He hated his parents, and he knew they didn't like him much, either. He was supposed to be born a girl, according to the family stories. His father had wanted a son and a daughter for a perfectly balanced nuclear family. Instead, they had to deal with Carter and all of his screwups.
Now his father probably wanted to have a respectable daughter-in-law, just like Kate, Grant's wife. Carter liked Kate. He really did. She was the ideal upper-class wife—good parents, well educated, smart, capable, and well-dressed. He knew Liz Davenport was just like her.
Carter entertained the thought of wooing Liz. Maybe his father would finally like him, and his mother would surely be happy. Nancy always tried to pretend she was hip and progressive, but Carter knew she really was set in her ways and only wanted things to be trendy up to a point.
His whole family was all gun-shy about Danielle, his uncle's sociopathic deceased wife. Any potential partner he or Mark brought home would be under intense scrutiny.
"I should just bring the trashiest girl I can find and freak them all out during my mom's perfect Thanksgiving," Carter said to himself. He chuckled, imagining some junky girl chewing with her mouth open, stealing the silver, and making rude jokes.
"Too bad I don't know anyone like that," he said to himself. "I would pay good money just to see my parents' reactions if I brought home someone like that as my girlfriend. No,fiancée!"
His phone buzzed, and he opened it to see another picture of Allie and Margot heading to the Wildcat bar to set up for another night of debauchery.
A grin spread slowly across Carter's face as a dangerous idea formed in his mind.
5
Allie
Allie was cutting lemons and limes as someone banged on the door of the Wildcat.
"Go away!" she shouted. "We're closed until seven."
The knocking continued, and she peered through the glass. It was Carter. She wiped her hands and let him inside. Margot was in the cloth dog carrier Stacy had picked out. She barked when Carter went to pick her up.
"Did you find someone to take her?" Allie asked.
"No," Carter replied. "Can I keep paying you?"
"Fine," Allie said. She didn't really want to give Margot up. She had grown fond of her in the few days they had spent together. "Why are you here? You can just send me money over an app, you know." She returned to cutting the citrus.
Carter leaned on the bar. Allie could see the outlines of his muscles rippling under his tight shirt.
Down, girl,she chided herself, trying to focus on not slicing her finger off.No customers.
"I have a proposition for you," Carter said.
"No," she told him. "I don't date customers."
"Wow, full of yourself much?" he said in a mocking tone. "I just want to pay you to pretend to be my fiancée and drive up with me to Connecticut tomorrow for Thanksgiving."
"I'm not spending Thanksgiving with your rich, stuck-up family, no matter how much you pay me," she told him.
"Not even for ten thousand dollars?" he asked.
Her mouth fell open, and her knife slipped. She hissed as the sour juice stung her hand where the knife had cut. She turned to the dump sink and ran her hand under the water. Carter hopped over the bar and rummaged around for first aid supplies.
"You aren't supposed to be back here," she said.
Carter ignored her and bandaged her finger. "So is that a yes?"
"Ten thousand dollars? Sure. Why not? What do I have to do?"
"We'll leave tomorrow morning whenever you are done here. I'll pay for gas, snacks, whatever you need."
"Yes, but what do I have to do once we are at your parents' house? I'm not some nice girl you can show off to your parents."
"Exactly!" Carter said, inspecting the bandage. "Just be your usual grouchy bartender self. Do you have some tattoos?"
