Page 72 of Moonlit Colorado

I leaned in and said, “Don’t eat it all until I’m back. I want to watch you enjoy it.”

She gave me the sexiest side-eye I’d ever seen.

Nobody else was in the bathroom. I zipped up just as the door swung open.

I glanced back. My brother had just walked inside. “Did you bring a date from Colorado just to piss off Dad?” Kip asked.

“Hello to you too.” I went around him to reach the sinks.

Kip appeared behind me in the mirror. “Not going to answer my question?”

I scowled. “It was a stupid question. Seems like you’re trying to pick a fight with me.”

“I’m just trying to understand the things you do. You joined the company to make Dad like you more, and yet you can’t resist defying him every chance you get.”

“Why do you care?”

“I’m wondering why you don’t just quit.”

Ah. So that was what this was about.

Grabbing a folded towel to dry my hands, I spun and faced my brother. “You’d love that, wouldn’t you? If I quit.”

My little brother crossed his arms, thinking he had me on the ropes. “You’d probably love it too. Go back to that town in Colorado that you were so insistent on investing in.”

Maybe he did have a point there. “But I didn’t join the company for Dad’s approval. I joined it for Mom. I don’t expect you to understand that.”

“Screw you. I love our mother.”

“Yeah? When’s the last time you went to visit her? Have you taken Bristol to see her, since Mom can’t come to the wedding?”

“Mom probably won’t even know who we are. What’s the point?”

I had sworn a long time ago that I’d never hit my brother, but he was really pushing me. I needed to change the subject before I lost control.

And there was something else I needed to talk to him about, anyway. I’d been planning to wait until he wasn’t in the middle of wedding stuff, buthehad started this conversation. Not me.

“Dirk Lancaster,” I said, without preamble. Kip gave me the reaction I wanted. He tried to hide it, but he flinched.

“What about him?”

“I left you voicemails and messages about the man. Lancaster caused a scene at the grand-opening masquerade in Silver Ridge. He put his hand on Grace, and it pissed me the hell off.”

“Yes, and Dirk recognized you. He says you threatened him. He complained to me, and we’re lucky he’s still willing to do business with us at all.”

“Fuck him and his business. I want him to answer some questions for me.”

“What questions?”

“For starters, does he know a woman called Nina Jamison who was at the party that night? I didn’t see her, but I’m told she was very striking. Memorable. And she may have arranged to meet Lancaster there. I think Lancaster mistook Grace for her.”

Another flinch. Like Kip knew exactly who I was talking about.

“Doyouknow Nina?” I asked. “Or whatever her name really is.”

He snapped out of wherever his mind had gone. “I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. Why should I care about any of this?”

“Because somebody broke into Grace’s home last week. Trashed her room and stole something. I have reason to believe Nina Jamison or Dirk Lancaster could have information about it.”

---