Page 95 of All Bets Are Off

“I need someone who can look, but I don’t have to worry about reporting back to my father.”

“If he’s not worried about it, why are you?”

“I can’t explain it. I feel as if there’s something off. Or, maybe it’s a test of some sort. Like he knows there’s something off and he wants to see what I’ll do about it.”

“If it was anybody else but your dad, I would say that’s unlikely. It does sound like something he would do.”

“The thing that bothers me is that Livvie can’t figure out exactly what’s going on either. She’s looking. She agrees there’s something off. She’s much smarter about this stuff than me, which means whatever it is, it’s buried.”

Rex nodded to encourage me to continue.

“If this was a trap by my father, would he make it this hard?” I asked. “I mean… I can see him sending me fake reports to see if I even notice something is going on. This is deeper than that, though.”

“Way deeper,” he agreed. “I can see your father trying to make it as hard as possible, though. He might get a kick out of it.”

“Yeah.” He wasn’t wrong. “It just feels off.”

“Well, let Livvie keep at it. She’s like a dog with a bone when it comes to this stuff. Eventually, though, you realize she is goingto want an actual job. She’s too independent. Just being married to you isn’t going to be enough for her.”

The rebuke—because that’s what it felt like—was a hard slap across the face, and I recoiled.

“Not like that, you big baby,” Rex chided. “I didn’t say you weren’t enough. She needs to keep her mind busy. Eventually, the dancers and clubs are going to settle. She’s going to figure out what’s going on with the books. When that’s done and you’ve actually talked about your feelings and decided to stay together, she’s going to want a job.”

My lips curved, a smile taking over when I didn’t know one was possible. “You think we’re going to stay together?”

“Oh, look at you.” Rex was disgusted. I honestly didn’t blame him. “You’re such a girl.”

“Hey!” I jabbed at him. “Your sister is a girl, and I happen to think she’s great.”

“You cannot get mushy with me about my sister. I can’t have it. I’ll cry if you get all swoony with her.”

“Swoony?”

“You know what I mean.” Rex was stern. “I didn’t see this happening. I wouldn’t have ever wished for it. I can kind of see it now, though.”

“And you’re shipping us now, aren’t you?” I teased. “I’ve been debating between CarStone and Zivvie.”

“Definitely Zivvie.”

“Right?” My smile faded after a minute. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

“I know.” Rex waved off my apology. “I get it. The thing is … it’s going to take me a bit to get used to this. You can’t grope my sister in front of me. I’ll have to kill you if you do.”

“I promise.” I grinned. “Just out of curiosity, though, did you know that she snores? It’s kind of cute.”

“Oh, see, you’re going to be a pain now. I’m going to have to kill you regardless.”

“I think you’re going to learn to love me again.”

“And I think you’re dreaming.”

“Care to place a wager on that?”

Rex smirked. “Well, it is Vegas.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought you would say.”

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