Page 62 of Summoning my Grumpy Demon Boss

I shake my head. “No, thanks. Just water for me.” Something tells me it’s just another move calculated to make me feel inadequate. Besides, I get the feeling I need to keep a clear head.

The waiter leaves and Stephen Sinclair swirls the whisky in his class, making the ice cubes clink against the side. Then hesighs. “I hate to have to do this, Mr Wilson. But I’m afraid I’ve got some unpleasant news.”

“OK.”

He fixes me with a sympathetic look from across the small table. “Your family owns the Inlet Views in Kraken Cove, is that correct?”

I nod as a prickle of heat sizzles up my spine. I don’t like where this is going already.

He takes a sip of whisky, leaving me in suspense a moment longer, and I wonder if this is all a calculated dance. “I know you and my daughter Mia have been...spending a lot of time together. So I felt I should bring something to your attention.”

“Right.” I’m still watching him, waiting for the moment he hits me with his trump card.

“I’ve had a client approach me about taking on a case. Mia’s told you I run Sinclair Law?”

I nod. Where’s that water? My throat is suddenly parched. The waiter is nowhere to be seen.

“Unfortunately, it seems like an ex-employee of your folks has some complaints to make about an unfair dismissal, and in the process, they’ve raised some concerns with me that I must say I take very seriously.”

“What concerns?” My hand clenches into a fist on the table and I stare at him. What ex-employee? I rack my brains trying to think of anyone who might have been fired or let go recently, but come up with nothing.

Mr Sinclair sits back in his chair with a shrug. “I’m afraid I can’t disclose the specific nature of the concerns yet, due to client confidentiality, but I can say that this is something I could make disappear. It might take a settlement out of court.I’m not certain yet, but I could certainly make the process much less painful for your parents.”

He swirls the whisky again, not looking at me.

“These sorts of civil cases can be lengthy and unpleasant for everyone involved. Ongoing hearings, legal fees. I’m sure you can see why it would be best if you let me handle this for you.”

“OK,” I say again, brushing sweaty palms down my thighs under the table. “What’s the catch?”

“Ah.” Mr Sinclair takes the last sip of his whisky and places the glass on the table with a little clink. “So you’re not as dumb as you look. All to the good. I can help your parents make this go away if you agree to two conditions: firstly Mia never finds out we had this conversation. I’m sure you wouldn’t want to upset her, and that’s always my primary goal. Secondly, you disappear from her life. I don’t care what excuse you make. I’ll come up with one for you if you can’t think of one. But you go back to Kraken Cove, and you never contact her again. Have you got any questions?”

I stare at him across the table. Is Mia’s father really this much of an asshole? “Yeah.” I get up, not bothering to tuck in my stool. “Exactly how soon after we met the other day did you start making phone calls to make this case happen?”

I don’t even wait for him to answer. He’s not going to anyway. I walk out of the bar and halfway down the street before the hot prickle along my spine becomes a flaming inferno covering my skin.

I pull off my hoodie and stop at a corner, bracing against the wall for a sickening moment. Have I just doomed my parents to an ongoing legal battle that will cost them the Inlet Views? That could bankrupt them?

Things have been tight lately as it is. Bookings have been down and tourism still hasn’t recovered from the upheaval of the last few years.

The thought of giving up the one thing I’ve wanted for as long as I can remember kills me, though. When I’ve finally got her. When, even now, she’s waiting in bed for me.

“Fuck!” I slam my open palm against the brick wall and instantly regret it. At the sting, I suck in a breath and curse again.

What the fuck am I meant to do here? And do I tell Mia? This is the last thing she needs right now.

TWENTY FIVE

Mia

I know something’s up the moment Luke finally gets back. Tegan went out for drinks with a work friend of hers, and she told me she’s not planning on coming home until late, so it’s not her.

For starters, when he comes into the apartment, he doesn’t come to bed. I listen to the soft sound of the door opening and closing. The water runs and a few noises come from the bathroom and I wait for ages, but he still doesn’t come into the room.

I’m not asleep. I went to bed early, but I haven’t been able to get to sleep yet. I reach out and find my phone on the floor to check the time. Ten thirty.

Slipping out of bed, I pad out to the living room, but he’s not there. I find him in the bathroom, leaning on the counter. When he hears me, he looks around. “Hey. Sorry. Did I wake you, baby?”

I shake my head. “No, I just came to make sure you’re OK.”

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