Page 11 of Wedding Whitney (Alaska Blizzard #4.5)
Jake
Whitney isn’t home when I get to the house, so I head up to my room to shower and get ready for tonight’s dinner. It’s after four and dinner is at seven, so I might even have time for a short nap.
God knows I didn’t sleep for shit last night.
I shower, change, and then go downstairs to see if Whitney is home yet.
She’s not in her room, and I’m just about to call her when I see I’ve missed a call from her.
I curse myself for not noticing it sooner.
I’ve just put the phone to my ear when a motion at the bottom of the stairs catches my attention.
“There you are.” Canyon gestures with his head. “Do you have a minute, Jake? We’d like to have a talk with you.”
I frown and stuff my phone back in my pocket, but I head the rest of the way downstairs and follow them into Lillian’s den. She isn’t there, but Brett shuts the double doors behind us and leans against the gilded marble fireplace, a smug look on his face.
Whatever this is makes me uneasy, and I look at Canyon curiously. “What’s going on?”
“Look, I’m not going to beat around the bush.
There’s no doubt that you’re not comfortable here in our life, and we’re not thrilled to have you around either.
I’ve also gotten wind of this situation with your genetics or whatever the hell is wrong with you.
What I want to know is, how much would it take to make you go away? ”
“Excuse me?” I just stare at him. “You realize money is the last thing you could ever bribe me with?”
“Nonsense. Everyone has a price. Five million? Ten?”
“You don’t have that kind of money,” I say, perching on the edge of Lillian’s desk. “And you know damn well I’m not leaving Whitney.”
“Rumor also has it you two have been arguing and at odds for days, and she was very upset with you this morning at breakfast,” Brett continues as if I hadn’t said anything.
“Sounds to me like there’s already trouble in paradise.
Why not get out now, before it’s legal, and save us all the headache of a big, messy divorce? ”
“There’s no trouble anywhere,” I say firmly. “I just needed to clear my head, so I went for a run this morning before she was awake. Then I had to pick up my best man from the airport, and we hung out. Whitney knows where I’ve been.”
“The way I heard it, you can’t have kids, so you know she’s eventually going to leave you anyway?” Canyon asks, his face devoid of even the faintest spark of emotion.
“Not true.” I feign a yawn. “Look, guys, this has been fun, but I’m not sure what you’re getting at. I know you don’t like me and I don’t think much of you either, but with us living in Alaska, it’s not like we’ll see much of each other.”
“Whitney’s worth a lot of money,” Brett tries again. “And even more once she has kids, so she’s going to dump your ass when this genetic deformity comes back to bite you on the ass.”
I haven’t rolled my eyes, mentally or physically, as much as I have with Whitney’s family than I have in my entire life. No wonder she stayed away from them for years.
“Take the money and run,” Canyon says, pulling something out of his pocket.
He hands me a check, and I do a double take. I make a lot of money as a professional athlete, but I can’t recall a time I’ve ever written a paper check with that many zeros.
Is that even legal?
I stare at it for a moment and then shake my head.
“I’m not interested in your money.”
“Here’s another million.” Brett pulls another check out of the inside pocket of his sport coat.
More because I’m curious than anything else, I take it from him. I stare at both checks for a long moment and then fold them and stick them in my pocket.
“Thanks, gentlemen. It’s been a pleasure doing business with you.”
I smile to myself and walk out of the room without looking back.