Party Foul - Abby Knox Page 0,21

antagonize the Girardi family. This was the man whose crackdowns on suspected mob activities had eventually led to Levi ending up in prison.

His throat and mouth dried up. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out.

This was a mistake, from beginning to end. He wished he’d never met Fiona. Wished he had not made out with her. Wished she hadn’t come into his bar and definitely wished she hadn’t returned to ask him for this ridiculous favor.

He was not a man who could rub elbows with politicians, least of all this imposing, bald, hard-ass monolith of a governor.

Governor Locke held out his catcher’s mitt of a hand to shake his, sizing Levi up with eyes as intense as Fiona’s.

It was too late to duck out, so he was going to have to wing it. He was going to have to simply excuse himself.

Pretend you’re sick. Pretend you forgot something and just get the fuck out and never look back. Pretend you never met this woman and never let this kind of bullshit happen again.

Levi did none of those things. Instead, his mind flashed back to the moment when he’d given his real name to Fiona, who’d put his name on a guest list…a guest list scrutinized by security…a guest list that would be made available to the press because the party was not just a fundraiser. Judging from the silent auction items on display at every corner and the tastefully decorated donation baskets, Levi guessed it was a political fundraiser. He glanced over at Fiona, whose sweet face and gorgeous eyes searched him quizzically. Would he, could he bail on her? He certainly didn’t want to.

Think, Levi. Think.

Chapter Nine

Fiona

* * *

She waited for one of them to speak for such a long time, she wondered if this was the OK Corral and one of them was going to draw a six-shooter.

She looked from her dad to Levi and back to her father again. Levi looked like he was either going to faint, punch something, or run away.

He then glanced at her, just for a second, and everything changed. His face broke into a wide smile. If she knew him at all, which, she reminded herself, she didn’t, she would say this smile was completely fake. But wasn’t that the point?

“Governor Locke, so nice to meet you. Bob Wallace.”

Fiona blinked several times. Who the fuck is Bob Wallace?

The two men shook hands as Fiona registered the fact that Levi had just given her father a bogus name.

What the hell was the point of that?

Levi turned to glance at her, and in his eyes she picked up a shadow of warning. She didn’t know why she should go along with this fake name other than it was what Levi wanted. And why did the name Bob Wallace sound so familiar?

Fiona waited for the other shoe to drop. As if her dad, who was exceptionally good at reading people, would somehow be able to tell something was off. At the very least, he had to recognize that suit came from the governor’s favorite go-to designer downtown.

Welp, she thought. We’re already lying about this relationship. In for a penny, in for a pound.

“Yep, this is Bob. My boyfriend, Bob. Bob Wallace.”

She needed to bite her tongue to stop saying the word “Bob.” God, her nervousness was going to blow everything.

“Nice to meet you, Bob.” Her dad did that thing that he always did. That power move, in which he placed one hand on one of Levi’s shoulders and patted, like they were old pals. Oh shit. This was the other shoe. “For photo purposes pretend that we’ve already met. Later on we can have a nice long talk. What do you say, Bob?”

This is why she never brought dates home to meet her parents. The man acted like she was still 17 years old.She also felt squeamish whenever her father did what he was doing right now to Levi: smiling a little too big so anybody looking on would think he was having a lighthearted conversation, while he was actually giving someone the business. “You see, Bob, I’m very interested in knowing who is dating my daughter. If she’s serious enough to bring you home, then that makes you special. And I’d love to know what makes you special.”

“I’d be exceptionally honored to have a chance at a one-on-one with my governor.”

Fiona’s lungs turned to ice. Levi was working a little too hard now. He didn’t speak like that, didn’t smile