Page 67 of Fighting Mr. Knight

My mind ticks over, trying to figure out who she’s talking about. “What’s his name?”

“Frank Casey.”

It takes me a long minute for the name to register.

It can’t be. How the hell did I not know that?

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

It all makes sense now.

She crosses her arms, staring at me, bewildered. “You really didn’t know he’s my dad?”

“No.” I sigh. But now that I do, this complicates things. In these situations, it’s best to take the bull by the horns. “You’re annoyed at me because I fired him. Right, Bonnie?”

Her expression darkens. “I’m not exactly delighted about it, no.”

“What did he tell you?”

“Are we off the record? I won’t get in trouble for anything I say?”

“Completely off the record,” I agree firmly. “Hit me with your worst.”

She folds her arms across her chest. “You fired him out of the blue two days before Christmas for no reason. You didn’t pay his last two weeks’ wages. That’s the mild version.”

My jaw ticks.

“I’m sorry, Bonnie, I really am,” I say softly, wondering how to manoeuvre my way through this. “I didn’t know he’s your dad.”

“It’s not really the point.” Her breath stalls and it’s clear she’s not comfortable talking about this with me. “What was your reasoning? It doesn’t even sound legal.”

“It was legal and above board.”

Her eyes narrow. “You winked at me.”

“I winked at you?” I repeat, confused.

“After you fired Dad, youwinkedat me. In The White Horse. You had a squad of women with you.”

“Asquad?” I smile. “I don’t remember that specific wink, Bonnie.”

My smile drops as her lips thin.

There’s obviously a lot of emotion attached to this wink.

“I always tried to talk to you, Bonnie,” I say gently. “If I winked at you, it was nothing to do with your dad. It was because I was trying to get your attention. You’re hard not to focus on inanypub, but in The White Horse, well, I didn’t stand a chance.”

She’s not having it. She just keeps staring at me.

I lean against the desk so that I come down to her eye level. “Are you going to hold a decade grudge against me? I’m truly sorry, Bonnie. Business decisions I make are never intended to hurt people and I’m regretful that this one has impacted you.” My eyes search hers. “Can we put this behind us?”

A disgruntled, noncommittal sound escapes her.

She thinks she hates me. Hell, shewantsto hate me.

Deciding not to push it I revert to our original topic “Where does your dad live?” I ask.

---