Going All In

by Alannah Lynne

  “I think encouraging her is fantastic.” Another thud as Gavin dropped another box, then water running in the sink. “I assume you have something other than verbal encouragement in mind, though.”

  Callie’s indrawn breath was so deep Wade heard it from the dining room. “I want to invest in her business to show her how serious I am and that I believe she can be a huge success.”

  Wade shook his head once, then blinked a couple of times and shook it again. The woman who ate brownbag lunches wanted to invest in a friend’s business? Just to give her a shot of confidence? Where would she get the money? Surely she didn’t plan on taking out a second mortgage.

  As the silence expanded in the kitchen, Wade eased closer to the door. He felt like an ass eavesdropping, but it was past time for him to join the conversation, and he sure as hell wasn’t leaving until he’d gained some insight into this baffling conversation.

  “Callie”—Gavin chuckled—“how much do you think she’ll need to get started? Just a ball park?”

  “I don’t have any idea. I don’t know if she has any money saved up or if her parents will help. She’s not going to open a full restaurant, just a catering business, so she won’t need as much start-up capital as she would for an entire restaurant.” She paused and took another deep breath. “I haven’t said anything to her yet because I wanted to talk to you first.”

  Wade ran his thumb and finger back and forth over his forehead, like massaging his brain might help him understand better.

  “The first thing you need to do is have a long conversation with Tiffany where the two of you lay out everything. I’ll help you put together a list of questions and topic points. If you both agree, then you need to put everything in writing before you proceed. I mean everything.” His voice took on a hard, bitter edge. “You and I both know how quickly a business arrangement can turn deadly. There’s a need to be wise with your investments, but really… You have a thirty million-dollar trust fund, so investing in Tiffany’s business isn’t a big deal. But I’d hate to see you ruin a good friendship. If it were Jen, I’d tell you to go for it and not worry about fucking up a friendship. But Tiffany is different. You need to be careful.”

  Wade’s boots were anchored to the floor, his limbs numb, lungs frozen, mind cramped, heart cracking and separating from his chest cavity with every passing second.

  Did Gavin just say Callie had a trust fund?

  A thirty million-dollar trust fund?

  As in a three with seven zeroes after it?

  Thirty… million…

  Thirty… fucking… million…

  No matter how many ways he tried to reframe it, he couldn’t get a good reference point for just how much money that was. Or what having that much money even meant. Aside from having the clear understanding Callie sure as shit didn’t need to save for a pair of boots, or anything for that matter.

  A disembodied image of Miranda’s head, split wide with laughter, danced around in his mind’s eye. Callie was Miranda all over again, and since she obviously wasn’t broke, he wondered what else she had lied about.

  Was her father really in prison? She obviously hadn’t been as desperate for a job as she made it sound, so had she made up that entire story?

  As feeling slowly returned to his arms, he circled his hand over his chest, trying to ease the ache that expanded with each intake of air that failed to get past the hard lump in his throat.

  How could he have been so stupid? Again.

  But how could he have known? How would he have suspected anything was off when she ate ramen noodles—why on God’s Earth would someone who didn’t have to eat those—and aside from her luxurious shower, her apartment didn’t have the appearance he would expect from someone sitting on thirty. Million. Dollars.

  “I have something to share with you too.” Gavin’s voice was serious and subdued, and while Wade really wanted to turn tail and haul ass back to his trailer, he couldn’t make his legs move. “Sunny’s pregnant.”

  Since seeing Gavin and Sunny together moments before, this wasn’t news to Wade, but apparently it was to Callie. This should’ve been the point where she gasped with excitement and said something along the lines of Oh my God! or That’s awesome!

  But all he heard was a whole lot of silence, followed by a quiet, “Oh,” that sounded like it had been ripped from her chest.

  And that’s when the last remaining light bulb burst to life to spotlight the missing puzzle piece: Gavin was Prince Charming.

