall heavily.
"By Tom Quincy." She said so softly I almost didn't hear her at first, and once I realized what she had said, then I kept telling myself that I must have heard her wrong. I shook my head dazedly.
"You can't be serious, Sades. That's ridiculous." I said on a small, hysterical laugh as Sadie just shrugged calmly.
"Crazy or not, he did. And he had terms. According to the realty company, he bought it only under the condition that the previous owners could continue to live in it undisturbed." Sadie said as she let her gaze hover in Tommy's direction—staring at him much longer than I felt comfortable with. But I didn't have it in me at the present moment to call her on it, or to even look over at him myself for that matter. I was still trying to grasp the idea that he had bought our house. Why? Why would someone buy a friggin' house for someone like that? Could he still love Sadie enough after their break up? 'Don't be stupid, Jude,' I told myself scornfully. Deep down I knew why he had done it. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw him looking at me under lowered lashes, and I could tell when he realized I knew about his purchase because he pushed himself away from the wall where he had been standing before heading towards the door. Something told me he didn't want to be confronted about the whole situation. Damn, I was too busy still processing the information to care much for confrontation. Let him run away if he wanted to. There was plenty of time to catch him later.