Page 131 of Save Me

“It’s fine,” I tell her, bringing her hand to my lips. “Seriously. Didn’t you tell me you wanted to catch up with your mom?”

Though reluctantly, I release her hand. It’s time to get the inevitable over with.

“Sweetness, I need a glass of champagne,” Aaron Townsend tells his wife.

Narrowing her eyes at him, she tilts her head to the side. “You don’t drink.”

He peers at me, then back to his wife. “I’m about to start.”

“Dad, is this necessary? I’m not a teenager.”

“This is necessary,” Joshua Townsend adds.

It takes a few more assurances for me to convince Kennedy that all is well. I watch as she walks away with her aunt and mother.

“Don’t go far, sweetness,” her father tells his wife, to which she rolls her eyes. Then he turns back and pins me with a stern glare.

I meet his stare with one of my own.

“What do you want with my daughter?” He gets to the point.

“Sir?” I ask for clarification.

Joshua Townsend folds his arm and stares at me in the same manner as his brother.

“You tried to buy the Newport a couple of years ago,” her uncle says.

I’m not surprised that he remembers that. As the head of the real estate division of Townsend Industries, I imagine Joshua Townsend knows the ins and outs of what happens with the buildings they own.

But this is the first time we’re meeting face to face. My attempt to purchase the building Kennedy lives in didn’t get far enough for a one-on-one meeting with Joshua Townsend.

“You’re aware of that,” I say, meeting her uncle’s glare.

Her father snorts. “You tried to buy the building my daughter lives in,” he starts with a narrowed gaze. “That failed, but now you’re dating her.”

“Hell of a coincidence,” her uncle adds, finishing his brother’s point.

I raise my eyebrows, pondering their conclusion. “Are you insinuating that I’m with Kennedy to finagle my way into your company?”

He snorts. “That wouldn’t be possible,” he assures. He steps closer. “Is that what you’re trying to do?”

If he only knew.

I attempted to buy the Newport so I could be close to her. I could give a fuck about the building or the value of the property.

“Neither one of you are stupid men,” I start. “I’m certain the file you had prepared on me informed you that after my company’s attempt to purchase the Newport fell through, we partnered with the Global Group to take over and renovate the Premium,” I say, referring to the building almost directly across from the Newport.

The one I spent most nights in, until recently, so I could watch her from afar.

“Doesn’t mean you’re not trying to use my niece to renew that attempt at purchasing one of our properties.”

“If you’re using my daughter for business, I promise you I will bury you underneath the construction site of our next building,” her father snarls.

“If I were using Kennedy for anything as insignificant as business, I would let you bury underneath that building.”

Her uncle’s eyes widen, but her father’s cold glare remains unchanged.

“I know how deeply you love your daughter, sir,” I tell him. “But I also want you to know that there isn’t anything or anyone I’ll let stand between what Kennedy and I have.”

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