  Wade remembered hearing an off-the-cuff comment about Gavin’s boss trying to kill him, but Wade didn’t realize he meant literally. He thought his boss had worked him too many hours or too many weekends or hadn’t given him a decent vacation. But Callie said she’d been in love with her dad’s protégé, the same man her dad tried to kill. That would explain Gavin’s warm greeting, why Callie seemed so uncomfortable around Sunny, and why Callie went to Gavin for advice.

  And why the news of Sunny’s pregnancy left Callie speechless.

  Shit, he needed to get out of here. The rage and hurt bubbling in his gut was going to have him exploding all over the place or ripping every fucking wall out of the house on his way to the door. He needed fresh air and perspective and some super glue. Because that was the only thing that could possibly save his fragile, freshly repaired heart from completely disintegrating.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Callie stared at the tense set of Gavin’s jaw and his wary eyes and tried to get a bead on his emotional mindset. He seemed so serious she wasn’t sure if he was concerned about her reaction or if he still hadn’t completely digested the news himself. “How do you feel about a baby?”

  “Me?” he asked with a hearty laugh. “I’m thrilled. We weren’t trying to get pregnant, but we weren’t doing anything to prevent it either. There’s so much going on right now we don’t feel we’re missing out on anything by not having children. But we’re definitely okay with another project.” Although he’d been reserved when first sharing his news, now he bubbled with barely contained excitement. “I wasn’t sure Sunny would ever want kids after spending her entire life raising Robby, but she said having one of her own would be different, so…” He rocked back on his heels and grinned. “Sunny will finally be getting a new car and one of those baby on board window things.”

  His happiness was infectious and his joy overflowed into Callie. She wrapped her arms around his neck in a giant squeeze-the-breath-out-of-him hug and said, “You’ll make a great dad.”

  “If”—he gasped for air—“I live that long.”

  She giggled and let go, then took a step back. “The baby will surely have blue eyes, but I wonder if it’ll have Sunny’s blond hair or your black.” She clapped her hands together and bounced on her toes. “Is it a boy or a girl? When is she due?” She gasped with awareness. “That’s why she looks so tired. What does Robby think? Oh my God! We need to turn one of the bedrooms into a nursery! You’re going to go ahead and move in here, right?”

  Gavin laughed and shook his head at her rapid-fire questions. “We don’t know the sex yet and probably won’t find out until it’s born. Yes, that’s why she’s so tired. She’s due the end of July.” He rolled his eyes to the ceiling and thought for a minute. “What else did you ask me? Oh, yeah, Robby… he’s excited. He said he’s going to buy the kid all the noisiest toys he can find since Sunny always hid his noisemakers. And yes, we are moving in here, so yes, we’ll need to make a nursery.” He threw up a hand to cut her off before she started on a new tangent. “But not yet. There’s plenty of time for that. First we need to finish the downstairs common areas and guest rooms. Then we’ll start on private rooms.”

  He glanced at his watch. “Before anything else happens, though, we need to get lunch. Your boy’s gotta be getting hungry.”

  Even though she expected him to pick up on her attraction to Wade, the comment still caught her by surprise and she reacted with a sharp intake of breath and bulging eyes before she could stop h
erself.

  “Come on, Callie,” Gavin said with a laugh. “It’s nearly impossible not to get singed by the heat radiating off you two. Why didn’t you tell me you’re dating Wade?”

  She tucked her hair behind her ear and straightened the fabric samples she’d brought for Sunny and Gavin to choose from. “I’m not really sure we are dating. I mean, I guess we are. We’ve never gone out to dinner and a movie or anything like that, but…” She stopped the rambling and took a deep breath. “We’ve had lunch and he took me to the state park the other night to hang out with his friends. There was a campfire and moonshine.”

  This time Gavin was the one who failed to hide his surprise.

  “I know, right? He’s so different than everyone else I’ve dated, but that’s one of the things I like most. I especially like who I am when I’m with him.” She chewed on her lip and studied the floor. “He’s a good guy. I hope he sticks around for a while.”

