Page 11 of Bet On Me, Daddy

From the corner of his eye, he spotted Braden approaching their table. Now it was a different kind of hunger clawing at him as Braden greeted them looking suspiciously smug. “Gentlemen. Mind if I join you?”

“Sure.” Ice slid over, making space for Braden beside him. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

Braden’s pale eyes sparkled with amusement when he met Beckett’s gaze. “Ruby came to see me a little while ago.”

“Did she?” Excitement buzzed along Beckett’s skin, chasing away the exhaustion that had plagued him all afternoon.

“Mmhmm. She wanted to come clean about helping Lottie hide from me after the…incidentlast night.” Tilting his head to the side, Braden’s gaze roamed Beckett’s face, seemingly searching for something. “She tells me you offered to discipline her in my stead.”

“I did. I’m glad to hear she came clean.”

“Wait.” A smile tugged at the corner of Ice’s mouth as he looked from Beckett to Braden and back again. “He finally made a move on pretty little Ruby?”

“I did not make a move. I simply… offered her absolution.”

“Yeah, just call you Father Beckett,” Ice said with a snort. “That’s a move and you damn well know it. And it’s about time.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

The two men across from him shared a look, and Ice shrugged. “It means we’ve all been watching you flirt and dance around your feelings for her for weeks now.”

Irritation crawled up Beckett’s spine. “I don’t have feelings. It’s just a scene.”

Before he could argue the point further, Holden strode up to the table, his dark gaze zeroing in on Beckett. “We need to talk.”

The hairs on the back of Beckett’s neck stood on end. “About?”

“Your girl. Ruby. You have a scene planned with her tonight?”

“She’s not my girl, but yes, we have a scene planned.” Suddenly feeling wary, Beckett narrowed his eyes. “Why?”

Holden grinned, a toothy smile that would have looked somewhat intimidating on a normal man. But when the man in question was a Marine built like a goddamn brickhouse, it looked positively terrifying. “The girls have something of a bet going on, a bet that says Ruby can be such a brat during your scene you’ll never want to have anything to do with her again.”

“Is that so?” The familiar hum of a challenge buzzed along Beckett’s skin. So Ruby thought she could really shake him that easily?

Not a chance.

“It is so. But I need you to stick, no matter what she does.”

Curiosity piqued, Beckett tilted his head to the side. “Oh? And why is that?”

“Because she’s got Frankie convinced that if she brats hard enough, she’ll shake me. Which we all know is bullshit, but you’d be doing me a solid if you could help prove Ruby wrong. God knows Frankie gives me enough fucking heartburn as it is, she doesn’t need someone encouraging her to be an evenbiggerbrat. And maybe if you stick, it will finally convince her I’m serious when I say I’m not going anywhere.”

He would have done so without Holden asking, just to prove he could. And because he genuinely enjoyed putting bratty little girls in their place during a scene. But he couldn’t resist leaning back a bit, pretending to give it some thought. “I don’t know… what’s in it for me?”

“Finally getting your hands on Ruby isn’t enough?” Holden asked, raising a silver brow.

“That is, indeed, its own reward. But I never agree to a favor without negotiating something in return.”

“Thought you might say that, you bloodthirsty asshole.” But a knowing smile curved Holden’s lips. “I hear Preston Kingsley is asking around about a new investment firm.”

That had Beckett sitting up straight again, his heart practically beating out of his chest. “Don’t tell me you know Preston Kingsley.”

“As a matter of fact, I do. We were in the same fraternity together in college. Lost touch a bit when I was overseas, but when I came back he gave me some really great tips on getting my business started. And I’ve helped him out with some security threats over the years. I can’t guarantee a meet, but I would be happy to casually mention I’ve worked with Stone Investments and know the founder personally.”

The whole thing was ethically sketchy at best. But he would have taken the bait anyway, if for no other reason than to show naughty Ruby he wasn’t the kind of man who turned tail and ran just because a sub gave him a little attitude.

So it wasn’t really any worse now, just because he stood to gain from sticking things out a little longer. Right?

---