Page 144

Again, he sighed. “I guess I came on a little too strong with Mr. Kris when we first met in person. I told him the vision of what I had for his company, and apparently, he was scared off by all of my ideas.”

Winnie listened carefully, though she didn’t find it difficult to believe that Dad had come on too strong. That had always been her issue with him, too.

“Anyway, I got the idea that he prefers a much less direct approach,” he added.

“Which is where I come in?” she guessed.

“Exactly. You need to go in there and work your Winnie charm. Show them how wonderful we Knoxes are to work with, how they would be missing out on so many benefits if they don’t work with us. All you’d have to do is your typical consultant magic while letting them know how lucky they’d be to have your mom and I work with them. Super simple.”

Winnie reeled, and for a moment, a light beamed into her chest. Dad would never admit it, but he was essentially asking her for a favor. No, it was more than a favor. He was asking her to bail him out of something that he’d messed up. She’d never known him to ask for help before, and he’d asked her.

She had no qualms with the job at all. In fact, she knew she’d succeed with helping Kris & Sons because she’d previously excelled working with other software-based companies.

Did that mean Dad had that same faith in her?

“You do know who you’re talking to, right?” she asked.

“Of course I do,” he said, clearly impatient. “Win-Win-Winnie.”

She grimaced, reality setting her firmly back on the ground. “You and I both know I never win at anything, Dad.”

“That may be true,” he readily agreed. “But you’re a fine consultant. I have full confidence in your ability to charm the Kris family. Once they meet with you, there is no way they won’t hire you.”

Winnie pressed a hand to her pulsing brow. She knew how Dad worked—build someone up to get his way. It was his oldest trick.

So why was she falling for it? Why was she falling for his overdue compliments and his supposed faith in her?

Fortunately, there was one continual thought still grounding her.

What about Matthew?

She wanted to help her dad. Really, she did. But to give up so much of what was almost within her grasp—a potential future with a man she could see herself spending forever with, finding joy she’d sought for so many years? She couldn’t agree to that.

“I don’t know about this, Dad,” she said softly. “I just…don’t know.”

Again, silence met her.

“Winnie,” he began after a moment, his tone losing its softness from before. “How many times have I helped you find consultant jobs?”

The weight of the past few years settled on her chest, her bones pressing uncomfortably against her heart. “I⁠—”

“How often did I support you in your endeavors?” he interrupted.

Winnie didn’t bother responding now. He wouldn’t hear her words.

“How frequently did I pull you under my wing,” he continued, “urging you to keep going when you failed time and time again?”

The weight pushed down harder, her breath coming in labored bursts. Of course Dad would see his actions as supportive instead as oppressive. After all, he never did anything wrong.

“I don’t wish to pressure you,” he said, “but after everything your mother and I have done for you, after all the sacrifices we’ve made, if you can’t do this one, simple thing to help us, your parents who love you more than anything…do you even wish to be a part of this family at all?”

She bit the inside of her cheek and closed her eyes. He didn’t want to pressure her? That was exactly what he wanted to do because he knew pressure worked. It cracked even the hardest of metals and the strongest of desires.

It cracked even the happiest of spirits. And Winnie’s had already suffered an irreparable fracture.

“So can I rely on you to help us, Winnie?” Dad asked.

Winnie pushed aside her feelings. She didn’t have the right to them anyway. Just like she didn’t have the right to her own dreams or her own life.