“Excellent. Beef Wellington for sure,” I said.
From over his shoulder, Brock narrowed his eyes at me. “You ain’t got the cash for that any damn way.”
I turned my head a touch. “Dear old Mom wired me my money, man. I do have the cash for that. But, I didn’t buy it, so you’re only half right.”
“Later,” Brock said, closing the door behind him.
Cassie shook her head at me, but she had a huge smile on her face. “I don’t know if I’m jealous or worried about you two.”
My head reared back. “Jealous? Of what?”
Her brows arched. “Your relationship. You guys give each other so much grief, yet it’s clearly from a place of love. It makes me crazy jealous because on some level I should have that with Sera, but I don’t.”
I sighed, then moved to her, grabbed her hand, and I pulled her out of her chair. Wrapping my arms around her, I said, “I’d say that’s fucked up, but after everything you’ve found out, is it possible Sera resented you from the start because you’re the legitimate child?”
She leaned back, her face full of skepticism. “Gabe, she had a test done, but that wasn’t until she was eighteen.”
“You remember shit from when you were three? Or even when you were four? You’d have been three when she had the test run. When’s your earliest memory, Cassie? ’Cause my guess is that it’s when you were four or five and she’d have received the results back by then, right?”
She leaned forward and planted her forehead on my sternum. “You’re right, honey.”
I lightly cupped her chin to tilt her face to me. “Don’t beat yourself up over this. You couldn’t help how you were born. Says a fuck-ton more about her than it does about you for her to treat you that way.”
Cassie
ON THE ONE HAND, GABE was right. On the other hand though, he kind of wasn’t. It didn’t say more about her to treat me that way. It said she resented me being Dad’s daughter. In some ways, I didn’t blame her, but she should’ve been more mature about things.
Gabe’s intense blue eyes stared at me and I started to feel uncomfortable with need and wanting. I tried to pull away from his hold on my face, but he glided his nose against mine.
“What’s your issue now, Cassie? Why are you pulling away from me?”
I blinked. “No reason.”
He chuckled. “You’ve never been good at lying to me, baby. What is it?”
I sighed. “You’re turning me on... the way you stare at me and put things so bluntly. But, I’m in no shape to have sex, so I don’t want to own up to that.”
His face went from intrigued to amused while I spoke and I fought rolling my eyes. Then to my dismay, he laughed anyway. Loud and long.
He sobered when he caught sight of me and my unamused expression. “Baby, there are ways to get a release without the physicality of sex.”
I tilted my head. “Yeah, but my ribs aren’t ready for that yet. And really none of that is as satisfying. I mean, I love the Rolling Stones, but that doesn’t mean I want to embody one of their most popular songs.”
Gabe’s chin dipped and his eyes went serious. “You ever find yourself not getting satisfaction while you’re with me, you tell me. Got it?”
I fought a grin. “Gabe, I didn’t mean that as an affront to you.”
He shook his head. “Doesn’t matter, Daughtry. It’s out there, and it’s wrong.”
I couldn’t fight the laughter bubbling out of me. “Okay, okay. I’ll keep that in mind.”
IN THE MORNING, DAD swung by at quarter to eight, and he looked like he hadn’t slept well, if at all.
“You want a cup of coffee, Dad?”
He shook his head and moved to the couch. “No thanks, honey. I had a large latte from Dunkin’ Donuts on the way here. Are you in any pain when you walk around?”
I shook my head. “Sometimes, but I have the pain meds if I need them. What about you? Are you going to talk to mother today?”
He pursed his lips. “I will be. Spoke to Sera last night.”
“You did?”
He gave me a look. “Of course. No matter who’s DNA she has, she’s my daughter. I raised her alongside your mother. Doesn’t make what your mother did right, by any means, but Sera needed to be reassured that none of this changes anything between us as far as I’m concerned.”
I nodded, but failed to hide the skeptical look on my face.
“What are you thinking, Cassandra?”
I shrugged. “I just have to wonder if it’s the reason for her animosity toward me? And now that things are out in the open, will she and I have a better relationship?”
He sighed. “I don’t know, honey. I never liked the way she treated you, but chalked it up to sibling rivalry. The age gap is hard, but all these years she’s known and never said anything to me. Now I see it a little differently.”
Gabe sauntered out of his bedroom, wearing khaki pants and a short-sleeved, white button-up shirt. I shook my head at him, but he winked at me.
With his hand outstretched he approached my father. “Mr. Daughtry, it’s nice to see you again.”
Dad shook his hand. “Johnny, Gabe. Call me Johnny.”
My eyes widened. “Really?”
Dad looked at me. “You’ve loved him a whole lot longer than you realize, Cassie.”
I closed my eyes for a beat. “Dad, that’s not cool.”
He shook his head. “Life’s too short to worry about what’s cool, honey. Now, would you mind giving me and Gabe some privacy? I want to discuss the assistant manager position at the club.”
In all the family drama, I had forgotten about the money-laundering.
“You’re not cutting your losses?” I asked.
He shook his head again. “Not at all. My instincts were right; something was off, and the money-laundering was it. You were right about that radio station invoice you flagged,
