Page 59 of Threaded Lies

“Huh. And here I thought our last name might have mattered more.”

“Your fiancé knew too, but I don’t see you throwing him under the bus.”

“Wow. Is this like the third grade where you pull everyone else into an argument so that you don’t have to answer the question yourself?” I ask.

“No, more like fourth, where if you kiss ass enough you become teacher’s pet.” He looks at me with disgust. “Because what the fuck, Row? You cozy up to Holden and then all of a sudden you are now my equal?”

“I’m going to rephrase that sentence for you. It should sound more like this: you worked side by side with the man I deemed worthy enough to sell our family company to because that’s what was asked of you. Lo and behold, in that working side by side, that man saw your value, Rowan, and decided that maybe you had a good skill set and fresh ideas. That maybe someone should put a check on my rampant behavior which, to this point, has proven to be a detriment to the company.”

“Sarcasm doesn’t become you,” he says as I move behind my desk and take a seat.

“For the record, I’ve always been your equal.” My gaze veers to the manila envelope and while curiosity may own me, privacy does more so.

He shrugs indifferently. “So you’re telling me this has nothing to do with your sudden change of heart and engagement to Chad?”

“What does this refer to?”

“The new job.”

“No. Absolutely not. How does that even make sense? I found out about the new position the same time you did.”

He holds my stare for the longest time. If I avert my gaze before he’s satisfied with what he sees, he’ll know I’m lying. “Okay, then why the about-face when it comes to Chad?” His eyebrows narrow and his lips purse as I try to keep up with the various directions of this conversation.

It’s almost as if he’s changing topics quickly to catch me off guard. But I’ve rehearsed the lie in my head ever since I said yes. Let’s just hope the first time I have to say it out loud that it’s believable. “For a lot of reasons, but mostly because Chad and I have a sense of duty to help our families. We’ve been told our whole lives that the best foundation to a good marriage is friendship and we have that, so why not give it a try.”

“Just like that?”

“I’m not getting any younger.” I shrug. “Mom has spent forever telling me Chad’s the one. Maybe I wanted to make that decision for myself. Then again, maybe I’ve been sitting back and watching him over the past year and I realize there is so much more there than I ever thought.”

Please buy the lie.

“Hmm.”

Not exactly the reaction I was expecting. Don’t oversell it. “Hmm? What is that supposed to mean?”

“It has nothing to do with anything you’d net from marrying him?”

“Well, if that’s the case, it wouldn’t really matter anymore seeing as I have a new position and netted that all on my own. If I were engaged to him solely for that, we’d be calling it off.”

And it’s true. I would be. But there’s still that pesky matter about the two-year codicil to get my inheritance. I want that now, and after seeing firsthand how shitty he’s acting about being equal to me, you bet your ass I want Gran’s shares and vote so someday I can gloat that I have more than him.

Catty and bullshit? Hell yes. Deserved and what he has coming to him after all these years of throwing his privilege in my face? Definitely.

Rhett just stands there and stares at me, scrutinizing whatever he’s seeing while he decides whether to believe me or not. “He’s been in love with you for as long as I can remember.”

“I’m aware.” Now you’re going to play good cop?

“But you don’t feel the same about him.” It’s not a question, but rather a statement that puts me on edge.

“I don’t have to explain my feelings about Chad to you. That’s between him and me.”

“Then I suggest you remind yourself of that because you looked like you were getting your wisdom teeth pulled at your engagement party.”

“You ever been on the other end of Mom’s planning? It’s like a tornado wrapped in a hurricane and you’re not allowed to make any decisions on how you’re going to escape or hunker down because guess what? She’s already made them and you have no fucking choice in the matter, down to what it is you’re going to wear. So yeah, you’re damn right I looked miserable, because I was.” At least I can explain that one away. “And you know what? Screw you, Rhett. I have a lot going on with you upending our lives with this sale—more than you can ever fathom—and the last thing I need is your judgment on anything that doesn’t pertain to you.”

“Don’t you get that everything has to do with me? You marrying Chad. You getting to stay here in management at TinSpirits. You being … fucking everywhere all of a sudden.” He throws his hands up but I can see him rein in his frustration. I hold back a laugh. He’s actually going to claim that he’s the reason I still have a job? Is he out of his fucking mind? “Chad has been my best friend since kindergarten, Row. Our families all but founded this damn town. I get you might hate me for what happened with the company, but don’t use him to get back at me. The last thing I want is for him to get hurt.”

That’s what he thinks this is all about. That I’m stealing away his best friend to get back at him?