Page 20 of Don't Bet On It
Zach slid Rex an unreadable look. “That was dark, dude.”
“That’s the sort of mood your father puts me in.”
Zach didn’t consider it long. “He puts me in that mood too.” His eyes moved back to me. “That’s why I need to make you aware that you didn’t do anything wrong. I actually appreciate somebody who thinks on his feet. We need those investors for the new addition.” He hesitated a beat. “Thank you.”
His eyes scanned my face as if he was searching for something specific. I didn’t know what to make of it, so I opted to respond with the truth. “I just reacted on instinct. I was doing it before I could think better of it.”
“If you had it to do over again, would you do things differently?” Rex asked.
I lifted one shoulder. “Probably not. I might not have made Tallulah my partner in crime if I had it to do over again. She was energetic enough, but I could’ve used a little more weight to hold him down.” I was going for levity. Zach and Rex smiled in return, but the amusement never made it to their eyes.
What is going on here?I couldn’t find solid footing.
“We were talking,” Rex said coyly. He might have thought he was being sly, but he was coming across as deranged. “We were having an argument about when we were in high school. You were a mathlete, right?”
Where were they going with this? Nowhere good. I thought about redirecting the conversation—I didn’t want to talk about high school anyway—but something occurred to me, and I realized exactly what they were up to.
“No.” I shook my head. “I wasn’t a mathlete.” I didn’t volunteer any other information. I waited to see what they would do next.
“Were you in the band?” Zach asked.
I had to hold back a smirk. “I believe I have negative rhythm, if that’s a thing.”
“So … no band.” Zach smiled. “I’m glad. Band geeks freak me out.”
I didn’t rise to the bait. I did wish for the beer that I hadn’t gotten. Otherwise, I remained immobile.
“Did you date my sister back then?” Rex asked. “I swear I know you from somewhere.”
How he’d nabbed the chief security gig was beyond me. Actually, it wasn’t. It was part nepotism and part hard work. Zach had gotten his best friend in through the front door, and then Rex had muscled his way up because he was good at what he did. Despite all that, he was a terrible liar.
“Why don’t I make this easy on everybody,” I suggested. “I’ll promise to answer your real question truthfully … as long as you get to your real question.”
Zach shot Rex an accusatory look that would’ve been amusing under different circumstances. “I told you to let me handle the questions,” he hissed. “You’re terrible at this.”
“I’m head of security,” Rex shot back. “I’m good at this by virtue of my position.”
“Just because you should be good at it doesn’t mean you are actually good at it,” Zach fired back.
“Oh, I can’t even talk to you when you get like this. You’ve gotten soft since marrying my sister. I hope you know that.” Rex’s serious eyes landed on me. “It’s come to our attention that you’re Norbert Hawthorne’s son.”
I waited for him to continue. When he didn’t, I merely nodded. “And?”
“And we want to know why you’re working here if you have a fancy casino of your own to work in.”
“A casino where you could have a better job than dealer,” Zach added pointedly.
I waited again. They didn’t add anything, so I considered my options. I could lie and hope to get away with it or tell the truth and pray they were as good of guys as they seemed. I opted for the latter. Following my instincts was always going to be my first choice.
“My father and I are … at an impasse,” I replied, choosing my words carefully. “There are a few things we don’t see eye to eye on.”
“What sort of things?” Zach asked.
I wasn’t surprised that he wanted the whole story. Would he understand, though? Maybe.
I sighed. “I don’t want to be in the family business.” It was a simple response, but it was the truth.
“You don’t want to run your family’s casino?” Zach’s forehead creased. “How come?” He didn’t look doubtful as much as curious.
