Billionaire Wolf's MateDate - Serena Meadows Page 0,41

died away. “I think you’d better come inside for some tea. I already put the kettle on, so the water should be hot by now.”

The inside of the cabin was neat as a pin, but homey in a simplistic way, and Janice felt herself relaxing at once. Reggie led her over to a table in one corner and pulled out a chair for her while Peter went to the little stove and retrieved the kettle. He set out cups, a selection of tea bags, then a plate of cookies, followed by the sugar and a little pitcher of milk.

After he’d poured hot water into all their cups, he put the kettle back on the stove, then sat down at the table. “Now, what brings you to my neck of the woods?” he asked, choosing a tea bag and submerging in his cup with a spoon.

“How much do you know about what’s been going on in the clan?” Reggie asked.

“I’m in the loop as much as I used to be, although you’re the first visitors I’ve had for a few days,” Peter said. “I’m sorry about your brother, by the way, although I am surprised to see you back.”

Reggie looked over at her. “I had to,” he said, his eyes meeting hers. “There were a few things I had to work out.”

“He came back because I wouldn’t listen to my brother and insisted on coming back,” she said, feeling guilty. “It’s my fault we’re in this mess; if I would have just listened, we’d both still be back in Stoney Bridge.”

“Your father would have found you eventually,” Reggie said, shaking his head.

“I think you’d better tell me what’s been going on,” Peter said. “I thought being together was your idea.”

Janice felt a blush rising up her neck and spreading across her face. “How did you know?”

Peter smiled. “In all the years Reggie has been coming to see me, he’s never brought a woman with him, not even when he was a teenager,” he said. “Besides, it’s written all over your faces.”

Chapter Seventeen

***Reggie***

After condensing the events of the last few days into as few words as possible and leaving out some parts, Reggie sat back in his chair and waited. Peter got up from the table, went to the stove, refilled their mugs, then sat down again, clearly processing all that he’d been told.

“So, you have no idea what your father is up to,” he said. “But it involves a vote in the council and a scheme to keep the clan in line. He’s enforcing the marriage contract so you’ll be married, and if I know him, planning to use Janice’s safety to get you to cooperate.”

“That about sums it up,” he said. “Except the part where I turn the tables on them and take away everything they have.”

Peter grinned at him. “So, you’re finally ready to fight?” he asked. “I’ve been waiting for this day.”

“That depends on what you mean by fight,” Reggie said. “I have a plan that might just keep there from being any bloodshed if I can pull it off, but I was thinking that it wouldn’t hurt to have a little backup just in case things don’t go exactly like I’ve planned.”

“You’ve come to the right place then,” Peter said. “Tell me about this plan of yours.”

“It’s really very simple, I’m going to buy out all the loans on clan property, snap up the properties in the city they’re leasing, and shut down all their businesses, all of it,” Reggie said. “Jacob is already working on it.”

“What do you need from me?” Peter asked.

“I need enough votes on the council to defeat my father's proposal,” Reggie said. “I know you have some sway with some of the council members, and I need you to use that. I need you to convince them that the money my father is offering them isn’t worth a clan war. The clan doesn’t want this life anymore, Peter; they’re ready for a change. Those men just won’t face the truth, so we’re going to have to shove it in their faces.”

Peter sat back in his chair. “What you’re talking about won’t be easy,” he said. “What guarantee can I give them that standing up to the council will change anything?”

“It’s really very simple,” he said, a grin on his face. “I have more money than I know what to do with and I’m willing to invest it all in the clan. I’ve already started an investment company, and I’d like the board