Lone Star Burn_Love On Tap

by Judy Kentrus

  “You’re right, Mom. I do need my mother here.”

  He gave Jennie a smile of gratitude. “Why don’t you tell my mother how we plan to handle these petty officials?”

  Grayson opened the door at precisely ten o’clock. His mother and Jennie would wait for him to get them at the appropriate time. Having their support bolstered his confidence to handle the bureaucracy bullshit.

  The male and female team came formally dressed in black suits, and carried slender briefcases. Cartwright retained a fleet of corporate lawyers and Gray had met many of them, but these two were complete strangers.

  He’d seen Dottie Dimple three months ago, and he wondered if the only thing she owned was the plain navy-blue business suit. The collar on her prim white blouse was adorned with a gold pin in the shape of a horseshoe. Her hair was a dull brown that she wore in a short bob, showing off the small gold-ball earrings. A thin gold band on her left ring finger indicated she was married. If she erased the permanent scowl from her face, she’d be pleasant-looking. Dottie made sure the lawyers flanked her on either side.

  “Please come in. Have a seat,” Grayson said. He was tempted to hold out his foot when Dottie preceded the lawyers into the room, but held back at the last second.

  “Can I get anyone something to drink?”

  “This isn’t a social call, Mr. Grayson,” Dottie informed him in a snooty, official tone. “We’re here on a very serious and disturbing matter.”

  They sat together on the opposite couch, forming a united front, but Grayson didn’t feel the least bit intimidated. One of the things he’d learned from his father was to take the upper hand in a meeting. Let everyone know who was in charge.

  “Ms. Dimple, no one has to tell me the reason for this confrontation—I mean meeting.”

  Grayson directed his attention to the lawyers and showed his manners by taking on the female first. “I understand you work for my father?”

  “Melissa Stewart,” she replied, and held out her card.

  Grayson noted the lady lawyer had purposely crossed her legs. A slit in her pinstriped black skirt revealed a great deal of skin. Rust highlights streaked dark brown hair that hung long and straight. She was exactly what his father would hire: a female barracuda.

  “Robert Manning.” The second lawyer passed his card to Grayson. “Your father has retained our firm outside of his corporate lawyers, since this is a personal matter.”

  Where the female was in her thirties, the man was about ten years older than Gray. The flashy rings on his fingers and gold watch, along with his Armani suit, indicated he was accustomed to the best.

  Dottie gave a cursory glance around the room. “The house is very neat and clean, but I specifically asked that your housekeeper be present.”

  “Don’t get your panties in a twist, Ms. Dimple. She’ll be here, but first I’d like to address these vicious rumors about me having a woman with loose morals corrupting Mathew. I have the right to face my accuser.”

  “She has requested to remain anonymous, for fear you would retaliate in some way.”

  Gray abruptly stood up from the couch. “That’s a load of bullshit!”

  “Mr. Grayson, I don’t like foul language or your snide remarks. I certainly hope you don’t talk like that around Mathew.”

  “Ms. Dimple, this isn’t getting us anywhere.” Melissa gave Gray an understanding smile. “We have a few questions.”

  “Before you start, I have one for you. Why does my father object so strongly to this adoption?”

  “He is concerned about the legal ramifications, since there is a great deal of money involved,” Robert explained.

  “That’s exactly what I’ve thought all along.” Gray was so done with his father.

  “It was reported the woman in question has been spending a great deal of your money,” Dottie said.

  “She purchased the things needed to have a birthday party for Mathew.” Gray noted the small pad the social worker balanced on her leg. She made a check mark every time he answered a question.

  “My turn,” Melissa began, and turned on her barracuda smile. “Tell us more about the blond-haired hussy you have living here.”

  Irritation churned in his body, and they’d just started this bullshit session. His hands tightened into fists. “I’m giving you fair warning, Ms. Stewart. If you call her that to her face, be prepared to suffer the consequences.”

  “She’s got a violent temper!” Dottie perked up. This was exactly what she needed to hear.

