Page 86 of Word to the Wise

“Yes,” Reed answers for me. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Zane.”

“You as well.” Her gaze darts between us. “And you and my son are…”

“Friends,” I say quickly before Reed feels the need to back herself into a corner by putting a label on us.

“Ah, yes.” Mom glances at where my hand is on Reed’s lower back. “Friends…”

It doesn’t really matter if we aren’t fooling anyone. I’m not ashamed of the fact that I want this girl to be everything to me. But I’m not going to force her to lie and say she wants the same, just for my parents’ sake.

“Let’s cut to the chase. I’ve got a party to get to.” Dad steps forward, swishing his scotch in his glass. “If you aren’t here to gather glowing quotes for your article, why are you in my town?”

His town.

I chuckle at the arrogance, and I hope Steel is able to make good on his threats.

Shaking my head, I decide to get straight to the point because neither of us wants me to be here. “You need to kill the deal with Carter.”

He’s the one smiling now. “And what makes you think I’d do that?”

“He’s bankrupt—for one. The only thing keeping him afloat is this deal. He’s borrowing on debts to cover his investment. And he’s not good for the cash. Which means he has no liquidity if something goes wrong.”

Dad smirks. “I respect you trying to appeal to my business savvy, son. Pretending you give a shit about how I run my company. But you’re not telling me anything I don’t know.”

“Then why the fuck are you doing this?”

His eyes gleam with his amusement, and I realize what I should have from the start. Carter isn’t pulling one over on my father. Richard Zane is too smart for that.

“I have the cash—more than enough. I don’t need Carter for his investment.” Dad walks over to the window, looking out at the Strip. “But I’m still finding my legs in San Francisco. I don’t have the same connections there that I’ve built here.”

“You mean grandfather’s connections.”

He shrugs, not looking at me. “Carter is a face. He knows the right people. He’s only an investor because I gave him the capital. Small price to pay to expand my operations. And he’ll come out of this with sufficient funds to pay me back and settle his obligations.”

At that, he glances at Reed.

“Carter’s a determined man.” Dad walks over to us, not taking his eyes off her. “A bit impulsive and reckless for my taste, but he gets what he wants. That’s why I chose him.”

“Why are you telling me that?” Reed clutches me tighter the closer my father gets to us.

“I’m not telling you.” Dad’s gaze moves to me. “I’m telling Mason.”

He swishes his drink, the ice clinking loudly in the silence of the room.

“Come back to Vegas and take the spot you were supposed to. We could build the empire we talked about when you were younger. You can even bring your girl with you.” He glances down at Reed. “Or… stay in LA. Refuse my help, and I’ll build that empire with anotherman who wants her. You really think you can win that battle?”

“I’m not property,” Reed grits out.

“No. Unfortunately.” Dad grimaces. “But Carter is a determined man. And once this deal is done, a more powerful one at that. He knows what he wants, and he’s willing to do what it takes to get it.”

My blood pressure peaks at the thought of Carter coming after Reed.

“Kill the deal, or I’ll go to the cops with what really happened to Gabe,” I threaten. “We both know what you did to bury the truth.”

“You’re not that stupid.” Dad huffs. “You’d go to jail.”

“So would you.”

“Mason.” Reed squeezes my hand, and I feel her eyes on me. “There are other ways.”

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