Chapter 1

one

. . .

River

I parkedin front of the hospital and stepped out of my car. I wasn’t sure what the hell the old man was thinking, getting himself stuck in here for God knows how long. Booze and pills and his high-strung personality would have done the average thirty-year-old in, let alone a fifty-year-old not-so-fit dude. I’m sure his daughter was horrified by the whole thing, seeing as this all stemmed from her father’s ridiculous sex drive.

I hated hospitals, but he was my friend, and this was where I needed to be. Well, if I was being honest, Lionel Rose was more than a friend. He owned Whiskey Falls bar, and we’d grown close over the years. I considered him family at this point.

He’d suffered a stroke recently, and we’d all been devastated by the news.

I took the elevator up and didn’t miss the way the two nurses who stepped onto the elevator were checking me out as I stepped off.

The doors closed, and I made my way down the corridor and into his room.

My friend held his hand up as I approached his bed, and his lips turned up the slightest bit as I gave him one of those half-bro-kind of hugs, before taking the seat beside him.

The monitors beeped excessively, and irritation rose as I tried to ignore the sound.

The faint smell of cafeteria food mixed with the strong antiseptic scent made my stomach turn.

Hospitals were probably my least favorite place to be, which was saying a lot because I’d spent time in plenty of other hellholes in my life.

Apparently, I’d lived at a hospital for six months as a kid, not that I remembered much during that time. But for whatever reason, I associated hospitals with darkness.

Hell, maybe everyone did.

Or maybe it was my subconscious remembering those months, and the fact that I had parents the day that I’d arrived at that hospital, and I didn’t the day I’d left.

Doreen was there too, giving me an update on his condition while Lionel was trying to choke down his lunch. She was a bartender at Whiskey Falls and Lionel’s oldest friend.

“Stop being stubborn and eat this applesauce,” Doreen said. “Ruby is going to be pissed when she gets back if you haven’t finished it.”

Ruby was Lionel’s only child.

His pride and joy.

Though she’d always been a little rough around the edges, I hadn’t seen her in years. I knew that Lionel was supposed to be attending her latest graduation, as she was somewhat of a professional student at this point. Lionel bragged about her often, and I knew she was getting her doctorate in psychology. But obviously, she’d come straight home yesterday when she’d heard about her father.

“Tell River the story that we told Ruby last night so we can all keep things straight.” Lionel’s words slurred, and I tried not to let my face show my concern. The right side of his face was paralyzed, and it made it difficult for him to speak. But all in all, the doctor had said that Lionel had gotten to the hospital just in time, and he was expected to make a full recovery, but it would take some time.

“What story are we talking about?” I sat forward with my brow raised.

Doreen sighed. “He doesn’t want Ruby to know that he was taking all those…stimulants.” She cleared her throat and smirked. “The fact that her father is trying to keep up with the sexual needs of a much younger woman is something he’d rather keep to himself.”

Yes. Lionel had doubled his dose of erectile dysfunction medication for several days because the man could be a real dumbass when he wanted to be.

“What did you tell her?”

Lionel looked at Doreen, waiting for her to fill me in. “We sort of told her that he had a stroke because of the stress from the legal case with Jenna Tate.”

“What? We settled that case a few weeks ago.” I gaped at them.

She handed me a piece of paper. “He had me write out this script to read to her last night.”

I glanced down at the chicken scratch and rolled my eyes. “So, you basically blamed me for your stroke? That’s fucked up, Lionel. Even for you.”

“I didn’t blame you,” he slurred.

I glanced down at the paper and read a few lines. “River was his attorney, but unfortunately, he wasn’t able to get a grip on the case, and the stress was just too much for your father.” I used my best imitation of Doreen’s voice, which was one of a middle-aged woman who’d smoked heavily for most of her life, and she glared at me, but I saw the corners of her lips turn up with amusement. “You fully blamed me.”

“What were we supposed to tell her? That her father can’t get it up enough for his current lady friend, so he tripled his dose of medication?” Doreen crossed her arms over her chest.