  Gray recalled how their hot shower session the other afternoon had started out. Tempers were flaring, but it led to the best lovemaking he’d ever had. “No, not really.”

  “I beg to differ with you, Mr. Grayson.” Dottie was on a roll. “It was reported she has a violent temper and had an altercation at the Roadhouse with one of your customers. She was drunk and threw fruit at you.”

  “You are very well informed, but the confrontation was started by the other person who broke into her truck in the parking lot and ruined her clothes.”

  “Why did she throw fruit at you?” Robert asked.

  “That was my official indoctrination into her Men Are Assholes club. She was kind enough to remove the fruit from my crotch and immediately rubbed away the stains from my trousers—and did a very thorough job, I might add.” Gray managed to say it with a straight face.

  Robert was speechless.

  Melissa gave him a wicked smile.

  Dottie turned red and needed a few minutes to compose herself, and asked to use the bathroom.

  Jennie couldn’t sit down, and paced the bedroom. Caroline kept the door open and listened to the conversation in the great room. When the caseworker moved in the direction of the bathroom, she quickly closed the door.

  “Do you really have a Men Are Assholes club? I can give you a few names, including my husband.”

  “I got tired of men trying to pick me up with lame one-liners, and thinking with the protrusion between their legs rather than their brain. They’re also rude drivers.”

  “I agree. That’s all men in general. When we have more time, I want to hear the whole story of how you met Grayson. Your mother told me what you do for a living, and I think it’s very commendable. Hit me up for a donation anytime.”

  “You’ll definitely be hearing from me.” Jennie reached for her tablet on the bedside table to check her messages. Where was that information from Preston?

  “I’m going to ask you this question, and I can tell if you’re lying. Do you love my son?”

  Jennie sat down on the bed and put her hands between her knees. “Yes, I love him very much. I love Matt, too, but I can’t stay. Leaving them is going to be one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. Besides, Grayson has stated numerous times he’d never get married. Why is he so dead-set against saying ‘I do’?”

  “When he was twenty-eight, he got engaged to a girl who wanted him for his money. Fortunately, he found out the truth before it was too late. He also has two very good friends who got married and divorced. Their wives took them for almost everything they owned. He’s had a few affairs, but the past fifteen years he’s concentrated on his job. I’m very proud of the way he’s succeeded in his microbrewery venture.”

  When they heard the toilet flush, Caroline opened the door again. The meeting hadn’t resumed five minutes when they heard Grayson shout, “He’s out of his freakin’ mind!”

  Gray’s hands were shaking when he reread the official document the lawyers had prepared. “He expects me to dance to his tune. He can kiss my sorry ass! No way!”

  “That’s your father’s compromise,” Robert said. “Take a few minutes to think about it.”

  Grayson couldn’t get away from them fast enough, and stormed into Jennie’s bedroom. He sat down next to her and leaned on his forearms. “If I thought I could get away with it, I’d strangle those three buffoons.”

  Jennie offered a comforting hand and moved it back and forth over his shoulder blades, tr
ying to ease his tense muscles. “That bad? I’m ready to face the music whenever you say.”

  Gray glowered at his mother when she stood in front of him. “I don’t know how you’ve been able to live with such a cold-hearted bastard for forty-five years. Here, read his offer.”

  If Simon Wolff were in front of her, they’d be arresting her for strangling her own husband. “He’s out of his mind! He’s totally lost it. I never thought Simon would be so cruel.”

  “Someone had better tell me what’s going on,” Jennie said.

  “My father is giving me two options. If I agree to either one, he’ll no longer object to me adopting Mathew. The first choice is relinquish my ownership of the microbreweries and give them to the parent company, Cartwright Brewing. My second option is to get married. As soon as I have a wife, he’ll step aside.”

  Caroline read the letter again. “I never thought Simon would be so mean. Something’s wrong.” Her heart was breaking for her wonderful son. “What are you going to do?”

  Gray stared directly at Jennie. “How would you like to make a hundred thousand dollars for your nonprofit organization?”

