LITMIR.BIZ

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going to give you charity, it just makes more sense to have you stay here rent-free.”

      “I know. And I completely understand that. Anyway, I don’t feel like it should have to be charity for someone to give me a job. I’m not completely inept.”

      “You’re not inept at all.” He opened the fridge and started rummaging for something, pulling out a pitcher of orange juice a moment later. “Where are you job hunting?”

      “I’m going down to talk to Ace Thompson, actually.”

      “Not about a job,” came a shrill voice from the next room.

      “Yes,” Sierra said, “about a job.”

      That was Natalie’s cue to walk in. Or rather slide in like an eel cutting through the water. Natalie was sleek, her blond hair ruthlessly tamed back into a bun, her figure ruthlessly trimmed by years of eating little more than salads.

      Sierra had no patience for that kind of thing. You could try to make them cute by putting them in Mason jars, but they were still salads, and she still wanted a hamburger and french fries on the side.

      “But how is that going to look?” Natalie asked.

      It was on the tip of Sierra’s tongue to say that Natalie couldn’t have it both ways. She couldn’t have Sierra out of the house and able to support herself and worry about what kind of job she ended up with. But Colton had instructed her to be sensitive to Natalie, because she was stressed with the wedding getting so close. He assured Sierra that Natalie wasn’t usually so high-strung.

      Sierra didn’t believe that. What she did believe was that her future sister-in-law was beautiful, and suitable by the standards the West family used to measure suitability. She had a feeling her older brother was thinking with his trust fund and his trouser brain.

      She also hoped that he was making sure there was a prenup.

      “I don’t know, Natalie, probably not as bad as if I end up taking a job at The Naughty Mermaid,” Sierra said, naming the strip club on the outskirts of town.

      “That isn’t true,” Natalie countered, “because no one could say anything about it without admitting they were there and bringing flack back onto themselves. The same can’t be said for Ace’s.”

      “Your concern is touching,” Sierra said.

      “I am concerned,” Natalie said, gliding to the fridge and taking out some kind of preprepared breakfast smoothie. “Our wedding is only a few months away. Your family is on the verge of a meltdown. One of my bridesmaids has decided to run against my father for mayor. And everything just needs to calm down until after I say I do.”

      “Natalie.” Colton’s tone was patient. “Everything’s going to be fine.”

      “You don’t know that,” Natalie said. “Because, I bet you also didn’t think your father had a secret bastard.”

      Sierra gritted her teeth. “Don’t talk about him like that,” she said, not entirely sure why she felt protective of Jack.

      “That’s enough,” Colton said. “Of course you should go ahead and apply for Ace’s. If you have an in there, take it. Making an honest living is hardly going to disgrace anyone or anything.”

      “People are going to wonder about your family’s finances.” Natalie clearly wasn’t ready to let the subject drop.

      “Who cares? They’re still going to come to the wedding. There’s a free steak dinner. I know, because I’m paying for it. They won’t care whether I paid with cash or credit. Everything will go off without a hitch. And I’m sure people will be so thankful to your father for hosting such a delightful event that they’ll vote for him without batting an eye. They won’t even read Lydia’s name on the ballot. Why would they? He’s been the mayor forever.”

      Natalie seemed somewhat mollified by this. “You make it sound like it might not be so bad.”

      “You’re marrying me. How bad could it be?”

      Sierra noticed that Natalie seemed to deflect that. But she did turn her cheek and allow Colton to bend and give her a kiss. “All right,” she said, looking at Sierra. “I guess it’s okay.”

      Again, Sierra had to grit her teeth and hold back her commentary. “Great. Well, I’ll let you know how it goes.” She was suddenly in a huge hurry to get down to Ace’s. Mainly because she really needed to get away from Natalie. And honestly, away from Colton when he was with her.

      He wasn’t totally whipped or anything, but he spent way too much time placating her and managing her for Sierra’s tastes. She didn’t like to imagine that the entire rest of her brother’s life would be spent with a woman who was little more than a temperamental cat in human form. She was constantly needing to be scratched behind the ears and petted in all the right places or she would bite you on the hand.

      “I’ll see you both later,” Sierra said, walking out of the kitchen into the front porch before realizing she was wearing jeans and a T-shirt, with her hair in two braids, because she couldn’t be bothered to deal with the mess falling asleep on it loose had left it in last night.

      She wasn’t exactly dressed for a job interview. But she supposed this was close enough to what she would be wearing if she actually worked in the bar.

      Except she would probably have to show a little more cleavage.

      She was pretty sure that’s how jobs like this worked.

      She heard the door open behind her and turned to see Colton standing there, his arms crossed over his chest. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

      “I don’t know. But I kind of have to.” And if she felt a little spurred on by her future sister-in-law’s controlling attitude, well, that wasn’t so bad, she supposed. “Hopefully I’ll end up with a better job someday, but the reality is I need to do something.”

      “You could go back home.”

      She made a scoffing sound. “No, thanks.”

      “He was your dad for twenty-five years, Sierra, and you were fine living there, and fine taking his money. The only thing that’s changed is that now you know.”

      Sierra’s throat tightened. “I know. I’ve only known about Jack and all this other stuff for a couple of days. And you would think twenty-five years would be so much bigger than two days, Colton, you really would. But it’s not. Not for me. This is the biggest, ugliest two days I have ever lived through. I can’t ignore what I know. I can’t go back. Not now.”

      “He’s our father.”

      “Right. And you need his influence to keep your business running smoothly. And you need to not create a huge rift because you’re having a gigantic wedding and Natalie will completely melt down if you cut ties now, especially since she’s half marrying you for your last name.”

      Colton’s expression turned stormy, his brows locking together. She looked at his eyes, that bright blue color so striking and unique with his dark hair. It struck her then, how similar his features were to Jack’s. It hit her so hard it took her breath away.

      “You might want to retract the assertion that my fiancée is only marrying me for my name.”

      “I said it was half of why,” Sierra said, not backing down.

      “You’re a little butt-head, you know that?”

      “Ouch. A butt-head? That cut deep, Colton. Right where it hurts most.”

      “You’ll be fine.”

      “I’m sure Natalie cares about you.” She wasn’t really. But, she didn’t want to hurt her brother. Even if she did think Natalie was a social-climbing weasel, desperately trying to sink her little claws into Colton so she could use him as a rung on her ascent to the top.

      “It’s fine. I’m

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