Chapter Fourteen

“In what can only be called a shocking twist, the heir to the Winslow fortune was revealed today as she took over as president and CEO of Winslow Holdings. The three-hundred-million-dollar fortune was expected to be passed to the only child Reginald Winslow the Third publicly acknowledged—his daughter Serena with her husband, John, taking over the company assets.

“Instead, Reginald passed the vast empire on to his granddaughter Beverly Regina Winslow, the daughter of Regina Winslow—the same daughter he disinherited thirty years ago. Now sources claim the granddaughter didn’t want the fortune at all. Up until the time of her grandfather’s death, Ms. Winslow was a successful business owner of Atlantic Charters, a boat charter operation out of Salem. Ms. Winslow, no slouch in the brains department either, holds multiple degrees in Biology, Communications, and an MBA from Wharton. Perhaps her grandfather knew what he was doing when he put her in charge?”

Bev used the remote device to click off the TV. The story was everywhere. She’d hoped they would focus solely on her new role as CEO—which she’d announced at the press conference—but they had factored her mother’s disinheritance into it.

Now she was both exhausted and wired at the same time. She needed her boat. Finn planned to stay with her in Salem until her security team was in place and she moved into the apartment she was supposed to live in. She didn’t mind Boston, but she didn’t want to live in Reginald’s lair. When she felt the tears threaten, she called out to him as he quietly reviewed a contract for another client at the kitchen island.

“I need to take a ride. Are you coming?” Maybe he needed to finish the work, she thought too late. He had a lot of other clients.

He strolled out of the kitchen. “Sure.” Suddenly a knock sounded at her front door. “I’ll get it,” he said. “It might be the security team.”

She came up behind him as he opened it. Her stomach dropped. “Hello, Chuck.”

“I’ve asked you to call me Dad,” her father answered with his wide, oily smile. She wondered if she had actually paid for his veneers with all the money she had given him over the years.

Chuck Devon looked at Finn, then past him, at her. “Aren’t you going to introduce us, darling?”

She tried to calm the swirling nausea in her stomach.

“No introductions necessary, Mr. Devon.” Finn loomed in front of the doorway, blocking entrance. “You won’t be coming in today.”

“Bev, tell your friend this isn’t how you treat family.”

“I’m her attorney, Mr. Devon,” Finn said smoothly. “Since you are here, without invitation I add, it saves me a phone call to track you down.”

Chuck's smile was oily in the extreme. “Track me down? But why?”

“From this point forward, Ms. Winslow will adopt the same practice as Mr. Winslow did with regard to your monetary requirements. There will be none. As in, you are cut off.”

The smile turned instantly to an icy stare. It did nothing to calm her racing heart. “Listen to me, little girl. You tell this tight-ass we made an arrangement. I watch the news; there’s plenty of money to spare.” He clenched his fist. “If you don’t help out your old dad, I’ll find another way.”

She swallowed the lump forming in her throat, but Finn jumped in again before she could speak. “If you are insinuating you can blackmail my client’s mother, you’re wrong. That won’t be possible. And, Mr. Devon…” He stepped toward him until they were eye to eye. And her father was a big man. “If you try to harm her for her inheritance, I’d remind you a living parent cannot inherit his child’s money if that parent did nothing to support the child while she was living. Now, the courts show you didn’t provide a single child support payment to Ms. Winslow’s mother while my client was a minor. Therefore, no court in the world will find in your favor.”

Her father’s eyes widened. “Are you suggesting I would kill my own daughter?”

“I’m suggesting you’d do just about anything for cash. You won’t get it here.”

Her mind reeled. How did Finn know so much about her father and his past behaviors, and why hadn’t he said something before?

Chuck stared at his daughter. “This isn’t over.”

Bev steadied herself with a hand on Finn’s back when he said, “Yes, it is.”