  Gavin brushed her hair over her shoulder and drew her in close for a hug. “He’s a fool if he doesn’t. I wouldn’t have said that a few years ago.” He laughed when she drew back and glared. “What? You know it’s true. You used to be a brat. But you’ve matured and grown into a damned fine woman, Callie Holden. I like Wade and agree he’d be good for you. But he’s lucky to find you too.”

  It wasn’t easy to hear how Gavin used to think about her, but he was right and only spoke the truth. She wasn’t proud of the entitled brat she used to be, but she’d worked hard to be a better person, and hearing Gavin acknowledge the change caused tears to burn the backs of her eyes. “That means a lot. Thank you.”

  He winked and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “Let’s get some lunch?”

  “What’s open in the middle of January around here?”

  Gavin scooped up his keys from the kitchen counter and flipped off the overhead lights. “I have chicken salad made up at the fishing pier restaurant. That okay?”

  “Yum. I love your chicken salad.”

  “Everyone loves my chicken salad.” His self-deprecating laugh indicated he was joking, but everyone did love his chicken salad. He’d even been featured in a well-known coastal magazine because of it.

  “Hey,” Callie called out to Wade as she pushed open the trailer door and stepped inside. “You ready for—”

  Wade lifted his head from the paperwork and greeted her with a glare so dark and chilling she shivered. His gaze shifted beyond her to Gavin, who was standing in the doorway behind her. Other than the pulsing of his jaw, a clear indicator of how tightly he was clenching his teeth, his face held no expression.

  “What’s wrong?” Her voice was little more than a whisper and filled with dread. She had no idea what had happened, but something devastating had obviously occurred while she was working with Gavin and Sunny. Her mind immediately jumped to his friend and his upcoming dive. “Is Tyler okay?”

  Wade jerked back, startled and confused. “What?”

  She sank into the chair in front of Wade’s desk and reached for his hand, but he snatched it out of reach. His gaze wasn’t nearly as cold and dead as seconds before, but also didn’t hold the warmth he normally looked at her with. “Something’s obviously wrong. Did Tyler go diving today?”

  He blinked a few times and rubbed his hand over his eyes as he tried to catch up with her train of thought. “Yes. No.” He shook his head hard, then started again. “No, he didn’t go diving today. I just talked to him and he’s fine.”

  Behind her, Gavin cleared his throat and said, “I’ll wait in the car.”

  When Gavin stepped out of the trailer and let the door slam shut behind him, Wade pushed back in his chair and a string of vehement curses poured from lips.

  Callie’s head spun with confusion, but talking wasn’t garnering her any new information so she tried to reach him again, this time using the age-old trick of getting to a man through his stomach. “Are you ready for lunch?”

  “Naw, I’m good.” He picked up the hours-old sweet tea he’d gotten on the way to Anticue and took a long drink. He looked like he had more to say, but rather than speaking, he pushed his tongue over the front of his teeth and returned his attention to his desk.

  “Are you sure? I’d love for you to come with us.”

  He didn’t look up from his paperwork, but his hand stopped moving across the page long enough for him to say, “Would you now?”

  His drawl dripped with sarcasm, and she flinched at the harsh response. “Yes, I would.” She had no idea what had him so riled up, but she didn’t appreciate being the target of his ill mood, and her own temper flared. “What’s going on? Why are you acting like this?”

  He cleared his throat and shook his head, glancing to the door again. “Go have lunch with Gavin.” The cold, nasty grin cutting across his face reminded her of an evil villain in a horror movie. “Or should I say Prince Charming? I’m going to finish up this paperwork so we can get back to Myrtle Beach.” His evil grin dissolved into sad resignation. “I have plans for tonight, and with any luck, I can get an early start.”

  What could’ve possibly happened between the time she and Wade arrived this morning—when he held her hand and asked if he could help her—and now, when he looked like he would happily chew off her head? In a last-ditch effort to appeal to the man she arrived with, she said, “Please talk to me. You’re obviously angry with me about something, but I have no idea what. Until you tell me, I can’t fix the problem.”

