“I am the client.”
Craig sighed. “You sure you don’t want to think it over? There’s no rush.”
“No. My mind’s made up. But there are some conditions. Here are the most important ones…”
Chapter Twenty-Three
GAVIN PLOPPED DOWN in the lawn chair in his mother’s garden. The party she’d hosted had ended a bit earlier than planned, but it looked like everyone’s feathers were unruffled. There was nothing his mother couldn’t do when she set her mind to it, and the family rarely disobeyed her will.
If she could change Amandine’s mind too…
It’d been over a week since he’d moved out of the house. He and Amandine no longer had any communication. That was what their lawyers were for.
The sky had darkened, although the sun was still streaking most of the horizon with a golden orange. Gavin drank bourbon straight from the bottle. It felt like nothing would be enough to numb the emptiness he’d been feeling ever since Amandine had announced she’d fight tooth and nail to be rid of him.
He’d been that much of a failure as a husband.
“Mom’s gonna ground you if she sees you like this.” Meredith took a seat next to him.
“Like what?”
“Drinking and brooding and generally unpleasant.”
“I’m too old to ground.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “You sure?”
“I’m returning to L.A. tonight.”
A small smile appeared. “Chicken.”
Meredith looked like him, though shorter and feminine and with long hair. Some idiots in New York and Hollywood had said she could be an actress, but Gavin knew there was no way. She liked to eat, had a particular weakness for cheeseburgers and fries, and didn’t care that the camera added twenty pounds.
She shoved a glass his way. “Pour me a finger.”
“There’s hardly enough for me.”
“The bottle’s more than half full! Don’t be greedy.”
Sighing, he shared.
She chugged it down and made a face. “God, that’s disgusting. I don’t know how you drink this stuff.”
“It costs more than what some people make in a week.”
“Is that why you drink it?”
“No. For the medicinal effect.” A fantastic painkiller, no prescription required.
“Hope it improves your mood then. You were a dick to Ethan and his date at the party.”
He made a face. “I don’t trust her. She’s a Sterling.”
“And this is relevant, how…?”
“Ever heard of Sterling & Wilson? TLD’s arch-rival?” It was appalling the woman had gone through TLD’s financial records to “help” Ethan.
“So? She’s Ethan’s date. Seriously, Gavin, would you have been this much of a jerk if she weren’t Barron Sterling’s granddaughter?”