****

The wind whipped her ponytail, slashing strands of hair against her cheeks and stinging her eyes. Bumping along over the choppy waves, the small wooden cabin cruiser handled the turbulence just beautifully. Bev helmed the wheel and maneuvered them out of Salem Harbor. Once in open water, she opened up the motor farther to speed along the rocky coast. She so needed to breathe in the salty air and take in the peace being on the water brought.

Finn leaned against the side of the boat in silence. She wondered what he was thinking but couldn’t bring herself to ask just yet. Right now, she was grateful for the quiet. She wanted to be alone, but that just wasn’t possible any longer. Taking a deep breath, she finally slowed the motor and steered them away from the coastline. She cut the engines, and the boat rocked gently in the open water.

“We’ll just drift here for a bit.”

He said nothing. He had changed into jeans and a hoodie at her house. He looked exceptional in anything he put on. He looked as if he belonged. She surmised that was because he felt as if he belonged. She didn’t feel anywhere close to that right now.

Why didn’t she anticipate her father showing up? Whose family was this screwed up? The fact he had witnessed firsthand something she’d been keeping a secret for more than twenty years only made it worse.

Finn in his perfect hoodie, from a perfect family. Finn, who’d done nothing to make her feel anything but safe. Finn, who was clearly trying to protect her. By comparison, she was as messed up as he was perfect. Her father and his greed. Her own intensity, which she tried to keep in check. She could feel her lip trembling. She tried to fight the tears but couldn’t. Saying nothing, he reached out and held her as she cried.

When at last the gentle rocking of the boat had lulled her, she raised her head and faced him.

“Thanks. I guess I needed that.”

“What you need is to talk to someone.”

She moved out of his arms. Great, now he thinks I’m nuts again. “I don’t need a shrink.”

“I didn’t mean that. You need to get whatever’s bothering you out in the open. If not, it’ll eat at you.”

He lowered himself to one of the captain’s chairs. “You were incredible today. Capable and firm. You charmed the entire city of Boston during that press conference. They loved how open you were, how down to earth. You’re a natural.”

She hoped to come off as polished. “Down to earth” was a euphemism for unrefined. She needed to do better.

“Tell me what’s wrong.”

She raised an eyebrow.

“Dammit, I’m not backing down. It’s my job to help.” He pushed himself out of the chair and got in her face. “You say you trust me, but you’re holding back. This isn’t going to work if you don’t tell me everything.”

She felt his breath on her temple. Desire snaked through her. She had to get control of the situation. She was too vulnerable right now. “It’s not about trust. I told you before, I don’t do complicated.”

“I think we’re past complicated.” He lowered his head to hers and began to feather light kisses on her cheeks, scraping his teeth along her jaw until she almost couldn’t breathe. She gasped from the pleasure of it. He turned his attention to her mouth and used his tongue to tease her lips. Taking hold of the back of his neck, she pressed her body against his and sucked on his lower lip. She heard his indrawn breath before their lips fused together for a searing kiss.

She wasn’t sure when all rational thought stopped, but the next thing she knew, he had her by the arms, pushing her away.

“We can’t do this. Christ knows I want to.” His breaths came out ragged, his voice sharp.

“Why are you angry?”

“I’m mad at myself. I can’t seem to control myself around you.”

She folded her arms against the sudden chill. “Last I checked, there were two of us here.”

“Yes, but I’m your attorney and I should act like it.” He brushed a finger down her cheek. “I’m sorry. You really don’t need this from me. I’m trying to help, not maul you.”

She didn’t want an apology. She was still reeling from the kiss. Was he sorry he’d kissed her? She couldn’t keep up.

“I don’t want to talk about this right now. Can we please just forget it? We’re both stressed. It doesn’t necessarily mean anything.” She couldn’t deal with this and all the rest. Thankfully he seemed to agree.

“Let’s talk about why you needed the boat ride and crying jag instead,” he sat again.

“Take your pick. Deranged grandfather, forced inheritance, selfish-bastard father making a house call for cash, or my disintegrated company. Any one of those might cause a girl to temporarily lose it.”

“Don’t get defensive. I’m surprised you didn’t explode before this. You needed to vent.”

“Why do you say that?”

