Crap.
I knew I should have stayed in California where I belong.
CHAPTERONE
AUTUMN
NOW
“We should hire a hitman, Andreas. Surely, you know one.”
My older brother arches a dark brow, looking at me across his ridiculously large desk. “What the fuck makes you think I know a hitman, Autumn?”
I shrug. “Seemed like a good bet.”
“Autumn.” He pinches the bridge of his nose, expelling a heavy breath. “You don’t need a hitman. You need a lawyer.”
“I know!” I cry, throwing my hands up in the air as I glare at my older brother. “I can read, Andreas Romano.” Unfortunately for me. The papers that say Jimmy Gatlin, jerk extraordinaire, is suing me for slander and defamation of character are pretty clear. But a hitman sounds a lot more appealing than a lawyer right now since Jimmy has lost his mind.
Actually, I take that back. This is pretty muchexactlywhat I expected from a worm like him. Only, I expected it two months ago when the video of me calling him a short-dick child predator first hit the internet. The whole world has been calling him Short Dick Man ever since, and he hates every minute of it.
I don't feel bad for him. Frankly, it’s about time the world knows who he really is. But the fact that he's suing me for millions is making me cranky. The last time I went to court, the judge sentenced me to jail for three days. It wasn’t fun for me.
Luckily, I lived in Los Angeles where the jails are notoriously overcrowded, so I only spent four hours in the slammer before they released me. But it was the longest four hours of my life. And my own father is the reason I was there in the first place. I’d really like tonotgo back because of his creep of a former business partner. I doubt Texas jail is any better than Los Angeles jail.
"He wants my inheritance." It's the only thing that makes any sense. Eight years ago, when he sent me that disgusting picture, our father forced him out of the company and took everything from him. Now that Andreas has convinced me to move back to Silver Spoon Falls and take a job at the family company for a year, Jimmy must think our father left part of the company to me.
As if the old man would ever leave a woman in charge of his precious baby,especiallythis woman. I'm the reason the EPA found out about the company's illegal dumping. He's the reason I have a criminal record. He wouldn't leave me the company if I were his only heir.
But he didn't leave me destitute, either. Like Andreas, I have millions in the bank. I've been donating money in our father's name to every environmental protection group he ever railed against. It's the least he owes them after all the years he spent making their lives miserable.
Andreas lowers his hand to stare at me. “I can call Jude."
“Your MC brother isnotgoing to be my lawyer.” I scowl at my brother. Like him, his MC is full of ridiculously wealthy men. He says they're good guys, and I'm inclined to believe him. Andreas isn't like our father or the people he associated with. He's a genuinely good man.
But I've spent the last five years carving out a life for myself away from all of this. There were no rich men in suits telling me what to do or how to act or what to think. I wasfree. I'm not inclined to climb back into my perfect little cage now.
I want to hire my own lawyer, one who won’t talk over or around me or treat me like I’m supposed to be seen and not heard. I had eighteen years of that before I left Silver Spoon Falls. The only place it leads is to a loveless marriage and eventual death… just like it did with my mom. That was my father’s grand plan for my life. To end up just like her. I refuse to let it happen to me. I make my own choices.
I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul,I silently recite.
"It doesn't have to be Jude, Autumn. He has an entire staff of lawyers to choose from," Andreas says quietly. "Pick whichever one you prefer."
"Do I get to choose?" I ask, tilting my head to the side.
"Be my guest." He grins at me. "You'll be the one driving him up the fucking wall. You might as well get to choose your own victim."
I pick up a fancy pen from his desk and toss it at him.
"Jerk," I mutter. But my lips twitch with amusement.
God, I've missed Andreas. He’s always been the exact opposite of our father; warm where he was cold, loving where he was emotionless. He was my hero when we were little. I always regretted not telling him what was happening with our father when he left for college. I wish I had. Maybe then, things wouldn’t have gotten so messed up. Maybe this town wouldn’t feel like a prison to me now. I don’t know. But I’ve missed him.
"Promise me one thing," he says, picking up the pen and dropping it in the cup with the rest of his fancy pens.
"What?"
His onyx eyes meet mine, hard and unyielding. "Make sure you pick someone who won't let that motherfucker win," he growls. "He isn't getting a goddamn thing from you."