Page 20 of Any Luck at All

He nodded, his back as stiff as it had been that afternoon at the attorney’s office. “I figured we should discuss this tonight…before the noon deadline tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” she said, taking a step back. “Come on in.”

He glanced around the entryway and living room as he crossed the threshold, taking it all in.

“This is Grandpa Beau’s place…obviously,” she added, feeling foolish, but the alcohol had weakened her filter. “We figured you should see it before we make our decision.”

Surprise filled his eyes. “The others are here?”

It took her a second to grasp what he meant. “No,” she said, shaking her head a little too vigorously, to the point where she had to catch herself to keep from falling over. “Just River.”

He looked puzzled. Then understanding washed over his face. “The guy at the will reading. I didn’t realize you two knew each other.”

“We don’t. Didn’t,” she said, then scrunched her eyes shut and slowly opened them. “Sorry. It would seem I’ve had a few too many beer samples. We didn’t know each other, but we do now.” She gestured toward the entryway to the kitchen. “Why don’t you come this way and we can talk.”

He headed into the kitchen without comment, walking several feet into the room to give her space to enter.

Jack held out his hand to River, who was closing the first aid box. “We didn’t get formally introduced earlier. I’m Jack Durand.”

River stood and clasped his hand. “River Reeves. Things got a little crazy this afternoon.” He glanced at Georgie, as though cueing her to take over.

It took her a second to catch on to what he was doing. Then she broke into a too-big smile. “Jack. Why don’t you sit down?” She gestured to the table. “We’ve been sampling beers.”

Jack took in the multiple beer bottles and empty glasses. “I can see that.”

He probably thought she was a lush. “I’m not much of a beer person, and River thought it would be a good idea to introduce me to the world of…”

“Beer?” he finished, his lips quirking into the hint of a smile.

“Yeah.”

“I had a couple at Buchanan,” he said. “I guess you could say I was sampling them myself. Getting a feel for our grandfather’s place.”

That made her feel a little better as she crossed to the sink and reached for a glass to get some water, but River stood and moved behind her, resting a hand lightly on her hip. An electric buzz shot through her, stealing her breath.

“I’ll get you some water,” he said in a low tone that didn’t help the buzzing. “Why don’t you sit with Jack and talk?”

“Yeah…thanks.” She whirled away from him, nearly toppling over again, but River grabbed her elbow and held her steady.

“You okay?”

She was fully aware of every pressure point of his fingers and thumb, and also the fact that she was definitely drunker than she’d realized. She’d lost control of herself. And Georgie wasalwayscompletely in control. This was not acceptable.

Slowly pulling away from him, she sat in a chair opposite Jack, who was studying her every move.

Talk about a poor first impression. No, poor second impression.

“So,” Jack said, taking the lead, “you said you were considering keeping the brewery. Does the fact that you’re sampling all this beer mean that you’re still leaning in that direction?”

“Yeah,” she said, resting her hand on the table. River set a glass of water in front of her, and she picked it up and took a long sip. When she finished, she said, “I suspect that Grandpa Beau changed his will after I came to see him. I think he asked me here because he was already considering it. He really wanted to keep the brewery in the family, and for whatever reason, he decided not to give it to our father. He probably knew Dad would sell it.”

That felt strange, sayingour father. She couldn’t help wondering if it was weird for him to hear it, but it seemed inappropriate to ask.

“And I get the impression Beau didn’t like Prescott and vice versa,” Jack said.

“That’s an understatement,” Georgie said. “I’m not sure why they had a falling-out, but whatever the reason, we didn’t see much of him when we were growing up.”

“Prescott or Beau?” Jack asked with a snide look.

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