Page 9 of Whiskey Wednesdays

When I reached the tall front door, I noticed a festive holiday wreath hanging on it. Through the glass, I could also see an enormous Christmas tree with hundreds of expensive white ornaments and lights. The thing was probably worth more than my car, and I hated it on principle.

When I rang the doorbell, Dad answered.

“Dad. I love you. But I’m giving you fair warning. I probably won’t be able to hold my temper tonight.”

He grimaced but nodded. “Just try your best. Come in and I’ll officially introduce you.”

As we walked into the living room, I saw Connor standing in front of the wall-to-ceiling bifold doors that ran the length of the huge space. I could see the long pool and courtyard area the house was built around behind him.

I stopped next to my father and folded my arms. Noah lounged back on the couch, and I didn’t bother looking at him.

Dad put his hand on my shoulder. “This is my daughter, Isabella Cruz. Isa, this is Connor McCoy.” He didn’t introduce Noah.

I stared at Connor and didn’t say anything.

Connor finally unfolded his arms. “Hello, Isa.”

“Friends and family call me Isa. You can call me Ms. Cruz.”

Dad shifted next to me.

Connor raised his eyebrow and studied me. “Okay then, Ms. Cruz. Damien Andreasen, one of the owners of the security company I use, wants to be at this meeting. He should be here shortly.”

I glanced at the large clock above the mantel. “I’ll wait for ten minutes. Then I’m leaving.” I didn’t have anywhere I needed to be, but I wasn’t going to sit here longer than that.

Turning my back on him, I walked over to the other side of the couch and sat down. I didn’t say a word. Noah glanced over at me several times, but I ignored everyone. Connor finally turned his back to the room and gazed out at the pool with his arms folded. Just over eight minutes later, the doorbell rang.

Dad answered the door again, and I could hear voices in the entryway. A handsome, competent-looking man with a laptop case walked in, and a tall, gorgeous woman came in behind him.

Dad introduced me to Damien and his partner, Harley.

Connor nodded at Damien. “You said you wanted to come by and discuss the break-in. Noah said Javier’s daughter was the only one who came to the estate over the weekend.”

Dad straightened. “Isabella has a right to come see me.” He turned to Noah. “And you’re wrong about her being the only one who was here this weekend. I was here. And so were you.”

Noah took his foot off the coffee table. “Are you saying it could have been me, Javier? Are you accusing me of stealing from my brother?”

Javier leaned forward. “You’re strongly insinuating it was Isa, just because she visited me this weekend. But she didn’t sleep over, and I’m pointing out you were here too. All weekend.”

I touched Dad’s arm. “They’re not worth getting upset over. Your boss is too stupid to see what’s staring him in the face.”

Connor frowned and studied me. Then he turned to Damien. “Which code was used to turn off the cameras and security program?”

“Your personal code,” Damien said.

Noah waved at us. “You gave Javier your personal code when you hired him. I was there. You said he could use it until they created a new one for him.” He glanced at me with a sad expression. “He probably gave it to his daughter or wrote it down where she could find it.”

“That means you heard Connor’s code too since you were there,” Javier pointed out.

Noah shook his head. “Why would I steal from my brother? It’s obvious neither of you has a lot of money. Connor’s a decent guy; I’m sure he’ll let you work something out.”

Damien ignored Noah. “This’ll be easy to clear up. There are two backup security cameras in place in case the main system goes down.”

Everyone in the room went still. I smiled and patted Dad’s hand.

Noah shifted nervously. “What are you talking about?” He didn’t sound condescending and self-righteous now. He sounded panicked.

“What kind of backup security cameras?” Connor asked at the same time.

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