Good Girls Don't (Donovan Brothers Brewery 1)

“I can’t make a decision that quickly.”

“Ms. Donovan—”

“Tessa, please.”

“Tessa.” His tone dripped sympathy. “My father is not going to do business with a man who screwed his precious little girl. I really can’t make it more clear than that.”

She drew back a bit in shock at this crudeness.

“I’m sorry, but that’s the way he sees it, I guarantee you. But I know my sister a little better than my father, and I find it hard to take offense. Your family has a great company, and I think we’d work well together. I’d be honored to deal with you.”

“Thank you. But I can’t make that kind of decision so quickly. My brothers will need to be involved—”

He raised his eyebrows. “I was under the impression that you wanted to leave your brothers out of this.”

“Pardon me?”

“Don’t worry. I can keep a secret.”

“That’s not it at all,” she lied. She didn’t want this guy thinking he carried her family secret. “I’m trying to resolve the issue with your father before I bring Eric into this mess. That’s it.”

He held up his hands. “I understand. Believe me. Working with family can be a pain in the ass. My dad and I rarely see eye to eye.”

She wanted to make clear that her brothers and her were fine. That they loved one another and she’d never speak about Eric with the kind of bitterness that Monica had shown toward her father. But there was no way to say that without insulting Graham, so she pressed her lips together and held the words in.

“Regardless, I need to know in two days,” he said.

“How much money are we talking?” She braced herself, waiting for a high number, but Graham just smiled again.

“I’ll send you the breakdown and a list of the other sponsors. We haven’t rolled it out yet, obviously, so I don’t have confirmed attendees yet, but I can assure you it will be an impressive group. Names you would recognize. Last year’s turnout was pretty spectacular.”

“I can’t promise anything, Graham.”

He wiped his mouth and set his napkin on the table. “I get it. But if you’re planning to expand—and I assume that’s what you’re working on—you’re going to have to be more aggressive. Boulder isn’t exactly where the big boys play.”

“Our goals are obviously not as far-reaching as your family’s,” she snapped, “but we know exactly what we’re doing.” And our relationships aren’t nearly as screwed up as yours, she left off.

“I don’t mean to offend you, Tessa. I honestly don’t. I just want you to take this opportunity seriously. Don’t say no just because it’s happening quickly. And all proceeds go to cancer research in honor of our grandmother.”

She softened just slightly. “All right. Send me the information, and I’ll give it some thought.”

“Promise?” he asked, his eyes crinkling with charm.

She was interested in the both the charity event and the idea of supplying Kendall Flight, but Tessa still got out of there as quickly as she could. She fought off the need to stop home for a shower, but just barely.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“BRAXTON HICKS contractions…” Luke murmured as he squinted at the first page of the book that covered the third trimester of pregnancy. Did Simone know about this stuff? She’d been raised in foster care for most of her life, so she didn’t have any family around to help her out. But he couldn’t ask her if she knew about Braxton Hicks because there was no reason Luke should know about them. She’d likely be pissed if she found out he’d bought a few pregnancy books in a moment of weakness.

He glanced around the station room, making sure Simone hadn’t magically appeared. She’d already gone home for the day—otherwise, Luke wouldn’t have gotten the books out at all—but he had a few minutes to waste before the next DVD of surveillance video was ready. The old computer system couldn’t handle viewing them over the network, so the tech department had been burning them in six-hour increments. Luke had already managed to scan three of them. Unfortunately, that wasn’t as much progress as he’d like to think. He’d found nothing, and he was only a third of the way through.

Luke turned a few pages of the book, stopping at a section about birth classes. “Shit,” he breathed. He’d been so focused on figuring out who the father was that he hadn’t even considered this part of it. Who was going to be there with her when she had the baby? A girlfriend, maybe? But Simone wasn’t very social. She’d certainly never mentioned anything about hanging out with friends. Then again, she’d never mentioned a man, either, and clearly she’d been near one.

He needed to let this go, but his gut burned at the idea of stepping back. He’d grown up with a single mom, and he had a soft spot. He’d hated the way his mom had struggled and the guilt she’d felt that Luke’s father had left. He could still remember every time she’d apologized to him, and how much he’d hated his father in those moments.

Simone didn’t deserve to be alone any more than his mother had. She didn’t deserve to be stressed and secretive and angry.

He grimaced in frustration, rolling his shoulders to try to release some tension. The question of who the father was still ate at him. He was a damn detective, after all. It was his job to work through mysteries and solve them. But presented with a very basic question, he proved completely incompetent.