Page 133 of Love or Tequila in Unexpected Places

She cut him off. “You know Dad as well as I do, John,” she said, raising an eyebrow, daring him to challenge her. “Do you honestly think talking to him right now is going to accomplish anything?”

Johnathan looked like she’d just punched him in the gut. He slumped, defeated, his shoulders sagging. And for the first time, she felt a pang of sympathy. John was always trying to please their father, just like she was. And just like her, he failed. Every time. The only thing that got their father’s approval was work. Success. Perfection. And that was what made this whole situation even more of a punch to the gut—John was set to inherit the family business in less than ten months. At thirty-five, he should’ve been more than ready. But no, their father had pushed it back a year, calling him ‘unworthy.’

Unworthy. As if running a multi-billion-dollar corporation was some simple bar exam he could just retake. The pressure was suffocating, and Allison could feel it radiating off her brother in waves.

They could never be enough for their father. No matter what they did, how hard they worked, or what milestones they reached, it was never enough. And yet, they still kept trying.Chasing that ever-elusive approval, knowing full well it would always slip through their fingers.

Until, inevitably, their father reminded them why they shouldn’t bother at all.

Like today.

“Well,” Allison said, taking another deep breath, a small smirk tugging at the corner of her lips. “Guess I won’t have to send a Father’s Day card this year. That’s a relief.”

Angelo snorted from behind her.

Johnathan gave her a look that suggested he was torn between laughing and strangling her.

“What if I meet with him?”

Allison jumped. The deep voice she had come to enjoy—too muchfor her own good—came from right behind her. She spun around, heart thudding, only to find herself face-to-chest with the man in question.Great, she thought, glaring up at him. It bugged her to no end that, at five-eight, she still had to crane her neck to look at him.

“And why,” she demanded, poking his solid chest with her finger, “would you think that’s a good idea?”

Angelo shrugged, utterly unconcerned, as if this was all just another afternoon stroll. “Do you have a better one?”

The audacity. Her father—king of stubbornness—was not a man you reasoned with. He didn’t listen to anyone, least of all his children, and especially not Angelo Taylor, the man he probably despised more than slow Wi-Fi.

Allison jabbed her finger again, her frustration pouring out of her. “What makes you think that my father, who refuses to listen to anyone but his own voice, will take advice from you? His enemy?”

Angelo caught her finger mid-jab, his large hand wrapping around it as he leaned into her personal space. She tried notto notice how nice he smelled or how his proximity sent an irritatingly pleasant shiver down her spine.

“I want to help you, Allison,” he said softly, his tone annoyingly sincere. “And it seems to me that, selfish prick though your father is, he’s also a damn good businessman.”

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “You’re going to… strike a deal with him?” She stared at him, incredulous.

She had to admit, the man had gall. Her father was about as easy to negotiate with as a bear in a beehive. But if there was one thing she knew about Angelo after nearly seven months of being around him, it was that he was relentless. If he wanted something, he’d find a way to make it happen—even if it meant doing the impossible, like convincing her father to listen to reason.

So, instead of unleashing the protest that was bubbling up inside her, she just sighed. “Fine. What’s your plan?”

Angelo, apparently satisfied with her reluctant agreement, released her finger and straightened to his full height. He turned to Johnathan as if the whole discussion was over. “You hungry, John?”

Oh, for the love of—

Allison felt her blood pressure spike. “We’re not done here, Angelo—”

“Starving, actually,” Johnathan cut in, casually siding with the enemy.

Allison’s eye twitched.That fucking bastard.

One hour later, they were eating. Again.

Allison wasn’t sure how they ended up at Angelo’s massive dining table for the second time that day, but here they were.This time, they’d managed to rope Katerina into joining them. She’d put up a fight at first, but the growl of her stomach had clearly betrayed her.

It was an odd seating arrangement, one that made the table feel more like a battle line. Allison had strategically placed herself next to Katerina, with Angelo directly across from her and Johnathan to his right. It had the distinct feel of a sisters vs. brothers debate.

“I didn’t know you could cook,” Johnathan said, his fork pausing mid-air as he stared down at his plate. The look on his face said he half-expected Angelo to admit he’d ordered takeout and was just faking it.

“That’s exactly what I said the first time!” Allison chimed in, unable to hide the grin spreading across her face. “He made some amazing cacio e pepe, and I was simply… enchanted.”

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