Page 35 of The Bourbon Bargain

“You have something to say, old man?”

“Everyone’s going to be on the roads traveling because of the holidays. It’s going to take us hours to drive to Savannah.”

“You have a jet, Dad, use it.”

“Too much trouble,” he mutters.

“Dammit, Thatcher, I deserve to be treated to a jet ride every now and again, don’t I? Why’d I marry you all them years ago, raise three of your sons, and be a widow to your work for so long if not to have the chance to be treated like a rich bitch when I want it?”

“If that’s what you want, then we’ll do it,” he agrees hurriedly, pacifying Mom’s legendary temper.

I laugh. “That’s the way to get what you’re after, Mom.”

“Well, I’m tickled pink to be meeting your sweetheart after all. Where is this shindig happening, exactly?”

“We will have a small ceremony for family and close friends at the Elysium Garden on top of my nightclub. The reception will be at Paige’s family’s ancestral home called The Mansion. It’s a hotel and I can get you rooms there if you want. They have a ballroom I think the Fairchilds will be using, since it’s large enough for what they’re planning.”

“Look at you, fancy pants! You have a nightclub with a garden on it? How come you never told us about that?” Mom asks.

“I don’t have it connected to Olympus at all, it’s a pet project for me. Would you like to know about the pizzeria I invested in, or the drift racing team I’m working on sponsoring next year, also? That’s another pet project. Or, hmm, I did just give a liquor company to Paige as a wedding present, but it was also a project of mine,” I say, listing off some of my ventures.

“Oh, stop it, you smart ass, you’ve made your point,” Dad grumbles. “I like how you’ve diversified, that’s good at the very least.”

“I learned from the best,” I say, giving him the compliment he deserves.

“Back to this Paige girl, tell us about her!” Mom demands.

I run a hand through my hair and pull, thinking of how best to describe the whirlwind that is Paige. She’s so much more than I even imagined when she first walked into my life. She’s disarming, sweet, and her softness is something I would die to protect to keep her from growing hard with the world.

“Paige is… She’s as warm as summer sunshine and as comforting as a coastal breeze. She’s kindness personified. She has the biggest heart, and it even extends to people who are undeserving of her grace,” I say, thinking of her willingness to forgive her parents and make amends with them when I would have written off closer people for less. “She’s making me think of others, instead of just myself, and she makes me want to be a better man. Someone deserving of her.” I’m rambling, but when I thought of how to explain Paige to my parents, there was no shortage of things to say.

“He sounds pussy-whipped,” Mom says to Dad, like I can’t hear their side of the conversation.

“That is one way to put it,” I agree, letting them know I’m still here. I’ll take the slight, because it’s not wrong. I worship Paige’s pussy.

“Please tell me you got a prenup before you jetted off to Vegas to make it official,” Dad says, ever the businessman.

Ah, there it is. “Paige is independently wealthy, Dad. She’s set to inherit quite a lot from her own family. She’s not after my money.”

“That’s a no, then,” he says. “You can still get a document drawn up to set some things in place. Thank God, Georgia isn’t a community property state, at the very least. It’s not just about protecting your assets, maybe she needs protecting from you, if she has her own money.”

“We’ll be fine without one. If she decides to leave me one day, she might as well take half, because I’ll have fucked it up myself and sent her running. She’ll more than deserve it.”

“Oh, our boy’s lovestruck for sure,” Mom says, but the tone isn’t as playful as the words sound. Rula Mae Olsen is a conservative, practical woman through and through. “Just think about it a bit, Hayes. We don’t want to see some messy thing between you two in the future.”

“How about we talk about this wedding that is coming up, instead?” I ask, moving the topic back where it belongs.

“If you provide the details, we’ll show up.”

“With bells on!” Mom adds.

“Fine. I’ll send you an itinerary with your lodging information. Just be here by Friday and you won’t miss a thing.”

“Your brothers will be your groomsmen, right?” Mom asks. “Which one did you ask to be your best man?”

I hadn’t thought that far, actually. Despite working closely with them, I wouldn’t call either of my brothers my best friends. Zander drives me crazy, and Payton stirs the pot, egging us both on. I don’t know if either is trustworthy enough to put in that position, but it makes sense I would. “I haven’t decided yet.”

“If you’re having a wedding next week, you better get on that soon, son.”

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