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CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

brOOKS

I pulled up to Clark Investments, shifted into park, and threw my head back against the headrest. There was so much on my mind lately: Harlow, her dad, and Marty’s health. But today, I had to get my act together and secure the financing for our business expansion.

I pulled on the sleeves of my dress shirt so the cuffs would show out of the arms of my sports coat before heading through the front door. The office was sleek and modern, a far cry from the construction trailers I was used to.

The receptionist peered up from her keyboard and gave me a polite smile. “Hello, how can I help you?”

I straightened my tie and cleared my throat. “Good morning. I’m Brooks Dawson. I have an eleven o’clock meeting with Mr. Clark.”

She placed my name in the visitor’s logbook and handed me a plastic badge to clip to my jacket. “He is expecting you, Mr. Dawson. You can head down to the conference room.” She gestured to the double glass doors at the end of the open office, filled with dozens of occupied cubicles.

I gave her an appreciative nod and walked past all the employees, typing on their computers with their ears covered by headsets. The place was so quiet, you could literally hear a pin drop.

I entered the conference room to find Richard Clark, the man who held all the power of taking my business to the next level, already seated at the long glass table.

He was dressed in another sharp suit and sported an all-business look, which was a stark contrast to the relaxed man that Harlow and I had met at the restaurant last week.

Today looked like it was going to be all business.

“Thanks for taking the time to meet with me,” I said, holding my hand out.

He didn’t smile, didn’t shake my hand, just frowned, and gestured for me to take a seat. “I almost canceled our meeting.”

My stomach dropped. “I’m sorry. Did you find something wrong with the proposal I sent you?”

Harlow double-checked the numbers and made sure everything was accurate. She pored over the spreadsheets, and we corrected errors until the proposal was perfect. I had no idea what the issue could be.

He picked up his phone and held it out for me to see. “William Bennett called me this morning.”

I gulped and dropped down into one of the rolling chairs at his table. I should have anticipated Harlow’s dad would fuck with me and try to screw up this deal. He did warn us, so it was foolish of me not to take the threat seriously.

“He said you were trying to pull a fast one on me. That the engagement to his daughter was all bullshit.” His eyes were sharp and critical. “I don’t do business with liars, Brooks.”

I inhaled a deep breath and pressed the palms of my hands against my thighs. “I don’t even know where to start.”

I could barely look at him and wasn’t sure what to say, but I knew I was done lying.

He leaned forward. “Why don’t you try telling me the truth for a change?”

I adjusted the collar of my shirt, nervous that everything I worked for was coming unraveled. The investment would cover the costs for the new equipment I needed to position myself to place a competitive bid for the new hotel project.

Lakeside Resort would be the biggest development project that our little touristy town had ever seen.

Winning this bid would not only be a game changer for me personally, but it would position Dawson Construction as one of the area’s top construction firms in the state.

It would be my chance to prove myself, level up, and secure larger deals.

And it would bring in more jobs and bigger exposure.

Now it was all dangling over a cliff because William Bennet wanted revenge.

“First, I’d like to apologize. He never should have dragged you into this, and I wish I could say he was one hundred percent wrong, but there is some truth to what he said.

” My hands were shaking as I folded them in my lap.

“The engagement started under false pretenses. I was trying to help Harlow get out from under his thumb. William Bennett is a manipulative and controlling man. He is the reason why she and I broke up all those years ago. He was trying to force her into an arranged marriage. I wanted to help her. So, when her father showed up and demanded that she go back, I stepped in without thinking and told him we were already engaged.” I leaned forward so I could look him in the eye.

“I am sorry that I lied to you, but I wanted the deal so badly that I was willing to do whatever was necessary. That’s not the kind of man I am, and you deserve better. ”

He didn’t speak, simply stared, so I continued.

“I know it looks bad, and while this might have started on a lie, that’s not the case anymore.

Over the last few weeks, Harlow and I have reconnected.

What we have is one hundred percent real.

I know the bell can’t be unrung, but I still owe you a sincere apology. ”

He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “You went to those extremes just to land the deal?”

I nodded slowly. “Yes. My father and grandfather entrusted me to take over Dawson Construction. This business isn’t just a paycheck for me, it’s my family’s legacy.

I wanted them to see the business thrive and make them proud.

So, yeah, I wanted this project more than I wanted anything, but I don’t want to sell myself out to get it, and that’s exactly what I did, and I’m not proud of that.

” I swallowed hard and glanced away. “I’m ashamed that I Iied, and that’s something I will regret for a long damn time. ”

His eyes narrowed slightly. “What’s her father after?”

Control . Power . Greed .

“He wants to punish her. He’s angry that she screwed up his deal. He threatened to take her home away and fired her from her job because she dared to make a choice that he didn’t agree with. And now he’s doing everything he can to make my life miserable.”

He leaned forward and steepled his fingers under his chin. “That’s one hell of a mess you got yourself tangled in.”

I laughed lightly. “Yeah, it sure is.”

“I still don’t like that you tried to pull a fast one over me.” He glanced down at the manila folder on the table. “And while the numbers are spot-on, I don’t attach my business to people I can’t trust. I worked too hard to build my company’s reputation.”

I swallowed hard because that made sense, and I couldn’t blame him. “I understand.” I stood up and pushed my chair back. “Thank you for hearing me out and giving me a chance to explain.”

