1. My Panties Are None of Your Business
CHAPTER ONE
MY PANTIES ARE NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS
Payne
“You’re good, Sam. I can handle my own company for two weeks. Go get married and enjoy your honeymoon. I resurrected this thing on my own after my old man all but ran it into the ground. I can handle two weeks without you.”
“Your calendar is updated with appointments. It’s a heavy schedule since you’ll be dealing with my load along with your heavy hitters. I know the B-List inside and out. If you need to call me, I’ll be available.”
“All of our clients are the same. How many times have I told you not to refer to them as the B-List?”
“You’re such a fucker of a boss. You’re the one who pegged them as the B-List.”
A smile pulls at my lips as I point at my only employee through the screen on our video conference call. “Not this week. Everyone’s an A-Lister while you’re on your honeymoon. All the clients of Deacon Financial will get special treatment from moi. Go forth and Romeo your fiancée into oblivion.”
“Shut the fuck up. And you know Romeo was a tragedy. Not the way I want to start out my marriage.”
“I, of all people, know tragedies. Hell, I was Romeo, quite literally back in high school. You’re young and in love—hence, Romeo, but you’re badass enough to change your ending. Just don’t drink the poison.”
Sam settles back in his office chair and takes a long pull from his beer. “You sure you don’t want to come?”
I shrug and pour myself another glass of water. “I always want to come.”
He rolls his eyes. “To my wedding, asshole.”
I take a sip. “You know, most employees would get fired for calling their boss an asshole and fucker to his face. You’re lucky you have me. I’m cooler than that and embrace your pet names for what they are.”
He ignores me. “My wedding, Payne. I talk to you more than I do anyone. More than my best man and my fiancée. The fact you won’t travel across the country to my wedding is whacked.”
I pull in a deep breath, because he’s right. “You know I can’t. It’s honestly killing me, because I’m always up for a party. Your big-ass family sounds like a vibe, but I’m on duty for the town this weekend along with other less desirable shit that the universe deems essential to ruining my life.”
He takes another drink and leans forward so the only thing on the screen is his smug mug and the longneck he’s sucking down. “I know. I figured I’d try one more time. You’d think with all your money, you could hire someone to take care of some of those responsibilities.”
“The fact I can’t is a testament to how much my responsibilities suck. No one will step in, no matter how much I pay them.” That’s a lie. Everyone in town knows the Deacons are fucked up, but they have no clue at what level. It’s my goal to keep that a secret.
Sam was a finance major and one of only three people who applied for the junior asset manager job when I was drowning in high maintenance clients.
I hired him on the spot. He’s five years younger than me and just as smart.
I pay him a whack plus some just to keep him around. He’s been with me for two years.
I go on to get him to change the subject and raise my glass to the screen where the kid sits on the other end of the continent in South Carolina. “Happy for you, man. I want to be you when I grow up.”
Sam smirks and shakes his head. “You’re like the cool but weird uncle that never shows up to holidays.”
I shrug and take another sip. “I’m going to take that as the compliment it is. Now, log off for the next two and a half weeks and do your happily-ever-after shit. Congratulations.”
He lifts his chin. “Thanks. And call me if you need anyth—”
I put my hand up to stop him. “And by the way, your wedding gift was deposited in your account today.”
His eyes widen, but I don’t let him say anything else.
“Just remember, I’m there in spirit and the best boss on the planet. Don’t get any wild ideas about moving to an island with your bride and not returning. I’ll find you and drag your ass back. The B-List needs you as much as I do. Got it?”
He shakes his head. “Thanks again. Be good to my little clients. I’ll be back for them.”
“You’d better. I hired you for a reason. There’s only so much of me to go around. Use sunscreen and remember that sand and sex don’t mix. It might sound romantic, but it’s just not.”
Sam ignores my shit like he usually does and raises two fingers to wave me off as I kill the conference call.
I throw back the rest of my water like it’s something stronger and slam the crystal on the desk harder than necessary, one hundred percent pretending it’s my father’s face rather than his desk.
My fucking father. After all these years, I’m still using his damn desk. I’m not sure if it’s to remind me of who he was or who I don’t want to be. I must be a masochist, because I fucking hate it. Maybe I should make over the office during the next two weeks.