“I’m usually on the receiving end of my sister’s venting.”

“Another thing that’s irritating me,” she squeezed past him to tie off a buoy on a loose rope.

He scratched his head. “My sister?”

“No, dammit. The fact you know everything about me and I know nothing about you. I didn’t know my father can’t get any money if I’m dead. We can cross him off the suspect list, I guess.” She looped and knotted. “I’m irritated because you didn’t tell me you knew about him. My entire personal life—warts and all—is on display, and you own the Cliff Notes. It isn’t fair.” She threw the buoy on the deck of the boat.

“Okay I get that. But just so you know, I was going to tell you I knew about Chuck Devon the other day when I told you about the rest of your inheritance. You ran away before I could.”

“So, tell me now.”

“I know about Chuck Devon, Beverly.”

“Very funny, Finn.”

“Seriously. Your grandfather told me about him the night we altered his will. Chuck has tried to shake down your grandfather in the past. That didn’t play, of course, and Reginald kept tabs on him over the years.” He swiveled in the chair. “The only other things you need to know about the inheritance are you can’t enter into any contracts with family members and you can’t give any money to Chuck Devon. If you do, the will is negated, and everything goes to your mother.”

“Does that mean I couldn't buy a piece of land from my mother, even if she had any?”

“Correct. Reginald wanted you to keep control for the year. He tried to cover any loopholes that would allow family members to take advantage of you. That includes Chuck Devon.”

“Simple enough, and more magnanimous from Reginald than I expected.”

“He had his moments.” He exhaled. “Now, I’ll tell you what I think you want to hear, because you’re right. It has been a little one-sided. But again, it was my job.”

She shook her head. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m thirty-one years old. I was raised outside of Portsmouth, Maine. My father owned the largest import business in New England, so we grew up in the same circles as your grandfather and Serena. My sister’s name is Kate, and she is ten years younger than me. She’s finding her way, and I don’t always love watching it. She’s grown up a bit since leaving college. She’s headstrong, which can be frustrating. I went to Harvard Law School, and I love Boston. I’m close to my mother and sister.”

“But not your dad?”

“He died two years ago in a car accident. We were very close.”

As his lips tightened, she felt a pang of guilt for pushing him. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. Kate and my mother were devastated. We all were. Unfortunately, it was left to me to decide how to handle his company. I wanted my mother to make those decisions.”

“But you handled it? Because it’s what you do?” Echoing his words.

He ignored that. “We sold the company to my uncle. I think my mother wished I would take over, and I wish she had taken it over. It wasn’t for me, though, and my uncle has been doing an excellent job. I try to distance myself from it. I don’t want my uncle to think I’m interfering.”

He cocked his head. “We all have families—and disappointments because of those families—and you shouldn’t let yours take too tight a grip. No one who meets Chuck Devon and you would ever believe you two are related. You made your way and your choices. It’s admirable.”

“I like how you changed the topic back to me there, Counselor.” She rested against the side of the boat. She felt better, but her mind went to the kiss and couldn’t stop the stab of longing. He had already made it clear it was a mistake. At first, she’d agreed.

Now, she wondered.

“We’re supposed to meet your new security detail anyway, so we need to get back. I’ll text them to meet us at what’s left of your office.”

She made her way to the wheel and started the boat’s engine. He was her attorney, she lectured herself. He was too good for her and her crazy situation. She needed to forget the kiss ever happened, but her body wasn’t cooperating. She wanted to kiss him again.

She slowed the engine of the boat to dock. He leaped out to help tie it off. Her eyes swept across the marina. A wave of sadness flooded her eyes. She wouldn’t be coming back here anytime soon. She shook the feeling away as they made their way to meet her security team. She couldn’t dwell on it.

As they walked up the dock, she could see it wasn’t the security detail waiting for them and groaned. She really didn’t need this right now. He looked at her with questioning eyes as they reached the couple.

The woman spoke first. “Beverly Regina Winslow, you are in big trouble, young lady!”

Bev leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Hi, Ma.”