  A sharp bark of laughter escaped him. “Some things can’t be fixed, and we’ve got nothing to talk about, princess.”

  *

  The cold winter wind slashing across her cheeks couldn’t compare to the deep freeze in Callie’s chest as she stumbled to Gavin’s truck. While he gave her and Wade privacy, he moved his vehicle so he had a direct view of the office and had obviously been keeping a close eye on things. With a defeated sigh, she opened the door and flopped into the passenger seat.

  “Lunch for two today?”

  Fighting off the tears still clinging to the backs of her eyes, she nodded and reached for her seatbelt. “Yeah, I guess so.”

  Gavin put the shifter into drive and circled around the driveway, then turned right onto the paved two-lane road that led to the end of the island where Sunny’s bar, The Blackout Bar and Grill, and the Anticue Fishing Pier were. “He didn’t tell you why he’s so irritated?”

  “Irritated?” She laughed incredulously. “He was practically foaming at the mouth.”

  Gavin grinned. “Okay, I’ll give you the anger, but I didn’t see any foam. And I’ll bet you a hundred bucks he can get a lot angrier. And meaner.”

  “You know I don’t have a hundred—” The rest of the words dried up in her throat and her eyes popped wide as understanding dawned. Twisting in her seat to face Gavin, she said, “That’s it. He must’ve overhead us talking about Tiffany’s catering business.”

  Gavin lifted a shoulder in a careless shrug. “I didn’t hear him come in, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t. But why would that set him off?”

  Callie’s mind took off at a sprint, recreating the conversation while trying to remember if she heard any unusual sounds coming from other parts of the house. She hadn’t heard the front door open, and he definitely hadn’t come in through the side door leading into the kitchen, but him overhearing their conversation was the only thing that made sense.

  She’d been so busy trying to figure out what was wrong it didn’t even register with her until just now that he’d referred to Gavin as Prince Charming. Something had cued him in to that information, and as far as she knew, no one else had been at the house today. And the venom he spewed while calling her princess? Definitely not a term of endearment this time.

  Since she hadn’t answered Gavin’s question, he asked in a more direct way as he turned into the fishing pier gravel parking lot. “Let me guess. He doesn’t know about your trust fund?”

  He didn’t, but she was certain he knew now.

  She shook
her head, but realized Gavin hadn’t noticed because he’d been focusing on parking the truck. “No.” She climbed from the vehicle and followed him up the plank sidewalk and ramp that led to the second-story restaurant. “You, Jen, Tiffany, Jason, Kevin, and I assume Sunny are the only ones who know.”

  He slipped the lock free, pushed the door open, and threw on the interior lights. The building was cool and quiet on this January day, but during the summer, it was nearly impossible to cut through the crowd standing in line or seated at the tables.

  She followed him down the center isle of tables and chairs and took a seat at the back counter, overlooking the open kitchen. Gavin said he wanted his customers to be able to see their food being prepared, but she personally believed he’d left the area open so he could visit with his customers rather than be enclosed in the kitchen by himself.

  He opened the refrigerator and started gathering items: a bowl of chicken salad, mayonnaise, lettuce, bottles of water. After setting them on the counter, he grabbed plates, bread, and chips from the cabinet and a couple knives from the drawer. “Why haven’t you told him?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  He laughed and tossed slices of bread onto a plate, then handed her the mayo and a knife. “We have time.”

  As they tag-teamed the sandwiches, she explained there had only been one good opportunity to tell Wade about her trust fund—really, how did one causally slide that into conversation—but she hadn’t told him because she didn’t want to risk changing the way he looked at her. But by not telling him, she’d done exactly that.

  “So what are you going to do?” Gavin asked while squishing his palm down on his sandwich to flatten it into a manageable thickness.

  No longer hungry, she played with the crust of her bread and picked at a piece of chicken on the plate. “I don’t know. He kind of had the impression I’m broke, so now he probably thinks I’ve lied to him about everything.”