He kept quiet, and I began to feel awkward.My gut had been right.This was a bad idea.
I stood.“You’re busy.I don’t want to take up more of your time.”
He stood, but leaned a hand on the desk.“Did something go wrong in the past year?”
“Wrong, how?”I asked.
His beard moved with his lip twitch.“Don’t know if your Mom married or whatnot, but when I signed the forms, they gave me some pamphlets about what to expect if I got contacted.Most of the time it’d be because home life was crap, but I can see that isn’t the case for you.So, I’m guessing something changed.”
I pressed my lips together.“Yeah, I suppose you might say that.My step dad who essentially helped Mom raise me, he died a year and a half ago.No matter how curious I was about you in my teens, I’d never make Jeff feel like he wasn’t my dad.”
Lark dipped his chin.“There you go.Sorry you lost your dad.Guessing he wasn’t much older than me, which means he died young.”
“Yeah.Fifty-five.”
He shoved a hand in the pocket of his faded jeans.“Look, I’m not tryin’ to be standoffish, but I’m not anyone’s father figure.”
Yep.Bad idea.And, I was even more grateful that Chad wasn’t here.
I nodded, kept quiet, and took a sideways step toward the door.
“But it’s good to know my donation amounted to an upstanding young woman.”
My eyebrows arched.“You don’t know me well enough to say that – especially after what happened in that dilapidated farm house.”
He shook his head.“Did you get out alive?Did you keep Nickel from getting hurt any further?Yes, and yes.Where I’m from, that’s the measure of an upstanding woman.”
I nodded again, moved closer to the door, but paused when he spoke.
“That friend of yours – he knows about me, right?”
“Yeah,” I whispered.
Lark’s eyes hardened.“Do not let him tell people about me.My gut says the trouble you and Nickel got into has something to do with me.Those dumb fucks thought thetripletsare my kids and abducting one would devastate me.They get word you’re my kid – even if I don’t know your mom – you’re in even more danger.”
“Why would they have a problem with you?”
He arched a brow.“You work in real estate, surely you’ve heard of ‘not in my backyard.’There’s plenty of folk ‘round here who don’t want a bar in the area.Even if it’s a restaurant and bar.Narrow-minded assholes don’t need reasons to start trouble if it gets them what they want, which is me out of the picture.”
“I see.”
“That’s another reason I can’t have you hangin’ ‘round here trying to get to know me.Those bastards have been raisin’ hell here since our soft open.They get dealt with, maybe we can get to know each other.”
I gave him a wan smile and opened the door.“That sounds like a plan.Take care, Lark.”
The office door opened to the main barroom, and Nickel sat on a barstool so he faced the doorway.
His full lips formed a slight pout as he stood and came to me.“Did he hurt you?”
I shook my head.“Not like you mean.”
His gaze shifted to a point over my shoulder.“What did you say to her?”
“Don’t like your tone, Nickel,” Lark muttered.
“Don’t care.I’m not your employee right now.”
“No.Even my brothers don’t take that tone.”
