Chapter 0098

Fay knocks gently on the open door to Kent’s office that night, leaning casually against it. He looks up,

his expression changing from one of irritation to surprise.

“Fay,” he says, folding his hands on his desk. “What can I do for you?”

“Can I come in?” she asks, tentative. Kent nods, waiting patiently as she comes into the room and

seats herself primly in a chair across from him.

“I just wanted to say thank you,” she says, her voice soft and earnest. “For my sister. That was so

wonderful, today, to have her back in my life for a little bit.”

Kent works hard to keep the smile off of his mouth. He’s surprised, really, by the pleasure he feels in

hearing her apology. He likes it, he decides, when she comes to him to express gratitude. When she

sits quietly before him, looking at him happy, grateful. Obedient.

Damnit, but it makes him want to buy her a thousand more sisters or horses or whatever it is that

makes her happy.

“You’re welcome,” he says simply, leaning back in his chair and studying her. He waits for her to

continue the conversation.

“Is there, um,” she says, squirming a little in her seat, “anything I can do? To pay you back?”

Slowly, he shakes his head no. He won’t ask her for anything, not now. But he’d taken her conversation

with Daniel in the garden seriously. He hoped, in the end, that the payment for his kindness to her will

be her loyalty. And her submission.

“Okay,” she says, smiling and looking awkwardly down at her hands. “Well, then. Thanks.”

He nods to her as she stands up and then he looks back to his computer, clicking through some files.

He looks back towards her, though, when he hears a second voice.

“Fay?” Daniel asks, coming into the office. “What are you doing here?”

“Nothing,” she says, shaking her head and smiling at him. “Your dad just…did something really nice for

me today. So I stopped in to say thanks.”

“Oh?” Daniel says, coming in further and looking between them. To Kent’s surprise, Daniel’s frowning.

Why on earth does he have to be mad about?

“Go on, Fay,” Kent says to her, keeping his eyes on Daniel. “Let me have a word with my son.”

Obediently – good, just as he likes her – Fay flits off, heading up the stairs towards her room.

“What did you do, dad?” Daniel asks, standing in front of the desk, his hands in his pockets.

Kent narrows his eyes at his son, curious and unhappy about being questioned like this. “Why do you

care?”

“Because she’s my fiancé, dad,” Daniel says, his voice growing angrier. “And you’ve been kind of a dick

to her lately – what, now you’re buying her loyalty back? Her affection? What did you do, get her

another horse?”

Kent smirks at his son then. “Why,” he asks, his voice even and a little cruel. “Are you jealous that you

didn’t think of it first?”

“Dad,” Daniel says angrily, taking a deep breath and clearly about to start a tirade, but Kent beats him

to it.

“I don’t know what the problem is here, Daniel,” Kent says, staring his son down even as the boy tries

to lower over him. “But that girl’s allegiance is important to us. If you’re not going to stop her from

running all over town, dating our enemies, letting our own guys putting their hands all over her –“

Daniel’s mouth dropped open at this. Fay had told him that his father had punched Jerome, but she’d

conveniently left that little detail out of the story.

Kent smirks, glad to see his words have found their mark. “If you’re not going to keep the girl happy in

our house, then…” he waves a casual hand in front of him, as if the solution is obvious. “I’m happy to

step in.”

Daniel snaps his mouth shut, glaring at his father.

“Fine,” Daniel grinds out, angry to have been put in his place. “But you back off and leave this to me.”

Kent shrugs, pretending he’s happy to do it. But, ultimately, he knows that Daniel will fail at this task –

it’s not really in him to keep a woman happy. And, deep down, Kent knows that he wants to be the one

to do it.

“How are plans going for the wedding?” Daniel asks, rueful.

Kent raises an eyebrow at this. “Finally curious about your own wedding, then? Frankly, it’s bizarre that

two such young people – people in love at that – have never asked any questions about the plans. The

location. The ceremony. The honeymoon.”

Daniel wrinkles his nose a little at this. “You planned our honeymoon for us?” he asks, a little appalled.

“Two weeks in Italy,” Kent says softly. “You’re going to have a lovely time.”

Daniel scowls, knowing then that he’s been beat. His father was right, of course – he had been

neglecting the girl.

“The wedding is a month away,” Kent continues, smirking a little at the look of defeat on his son’s face.

“You still have time to take a larger role in convincing her that loyalty to the Lippert family is her best

choice.”

“Yes?” Kent asks, still smirking. “Can I…”

“Nevermind,” Daniel says, turning away from him. He can do this himself.

If he were in his place…

Well. Kent turns away from the thought, not needing to go there right now.

But it nags at him, pulling his mind away from his work.

Because…

Well, damnit, why didn’t Daniel work harder to keep her happy? And what was going to happen when

Daniel lost interest in it, as he certainly would, and let her attention wander again. If Daniel wasn’t the

right man for the job, who the hell was?

Impulsively, Kent gets up from his chair and leaves his office, jogging up the stairs to Fay’s room. As he

walks to her door he finds it open. He pauses there silently, watching her sort through her closet,

considering a choice between dresses.

“Where are you going?” Kent asks, and he takes a visceral little pleasure when he sees her jump,

startled, and look around at him with those wide blue eyes.