“Checking up on you is my scene.”
“I’m fine.” I glare at him. “I have everything handled here without your help, just like I always have. This is the one place I already know what I’m doing, right?”
“Apparently not.” He snorts.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“That girl.” Dad tilts his head and points with his chin to where I had been sitting with Cherry. “You’re getting involved.”
“Involved? What the fuck, Dad? Weren’t you just telling me to come over and talk to her? Last month you were going on about how I’m going to have to get hitched and continue the family line!”
“You’re over there flirting like you have something to prove to that girl. You don’t. You’re forgetting the first rule of business—remove the competition.”
“Competition?”
“She came here with another man.”
“Yeah, and I threw him out.”
“What good does that do?”
“He’s not here anymore.”
“He can come back. He can approach her somewhere else. You’ve done nothing.”
“What exactly are you suggesting? You think I need to take him out permanently?”
“Keep your fucking voice down,” he says with a snarl. “You know exactly what I mean. Now send Threes after him before he gets too far.”
“You really think I have the time to track down some shithead just to get him out of the way?”
“I think you need to take the time. This girl is important.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“You have other priorities now. You’re going to get distracted, and then you’re going to fuck up, just like the last time. And stop swearing at me, or I’ll take you over my knee right here and now.”
I tense and clench my jaw. He can’t be serious, but he’s also done worse.
“I’m a little old for that,” I mutter.
“Maybe I’ll bust a beer bottle over your head, then.”
“I’m done.” I turn to walk away, but his clear voice follows me.
“She’s the one, Nate. You know she is.”
I get back to my seat just a few moments before Cherry returns from the bathroom.
“Everything all right?” Cherry asks when she sits down.
“It’s fine.” I smile, already relaxing as the proximity between my father and me decreases. “Just a little family nonsense.”
“Your family is here?” Her eyes narrow in suspicion, and I realize she’s misunderstood.
“No, no. Nothing like that.” I lean a little closer and hold up my left hand. “No ring. I’m not married. My family just runs this place.”
“You…your family owns the club?”