Page 84 of All This Time

“They’ll be fine.”

Her smile falls and then she crouches down as I sit up, facing her now. “Why are you here, Fletcher?”

“Is it a problem that I am?”

“No, but…”

“Just trying to support you and the winery, Laney.”

She glances around us for prying ears. “This wasn’t part of our arrangement, though.”

Irritated that she’s irritated, I decide to push past my desire to argue with her and give her a piece of information that will appease her. Leaning closer to her, I say, “Well, men are visual creatures. Watching you bend your body in half for the past forty-five minutes was like me studying a playbook—now I know all of the different positions I can put you in to make you come.”

Her cheeks are already red from the workout, but I don’t miss the way they darken. “Oh.”

“Yeah, oh.” I push myself up from the ground and lift my shirt to wipe the sweat from my forehead. Laney’s eyes drop to my abs as I do, locking onto my skin glistening with sweat. “Laney?”

She jumps, knowing she was just caught. “What?”

Chuckling to myself, I shake my head. “Nothing.”

She sighs loudly. “I—I need to finish cleaning up and then I’ve got an early morning.”

“All right. What time should I come over tomorrow night?”

“Oh, uh… Six should be good.”

“Six it is.” Taking a step closer to her, I lean down and line my lips up to her ear. “See you then, angel.”

Letting out the breath she was holding, she takes a step back from me, blinking up at me slowly. “Good night, Fletcher.”

I reach down to grab my water bottle, check my pocket for my keys, and start heading in the direction of the parking lot. I assume Henley left with Elliot, which is probably for the best since he might have tried to murder me while I drove us back to his place.

Feeling like I’m on cloud nine, I close my eyes and savor the feel of the breeze on my skin as the heat from today evaporates from the air. I made a point tonight by showing up here. It may have been subtle, but Laney needs subtle right now.

As I close in on my parking spot, the last person I expected to see locks eyes with me before I can pretend that I don’t see him.

“Son.”

“I’m busy, Dad.” Increasing my pace, I head straight for the driver’s side door to my truck, but I can hear his footsteps still behind me.

“Fletcher! Damn it, stop walking.” The command of his voice instantly puts me on high alert. I know that tone. He’s irritated, which can only mean one thing.

Spinning around to face him, I take in his sullen eyes and the pallor of his skin. “Let me guess. You need money?”

“I just need a few hundred to hold me over until payday.”

Shaking my head, I contemplate what to do, but I also know that the quicker I decide, the faster I can get away from him.

I pull my wallet from my pocket, open it up, and take out all the cash I have on me. Tossing it at him, I watch it float to the ground. He doesn’t bend down to get it at once though. He has more pride than that. “That’s all I’ve got.”

“Thank you.”

Pointing a finger at him, I feel my jaw grow tighter. “Don’t. Don’t act like you’re fucking grateful. You’re just grateful that I keep feeding your habit.”

He takes a step closer to me and lowers his voice. “One day, when you can’t play anymore, you won’t judge me like you do now. In fact, you’ll probably join me…”

“I willneverend up like you,” I spit out.