Seduced By A Steele (Forged of Steele #12) - Brenda Jackson Page 0,23

care of. “No need to thank me. From here on out I will handle her.”

The smile was suddenly wiped from his mother’s face. “I don’t want you to handle her, Mercury. I want you to take care of her. I want you to see to her needs and make sure she understands the Steeles are here for her regardless of her father’s threats.”

Before he could give his mother a response, he heard the sound of Sloan coming back. She had changed out of the outfit she’d had on earlier and into a pretty yellow sundress, one that showed off those appealing shoulders, those gorgeous legs. And her hair was pinned back, highlighting a face that appeared as sexy as the rest of her.

“I’m ready, Mercury.”

Her words snapped him out of his intense perusal. Drawing in a deep, troubled breath, he turned to his mother. “Sloan and I will see you later.”

Sloan glanced at Mercury as he backed out of his parents’ driveway. This was the first time they’d been alone since the kiss they’d shared last night. Should she address it, if for no other reason than to make sure it didn’t happen again?

She decided to wait and see if he would mention anything about it, and if he didn’t, she wouldn’t either. Like she’d told Eden, they’d both acted foolishly and sharing that kiss was something they both regretted. She was sure of it.

Last night before going to bed, she’d looked him up on the internet. He was a former NFL player turned sports agent who was doing very well for himself. And he was considered one of Phoenix’s most eligible bachelors.

“Your best friend’s family owns a bank?” she asked when she thought the interior was all too quiet.

He didn’t answer until he came to a stop sign on the corner. “Yes. Jaye’s family has been in banking for years and they own the Colfax National Bank. Most of the branches are located in Arizona, Texas and Oklahoma. Rest assured—you can open an account without fear of your father interfering.”

She nodded. “Thanks, Mercury.”

“You’re welcome.” He paused and then said, “May I ask you something?”

“Yes,” she said, glancing over at him, hoping he wasn’t about to ask her anything about last night. “What would you like to ask me?”

“While growing up, was there not anyone in your corner? Someone you could depend on? To protect you from your parents’ craziness?”

Sloan thought about his questions before answering. “Yes—my paternal grandfather. The one I was named after. He was wonderful. My grandmother died before I was born and he would tell me often that they loved each other very much.”

She paused and then added, “Pop always said that he sent my father off to college only for him to become an educated fool by getting mixed up with a woman who’d filled his head with crazy notions.”

“What kind of crazy notions?”

“That their marriage was to be a business proposition to grow their wealth. My mother’s family had once been wealthy, until they lost most of everything when she was fifteen. She swore she would one day regain that wealth and would never be without money again.”

Sloan paused, remembering how her mother would tell her often that money was everything and that you could even buy love. “My father bought into her theory of wealth building, and together, for the past thirty years, they have been doing just that. Building wealth. They had to start somewhere and got a loan from my grandfather. That’s when he made them sign a legal document that their first child would be named after him. Otherwise, whatever charity he selected would be entitled to a third of whatever wealth they accumulated.”

“Sounds like he didn’t take any stuff off them.”

“He didn’t. He also made them sign an agreement to send me to him at his ranch in Texas every summer. Although they did it, they hated doing so and said he was poisoning my mind with foolishness. As I got older, I saw that Pop was showing me just how wrong they were in trying to control my life.”

When he brought the car to a

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