  “What do I have to do?”

  “Go out there and introduce yourself as my fiancée.”

  “Grayson, they would see right through that ploy. You would have told them right off that you were engaged as soon as you read that stipulation.”

  “No, I can claim I didn’t want to lay all my cards on the table.”

  “He’s right. I’ll back you all the way. Here, see if this fits.” Caroline removed her rings and held out the engagement ring to Jennie. “It will only be for show.”

  “This is crazy!” Jennie stared at the square-cut diamond that had to be at least four carats.

  “Think of all you can do with a hundred thousand dollars.” Jennie still hadn’t agreed to his proposition, and Grayson was getting desperate.

  Her gray wolf’s face was filled with despair, and she couldn’t deny the fantasy of being engaged to him for a little while. “I won’t do it for a hundred thousand dollars.” She gathered his face in her hands and kissed him softly. “I’ll do it for you.”

  Grayson’s hands shook when he slid the ring on her finger and sealed their fake engagement with a quick kiss. He couldn’t understand it, but putting the ring on Jennie’s finger felt right. There wasn’t any time to think about that now, but his heart felt a great deal lighter.

  “Okay, ladies, let’s kick some ass. It’s three against three.”

  Before leaving the room, Jennie grabbed her tablet, just in case.

  Caroline never took a backseat to anyone, and walked out first. Grayson and Jennie were holding hands behind her. She didn’t offer a hand in introduction.

  “Good morning. When Grayson told me about the meeting, I just had to be here. I’m Caroline Wolff, his mother and Mathew’s grandmother.” She turned slightly to acknowledge Jennie. “I’d like you all to meet my future daughter-in-law, Jennifer Reynolds.”

  “What game is this?” Robert said.

  “Why didn’t you tell us you were engaged?” Dottie hadn’t seen this coming, and now their plans were doomed.

  “You’re planning to marry a woman you met a week ago?” Melissa asked, staring at the very expensive ring.

  “Don’t be ridiculous!” Caroline said. “I introduced them over a year ago at a fundraiser for the marine institute in Oregon. Her mother Joyce and I are very good friends.” At least that was the truth.

  “So all of this was a big hoax and she’s not what she pretended to be?” Melissa wasn’t about to suffer any consequences.

  “Maybe I can settle this.” Jennie reached into her pocket and passed each one her business card.

  Dottie Dimple was the most shocked, and sputtered, “Dr. Reynolds! A child psychologist?”

  “I’m not going to go into detail about how Grayson and I met, but we are very much in love and he will make the best father. I plan to submit a complete evaluation on what I’ve seen in this home.”

  “It doesn’t matter what you report. I have the final say on this adoption, and I don’t believe he’s father material.”

  “Lady, you’re delusional.” Jennie pulled her phone from her pocket and called up the pictures from the party. “These were taken at Matt’s birthday party and show how much love Grayson and Mathew share.”

  Everyone took the time to look at the photos. Jennie saw the tears in Caroline’s eyes when she returned the phone. Next year, she mouthed, and caught the quick flash of an incoming message on her tablet.

  “Excuse me a minute.” Jennie moved to the privacy of the kitchen and read the information from her brother. To say he was thorough would be an understatement. From what she’d just read, her phony engagement would be the shortest one in history. She didn’t have to turn around to know that Grayson was behind her. She passed him her tablet.

  “Read this and all of your questions will be answered. You’ve been played for months.”

  “Son of a bitch! Bribes! Siphoning my sister’s trust fund!”

  “Do you want to break the news to them? I also question if your father really made those demands. Your mother said this didn’t sound like him.”

  “We’ll double-team those lamebrains. I think it would be a good idea to have my mother go in the other room and call my father.”

  “Good idea.”

  “First I want something from you.”

  “The ring back?”

  “No, a kiss. Let’s make it good for our audience out there.”

  Jennie turned into him and confessed, “Grayson, I don’t have to pretend with you.”

  He read the truth in her eyes and brought their bodies together. “Did you really mean it when you said we were very much in love?”

