Page 37 of Ruthless Temptation

It was clearly a passing phase, but he’d been wrong.

The thing was that his father had no authority or influence over his life decisions, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t irritating as fuck.

Let’s face it, Miss Sweet Home Alabama was not the type of girl Aidan was interested in.

Submissive? Yes.

But he liked them sweet in the kitchen and dirty in the sheets.

The women his father was referring to were after his bank account and surname. That wasn’t to say he thought all rich women, or even trust fund babies, were unattractive. He’d fucked a good number of them.

But marry one of them?

Not unless they got on their knees and purred outsir.

He wondered if Logan had been given the tenth degree when he announced his engagement to Emma. Aidan wasn’t privy to any private conversations between his brother and their parents.

He was close to Logan, but since falling for Emma, his brother had changed. Not in a bad way. Logan was simply protective of his soon-to-be wife, and Aidan respected that.

A few weeks after their engagement party, at a family dinner, Andrew had invited him into the library for a chat.

They had some investments together, so it hadn’t occurred to him this might be about his love life. Especially with Emma now in the family. Aidan had truly thought the insane phase was over.

Wrong.

“Your mother wants you to take Diane Winslow on a date,” Andrew announced, pouring two fingers of Macallan into a crystal glass.

Aidan had laughed. “I’m sorry, what?”

His father had handed him a glass with a pointed look. “You heard. This Thursday there’s a fundraiser. Give her a call and tell her you will pick her up.”

Aidan had taken a long draw on the expensive whisky and then placed it on the polished oak table between the two leather chairs they were sitting on.

He kicked out his legs and crossed his ankles.

“I’m not going to do that for two reasons. One, Diane will get the wrong message and that’s not fair to her. Two, I’m going to be in Seattle for a meeting that evening.”

And three he didn’t need anyone arranging dates for him. Especially not with society women who wore plaid and had no career prospects other than being his wife.

“Aidan—”

He stood. “If you have any business to discuss, tell me, otherwise I am leaving.”

Andrew had scowled at him and tossed back his whisky. “I saw you with that girl at Logan and Emma’s engagement party.”

“I wasn’t with any girl,” he’d snapped, becoming angry that his father was about to comment on Lily.

“I saw the look in your eyes. I was a young man once. I know what it means,” his father said.

Aidan laughed. “I want to fuck her. So what? That’s none of your business.”

“Fuck her if you want, privately, but the girl is going to be in Hawaii at Logan’s wedding. She no doubt has aspirations to the Dufort name. I want you to start dating appropriate women and choose someone to settle down with. But do not lead her on. And do not fucking marry her.”

Aidan shook his head.

Jesus Christ. He’d had his hand inside her panties and his father thought they were going to plan a life together.

Was this nineteen fucking sixty-five?

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