One for the Money

He looks at me with a blank expression. “Who are you?”

I offer him a smile. “I’m Eva Morelli. A friend of your son’s.”

“Morelli,” he mutters, his eyes growing vague as he searches his memory.

“I think you’ve met my father,” I offer. “Bryant Morelli.”

Awareness sharpens in those light brown eyes, and for a second I have a glimpse of how Daniel Hughes must have looked during his prime. “Yes, Bryant. A bastard through and through.”

“Dad,” Finn says, his voice sharp.

“Don’t worry,” I say with a small laugh. “Even he wouldn’t deny it.”

“Shame about that sister of his.”

Sorrow washes over me. My aunt Gwen was the only girl with a bunch of competitive, arrogant brothers. They grew up strict Catholics, and when Gwen rebelled she was cast out. She ended up dying when I was very young. “I wish I’d gotten to meet her.”

“You look like her,” he says. “Beautiful.”

The words make my chest feel tight. “Thank you.”

He glances at Finn, then back at me. “Are you dating him?”

A note of tension runs through me. We’re fake dating in a pretty public way. If this man had actually been at an office recently, if he had attended a society event, if he’d glanced at some of the gossip TikTokers, he would have already known we were together.

This situation is different. That much is clear.

Then again, wasn’t tonight a real date? It felt real, even if it was only pretend.

“Yes, sir.”

He grunts. “Good. About time that boy settled down.”

“We aren’t getting married, Dad.” Finn’s voice is still taut, but there’s a note of humor underneath. An inside joke. A hint of the playful Finn I know well.

“Well, why the hell not? She’s got good child-bearing hips.”

My cheeks flame. “I’m not interested in marriage, Mr. Hughes.”

He studies me. “Had your heart broken, hmm?”

“Dad.”

“What? I know a thing or two about heartbreak.”

“There are other reasons not to get married.”

“Everyone wants love. It’s the one human constant.” Shrewd eyes study me. “No, you haven’t had your heart broken. You’ve had it shattered. That’s why you aren’t interested in marrying Finn, even though he’s a handsome, strapping young man.”

I fail to repress a smile.

“Okay, Dad. We’re really going back to bed now.”

Rather than arguing again, the elder Mr. Hughes allows himself to be led down the hallway, one of his nurses in tow. I can hear him speaking to his son. “Don’t let this one get away, Phineas. She’s better than a rascal like you deserves. Better put a ring on her finger. Soon.”

I watch them go, my smile fading, a bittersweet knot in my stomach.

Daniel Hughes has been the head of the large extended family for years. He’s also the CEO of Hughes Industries. He’s responsible for billions of dollars and the livelihood of thousands of people. But he isn’t going into the office. It doesn’t look like he can.

Which means someone else is acting as the CEO.

I’m guessing that someone is Finn Hughes. The carefree playboy act is just that… an act. He’s the one handling everything, managing an international corporation and an apparently sick father without anyone even knowing.

Chapter Ten

Finn

“Phineas,” Dad says, stopping in the hallway.

An oriental rug follows the long hallway, down many doors.

“What is it?” I ask, still bemused by the conversation that took place in the foyer. No, you haven’t had your heart broken. You’ve had it shattered. Is it true? She hadn’t denied it.

“Which one is mine?”

The question snaps me back to reality. A reality where my father can’t remember which room is his bedroom, the same place he’s slept for the past forty years. “At the end,” I say gently, leading him by the elbow toward the apartment that’s his.

“You really should marry that girl,” my father says.

“I know, Dad.” It’s easier not to argue. Not about the time of day. Not about whether he sends emails at the office. Not even about whether I’ll marry Eva Morelli. That will never happen. Not only because she’s had her heart shattered.

“It’s time to do your duty. We need a Hughes child to man the ship.”

That’s the reason I won’t ever marry. Because no one deserves to be shackled with knowledge of their own doom. I won’t have children ever. The Hughes curse, as my mother calls it, ends with me. “I know, Dad.”

I help him back into bed, and the nurse gives me a grateful smile as she sits back down in the corner. He needs constant supervision due to his tendency to wander. I nod back my gratitude, for handling my father’s nightmare until I could get home.

My father grasps my wrist, hard, capturing my attention. “I’m serious. There’s not much time. Look at you. You’ll start forgetting things soon. It takes you quickly after that. Better do it while you can.”

I don’t blame my parents for their choices, but they aren’t mine. “Don’t worry, Dad. Everything will be fine. You just get some sleep. You want to be fresh tomorrow.”