Page 99 of One Night

Kate leaned in and lifted an eyebrow. “They were bootlegging together. We also found a ledger that documented deliveries. Some of the names I still recognize—families that still live in Outtatowner—who were getting regular deliveries. Then something went ass up.” She thought for a moment. “But I find it very, very weirdly coincidental that Bootsy’s last name is Sinclair. It has to be related, right?”

A sick feeling settled in my stomach. “Sometimes my dad gives Bootsy money.” The women stared at me, urging me to continue. “Since I was little, he and Bowlegs would have these hushed, closed-door meetings with my dad, and once I was sneaking around and definitely saw an exchange of cash.”

“Hush money?” Lark asked, her eyes wide as we all leaned in.

Annie looked around our circle with anticipation. “What if... what if Bootsy is from the same Sinclair family as Helen. Records I found said she had a brother. What if when Helen and Philo got married, they wanted to get out of the bootlegging business because it was unsafe, like Mabel had mentioned. They were starting a family or something?”

“The timeline would be about right. Birth records show the two started a family pretty quickly after marriage.” Kate shook her head in disbelief. “If the bootlegging was profitable, two-thirds of the group pulling out would be very bad for business.”

I scoffed. “If James King was anything like my father, that would be enough to ignite a feud.”

“Could James have teamed up with Helen’s mystery brother?” Lark asked.

Annie shrugged. “It’s possible. Money makes people do strange and stupid things.”

Lark leaned back and put her hands by her head, gesturing like her brain was exploding. “This is wild. I can’t believe we figured it out!”

“We don’t know for sure,” Annie said, tucking her phone back into the pocket of her leggings, “but it seems to make sense.”

I stared at my hands. “Generations of greed and mistrust could have easily morphed into families feuding and, over time, completely forgetting why. All because my family was powered by anger and money.”

Kate reached out to me. When my eyes met hers, there wasn’t pity, only kindness. “And you’re healing it with love. There’s beauty in that.”

I sighed. “I don’t know that I’m healing much of anything. Sure, things aren’t quite so heated, but our families are far from friends.”

Annie gave me a smile that hinted at our blossoming friendship, and my heart pinched with hopeful longing. “We’re here.”

That ember of warmth glowed in my chest. Annie was right, theywerehere for no other reason than to build our budding friendship.

I relaxed and smiled at them. Those women at the Bluebird Book Club were slowly becoming more than friendly faces that I wasn’t allowed to talk to outside the bookstore walls. They were women who showed up for you when you needed them and who didn’t hold the sins of your father against you.

They were the kind of women I strived to be. “Thank you for coming. I feel better not having to be here alone after the night I had. I’ve got some lemonade in the fridge. How about a shitty rom-com and more snacks?”

Lark lifted her glass with a hoot. “Cheers to snacks!”

I pushed myself to stand, and a gush of wetness poured down my leg and onto the hardwood floor.

Oh fuck . . .

THIRTY-FIVE

DUKE

Kate

Please tell me you’re not too drunk. I sent an SOS out to the guys—YOU’RE ABOUT TO BE A DAD!

The words flashedacross my screen, and I was mid-laugh when I checked it. The rumble died in my chest, and my brain failed to comprehend my sister’s message. When my head whipped up, Lee was grinning like an idiot, Beckett was gathering our jackets, and Wyatt was pulling out his wallet.

Lee’s hand landed on my shoulder with a thud. “Party’s over. You’re going to be a dad, dude!”

Wyatt sauntered up, entirely too calm for my liking. “Lark called. Sylvie’s water broke while they were having girls’ night. They’re taking her to the hospital now. Annie stayed behind to clean up and make sure Ed was put to bed, but she’ll meet us up there. Let’s roll.”

Wyatt walked toward the door, but my feet were cemented in place. Beckett came up next to me. “Can’t just stand there, man. She needs you.”

She needs me. Sylvie needsme.

I swallowed hard and nodded. Thank fuck I’d had only two beers, because I absolutely was not expecting to welcome our child into the world today. My brothers had planned for a drink or two at the Grudge to publicly humiliate me withbar games, and then we’d settle in for the night for a beachside bonfire at Beckett’s beach house.

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