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“I’m just saying?—”
“Baby, come on. It’ll work out.”
“What if it doesn’t?”
He came back to me, a grin on his face. “Then the loss is a tax deduction. No big deal.”
“I don’t want to waste your money?—”
“Ourmoney.” That searing confidence was in his eyes, looking at me with all the determination in the world. He believed in me more than anyone else ever had. “Think about it this way. I’m your silent partner. I’m investing in your business, so I get a say in the final product. This is what I envision for the restaurant. Music. Lights. Snooty waiters. This is the place. Stop thinking about the money.”
“You should always think about the money.”
“You know my net worth. This is nothing to me.”
“Doesn’t mean it should be wasted.”
He rolled his eyes.
“Did you just roll your eyes at me?”
That smirk came right back. “This is what I want, and I know in your heart you want it too. So let’s do this.” His eyes pleaded with mine, tantalizing blue and endless in their depth. “Come on…”
My phone started to ring in my pocket, so I pulled it out and glanced at the screen.
It was my father.
My face must have immediately gone pale because Axel dropped his smile.
I didn’t know what else to do, so I just let it ring.
Axel stared at me. “You can’t keep avoiding him. He’ll know something is up.”
I let it ring, too chickenshit to answer it.
“Scarlett.”
The call finally dropped.
“I can’t.”
A moment later, his text lit up the screen.Call me back.
My heart stopped aching once the dread had passed. I returned my phone to my pocket.
Axel continued to stare at me. “I know this is hard, but don’t forget what’s on the line.”
My father-in-law’s life. “I know.”
“So I need you to do this for me.”
“I don’t know how I’ll be able to maintain this façade.”
Axel took in a slow breath as he considered my words. “He’s a smart man. He probably already suspects something is amiss. If you think he’s onto you, confront him about what you overheard. Tell him you haven’t mentioned it to me because you’ve been so confused. That might be your opportunity to coax a confession out of him, and if it works, then you won’t have to pretend anymore.”
I stared at the dark marble countertop and felt my world spin. I’d never had to put on an act around my father. He was the one person I could confide all my truths to without repercussion. But now he was the person that I could trust the least. He was a complete stranger…but with my father’s face.
“Text him and say you’re busy with the restaurant. Ask to meet him for dinner.”
