Page 76 of Hate to Crave You
They all watched as he turned on his heel and stormed out.
Several moments of silence ticked away as they all stared at the empty doorway.
“Maybe he’ll come around,” Julianna said softly.
“He won’t,” Roman said.
At the same time, Charles said, “Not likely, sweetheart.”
Roman turned his head and watched as Charles reached over to cover his daughter’s hand with his own. A pang of envy tugged at him. He didn’t begrudge her the obvious closeness she shared with her father, but he sure as hell wished he could have had something similar with his own parent.
Instead he had ice and stone.
“Moira,” Charles said quietly.
“Sir?”
The mood in the room had taken a decidedly downward turn, but she faced the elder Castle with a determined smile on her pretty face.
She was a Templeton, through and through, Roman thought. They didn’t know the meaning of the wordquit.
“Perhaps you can go into more detail about this possible joint venture. Whether Michael wants in or not, I do.” Charles squeezed his daughter’s hand, then met Roman’s gaze. “It’s possible I could arrange a loan of sorts, for the two of you, as Moira discussed with her family. Ready cash now in exchange for a percentage of the profits in the future. Assuming, of course, I’m part of the deal. I can’t speak for Michael, but I won’t let old history interfere with the here and now.”
Julianna leaned over and hugged her father.
Moira grinned. “Sir, I’d be absolutely delighted to give you more detail.”
* * *
“I guesswe need to start crunching numbers,” Julianna said, wilting in her seat.
She had a look on her face that clearly said she couldn’t believe everything had happened so fast.
Her father was in.
Moira had all but danced her way out of the door a few short minutes ago.
She was going to call her father, she’d told them. One or both of them would be in touch—dinner, maybe?
Roman and Julianna had nodded their agreement and Charles had waved a hand. “Whatever these two want,” he’d said.
Now, his agreeable air was gone and he leaned back in his chair, watching Roman with insightful eyes.
That look made Roman want to squirm in his seat, but he didn’t let himself. He wasn’t some teenaged boy who’d been caught climbing up the side of the house. He wasn’t going to act like one. It was harder than he would have liked to admit.
“Tell me something, Roman,” Charles said, reaching for the coffee sitting in front of him. “Just how long has this thing with my daughter been going on?”
Julianna tensed and shot him a look. “You know?”
He snorted out a laugh. “Of course I know. Think I’ve gone blind? The two of you could hardly keep your eyes off each other during the meeting.”
Julianna practically deflated in her seat and Roman suspected she’d been wondering if her mother had said anything.
“Well?” Charles asked, his voice testy.
“Too long,” Roman admitted, thinking of the months they’d spent keeping it quiet.
“Are we talking weeks? Months?” Charles’ eyes narrowed. “Years?”
