Page 29 of Desired

He rises, pats me on the shoulder, and says. “Anytime, son.”

“So her da is AWOL for years, and suddenly he sends her a fucking letter?” Jack Ford, here for a meeting, asks. Him, Dalton, and Chas Ford are meeting with us to discuss their latest project, and where their money is best to be going.

“I’m not sure if it’s been years, as Moira hasn’t given me specifics on that, but you get the point.”

Maverick cranes his neck back. “Twenty bucks says that if you check him right now, his pants are on fucking fire, man.”

Chas Ford high fives him. “Let me in on that one, dude.”

“Sounds to me like that dude plays with fire.” Ethan interjects. “If I was being held for murder and I found out my days were numbered, I’d just hang myself and get it the fuck over with. I wouldn’t be reaching out to my rich, long-lost daughter, man.”

Maverick scoffs. “Yeah, fifty bucks says that he’s going to ask her for money to pay for his funeral...like five million or so...that should cover it, right?” He teases, tilting his hand from side to side.

I raise a hand. “Okay, guys, let’s just pipe down here. What happens if the motherfucker is telling the truth?”

Ethan frowns. “Then he gets his just desserts, man. He fucked over everyone in his life, including his loving daughter, he killed someone, and now he gets the sweet release of death? If you ask me, he’s getting off easy.”

“Yeah, that dude should be left in a fucking room with rabid dogs for what he did. Chances are, if he’s got terminal cancer, he’s going to get all the best painkillers, courtesy of taxpayers’ money, and he’s going to go out having served a minimum for his crimes.”

“Your guys are checking him out, right?” Chas checks.

“Definitely. I won’t see Moira suffer for this shit. She deserves better.”

“Good. You mean, she didn’t hop on a plane to go see him straight up.” Dalton confirms.

“No. She wasn’t born yesterday. Moira is a doctor. She’s got more brains than I’ll ever fucking have, that’s for sure.”

“Yeah, and how is she going to feel if you find out that her da’s still a crook, man?” Jack asks. “She’s going to fucking hate you, dude.” He chuckles mirthlessly.

Dalton turns on his swivel chair and interjects. “I disagree. If I found out some shit about someone trying to snow me over, I wouldn’t care who it was from. I’d just be grateful that I didn’t get snowed over and that someone saved my ass.”

“It’s different when it’s a lass, dude. Plus, he’s already been sniffing around her business.” Maverick states.

“Aye, thanks to you, asshole.” I seethe, only half joking.

“Hey, I did you a favor, man, and don’t deny it.”

“Don’t be so fast to pat yourself on the back, brother. Be thankful that Moira’s a level-headed lass. If she’d been any less, you would have fried for that.”

He shrugs. “Hey, that Gill Rogers dude is something else, huh.” Maverick says, changing the subject.

“I wasn’t surprised by that.” Chas says, shaking his head. “Old guys are like that. Colton’s neighbor, man, he’d lay anyone on the floor if they asked for it.”

“Aye, didn’t he kill Julia’s ex-fiancé?”

Dalton nods emphatically. “Shot him dead, right in the goddamn kitchen.”

“Yep. Old people are the original ‘fuck around and find out’ folks.” Jack adds. “My old man sent us all to the military so that we wouldn’t fuck around and look where we’re at.”

Maverick interjects. “Our dawasthe fucking military. Dougall Harris can take on any goddamn drill sergeant…with one hand tied behind his back, too.”

I worry that the boys may take offence to that comment, but then they chuckle, and I’m glad. While it is quite clear that Dougall Harris is not exactly the warm and fuzzy type, I'm certain that living under his roof is nothing compared to being on the front lines.

Jack circles back to the discussion regarding Moira. “So, are you going to be straight up with her, and tell her if you find out that her dad is still a fraud? Or are you going to let her go see him and figure it out for herself?”

“I'm not really sure yet, to be honest. I guess it depends on what the truth really is here. Something tells me that Moira is smart enough and she'll figure it out herself.”

“You're forgetting that she is a doctor, dude. Chances are, if he is really as sick as he says he is, it's going to be as obvious to her as the nose on my face.”

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