Page 74 of Getting Lucky

“I take it your father’s not coming,” River said as he shut the door.

Lee looked reluctant to move, as though he wanted to stick close to the front door in case he changed his mind and wanted to make a quick retreat. “No. He had some work to do this afternoon, and he’s having dinner tonight with that eccentric woman from the will reading. Dottie Hendrickson.”

“Dottie’s my great-aunt,” River said with a hint of warning.

Lee’s eyes widened slightly. “Oh. Yeah. Sorry. Didn’t mean anything by it. Half the people in Asheville are eccentric.”

He shot a glance at Finn and Jack again, then back to River.

They all stood in silence for a few seconds before Finn gestured to the tub of drinks in the kitchen with his free hand. “We’ve got some beer here. Buchanan and Big Catch. Big Catch is the brewery River and I used to run.” He gave Lee a questioning look. “Have you tried any of the Buchanan brews yet?”

Lee’s shoulders tensed. “No.”

“Hey,” Finn said, looking over at River. “We should set up a flight for him. Like you did for Georgie the night of the will reading.”

Lee’s body stiffened even more as he swung his attention to River. “So that’s how you got my sister to change her mind about selling the brewery? You got her drunk and seduced her?”

“Are you kidding me?” River said. He didn’t raise his voice, but he didn’t need to. He emanated silent rage. “I wouldnevertake advantage of Georgie that way!”

“So you’re claiming you didn’t get her drunk?”

Picking up on the tension in the room, Tyrion swiveled his gaze back and forth from River to Lee, then moved closer to Jack, pressing against his leg.

“I was there that night,” Jack said, hating to get into the middle of this but feeling the need to set the record straight. “I wasn’t there for the whole thing—I showed up after the flight—but Georgie wasn’t drunk when I arrived. She was totally lucid when we discussed keeping the brewery.”

“Like I should take your word for it,” Lee sneered. “You got your way too.”

“Now, everybody take a breath,” Finn said in a tone a preschool teacher would take with two kids fighting over a toy. “I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”

Lee’s eyes glittered with anger, and River looked like he was ready to deck him.

Jack was tempted to take his half-brother outside and beat him up himself.

“Maybe you all need to clear the air,” Finn said, standing in the middle of the room. “Obviously, there are some perceived wrongs, and Riverismarrying your sister, Lee. I think it’s safe to say we all care about Georgie and want her to be happy.”

Lee didn’t argue. Then again, he and Finn got along, apparently. Jack was pretty sure the six figures in Finn’s bank account had something to do with it. And while he liked Finn too, he couldn’t be anything but disgusted by Lee’s snobbery.

“How about that drink first?” Finn said with a half grin.

“Got any whiskey?” Lee said with an air of challenge.

“Your choice is beer or water,” Finn said. Then his eyes lit up with amusement. “Or the spiked lemonade Addy made last night.”

With the amount of testosterone oozing out of Lee, Jack wasn’t surprised he skipped the hard lemonade and went with beer. Nor was he surprised when he picked a Big Catch brew.

Finn had them all sit down in the living room while he dragged a kitchen chair in front of the fireplace like a mediator or an emcee. Lee sat in an armchair, and River and Jack sat on the sofa. Tyrion lay at Jack’s feet, as though giving him moral support.

“Lee,” Finn said in a firm tone. “It’s obvious you think River has taken advantage of your sister, but I’ve gotten to know Georgie better, and she’s not the type of woman who is easily duped. Am I right?”

Lee took a long pull from his bottle, then slowly lowered it and kept his gaze on his hand. “No. She’s not.”

“River,” Finn said, turning to his friend. “I’m sure you can see how Lee might have gotten the wrong impression. He found out that you would get ownership of Buchanan if it doesn’t place fifth or better in Brewfest, not to mention his sister put a ton of her own money into the brewery to bring it up to speed.”

“She didwhat?” Lee barked, his face flushing.

Finn grimaced. “He didn’t know?”

“He knew,” River said in a short tone, then turned his attention to Lee. “Georgie told you. You just didn’t listen.”

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