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PROLOGUE
Summer has been long and tedious. Unlike past years, spending time with my three best friends has been minimal. Most of my spare time has been spent at my father’s side, learning about the family business. If nothing else, working long hours has kept me out of trouble.
Like one time—being a bunch of know-it-alls—we raided the beer fridge at Callum’s house. Thinking we could handle our alcohol, we spent most of the evening puking it all back up, entertaining our fathers with our antics. There was no sympathy from any of them for the self-inflicted sickness. A chuckle escapes my lips, reminiscing how it took hours for them to sober us up. Not once did any of them raise their voice about our stupidity. In fact, the very next weekend, they gathered us together and taught us how to drink like “real men.”
My father raises an eyebrow in question.
“I was just thinking about the time the four of us got drunk after raiding Mr. Atwater’s beer fridge.”
“Y’all were dumb about it. Not sure what you were thinking trying to drink that much in such a short period of time.” Father’s pride radiates through his smile as he gazes at me.
“We are grown now but still do dumb stuff.” My shoulders shrug, making him laugh as we pull into the crowded parking lot of our favorite steakhouse.
My three best friends and their fathers are waiting for us near the entrance.
Gareth, the leader of our little group, gets a cocky grin on his face as he approaches me.
“It’s about time you showed up. We were starting to miss your ugly mug.”
Everyone laughs as I roll my eyes, and we exchange hugs and handshakes.
Moving into the dining area, Ashton whispers to Gareth.
“Any idea why we are here?”
“My father has been tight-lipped most of the summer.” he says, shaking his head as we take our seats.
“Father has been in meetings most of the week. I have been shuffled between some of the other managers, trying to learn a little bit of everything. Having a bit of hands-on experience is going to help with the upcoming semester.” The guys all roll their eyes at me as if they haven’t been doing the same thing.
Damn, I have missed these guys.
The waitress approaches to take our drink order, not the least bit surprised that we all order whiskey. We make small talk with our fathers, catching up on the summer.
Heaving a sigh, Gareth speaks up, proving why he is going into law, and it’s not because of his father. Gareth is one of the most opinionated guys I know, and he’s great at talking his way out of sticky situations.
“Alright, why are we here?”
Our fathers share a glance, causing my anxiety to rise.
“You called this family get-together. Tell us what is going on.”
My mind whirls as I think back, trying to pick up any clues over the past several weeks. Callum plays with his silverware as Ashton fidgets in his seat.
Abraham, Gareth’s father, clears his throat as he looks at each of us. “To be quite frank, this is about the future and how it affects the four of you.”
A crease crosses my brow as I try to figure out what he is talking about. The waitress appears, halting the conversation as she drops off drinks and takes our dinner order. Her movements are exaggerated as she bends over the table, flashing both Ashton and myself with her tits.
Callum would be jealous, knowing he missed out, but he’s too busy glaring at Abraham to notice.
My smart watch vibrates with an incoming message. Reading it, I take a sip of water to keep from laughing.
Ashton
Tits are ok, legs are shit.
Mouthing six out of ten in his direction, Ashton jerks his head in the affirmative as Abraham starts speaking again.
“Earlier this year, Hastings Ainsworth approached us with a business proposition. He is looking to expand his current oil drilling business to include fracking.”
