Page 32 of Never Finished

"Dad? I don't follow. What are you talking about?"

"You forget, Emma, Silverpine is a small town—much of which I own and people like to talk. Plus, I still have some faithful employees at the resort. Why am I hearing rumors you’re sneaking around with the help?"

A thousand shades of red appear before my eyes. "I'm sorry, what? Did you say the help?" My father was old-fashioned, but that expression was so disrespectful, I was livid.

"You know," he fumed, "I had reservations about hiring that boy again, but he blew the other candidates away with glowing recommendations and a reputation as someone who could turn that bar around. I should've known he was just trying to get in my daughter's pants again."

Fury washed through me. "Father," I said forcefully, "you are way out of line. I don't know what you've heard or who's reporting on me, but I might remind you I am a grown ass woman, and who I choose to spend my time with is none of your business."

"The hell it isn't. Your mother and I worked entirely too hard to set you up in such a sweet position for you to throw it all away on some penniless boy with an inferior upbringing."

"Dad!"

"No, l wouldn't let you waste your time with that bum back then, and I'm certainly not going to allow you to spend time with a man whose best quality is getting people drunk with fancy cocktails. You need to keep your eye on the prize. If you're so hard up for male attention, why don't you play ball with Andrew Jr.?"

I huffed out of a disbelieving laugh. "Are you serious right now? You're upset about my reputation being compromised by someone I've known and trusted most of my life, who has grown into a kind, mature man? And instead, you’d rather pawn me off on a sleazy, ill-mannered man child just because he has money?"

"That's always been your problem, Emma. You're close minded. You haven't even bothered to get to know him. I can assure you he has more positive qualities than you’re giving him credit for."

"I have gotten to know him as much as necessary in order to conduct business. What do you suggest? I shack up with him?"

"Please, Emma," he hissed out, "there's no need to be crude. It wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to consort with your own kind."

Bile rose in my throat, and I wanted to throw my phone across the room as hard as I could and shatter it into a million pieces.

Just when I thought it couldn’t get worse, my father continued. "Emma, I need you to understand I just want what's best for you, and a bartending Spaniard isn’t it."

A thousand ugly words bubbled up on my tongue, and yet they were frozen in my throat. "And I imagine your mother wouldn’t be enthralled with your behavior, either. In fact, I think she'd be downright embarrassed."

How dare he?

By the time my response finally arranged itself in my brain and I was ready to speak, he had moved on, talking to his secretary. "Emma, I have urgent business I need to tend to, but you need to get your act together. Otherwise, I'll have to come down there and finish the deal myself, and if I have to come down there, that boy toy of yours can forget about having gainful employment—not just at the resort, but anywhere in town."

And then silence. No goodbye, he just hung up.

I stared down at my darkened phone in shock, shaking all over.

All those suspicions I'd had about my dad, all the concerns Abby and Caroline had been cautiously laying out for me, were now undeniable. The father I knew was gone. Whatever tolerance or compassion he possessed died with my mother.

I wanted to scream out in frustration, but didn’t want to alarm the other guests. Instead, I gritted my teeth and dialed a familiar number. "Hey, I need you," I said, skipping a formal greeting.

The voice on the other end didn't question. They just said they’d meet me in five. And less than five minutes later, Caroline was at my door, looking uneasy and ready to throw down my behalf.

As soon as she saw me, her eyes widened. "Whoa, Daddy Moneybags really stepped in it, didn't he? Or was it Jaime? Do I need to kill him? That would be so inconvenient, but I will do what needs to be done."

I shook my head. "It's not Jaime, but your first guess was right on the money."

Her lips pressed together in a grimace. "Do I need to call Abby?"

I hesitated. I would love nothing more than to have a powwow with both of them right now, but I didn’t want to bother Abby when she was working.

"No, I don't want to disturb her in the middle of the day. I just need to walk this off. Do you want to go on a little hike with me?"

Caroline blinked at me slowly. "As in out in the woods?"

I gave her a hopeful smile. "It'll make me feel better."

She let out a long sigh. "Fine, I’ll go change my shoes. But for the record, I am the superior friend for hiking in the woods for you."

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