Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 83912 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83912 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 420(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
“My mother has to have money that I can get to and handle this,” she continues. “And even if she doesn’t, which is completely illogical, I have a great manager at the winery. We’re a great team. We’re making money. As long as I stay involved, I have the tools to keep succeeding. I just need time to catch things up.”
“You’re sure you’re making forty thousand a month?”
“Yes. Very. Forty thousand after expenses, which means with my mother’s love of men, Botox, and clothes, she had to have savings on top of the money she hadn’t spent on bills.”
“Men,” I repeat. “Was there some young thing she was spending the money on?”
“There was always some young thing, Nick, even when my father was alive. At least your father’s affairs were not when he was married to your mother.”
“The only difference between you and me, sweetheart, is that my mother left my father, and I wasn’t blind or young enough to not understand why.”
“At least she has self-respect. My father knew about my mother’s affairs, but he wouldn’t leave. He made excuses for her. That’s why I went to L.A. for school and stayed there. I loved my father, but it hurt me to watch him get hurt over and over again. And the behavior didn’t fit what I knew of him.”
In other words, her mother could have partnered with any number of men to blackmail my father, with an end game that might or might not have included a bigger plan. For instance, running off after draining the winery’s funds and leaving Faith to suffer, which ironically is what she did anyway.
“Nick,” Faith pleads. “You keep going silent, and it’s making me a little crazy. What are you thinking?”
“Has there been a recent man you know of?” I ask, looking for a suspect that isn’t Faith.
“Her attention span was short, but she also knew I didn’t approve. She didn’t bring them around me. She’d taken a number of trips to San Francisco this past year, though.”
To see my father, I surmise, and in that moment, I wish like hell I was in a place where I could say that to Faith, but I’m not. Even if I was certain she was innocent, if she knew the truth of why I sought her out, she’d shut me out before I could help her. “You have no idea where she went or who she saw?”
“No. I don’t. I asked, but she’d simply say ‘a friend’ lived there. Nick. What are you thinking?”
“Something doesn’t compute, Faith. You have to see that.”
She inhales, her lashes lowering. “I do,” she says, looking at me again. “I’m going to find out she gave the money to some hot, young thing, just like you’ve inferred, and I’m angry. I’m really damn angry.” She straightens, determination in her face. “But whatever she’s done or not done, I return to my certainty that I can still save the winery. I just need time.”
I study her for a long few moments, and there are some cold, hard facts about how the bank may have handled this that I decide to save for later. “I need to talk to Frank. I need us both to talk to Frank so he knows you’re on board with this.” I glance at my Rolex. “It’s only eight, and it’s Saturday. Unlike the two stooges who just came by here, let’s give him a few more hours to sleep. Not to mention, I have a call with North that I need to prep for.” I glance at my watch. “I’m going to set it up for noon.”
“Oh God,” she says. “Your deposition. Please, just put this aside until it’s over. I’ve made it this long. I can make it another week.”
I don’t tell her the bank might try to pull a dirty trick I’m not going to give them a chance to pull. “I have my work in the car. I’ll sit down at your kitchen table, and we’ll call Frank after I finish up with North,” I say, walking around the island and pulling all her soft, tempting, fuckable curves to me. And when her hand settles on my chest, that morning wood is back. I’m hard. I’m hot. And I want her. “But I’m going to need something to eat other than ice cream,” I add, “and a cold shower, since I don’t have time to fuck you properly right now, and I really want to fuck you right now.”
“You know,” she says, her hand flattening on my naked stomach, her eyes lighting with mischief, the worry and anger of the past few minutes at least momentarily lost, if not gone. “I considered telling you we should cool things down. But your pants are open, and your cock is right”—her fingers touch the head of my shaft—“here. And you really need the edge off if you’re going to do a good job for you and me. I feel obligated to help.”