Gilded Craving - Olivia Jaymes Page 0,65
wasn't one of his better ideas either, but he didn't think he was going to be able to talk himself out of it. "I can do that." Knox gave him a sideways glance. "Is everything okay?"
"Yes, I just need to stop by my dad's office. I can meet you back at the apartment right after. I want you to meet Mariah. We can order in dinner and then go over the case."
"Sounds good. I have to meet this woman that has saved you from lonely bachelorhood all in the space of a few days. She must really be something."
"She is."
Ryan dropped Knox off in the downtown area and then headed to his dad's office a few blocks away. He wasn't quite sure what he was going to say when he got there. He just knew that he needed to see his dad. Mariah's words were running around in his head and they wouldn't give him any peace.
Gwen, his dad's longtime assistant greeted Ryan when he stepped off the elevator. She looked surprised to see him as she should. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been here. Maybe sometime in college? Definitely not in the last several years.
His dad was in a meeting so he cooled his heels outside chatting with Gwen for a few minutes. Her daughter had just graduated from college and was going to be a teacher in the fall, and her son was working for a law firm in the city. She'd said that Ryan's dad had been instrumental in helping him get the job.
The door to the office opened and a man exited, waving to Gwen as he left. Ryan entered, pausing just past the threshold. Suddenly, this wasn't looking like a great idea.
Why am I here? I should leave this alone. But I can't.
"Come in, son," Jack urged him. "Do you want some coffee or a pop? I can have–"
"I'm good, Dad. I just wanted to stop by."
For reasons I don't even know about.
"Have a seat." His dad sat down on the couch against the wall instead of behind his desk which was a first for Ryan. His father had always pulled the power play. "Is everything okay? Is there a problem?"
Jack looked so worried that Ryan felt shame wash over him. It was so rare that he stopped by the office to see his dad that he'd made his father think he was dying or something.
"No, everything is fine. No issues." He paused, his brain running a mile a minute. He was here for a reason. He just needed to admit it out loud. "Actually, I came by to say that I'm sorry for messing up dinner last night."
Jack Beck could have been a professional poker player. That's how close to the vest he kept his emotions most of the time. But today Ryan had clearly surprised his dad with an apology. His dad looked like he didn't know what to say.
"I didn't come here to get an apology from you," Ryan added, wondering if that's what his dad was thinking. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for escalating the conversation last night. It wasn't how I wanted the evening to go."
Clearing his throat a few times, Jack tugged at his silk tie. "I–I'm sorry too, son. I got a bit defensive as Pat pointed out to me later."
This was monumental. As in were pigs flying in the sky outside?
Ryan had never heard his father apologize. For anything. Ever.
For a moment, he wasn't sure that he'd heard what he'd heard. He had to replay the words in his head a few times before he could reply.
"Thank you, Dad. I promise that the next time we have dinner together it will be more friendly."
"I'll hold you to that."
Now that was a little more like the Jack Beck that Ryan knew and loved.
"How's the case going? Any progress? The newspaper this morning said that there has been a confession."
Shit, Ryan hadn't looked at the newspapers yet today. If he had, his first stop would have been Skip and Lilly instead of his dad's office.
"I wish they hadn't reported that. I talked to the guy this morning at the prison. He didn't do it. He was just bored and looking to get his name in the papers."
Looks like he'd succeeded in that.
"That's too bad. I'm sure Skip and Lilly were hopeful."
"I'm going to talk to them next."
He'd already set up a meeting with them to talk about Brad's gambling. Now they had another topic