Page 97 of Getting Lucky

Lee covered his face with his hand and groaned. “I don’t do this type of thing. Likeever.”

“Maybe that’s why you went so hardcore,” Jack said, unable to stop himself from grinning. “It was about time you let down your hair.” He gestured to Lee’s bedhead and made a face. “So to speak.”

Lee reached up to the top of his head and felt his hair, then rolled his eyes. Which brought on another groan.

“Lee,” Jack said, his stomach tight with anxiety. This could go one of two ways—the first, Lee could refuse to believe him, evidence be damned, and leave in a fury, possibly punching him on his way out. Or he might accept the situation as it was without argument. Unfortunately, Jack didn’t know him well enough to guess which scenario was more likely. He’d considered calling Addy and letting her know what he and Maisie had discovered, but Dottie had asked him and Maisie to be there last night, not Jack and his sisters, and that had to mean something.

Lee’s face lifted, and the lost look in his eyes almost stopped Jack from continuing.

Almost.

“There are some things you should know,” Jack said. He’d struggled with where to start, ease his way in or go straight for the jugular? There was a very good chance Lee might storm out, so he’d decided to lead with the part that could possibly keep him out of prison and reveal the rest in descending order.

He told Lee about Dottie instructing Jack and Maisie to sit behind the plant wall separating the dining area from the bar on the other side. “Your dad—ourdad—has done some bad things, Lee. Both in the past and apparently in the present.”

Lee shook his head. “Look, I know he’s an asshole.”

“No, this is more than just him being an asshole. I’m talking illegal stuff.”

Lee’s face paled. “What do you mean?”

Jack told him about Dottie and Prescott’s discussion about Beau bailing him out decades ago because he’d committed fraud.

“With your mother?” Lee asked in disgust. “It was probably all her doing and he got caught up in it. Genevieve is a beautiful woman. I’m no fool. I know that’s his weakness. I can see him falling for it.”

Jack wasn’t sure what to be more astounded by—that Lee knew what his mother looked like, or that he was trying to excuse their father’s behavior.

“It wasn’t the only incident, Lee,” Jack said with a patience he didn’t feel. To his surprise, he didn’t feel vindictive or angry. Mostly he felt pity. “There were more occurrences. Sounds like Beau ended up giving him most of his money to keep him out of jail.”

Lee shook his head. “No. Beau hated Dad. Refused to give him any help at all. Dad had to do it all on his own, but he said it made him a better man.”

“Prescott Buchanan is a liar,” Jack said. “He’d be nowhere without Beau. He practically admitted it himself.”

“I’m supposed to just take your word for this?” Lee sneered. “How do I know this isn’t your way of getting back at me for treating you like shit last night?”

“That’s not my style, but I realize you don’t know me well enough to know that,” Jack said quietly. “You don’t need to take my word for it, though. We recorded the conversation.”

Lee went still. “Against my father’s knowledge? That’s illegal.”

“No,” Jack said, “North Carolina is a one-party consent state, which means only one person has to give consent, and Dottie asked Maisie to record it.” Maisie had looked it up this morning to be sure it was safe to mention.

Lee studied him for a long second, then snapped, “So where’s this recording?”

Jack pulled his phone out of his pocket and unlocked the screen. Maisie had shared it with him in the cloud, and he had the audio file queued up. “Before I play this, there are a couple of things you need to know. Your father’s in trouble again. Legal trouble, and you’re going to be caught up in it, and there’s something else—”

“Just play the damn tape!” Lee shouted.

“Your funeral,” Jack muttered, then hit play and set the phone on the table between them.

Parts of the file were hard to hear, but Prescott’s booming voice had helped ensure the message was conveyed.

Lee listened with a flat expression while Dottie and Prescott discussed River and Dottie’s relationship with Beau, but he perked up as the discussion turned to his family. He made a strange face when Prescott said that Lee was exactly like him. Flinched when Prescott admitted that mistakes had been made in connection with the fraud charges. Stiffened when Prescott and Dottie discussed Lee’s mother. But when Dottie said that Prescott was up to his old tricks again with a new young woman, Lee’s mouth dropped open in surprise.

“What woman?” he whispered, leaning closer to the phone.

There was silence and then Prescott’s denial. Next were Dottie’s fateful words, “Oh, Prescott. Don’t you see how far you’ve fallen if you think breaking your son’s heart is a lighter offense than cheating people out of money?”

Prescott answered, “According to the law it is.”

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