Page 26 of The Bargain (Dalton Family #2)

Chapter Twenty-Six

Sofia

I reach for my phone that’s in my pocket and punch in my father’s number, nerves jumping about in my belly as if I were about to confess Ethan to him now, which I am not. He answers on the second ring. “Honey, did you make it official? Are you going to Paris?”

“There are a few contract negotiations that came up. It’s a long story, but it should all be done by tomorrow. If that all works out, which I believe it will, I’m going to leave Friday morning.”

“Okay, whiplash. What now? What is happening?”

“Nothing bad. It’s all good, Dad. I have to pick up my passport in the morning and take care of some last-minute stuff at the store. I went to their offices today, but I couldn’t get it until morning. Can we go to an early dinner to talk about it?”

“Sure, honey. I’ll move around a few things, and we’ll do it. My place?”

“No, that little Mexican place we both love.”

“What time?”

“Five?”

“Perfect. I’ll see you then.”

We disconnect. I start playing out how this conversation might go in my head, and I start freaking myself out.

I want to just go see him now, but I’m not sure that’s the right move.

I’m emotional, and I know it, and I’m surprised at how much I want to talk to Ethan.

I rush toward the hallway and step into the doorway of the bedroom to find him sitting in that chair he’d mentioned, his phone in hand, and I can tell he’s not pleased with what’s being said to him through what must be his earpiece.

He sets the cell on the arm next to him and runs a rough hand through his thick dark hair, and I swear, I can barely breathe for fear there’s a problem related to the Zoey brand but I chide myself for making this about me.

Ethan’s trying to start a new empire, and I’m only a tiny piece of that puzzle.

“No,” he says. “One hundred fucking percent no. The end. I’m done with this conversation.”

I’m frozen where I stand, afraid of interrupting him, when he looks up, his eyes lighting on me, and I swear my stomach flutters with his attention. He motions me forward as if he understands my hesitation and then says, “Done means done.”

I close the space between me and him, and when I start to sit on the ottoman, Ethan pulls me down in the chair beside him, draping my legs over his lap.

“You’ll figure it out,” Ethan says to whoever he’s talking to.

They exchange a couple more words, and Ethan ends the call, his focus on me. “Did you talk to your father?”

“Yes. Dinner tomorrow night. That didn’t sound good.”

“Typical work stuff. I bought a water company that sold me on the glass bottle concept. Now they want to change to plastic. That’s not going to fly. The idea is to stand out and avoid all the toxic problems with plastic.”

“Aren’t glass bottles expensive?”

“Yes. But I knew that going into this. People hate paper. Glass is the alternative that works.”

“Is this your investment or for the family business?”

“Mine.”

“How do you have time to take care of the family side then?”

“I work a lot of hours. Is that going to bother you?”

“Of course not. I have to make Zoey into an empire of my own. I can’t do that without putting in the time and effort.”

“We’ll figure out how to make it work.”

“I’m going to tell my father about you.”

“You mean us ?”

“Yes,” I say with a curve to my lips. “About us. A part of me just wanted to go over there tonight, but he’s got his own business to run, and he’s finally dating again. Plus, I recognize that I suddenly want to unburden myself, which is about me, not him.”

“What happened with his investor meeting?”

“I don’t know. I’ll talk to him tomorrow. Why?”

“Get me the information before he signs the deal. I’ll make sure nothing is shady. And if you fear he’ll sign the deal before tomorrow night, I need to look at it sooner than later.”

“Is this a thing?”

“Yes. Investors love to screw creators/owners in exchange for money. I can talk to him. I can help—”

“No,” I say. “Absolutely no, Ethan. I know you mean well, but he wants to earn what he gets.”

“He is. Now that I know more of his backstory, I’m confident in him. I always liked him.”

“No. Thank you, though. I really do appreciate that you want to help. And as for him not getting screwed, he has a good attorney, but you’re an actual investor, and I think your feedback would be necessary. I just need to figure out how to do that.”

“Tell him your new attorney is exceptional, and it’s worth two opinions.”

“Yes. Good idea. I’ll do that.” My phone is in the pocket of my pants, and I shift and retrieve it. “I’ll text him.” And that’s what I do: Dad. I know you have an attorney, but he’s so busy in trial right now. My new attorney is incredible. Let her look at your investment deal before you sign it.

He answers immediately . When, and if, I sign with someone, I will certainly consider it.

My brows dip. When and if? What is happening with the person you met with?

They want a lot of data. We’ll see.

“What’s wrong?” Ethan asks.

I toss my phone to the ottoman. “The potential investor is asking for a lot of data.”

“That’s fairly normal.”

“It feels off. I think he got turned down. You’ve seen his proposal.” I push off the chair and sit on the ottoman in front of him. “What does he need to change?”

“His upfront presentation is good, but when he gives you the backend, it’s debt-heavy in a big way.”

“How does he overcome that? He did get a big new account. He says that’s how he got his investor meeting.”

“Distribution costs money, which was my biggest concern. He doesn’t have the cash flow to fulfill those new orders, and if anything goes wrong, the business can go south fast. My biggest worry would be him taking a bad deal out of desperation.

He needs money. Whoever gives it to him will want most of his company because of the risk. ”

“My money won’t be enough, will it? It’s five figures. No more. I mean, of course, if I get a big payout years from now that would, but that does him no good, and it’s not even a sure thing.”

“Tell him it’s more. Find out what he needs. I’ll give you the rest.”

“I’m not taking your money, Ethan.”

“You’re doing it for him, not yourself. He’ll pay you back. If you want to pay me back, you can.”

“If? Are you serious right now? I’m not that girl. I don’t want or need your money. No. Just no, Ethan.” I push to my feet and try to walk away.

He captures my arm and holds me to him, not about to let me get away, not about to let this go.

I know right then we’re about to have our first fight. Okay, our second. And it’s going to be a blowout.