Fat Cat Liar

“Yeah, I need to talk to Greer.”

“Call Jenny, or any of them. They should all have their phones.”

“Yeah, okay, I’ll do that. Thanks, Haley.” I start toward my room.

“Anytime, and by the way, good luck this weekend.”

“This weekend?”

“Kevin is looking forward to meeting you. We’re dying to see how the dinner Saturday night goes. It was all we talked about this afternoon.” She lets out a small laugh, and I stop moving.

“Thanks, Haley, appreciate it.” I hang up before she can say anything more.

A renewed sense of power surges inside, and I know exactly what I have to do. My fighter instinct kicks in full-force. There is no time to settle on the details and circumstances of tonight. The imperative thing is getting to that damn hotel and to Greer before it’s too late. The panic from earlier disappears, replaced with a sense of urgency like never before.

“What kind of timeline are we working with?”

“What’s going on?”

“Change of plans. We’re going to that dinner. I have to get to her before the program starts.”

“You’ve got to be shitting me. You’re going to drop this bomb on her at the fucking event?”

“Hopefully, I’ll be able to convince her to leave with me.”

“You think she’s going to leave her family and friends on a night like tonight because you need to talk to her? Your plan sucks.”

I narrow my eyes at him, irritation coiling in my gut. “You have a better idea, I’m all ears. If not, then get your ass on board because I’m going to need you.”

He looks at his watch and back to me. “This thing starts in an hour and a half. It’s a formal affair. I’ve already told Janice to make an excuse for us.”

“I’m going to get dressed. We’ll stop by your place on the way. Call Dad, tell him there’s a change of plans and to meet us at your apartment. I’ll take care of Janice.”

I start back toward my room, hearing him rumble about this being a fucked up idea.

He’s right, but I’m taking control of this situation right now. I have no fucking clue how I’m going to pull this off; I only know there’s no other choice.

•8•8•

“Two highly educated and intelligent men, and this is what you come up with? Sneaking in through the delivery entrance and hanging out in the freight area?” Dad grumbles behind me.

“It’s not like we can walk in through the front of the hotel and waltz into the ballroom. This place is swarming with people that will recognize us,” I point out for the fifth time, leading us through the massive underground freight and storage warehouse.

“I paid good money to send you boys to college with the hopes you would grow into men with some decent common sense. Pretty sure that was a waste.”

“Hey, don’t lump me into Lawson’s category. It’s obvious he has no sense, or we wouldn’t be here in the first place,” Clay defends himself.

“If I wasn’t so determined to get to Greer, I’d find you two hilarious,” I tell them flatly.

“Have to find some humor in this fucked up situation,” Dad replies.

I stop walking and spin on my heel to face them. “Enough of this shit! I know you’re both disappointed with me, and I deserve it. But I swear to God, I’m about to lose my mind. My focus is on Greer right now. You can ridicule me for the rest of my life, and I’ll gladly take it, but I need to know you both realize how important tonight is. If you’re not on board, then feel free to fucking bail because what I don’t need right now is any more bullshit.”

The small glint of humor fades from Dad’s face, and his expression grows hard. “Disappointed is a term I’d use to describe how I felt when you slept with a co-worker. This is a whole new level of anger. You put your career and reputation in jeopardy for reasons beyond my comprehension. Even with your arrogance, greed, and pompous attitude, I didn’t think such selfish and callous behavior was possible, but you proved me wrong. Now—”

“Why the fuck are you here then?” I cut him off, unable to take anymore. My hands start to shake, and I ball them into fists, digging my nails into my palms until the flesh stings. “If you’re here to gloat and remind me of my goddamned screwed up sense of ambition, no need. I can do that all on my own.”

Dad’s eyes flare with a mixture of annoyance and rage. The tension in the air grows thick between us, and Clay steps closer, laying a hand on my shoulder.