The Favor

I gave a slow nod. “All right. So, I know why Travis and Hope don’t like that you’re dating someone. What’s Jen’s problem? Do you think she’s eager for Kent to get his share of your trust fund?”

He hesitated to answer. “I can’t be certain what her issue is.”

“You didn’t expect her to be rude to me, did you?”

“No. But Jen’s a complicated person. She’ll no doubt feel bad about it later.”

Maybe, but neither Hope nor Travis would. Making a conscious effort not to let my irritation show in my expression, I said, “It annoys me that Travis is so intent on having a share of your trust fund.”

“He feels that he has more of a right to it than I do because I’m more financially comfortable than he is. But even if I wasn’t, he’d still want his share. Really, he doesn’t have many scruples—hence why he cheats on Hope so often. But she does the same to him, so …” Dane shrugged.

I shook my head, not understanding why they’d stay together if they were going to disrespect themselves and each other that way. “Do Kent and Jen have a better relationship?”

“Yes, although they’re not as close as they once were. And, going by some of the things Kent has said, they argue so frequently he once considered moving out for a while to give them both some space. I don’t think he’d have married so young if the conditions of his trust fund hadn’t been what they were. I think he might have waited for someone who’s better suited to him to come along.”

“Have you held out as long as you have because you had some hope that you’d meet someone you cared for?”

“No. I just wasn’t in a rush to get my hands on the money the way my brothers were; I wanted to make my own way in life.”

And he had, which I deeply respected. He’d set up o-Verve on his own, and he’d built it up through sheer hard work.

I lowered my voice to a whisper as I asked, “If I’d said no to marrying you, what would you have done? Asked one of your other employees?”

“No. I’d have hounded you until you said yes.”

I blinked. “You’re not serious.”

“When do I ever joke?”

“Never, but—”

“Vienna, I’m a man who gets what he wants. Always. No exceptions. I never stop or back down until I have it.”

I didn’t want to find that a turn-on, but I did, and I hoped that it wasn’t written all over my face.

I didn’t realize that I was biting my lip until his eyes dropped to my mouth. They traced its shape, bold and blatant. Without thought, I flicked out my tongue to lathe my lower lip. A muscle in his cheek ticked, and the hand on my back flexed.

His gaze flew back to mine, hot and intent. I swallowed hard. Jesus, someone needed to throw a bucket of water over me.

The music changed then, flowing into a tune that was a little faster than the previous song. “I need to use the restroom,” I said.

“I’ll walk you there.”

“That’s not necessary,” I assured him, but he did it anyway.

In the surprisingly fancy restroom, I did my business. I almost stumbled when I walked out of the stall to find Owen’s wife standing at the sink.

She paused in fixing her lipstick and smiled. “Hello again.”

“Hi,” I said simply. I quickly washed and dried my hands, eager to get out of there. I turned toward the door and—

“You weren’t just Owen’s friend,” Tiffany blurted out. “Were you?”

Shit. I slowly spun on my heel and just stared at her, not sure what to say.

“There’s more, isn’t there?”

I inwardly groaned. “You really should ask Owen.”

“I did. He blew me off, which makes me believe there’s a lot I don’t know. Please just tell me. If you were me, you’d want me to be honest with you.”

Fuck if she wasn’t right. I licked my lips. “He and I dated in high school. We were also engaged for five months, but he broke it off and we went our separate ways.”

She swallowed and took a step back. “He must have regretted it. He named our child after you.”

“I was his friend for much, much longer than I was his girlfriend. We were better off as friends, and we both knew it. He was just the first to act on it. It was you he married. You he built a life with and had a child with.”

“And me he’ll soon be divorcing,” she said, a bite to her tone that told me she wasn’t as good with that as he seemed to think. “I hate that he gave her your name.”

“I hate it, too.” Because it caused unnecessary pain to people who didn’t deserve it. I opened my mouth to apologize, but the fault wasn’t mine. The guilt wasn’t mine to feel either, but the emotion settled in all the same.