I was walking toward the door with my tail tucked between my legs when he stopped me.

“Brooks, wait.” I turned around, surprised to see him standing, too. “I wasn’t finished. Sit back down.”

I blinked, confused, but followed him back over to the table.

He motioned for me to take a seat, so I did. “I’ve seen what power and greed can do to people. And I’ve seen people stand up for what’s right and show up for those they care about.”

I stared at him, unsure where this conversation was going.

“I’ve been in this game long enough to know when someone is scrambling to cover their tracks and feed me a line of bullshit, but I’ve also seen people with their heart on their sleeve and hold sincerity in their eyes.”

I blinked. “Thank you.”

I expected him to throw me out of his office, not to go easy on me.

He smirked when he noticed my confused expression. “I admire a man who has the balls to own up to his mistakes. I’m not going to pretend that I’m happy about what you did, but I’m willing to give you another shot.”

My shoulders dropped, and I felt all the air rush from my lungs. “You’re giving me a second chance?”

He flipped open the folder and picked up his black pen. “I am, and you better not let me down.”

I laughed and ran a nervous hand through my hair. “I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but why?”

He lifted his head and met my eyes. “Any man who is willing to stand between a woman and a father like hers is a man who has his priorities straight.”

I swallowed hard. “I’m all in.”

He smiled. “I can tell.”

He extended his hand. “You got yourself a deal.”

I rose to my feet and offered him my hand, and this time he took it. “Thank you, sir. I can’t tell you how much this means to me. I promise you won’t regret it.”

“You better hope I don’t.” We both laughed. He slid the folder he’d been looking at across the table. “I had my legal team finalize the numbers. You’ll find everything is as we discussed. All you need to do is sign, and we are officially in business.”

My nervous fingers flipped open the folder. I quickly scanned the paperwork. Everything looked exactly as I had hoped.

I picked up the pen and signed my name.The weight in my chest lifted as I leaned back and smiled for the first time since I stepped into this office.

Clark reached forward, flipped the paperwork around, and closed the folder. “Congratulations.”

I did my best to maintain my composure, despite the excitement I felt. “Thanks for seeing past my faults and for the opportunity. It means the world to me. I promise to do everything right this time.”

His smile was warm. I was filled with disbelief and awe at how compassionate this man was. “Tell Harlow she deserves better than the way her father treats her.”

I shook his hand one last time and left the office feeling relieved. The second I slid into my truck, I picked up the phone to text her. Before I could click on her contact, Hayes was calling.

“Hey,” I answered, still riding the emotional roller coaster from securing the deal. “I’ve got some good news. We got the green light. The deal is happening,” I said, leaving out all the other details. I’d fill him in later.

“Congratulations,” he said, but there was something off in his tone. “I hate to rain on your parade, but we have a small problem.”

I stared through the windshield. “What kind of problem?”

“There was a mix-up with the flooring for Harlow’s house. They delivered the wrong one. Now we’re looking at a delay.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. “How long?”

“Could be a week. Could be a month. They don’t have an exact timeline for when they can get the correct material in.”

I swore under my breath. “Great. This was the last thing she needed to deal with.”

“Unfortunately, that’s not all. Her piece of shit ex filed a grievance with the town about the work permit. Said she wasn’t technically the owner, so our permits are invalid.”

My jaw clenched. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

It was clear that her dad and the Baz-hole were in this together, plotting to make our lives as difficult as possible.

“Wish I was.” He sighed into the phone. “The town called this morning. We have to stop the project until we can straighten the ownership thing out.”

I slammed my eyes shut. “That sack of garbage has nothing better to do than to sabotage every part of her life.”

“Yeah, well, that sack of garbage isn’t just screwing with her. He is trying to fuck us over as well.”

Of course, he was. He was doing exactly as he said he would. They both were. Just when I thought things were finally going my way, they had to come along and stir up trouble.

“There is more,” Hayes said. “Baz has been sniffing around town, trying to dig up dirt on you two. He’s telling people your engagement isn’t real. That you’re only pretending to be engaged so she could get the house.”

I felt something dark and painful twist in my chest.

“I’ll deal with him when I get back.”

This was their way of trying to stay in control. Neither of them had any intention of letting her walk away without paying a price.

“How exactly do you plan on handling it?”

I didn’t answer right away, but deep down, I already knew what I had to do. I’d been trying to take things slow and give myself time to figure things out, but marrying her would stop all this bullshit, real quick.

“Let me think about it, okay?” I looked at my GPS. “I have about two hours on the thruway. I’ll call the supplier myself and see if I can put some pressure on them. I’ll stop by the town building when I get back.”

“I’m sorry to stress you out after the good day you’ve had.”

“Don’t worry about it. Keep an eye on things until I get back. I’ll get everything sorted out.”

“You got it. Drive safe.”

I hung up and drummed my fingers against the steering wheel.

I would be dammed if I let those two men ruin my business and continue to bully her until they got what they wanted. I wasn’t stupid. I knew they weren’t going to let up until they did everything they could to make sure we didn’t find an ounce of peace.

However, that didn’t mean I had to stand back and let it happen. I would do whatever I had to do, even if that meant I had to marry her tomorrow. As my mind searched for another solution, it became clear that was the only one.