Her mind ran through all of the possible ways she could mess it up and cause one of her sisters to have to return home.
Bess nudged her foot as she shifted her position and the runaway train wreck of Zita’s thoughts came to a halt. She wasn’t usually this pessimistic. What if emotion was exactly what was needed? Perhaps being so close to her sisters would give her an edge to convince the judge they should stay in the country. She might be good at it, and she’d never shied away from hard work.
But she’d still have to find someone else to help her mother. Casa Flanagan might not be able to afford to hire a caregiver and she had no idea of the money involved. She only received a minimum wage. It was Carly who had the money.
She hunched into her jacket, pulling it close around her to ward off some of the chill that was setting in. She couldn’t continue much longer like this. She would explode if she had to keep it bottled up inside. But it had to be little steps. She’d start by investigating law school and what was required.
Find out if she was smart enough.
Then she could work out what to do next.
Feeling a little more positive, she gathered her dogs, and started home.
***
David rang the doorbell at his parents’ southern manor-style mansion and waited until the butler opened the door. He enjoyed dinner with his parents. It was a chance to see his mother, and the food was always sensational.
“Evening, Franklin.” He walked inside.
“Good evening, Mr. Randall. They’re in the sitting room.”
“Thanks.” He walked down the corridor into the large room. His mother was sitting on one of the large beige sofas that were as hard as they were stylish, talking with Jesse Harding’s wife, Hillary. He frowned. No one had mentioned the Hardings were coming. David acknowledged the women and moved over to where his father and Jesse were talking at the fully stocked bar.
“David, there you are!” Bob slapped him on the back and handed him a bottle of beer from the fridge.
“Hey, Dad. Jesse. How are things?” He put the beer back into the fridge and poured himself a glass of white wine from the bottle the women were sharing.
“Jesse’s still on at me to go into politics.”
So that’s why they were there.
“Your father is the perfect person— an upstanding citizen, successful, and knows how to run things. We need someone like him to take a firm hand.”
David took a sip of wine. Bob had strong opinions, but his inability to compromise was legendary at Dionysus. It was all right in a business that had been in the family for generations, but in government? David wasn’t so sure. His father was waiting for his response. “What about Dionysus?”
“You’d take over in an acting role until the election.”
Damn. He thought he’d have at least another ten years before he’d have to step up. Suddenly his work life gaped below him like a bottomless pit. “I’m still getting my head around the CFO role.”
“Now you don’t have to,” Jesse said. “If Bob agrees, you’ll do a transition. He’ll still be on hand to answer any questions.”
David sighed. It was inevitable that he take over Dionysus, but he’d hoped it would be later rather than sooner. “You have my support, whatever you decide.”
Bob nodded his thanks.
“We need to discuss what your policies will be,” Jesse said. “Immigration is a big one. The flood of Mexicans needs to be stopped. We have to be strong on that.”
“David here is following the process of the illegal immigrants,” Bob said. “Making a case.”
What? “I’m following Teresa’s application so I have an idea of what is involved, but every person has a different story.”
“Right, right,” Bob said, clapping him on the shoulder. “We need to know more about it.”
David let out a breath, pleased his father agreed with him.
Franklin walked into the room. “Dinner is about to be served.”
David followed the others into the dining room.