  She didn’t care that everyone was studying their every move. He deserved to hear what was in her heart. “For me it’s very real. I love you, Grayson Wolff.”

  The happiness in his heart radiated in his smile. “I love you, too, Jennie Reynolds, a.k.a. Malibu Barbie.”

  There would be no doubt in anyone’s mind that their engagement was real. Their mutual love was combined in a kiss that reached into their hearts.

  Grayson broke away slightly and breathed against her very kissable mouth. “We sure picked the worst place to confess our love, but I need to taste you again.” He lowered his mouth to hers and took the second kiss a whole lot deeper and longer. It took all of their self-control to keep a tight rein on their longing to express their love in more than just words.

  Jennie reluctantly ended the second kiss and lowered her arms from around his neck. “Let’s get back in there and finish this.” Before leaving the kitchen, she took a tight hold of his hand.

  “From what I’ve just witnessed, the kiss wasn’t phony,” Melissa stated with a hint of envy when the couple returned to the meeting.

  “No, the love is for real,” Grayson assured her, and kissed the back of Jennie’s hand. They sat on the opposite couch. “To quote Ms. Dimple, we’ve received some disturbing information that needs clarification. I’ll let my fiancée begin.” Again he surprised himself and didn’t choke on the word ‘fiancée.’ “Counselors, you might want to take notes.”

  Jennie addressed the lying, cheating social worker first. It took all of her self-control to act professional, but she went in for the kill.

  “Can you deny that you have been receiving bribes to prolong this adoption?”

  Her paled complexion was a dead giveaway, but Dottie firmly said, “That’s ridiculous!”

  “According to a bank account in your maiden name, you’ve been receiving five thousand dollars a month for the past year. The source works in the corporate offices of Cartwright Brewing.”

  “I’ll sue you for invading my privacy!” Dottie sputtered, shoving up from the couch.

  “Can it, Dottie,” Grayson said, loving this interrogation. “Your game is up, and we’ll be reporting your illegal activities to the authorities. So
meone has been helping themselves to my sister’s trust fund. Once this adoption goes through, your money stops, and you couldn’t have that. Oh, maybe I should be calling you by your maiden name, Dottie Springer. Your brother isn’t the only one in a great deal of trouble.”

  Jennie took on the lawyers like a courtroom reversal. “Have either of you ever met Mr. Wolff senior?” When both shook their heads, she wasn’t surprised.

  “I spoke to him, or someone who identified himself as Mr. Wolff,” Robert said. “He wanted us to stop this adoption for the reasons you already know. He followed it up with a personal letter that included a large retainer fee. We received copies of the paperwork from child services to verify his case a couple days later.”

  “We know how he got that information,” Grayson said, scowling at Dottie Dimple. “He specifically told you about the microbreweries and stipulating that I must get married?”

  Melissa nodded. “He called the other day and gave us those instructions verbally. Ms. Dimple contacted us that very afternoon and explained the importance of the meeting. Guess we were all duped, and we’re lawyers.”

  “We can’t all be perfect,” Jennie said, smiling at her snide remark.

  “I’ve just had a very interesting conversation with my husband,” Caroline announced, coming back into the room. “After I called him a cold-hearted, good-for-nothing son of a bitch for denying me my grandson and trying to punish Grayson by taking away the microbreweries because he wants to adopt Mathew, he asked me what the hell I was talking about.

  “According to Simon, he didn’t retain any lawyers to stop the adoption. He gave up on the idea a year ago and put the entire thing from his mind.”

  Caroline took Grayson’s hand and lowered her voice. “Your father said he’d never do that to you. He’s very proud of what you’ve accomplished. When this adoption is finalized, he’d like to meet his grandson. He can’t make up for the years he’s been a stubborn fool, but he’d like a chance to start over.”

  “He really said that?”

  “I swear. Then he read me the riot act for coming here without telling him and wants to know what the hell is going on. I apologized for cursing at him. He would like you to call him, and wants to meet Jennie.”