Needing Happily Ever After - Elena Aitken Page 0,15
smile on his father’s face. “If you recommend it so heartily, it must be worth a shot. Come on in, you two. Let’s have a drink.”
His father led the way into the house and Damon stared in a pleasant state of shock at his dad and his fiancée. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.
Katie had no idea what Damon had been so worried about. Drinks with his father had gone perfectly. Anthony had been nothing but pleasant and welcoming. With the exception of a little bit of tension between the two of them after the situation the day before, everything was fine. And even then, the tension was completely on Damon’s side because as far as Katie was concerned, she was over it. She genuinely didn’t think that he’d meant anything hurtful about his comments regarding her relationship—or whatever it was—with Jeremy. He’d been jealous. He’d admitted as much. Still, that idea was ridiculous.
What did he have to be jealous about?
The thought had popped into her head a few times since she’d left Damon’s hotel room the day before. But as soon as it crossed her mind, she’d tried to dismiss it again. After all, this was Damon she was thinking about. He didn’t get jealous. Not when it came to her. And there was zero reason to think that anything had changed. Well, except for the whole fake fiancée thing. But that wasn’t a reason to be jealous.
“Katie?” Damon elbowed her gently, bringing her back into the conversation. “You okay? My dad asked you a question.”
She shook her head a little and smiled as widely as she could. “Sorry. My thoughts drifted for a moment. What was your question, Mr. Banks?”
He smiled amiably and sipped at his gin and tonic. “I was just asking about your schooling, Katie. You’re taking a degree in business, I understand? How’s that going? It must be challenging to do that correspondence.”
“It hasn’t been easy,” she answered honestly. “But I’m almost done. Just a few more finals and I’ll be graduating in a few weeks.”
“That’s great news. Getting that degree is something you’ll never regret.” He shot a look toward his son, and Katie hoped that Damon had missed it. But judging by the sudden tension in his body next to hers, he hadn’t. “I tried to tell Damon that, but he just wouldn’t listen.”
“I had a buyer for the microchip, Dad. I didn’t need—”
“Nonsense. One always needs a degree. Buyers come and go.”
Everyone in the room knew that wasn’t the case in Damon’s situation. He’d dropped out of college, sure, but he’d also sold his designs for more money than he could ever possibly need. It might not have been the decision that his father had wanted to see, but no one could argue that it hadn’t worked out well for him. Still, it didn’t seem like the proper time to have that particular conversation.
Katie took one more look at Damon and directed her attention to his father. “Well, I know I’m excited about graduating.” She forced as much cheer in her voice as possible. “In fact, I’m really excited about using that knowledge and one day starting my own adventure center here in town.”
That got Anthony’s attention. He once more turned his focus to her. “Adventure center? What is that exactly?”
Katie spent the next few minutes telling him her plans to have a rental and retail space where she could offer tours and equipment for the blossoming tourism in Glacier Falls to take advantage of.
“I think that’s a great idea,” Anthony said when she was finished. “Good for you.”
“Well, it’s still a dream right now. But one day.” She didn’t bother getting into the details about how she’d need to save for years before she’d have enough capital to even think about getting started. “First things first. I still have some exams to write. I will say, the one thing about going to school via correspondence is I’ve been able to work at my own pace, but sometimes I wonder if it wouldn’t have been easier just to move into the city.” It wasn’t the first time she’d wondered about it. Not that it was ever an option, but Katie had definitely missed out on the whole college experience by staying at home. “But,” she continued, “I did the best thing I could at the time and what with my dad just…well…”
“I really was so sorry to hear about your father, Katie.” Anthony’s smile dipped as he realized exactly what