Page 37 of High Value Target

It was past sunset, and the family was due to come down to leave for the Ice Ball soon.

Grady waited outside by the limo. “When do you think they’ll come down?”

Reggie looked at his watch. “Not for a good long while yet. Maria told me she heard Mr. Pace and his brother were coming over for cocktails before they all left together.”

“How long have you worked for the Wyatts?”

“Going on six years this Christmas.”

“You like it here?”

“Sure. Mr. JD’s always been good to me, and I usually get a big bonus at the end of the year. The work’s not too hard. I just maintain the vehicle and do a lot of waiting around. But that’s okay. I get to play games on my phone and get paid for it. Can’t beat that, huh?”

Grady chuckled. “Guess not.”

Palmer pulled up in a black Audi R8. He climbed out dressed in a tux complete with cufflinks and studs, his shoes gleaming like patent leather. His brother climbed out the passenger side.

Palmer glanced over at Grady before they headed inside. “Make sure no one touches my car.”

“I’m not his damn valet,” Grady grumbled, his jaw tightening.

Reggie chuckled. “That man sure is somethin’.”

“He’s a jackass.” Grady straightened his cuffs. JD had called him into his office this afternoon and offered him the use of one of his son’s tuxes. Together they’d found one suitable, but Grady felt out of place in it as he stood by the limo. This wasn’t a world he either fit in, nor desired.

Give him a wood burning fire, a braided rug, and a comfy sofa, and he’d be happy. He sure as hell didn’t need the fancy cars and all the rest. Not if it came with dealing with the kind of cut-throat, back-stabbing people he’d observed. Ones who smiled to your face, then whispered behind their bourbon and branch what they really thought of you.

“Those two always are together, aren’t they?” Grady mused aloud, watching the men disappear inside.

“Yes, sir. Been that way since I started working for Mr. JD. Back then, Miss Tinsley was in high school. They were all in the group that hung around together. There were about a dozen or so. They called themselves the Brat Pack after that movie.”

“Right. What do you think of the Pace brothers?”

“Ain’t my business to think one way or t’other. I just drive.”

“You ever hear any gossip?”

“Sure. I hear lots of gossip.”

“About the Pace family, I mean.”

“Well, those boys are competitive, and they’ve had their share of fights. There’s a third brother, you know.”

“A third? Where’s he?”

Reggie shrugged. “Not my business. But I will tell you, I heard Perry went to California with a bunch of money from his father. Gonna start a business or something. Heard he lost every damn penny. Heard that’s why he’s back in town.”

Finally, the Wyatt’s emerged, the ladies in their glittering ball gowns and the men in their formal wear.

Tinsley looked lovely in a sparkling pale blue and rhinestone gown.

Tinsley and her parents, along with the Pace brothers, all climbed into the limo. Once they were seated, Grady gave a hand signal to the team in the car behind them, then he slipped inside the limo. The ride to the event location was unusually quiet, almost as if some tense words had been spoken inside before they came out.

Seriously, no one was speaking. He scanned one face after another. JD stared out one window and Loretta another. Tinsley toyed with the beads on her clutch, and Palmer scrolled through his phone. Perry seemed to be the only one in a good mood, whistling a soft tune under his breath.

Grady shifted in his seat. It was going to be a long ride into downtown Dallas.

Once they reached the hotel and everyone was inside the building, it ran like a well-oiled machine. The event was in the grand ballroom on the second floor, up a sweeping staircase.

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