I stand and go to the window that overlooks the back of the property.
The estate I grew up on sits on the top of a mountain that overlooks the town of Winslet.
Other than the manor, which was here a century before my parents built this place, there’s no better view in town.
I’m an only child, so to say that my parents overdid it when my father made it big in the financial world is an understatement.
The house is over ten thousand ridiculous square feet and sits on fifty acres. I know every door, window, and inch of its land like the back of my hand. Thank God technology wasn’t what it is today when I was a kid. I hated it here and snuck out as often as I could.
Toxic is not a strong enough word for the Deacon family.
And I still came back to salvage what my father shit all over like the selfish prick he’s always been.
I never wanted to work for him. Hell, I never wanted anything to do with him.
I gave him the proverbial middle finger and refused to go to the Ivy League school of his choice.
I cut all financial ties, got a scholarship to a state university, and put myself through law school.
I escaped home and didn’t look back. That was until shit hit the fan.
It wasn’t a matter of if, but when it would happen. None of us knew just how bad it would be when Owen Deacon finally fucked up so grand, he couldn’t dig his way out.
It was bad.
And, as a result, I’m back, running the business I never wanted to be a part of and rarely negotiating or arguing a case in a courtroom.
My cell vibrates with a call, and I frown when I see who it is.
It’s an unspoken rule that friends do not call when they can text. I do nothing but talk to clients all day, every day, calming their fears about the markets, assuring them it will bounce back eventually, or explaining how I can’t recreate magic every time they hit it big, even if it is my goal.
I didn’t mind the talking when I was trying to convince a jury that someone didn’t do the shit I knew they did or didn’t do, because it didn’t matter if they were innocent or not. My get out of jail skills were honed so sharp, I made a name for myself. The talking didn’t matter back then.
Dean hates phone calls as much I do, so this is either a nine-one-one emergency or a Dean Moretti emergency. And since he’s the Winslet Chief of Police, it could be anything.
I answer. “Old man softball is one thing, but old man phone calls are another. This better be good.”
“Trust me, man. This cannot be put into a text.”
“You need me on a call?” When I moved back to Winslet, Dean strongarmed me into becoming a volunteer firefighter and EMT. Just one more thing to add to my ever-growing resume.
“No, everything’s good. I mean, it’s not. This could be really bad. Well, maybe not that bad, but...” He pulls in a deep breath. “But it could be.”
“Did you turn into a chick since the last time I saw you? Spit it out.” I shut my laptop and decide I’m done for the day.
I can’t sit in this office another moment.
I kill the lights on the way out and slam the door behind me.
“Tell me what has your panties in a twist that you don’t know bad from not-so bad. ”
“It’s not my panties I’m worried about. It’s yours.”
I walk into the kitchen and realize I’m earlier than normal.
Sadie is still here putting the finishing touches on dinner.
I might’ve moved home to take over my father’s business, but I’m not about to wait on my mother hand and foot.
A housekeeper comes in three times a week to clean.
Sadie lives here and does all the cooking.
She’s widowed. I offered her room and board along with a raise when I moved back in.
She deserves that and more for dealing with our family all these years.
“My panties are none of your business,” I say as I pluck a carrot out of the salad bowl and toss it into my mouth.
Sadie’s eyes widen as she looks up at me.
I wave her off. “It’s a figure of speech.”
She shakes her head and smiles. Sadie has worked for my parents since they built this place. There’s nothing I could say that would surprise her at this point.
“Payne, I need you to focus. And then I’m going to need you to not freak the fuck out.”
“I’m the steadiest person you know. Freaking out is for the weak and unbalanced. Did your days in the Army catch up with you? Are you having a bout of amnesia?”
“On any other day, I’d agree with you on the steady part, but not today.”
I climb the staircase that leads to the second floor and round the corner to my bedroom suite.
“If you’re not going to spill the details, you should collect your feelings and call me when you’re ready to talk.
I thought I’d have time to hit the gym before dinner, but not if I have to sit here and listen to you hem and haw like an old woman. ”
“I don’t know how else to do this, so I’m just going to come out and say it. I want you to hear it from me before anyone else.”
“And still, you haven’t said shit.” I head straight to my closet and grab a pair of shorts and a T-shirt.
