Page 99 of One Little Mistake
“Ashton fucking owes me. Big time,” I grumble as I take a seat. “Let’s get this over with. What do you have that Ashton needs?”
“I promise, I’m not the bad guy here. I hope Easton can see that someday.”
“Listen, asshole. I’m not here to talk about Easton,” I hiss. “Tell me what you need to say so I can go.”
Dillon sighs, and I feel the weight of it in my bones.
Do not go soft for this guy, Lexi. Remember what he did to Beast.
Dillon removes a stack of papers from a briefcase I hadn’t yet noticed and sets it on the table. Leaning forward, I scan the documents. Then, I fan them out in front of me, trying to make sense of what I’m seeing.
“Is this … But, why didn’t you ever tell him?”
“Un-fucking-believable,” a deep, angry voice yells. I know without lifting my head that it’s Easton, and I hang my head lower because of how this looks to him. When I’m able to keep it together, I find his eyes and am frozen by the pure hatred staring back at me.
Chapter 38
Easton
“That’s quite the production. Are you sure you can pull it off in time?” Baker asks.
I observe him as he leans back in his office chair. He’s in a baby blue dhoti today, and he rests his joined hands on his protruding belly. Regardless of his position and what it could mean for my girls, I like this guy.
“I’m a Westbrook, sir. We thrive under pressure. I have no doubt this will all come to fruition. My teams will have the last of the foundations poured by the end of the day. That will at least pause the development deals, and my brother brought in reinforcements from our offices in North Carolina to help facilitate our portion of Summerfest.”
“Burke Hollowians will want to participate you know? I hope you’re not just bringing in your own men. The point of this is to get the town to trust you.”
“I’m very aware of what our job is, Baker. He brought in experts to help plan. Man power will be strictly Westbrooks or residents.”
Baker smiles as he clasps his hands behind his head. “Sounds like you’ve got a good plan then, son. Fontaine is going to hate it, but I believe in you and love those Heart women.”
Hearing Fontaine’s name is like nails on a chalkboard. I know I shouldn’t accuse without proof, but I have to let him know where my head is.
“Listen, Baker. I’m sure you can tell there’s a history between Macomb and me. It’s nothing good and nothing I wish to discuss, but the fact that he’s working with Fontaine worries me. Especially since I have proof that someone tampered with the Heart Lodge.”
Baker’s smile fades as he leans forward. “What do you mean tampered with?”
“I’ve had multiple independent engineers and inspectors come out to look at the damage. If you compare GG’s hospitality inspection from last year to the mess I found when I arrived, you can see someone knew just where to strike to make the foundation unstable. They also notched the ceiling’s support beams in strategic places. That’s why the roof caved in so suddenly.”
“Woo-wee. That’s a big accusation, Easton.”
I pinch the back of my neck and roll my shoulders. This is a fight I’m all too ready to take on. “I know it is, but GG only had two people out to work on the lodge all year. Both of them were recommendations from Fontaine. And, you’re really not going to like this part.”
Baker leans in even farther. I forget that this man lives for gossip almost as much as GG.
“What is it?”
“My brother, Halton, is the head of finance at The Westbrook Group. He’s been going over the town’s financials, and something isn’t adding up there.”
“Like what?” Baker gasps.
“Over the last ten years, hundreds of thousands of dollars have gone missing from the general fund. It was never in large sums. Nothing that would tip anyone off unless you knew what you were looking for.”
“And Halton knows what to look for?”
“He’s the best,” I admit. “We don’t know where the money has gone. Not yet anyway, but he’s sure it’s missing. That’s why the town suddenly has a fiscal catastrophe.”
“But, how? How could that much money just disappear?”