“For fuck’s sake. I thought you doubled it. You tripled it? What were you thinking, Lionel?” I hissed. It pissed me off because I loved the asshole, even if I wouldn’t admit it. And mixing his old-man dick medication with booze and his poor current cardiovascular condition had been a recipe for disaster. “And, yeah, that’s what you were supposed to tell her. Because it’s the fucking truth. Instead, you threw me under the bus. But if Ruby’s as smart as you claim she is, I doubt she’d buy that bullshit story anyway. People don’t just have strokes because someone sues them for a workplace accident. You weren’t facing prison time, for fuck’s sake.”

“Hey. I played Juliet in our high school play. I’m a theatrical genius. Trust me, she bought it.”

I leaned back in my chair and shook my head. I’d represented Lionel in this ridiculous case, even though he was completely in the wrong and should have just paid Jenna Tate’s medical bills right when the accident occurred. But his cheap ass tried to save a dime, which cost him three times what it should have in the end.

“Listen, you and your limp dick better pull your shit together. Stop dating women who are half your age and maybe you’ll be able to keep up. Have you ever thought of that?”

Lionel shrugged, the right side of his mouth drooping. “Stella’s hot.”

“And you’re a stubborn ass. I’ll go along with your ridiculous charade, but I don’t think Doreen is that good of an actress, and if Ruby buys this shit, then she isn’t the genius that you claim she is.”

“Ahhh… I see the whole gang is here,” a voice said from behind me, and I glanced over my shoulder.

Ruby fucking Rose had grown up since I’d last seen her.

She had long dark waves falling down her back, red plump lips, and hazel eyes that looked more gold at the moment with the sunlight coming in through the windows and illuminating her pretty face.

Fuck me.

Lionel’s daughter was hot as hell.

She sure as shit didn’t look like this when I’d seen her last. Obviously, it had been a while, and she was no longer a teenager.

She was a sexy-as-sin woman.

I raised a brow because she was glaring at me like my mere presence offended her.

“Long time no see, Ruby.” It had been years since I’d seen her. Lionel went to visit her most of the time, and when she came home, she never stayed long, from what he’d shared. Lionel’s ex-wife, Ruby’s mother, Wendy, was a real piece of work, so from where I was sitting, Ruby appeared to be avoiding Magnolia Falls.

“Oh, how observant of you,” she hissed, her words pure venom. What the fuck was her deal? She hardly knew me. “Is it your brilliant ability to recall that you haven’t seen me in a long time that makes you such an amazing attorney?”

“Ruby,” Lionel said, his voice much softer when he spoke to his daughter than when he spoke to anyone else.

She held her finger up as if to silence him. “No. Don’t you Ruby me right now, Daddy dearest. I’ll get to you next.”

Doreen chuckled, and Ruby shot her a look. Lionel’s feisty daughter was small in stature, but fierce in presence. I was six foot two, and she couldn’t be more than five foot four inches, and she was wearing black military boots that probably gave her an extra inch. Her dark skinny jeans hugged her curves, and I tried hard not to let my eyes roam from her head to her toes the way they were dying to. Her black leather coat stood out like a sore thumb, considering it was the end of May, the sun was shining, birds were fucking chirping, and Magnolia Falls was all sunshine and unicorns this time of year.

This girl looks like she’s just returned from the bowels of hell.

I recognized that kind of anger, because it lived and breathed in me, as well.

“Doreen, I thought you being my father’s oldest and dearest friend and him choosing you as my godmother shortly after I was born meant that you had some sort of loyalty to me?” She crossed her arms over her chest.

Jesus. She was pissed at everyone.

I normally focused my anger on one individual at a time. I reached for the baggy with apple slices on Lionel’s tray, grabbed a slice, and popped it into my mouth while I enjoyed the show.

“You know I love you, baby girl. My loyalty is always to you and your father.” Doreen glanced between Lionel and Ruby, and I reached for another slice of apple, which earned me another glare from the queen of darkness.