“Okay, here goes...” He pauses so dramatically, I’m about to call him a middle school girl, until he stops me in my tracks with his next words. “It’s Ruby.”
I freeze in my bathroom and catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror. I can’t repeat that name. Hell, I can’t utter a response.
“Fuck, man. I knew this was going to happen, which is why I wanted you to hear it from me.”
I force myself to speak. “What about her?”
A pause, and then what he says next hits me like a ton of bricks. “She’s home, Payne. Ruby Sinclair is back in Winslet.”
I barely recognize the person I see in my own reflection. “She’s back?”
“Yes. I confirmed it with more than one person. Hell, I confirmed it with three. Ruby’s home.”
I squeeze my eyes shut and drag a hand down my face.
“I heard it first at the Combover. You know Winnie broke her ankle. Carl told me today that Ruby is helping out until Winnie’s back on her feet.
I didn’t believe it, so I started to check around.
I figured I’d go to the source and found a reason to go out to the manor and accidentally bumped into Blake.
He confirmed it. Then Devon walked up, and they were talking about her maybe working in The Speakeasy a few nights a week. ”
I force myself to open my eyes and stand straight. I clear my throat. “She’s back after all this time. Cool for her.”
Dean lowers his tone. “Did you just say cool for her?”
I turn and throw my gym clothes back into the closet. “Yeah. I’m not sure why you’re making such a big fucking deal about this. She’s back. Knowing her, she probably won’t stay.”
“I don’t know. I heard Devon is interviewing her. More like auditioning. It’s happening tonight. Blake is spreading that shit around town like wildfire.”
Auditioning? What the fuck? My insides are ablaze, but I have no trouble schooling my tone like I used to in the courtroom. “Great. She’ll fit in with the misfits of Winslet proper.”
Dean exhales like he’s had enough. “How did I end up with such an asshole as a best friend?”
I tag my keys off the desk I keep in the sitting room off my bedroom. “I’m nothing if not consistent. I’ve got to go. Thanks for the small-town gossip.”
“Wait. I’ll meet you at the gym. We’ll hit the weights hard. We haven’t done that in ages.”
“Changed my mind. I’ve got some work to wrap up for the day.”
“Dammit, Payne.”
“I’m good. We’ll catch up soon if I don’t see you around first.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Gotta go, chief.”
“Payne—”
I don’t give him another chance to demand anything. I disconnect the call and stuff my cell in my back pocket.
“Sadie,” I yell as I pass the kitchen and head for the garage. “I’m going out. I’ll eat when I get home.”
She comes out of the kitchen wiping her hands on a towel. “What should I tell your mother?”
I stop and turn to the woman who my father made sign an NDA years ago when he hired her. It had nothing to do with his business but everything to do with what went on under this roof. I assume the hired help in any home is privy to the real life of what goes on, but Sadie goes above and beyond.
Why she does, I have no fucking idea.
The NDA was news to me when I came home and took over everything. I immediately doubled her pay.
“Do you really think she’ll care if I’m here or not?”
Sadie is pushing sixty. She’s barely older than my mother.
She might look younger, but her intense gaze on me is full of care and wisdom I’ve only gotten from her.
She doesn’t press me further, because she knows I’m right.
“I’ll wrap a plate for you and leave it in the fridge.
Please eat. You work too many hours as it is. ”
“Thanks, but I promise, I’m good.” I might have been before Dean called, but right now, I don’t know what I am. I do know I’m anything but good.
She gives me a small smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I lift my chin. “You too.”
I turn for the garage that’s big enough to park six cars, but the only ones in it now are my Rover and Mom’s Cadillac that hasn’t been driven in eons.
The battery is probably dead, but it doesn’t matter.
I took the keys away from her before that.
I should sell the thing, just like I did every other car they owned when I got back, but she’d throw a fit so epic, it’s not worth dealing with.
Ten minutes ago I was muddling through my mundane life like I was half-deadened for a root canal, not that I’ve ever had one. My teeth are pristine. Tallie Deacon made sure of that.
Then one phone call from a life-long friend changed everything. Whatever I was doing to numb my life away wore off in a heartbeat.
What the fuck.
Ruby Sinclair is back in Winslet.
And from the sounds of it, she’s not going anywhere fast.