Page 8 of Tessa's Trust

“Yeah. You think you can?”

“A challenge? Oh, baby, if I wanted to charm you, your socks would be off,” he retorted instantly.

I chuckled. That was one thing about Nick. He was quick with a comeback. He was probably amazing in court.

“What are you doing on this side of the pass anyway?” I asked.

“It’s the day after Christmas,” he said. “I went snowmobiling with my brothers and returned to the family home just in time to catch my grandmother’s call. You know, about her flat tire.”

“Oh, that. I’ve heard there’s a flat tire bandit going around town,” I murmured. “They must have gotten Gerty.”

Nick just watched me, reminding me of a hawk about to dive hard on scurrying prey. “Are you still mad at me?”

I swallowed. While I understood he’d only been doing his job, the guy had issued my arrest warrant, probably instinctively knowing I didn’t do it. “Yes.”

“Can’t blame you.” Man, his voice was smooth. Like good whiskey poured over ice. “But I had a job to do, and I knew your lawyer would take care of you. I couldn’t appear to give you favoritism.”

I didn’t want to be fair about that, but I did understand. Plus, my sister had informed me that Nick had also worked behind the scenes, around the clock, to find out who had really killed my ex. I had a feeling he’d wanted the killer to be Aiden Devlin, my sister’s beau. Apparently, Nick was still irritated that Aiden had hidden his affiliation with the ATF while undercover. “I don’t want to talk about old news,” I finally said.

“Fair enough. Why are you in town?”

I lost my smile and reached for my prosecco again. I was proud of what I’d accomplished, but even so, my voice softened just a little when I spoke. “I bought Silver Sadie’s.” Then I looked down at my glass.

He was quiet for a moment. “Wow.”

I looked up. “Would you care to expound on that statement?”

“That’s impressive,” he said. “People have been trying to get Sadie to sell for years.”

“It took me months,” I admitted. “We’ve been negotiating for quite a while.” I gestured down the line of tables toward Bobbo. “Hence date number one.”

Nick’s grin reached his eyes. “You have to go on more dates with Bobbo?”

“Oh, no. Just one with Bobbo, but then his other two brothers, as well.”

The look of amusement slid out of Nick’s eyes. “You’re not going on a date with Eddie.”

Eddie was the middle great-nephew, and I didn’t know much about him.

“I am. It’s in the contract,” I said.

Nick leaned forward, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “Your sister let you sign a contract that forces you to go on a date with Eddie Brando?”

I reared up, and even my ears heated. “My sister didn’t let me do anything. I read the contract. I understood it. I was happy with it, and I signed it.”

Nick’s chin lowered. “You are not going on a date with Eddie Brando.”

“Listen, Nick,” I said, “I’m sure you’re used to being all bossy with everybody in your office, but I’m not in your world. I don’t work for you, and you’re not going to tell me what to do.”

Pretty much nothing in the world could have stopped me from going on a date with Eddie Brando at that point.

“You’re as unreasonable as your sister,” he muttered.

“Don’t you talk about my sister like that.” Heat raced through my veins.

True, Anna had made some miscalculations when working for Nick that had ended with her getting fired, but she was happier than happy could be owning her own law firm. “She was the best lawyer you’ve ever had in your office.”

“Yeah, she was,” he said quietly. “And she let her personal life cloud her judgment.”

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