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After a while, he says, "And I'm sorry for leaving Scuttlebutt and trying to delay you this past week. I'm sure that's made your job harder."
"It has. I wish you would have talked to me. Told me what you were doing."
"I know. I should have." He finally lifts his head, meeting my gaze. "And I'm sorry for not giving you a proper chance to explain things. That was immature of me."
I'm a little taken aback by his self-awareness, but maybe I shouldn't be. Wilby is awhat you see is what you getperson, but there's more to him than just the surface-level stuff. I gathered that the first night we met.
There are sides to Wilby that he magnifies, putting on a show for the world. I don't think it's because he's trying to hide who he is, I think he might be trying to protect who he is, only letting very, very few people get close enough to glimpse the real him.
I tighten my fingers around his. "Thank you for apologizing. For everything. It takes a lot to own up to your shit. Iacknowledge that, and I appreciate it. Is now a good time for me to explain that I'm not the bad guy you think I am?"
"Well, I can see your cock, and I think I have some of your cum drying on my calf, so, yeah, now's the perfect time."
I smile. "You're so…ridiculable."
Wilby frowns. "I'm what now?"
"I couldn't decide between ridiculous and lovable."
"I'll take lovable, thanks."
The tender smile he's aiming my way sends me hurtling into trouble territory at breakneck speed.
Focus, Col. Focus.Yes, both our cocks are out, Wilby has my release drying on his leg, and there are still some fries left on the plate resting on the bedside table, but now is the time to get serious and talk about work.
"Right. Okay." I prop myself higher against the headboard and try to close my robe, but even at maximum stretch, it leaves a gap so my cock is still visible. I stop trying to adjust it and clasp my hands together. "So, let me run a few things by you to make sure I've caught up and am on the same page." Because, believe me, I've had to put in some serious thinking power to get my head around the colossal mess Wilby and his family are in.
"Sure. Fire away."
“Let's start with the confusion about the name.” I spoke with Polly who filled me in on the whole Grayson/Linfox situation, but I still have some loose ends I'd like to tie up. “So, your mom changed her name to Linfox after she married, and that’s why you and your sisters are all Linfoxes?"
"Correct."
"Okay. And then, from what I gathered going through the long paperwork trail, your grandfather, Polly’s husband, placed the property in a trust using the Grayson name."
"Also, correct."
"Why did he do that?"
Wilby lets out a sigh. "As is always the case, it's a long, complicated, and fucked-up story. But from what I can gather, Grandpa didn’t like Mum's husband, so if things didn’t work out between them, he didn’t want him having a legal claim to anything."
"Okay. That clears that up. Side note, how come your mom didn't change her name back to Grayson after the divorce?"
"Not sure. It's all a bit of a mystery and not something Gran likes to talk about, so I’ve never raised it with her. Mum and Grandpa were on the outs for a long time, I’m talking years, so when she had more kids, I assume she wanted us all to have the same last name. And possibly spite her father. I'm just guessing here, I don't really know."
"Families," I say, shaking my head.
"Tell me about it."
"Speaking of families, why have things fallen to you to handle this? Why aren't your sisters more involved?"
"They have been. Kat's meant to have been looking after things. Clearly, she hasn’t. Em then stepped in when we first cottoned on to something not being right. But her brain is wired for engines, not dealing with the complexities of agricultural finance, so she handed the reins to me. I’ve only just finally managed to make sense of everything…in time to realize how ginormously fucked we are."
He looks at me and smiles sadly. "Are we on the same page, yet?"
His voice is small, so un-Wilby-like.
"We are. Now let me clarify something for you about where I come into all of this, since I believe we need to clear this part up.”
