Page 112 of Unforgettable
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Haven
Roya brought out the tray of lemonade, and I couldn’t pour a glass fast enough to cool the burn in the back of my throat or the quench the acid that was settling in my stomach.
I didn’t know what was worse, the affair or bribery. I stared at my father, who was giving me the vibe that he wasn’t worried. In a span of hours, two bombs had dropped on this family, two bombs that I was sure would do damage, at least to his career.
The media would hound me for a while, but as with any rumors, the next one to surface would erase the one before it. I just prayed that the next media frenzy wasn’t about my father.
I eyed my dad over the rim of my glass, sweat beading on my neck. “Is there anything else we should know about?”
“No.” His tone was as hard as his features.
So that was what Beverly had meant when she’d said, “I can’t wait until you hear what else we have in store.”
My skin sizzled with fury at my father, the Sims women, and even Arlene, who sat there as though bribery and an affair were no big thing.
“Bribery will ruin your political career,” I said. Or it might get him thrown in jail.
Ryker was surprisingly quiet as he watched my father like a hawk. The calm before the storm, I imagined. Maybe that was the reason my father hadn’t said a word yet.
I swallowed thickly before taking another sip of the tart beverage, thinking back to the conversation Ryker and I had had at his family’s funeral service.
“My old man’s company lost millions of dollars, employees, and customers, all because your father stuck his nose where it didn’t belong.”
I’d dismissed the accusation as nothing more than my father doing his job and developing policies that bettered the state of Texas.
Arlene clutched Father’s hand, standing by her man.Bravo, lady. Bravo. Do you know that he might be in prison next month?
“Talk, Daddy. Start at the top and with the truth.” I swore if the man didn’t speak, I would throw the pitcher of lemonade at him.
Ryker’s big hands, which knew their way around my body and knew just the right spots to touch, were anchored to the arms of his chair as though he were preparing for a rocket launch into space.
I set down my glass and covered his hand with mine.
He visibly relaxed.
“The bribery accusations are not true,” Father began. Then he considered Ryker. “We can’t keep contaminating our lakes, rivers, and streams. I get that there are accidents and equipment can break, but believe it or not, we’ve had some oversight in the system where companies were given the go-ahead to operate only to find that they hadn’t been ready. My advice to the man who heads the Texas Water Conservation Board was to take their time when evaluating a case, especially when a company violates the discharge permit.”
Arlene poured Father a lemonade.
He brought the glass to his mouth, his gaze never wavering from Ryker’s. “I’m not sorry that I want to better this state. I’m not sorry that I want to protect the environment. I’m not sorry that we need to make sure cases, whatever they may be, are handled in the proper manner.” I could hear the sincerity in his voice.
Ryker slouched his shoulders and lost the tick in his jaw.
Father took a swig of lemonade. “There was no bribery on my part. Nothing more than counsel.”
I cocked my head. “Then why would someone leak that to the press? Is this what Lorna had on you? If so, I’m confused. You seemed worried when we talked the other night.”
My father adjusted his body in his chair. “I was because I don’t need a lie in the press. Whether rumors are true or not, news like this ruins people and their careers.”
“Why should we believe you?” Ryker asked.
Creases lined Father’s freckled forehead. “I don’t have to prove anything to you.”
“Then prove it to me, Daddy. And why would Lorna put her family through something like this? Surely their plot wasn’t just about getting me away from Ryker.”
Arlene cleared her throat. “Your father has been giving Lorna money to keep her mouth shut about the affair. It just so happens that she overheard a conversation your father had with the head of the Texas Water Conservation Board. He told them if money was an issue, he would see what he could do to increase the budget for overtime to make sure that cases weren’t rushed and mistakes weren’t made.”
