“I’d say the honor is all mine. Having a LeBlanc here is no small feat. We have about 20 percent more people attending this year, and I’m sure it’s because I put you as the guest of honor.”
I laughed and shrugged. “What can I say? We’ve got a reputation in this town.” The Orleans Conglomerate had been around for decades, and we had a stellar record in business circles. “Who won this year?”
He started telling me about this year’s winner, but I was only half listening. The tiredness was slamming into me now.
“…but we had a lot of contenders.” If I had been paying more attention, I would’ve realized that we were heading straight in Piper’s direction. “Like Ms. Dawson here.”
She looked at Gino with a smile, but it completely faded when she saw me. I zeroed in on her and couldn’t help but notice how fucking beautiful she was.
“Contender, but not the winner. Right, Ms. Dawson?” I asked.
She swallowed hard. “Not this year, but there’s always next year.”
Gino winked at her. “Something tells me you’ll make it happen. You always go above and beyond.”
“That’s how I’m looking at it too. Hard work always pays off.”
Gino nodded, then turned to me. “I’ve heard an interesting rumor, Beckett, that you’re a father now.”
I froze. How the hell had word already gotten out? I gave him a robotic smile. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Piper jerk her head back.
“Yes.”
“Congratulations, man. Boy or girl?”
“I have a newborn girl,” I said.
“I remember when my kids were small. Fucking exhausting. But those little buggers become your whole world.”
“That is exactly how I’d put it.” A sense of relief gripped me. So, exhaustion and sleep-deprivation were a universal experience. It wasn’t that I was just inept.
“You’ve been keeping secrets from the whole town. Where’s the missus?” Gino asked.
There was nothing else to do but tell the truth.
“No missus. Just me and my little girl. Charlotte is her name.”
Gino narrowed his eyes and nodded, clearly realizing I was done talking about it.
“All right. Let’s go in the back, and then I can brief you on how everything will go.”
“Perfect.”
“See you around, Piper,” Gino told her.
I glanced at Piper again as I left with Gino. She looked shell-shocked. Good. She deserved it for all the shit she gave me this morning.
Her red lips were parted, and I had to make a conscious effort to walk away before my imagination got the better of me.
CHAPTER 5
PIPER
Oh my goodness.What have I done?
I was rooted to my spot, looking after Beckett and Gino. He had a newborn baby. That’s why he looked like he hadn’t slept all night, because he probably didn’t. And I’d gone ahead and accused him of… What was it exactly that I said? I couldn’t even remember, but it wasn’t good.
There were no two ways about it. I ran my mouth and jumped to conclusions because I was put out. I’d waited an hour for him to arrive for my presentation, and I’d let that get the best of me, damn it. In my defense, though, everything I’d been reading about Beckett said he was the biggest party brother of all the LeBlancs. There had been no mention of him being a dad.