“Is that so?” Ruby moved closer to Lionel’s bed and plopped down on the end as she glanced at each of us. “Well, we must have different interpretations of loyalty. Lying to me, when you’ve all but begged me to come home to take care of the bar—I don’t know. It seems a little… disingenuous, no?”

Damn. She was smooth.

Confident and condescending and terrifying all at the same time.

I reached for another apple slice, and she moved so fast that she caught me off guard. She slapped my hand, sending the wedge of apple to the floor.

“Stop eating his goddamn apples. How about you focus on the law and do your job.”

And that was my limit. I was on my feet and towering over her within seconds. “I do my job very well. Not that I need your approval. But I’ll let your little attitude slide because I know you love your father, and I’m guessing you’re having some sort of internal meltdown and pointing the finger in every direction you can.”

I expected her to cower, but instead, she smirked. Like she welcomed the challenge.

She pushed to her feet and tipped her chin up, eyes gold and blazing with pops of blue and green.

Damn, she was an evil queen, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say it was turning me the hell on.

“I was standing outside the door, and I overheard you agreeing to their ridiculous plan to lie to me. Doesn’t seem very lawyerly of you, or is that the way you run your practice? My father ended up paying quite a bit more to Jenna Tate than he should have. Or are you playing both sides? Maybe getting a little kickback from the ole horndog Jenna?”

“Ahhh… I don’t know if I’m more offended for my moral compass or the fact that you think I need to work a deal to get laid. Clearly, you underestimate my abilities.”

“Ruby,” Lionel said, reaching for her hand and she raised a brow as she looked at her father. “I asked them to lie. I didn’t want to embarrass myself.”

“Really, Dad? You thought I bought that dumbass story about your legal woes? I pulled those records weeks ago to see what you paid her. One of us has to make sure you stay afloat.” She let out a long breath and squeezed her eyes shut. “I already talked to Dr. Peters while I was in the car, heading home yesterday. I knew about the medication. I expected more from you. And from you, too, Doreen.”

“I’m sorry. He was desperate.” Doreen shrugged, her eyes watering, and even I felt slightly bad for her when she started coughing profusely and shaking her head.

“Save it.” Ruby held her hand up abruptly, and I’d be dammed if Doreen didn’t immediately stop hacking up a lung dramatically. Maybe her theatrical abilities were better than I’d given her credit for because Ruby was definitely not buying it. “I get it. He’s very persuasive when he’s backed into a corner.”

“Thank you,” Doreen said, moving closer and wrapping her in a hug. “I missed you.”

“Sure,” Ruby said, as she stepped out of the embrace, completely unaffected. “Anyway, the lies stop now. I will not run Whiskey Falls for you while you go to inpatient physical therapy if you lie to me even once more. Do you hear me?” She stared down at her father. “We’ve always agreed to be honest with one another.”

“I do. And I’m sorry that I missed your graduation.” I heard the disappointment in Lionel’s voice. Ruby was the most important person in his life, and everyone in Magnolia Falls knew it.

“You’re fine. You know I don’t care about that kind of stuff.” She glanced down at her phone when it vibrated, and she groaned. “I’ve been home for less than twenty-four hours, and what do you know… Mom just had a fight with Jimbo. Shocker. And Rico thinks his girlfriend is pregnant.”

Jimbo Slaughter was married to Ruby’s mother. She’d been married so many times, it was hard to keep up on that woman’s shit. But she had two sons, Zane and Rico, who were both always hanging out at the bar and using Ruby’s name to get free shit from Lionel.

“I’m sorry you have to deal with that,” Lionel slurred, and Ruby’s gaze softened for the first time since she’d walked into the room.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ve got it handled. Right now, my priority is you. I spoke to Dr. Peters, and he said he talked to you about going right into an inpatient physical therapy program. You’ve got a long road ahead of you. And you aren’t getting out of this. I will cover the bar, and you’re going to do the work to get yourself back on track. Got it?”

Lionel reached for her hand, and this time, she took it. “Thank you. Love you, Rubes.”

She sighed. “Love you, too.”

And this time, her smile was genuine.

The evil queen definitely had a weakness, and it was her father.