Page 13 of Rowdy and Willing

He’s red with anger, and spits tobacco on the ground. “Figures you don’t want this bad enough. Thanks for wasting my time. Never call me again. Get out of my garage.”

Bob is trembling with anger, and I’m honestly right there with him. A few more words and I’d be throwing fists at that asshole too, but I guess I’m better at keeping my anger hidden.

We carry our things back out to the truck. Bob says, “I’m so sorry, sweetie.”

“For what?” Windy says as she closes the hatch.

“That I brought you here to be preyed upon like that. I should have known better.”

“He’s done it before. Usually when you weren’t looking.”

“What, really?”

“First time we went to meet him, he cornered me and threw cheesy pick-up lines at me. Asked me if I wanted to help my dad. I was fifteen at the time.”

Bob slams his fist into the truck. He starts marching toward the garage again, this time clearly ready to do some violence.

My level-headed ass grabs him by the arm. “I’d help you go thrash him but I don’t think that’s going to do us any good. Forget him. Move on. Let’s find another way to make this successful.”

Windy shakes her head and smiles. “I guess I’m grateful you’re both willing to go and kick his ass for me, but yeah, I’d rather forget about him and move on.”

Bob paces. “How? I don’t know of any other investors who would be willing to hear us out.”

“Let’s try Anchor Malone,” Windy says.

I raise an eyebrow. “Lemon’s husband?”

“Fig said he’d hear us out if this didn’t turn out well for us. And I’d say that meeting definitely didn’t turn out well for us.”

I nod along. “He’s loaded. And if he’s married to a Rough, there’s no way he’s a dickhead like Lou. I don’t think Rye and the other brothers would stand for someone mistreating their sister.”

Bob lets out a sigh of relief. “So there’s still hope for my sweetie’s idea?”

“I think so, Dad.”

“I guess I’ll do the honors and make the call,” I say. “I got the family connection after all.”

We climb into the truck, and pull away from Lou Griffin’s garage. Bob’s still broken up about it. “I should have never put you in harm’s way like that, Windy. I had no idea.”

“Don’t worry about it, Dad. I know you care. I know you try. You’ve done the best that a single dad can do. I love you.”

I smile. Windy’s blessed to have such an earnest, caring man in her life already.

I don’t think she’d turn down another, though.

8

WINDY

Inever expected to have to show off an invention of mine. Fancying myself as an inventor isn’t something I’ve ever done before.

But I definitely didn’t expect it to come off like this.

Our presentation is at the Rough patriarchal house, and we’re surrounded by the Rough and Rowdy families and all of their spouses. It feels like more a family getting together than a professional business presentation, but I guess that’s just how this family rolls.

We had a big family dinner, along a massive table with plenty of seats. It’s not Thanksgiving or Christmas, just a get-together for this purpose. As someone who basically grew up in a family of two, I have to say I’m a tad impressed by all of this.

Williams and I can’t help ourselves. We’ve been holding hands at the table, and we’re holding hands now. We’re waiting for Anchor to make his way out into the yard, and he’s pretty much what I expected. A handsome city-slicker businessman who looks slightly out of place surrounded by all these rural types.

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