Page 36 of Too Broken to Love

Josie appeared in the doorway. “Tessa will be down in a minute. I’m going to fetch Ralphie.”

Malcolm held up a bottle of bourbon. “Want some? I’ll make it a double.”

“Why the fuck not?”

The scent of roses pulled Hudson’s attention like a hook. A tentative smile tilted Tessa’s lips as she pulled her shoulders back and paused in the doorway, confident and assured on the surface, yet edged with a wariness he felt more than he saw.

His body heat rose quicker than the warm temperatures still blanketing the coast.

Tessa in cut-offs was sexy. Adorable in scrubs. But the way she carried herself into a room of unknowns was downright dangerous.

The heavy click-clack of heels he could recognize clear across the mansion interrupted his gawking. He caught Vivian’s perfume a moment before a flash of beige appeared in the doorway.

She paused, her gaze landing on Pop’s vacant desk.

“I hate this room without him.” She shook her head and lifted her chin. “And I hate why we’re here.”

She let out a squeak as Nathaniel blew past her.

“How are you holding up?” Nathaniel clapped him on the shoulder. “Once we get through this, let’s break out the good stuff and honor Sam with a toast.”

“Maybe some other time.” Or never. Hudson wasn’t wasting single-barrel bourbon on someone Pop didn’t like.

“I need a drink.” Vivian strode to the bar, her gaze cutting to the fireplace. “You know another thing I hate? All these dead fish on the walls.”

“Don’t even think about touching them.” Hudson pointed above Pop’s desk. “We caught that tuna in Okinawa. And the striper was my first catch when I was three.”

“Sweet memories, but they’re hideous.”

Tessa slid from inside the doorway where she’d been quietly watching and faced Vivian. “They’re not hideous. They’re priceless.”

Vivian’s eyebrows reached her hairline. She smoothed them down as she looked over Tessa. “You must be Sam’s…friend. He probably left you the dead fish.”

Tessa’s fingers slipped on the tumbler of bourbon Malcolm pressed into her hands. She steadied her grip along with her composure. Bringing the glass to her mouth, she raised an eyebrow. “And you must be Vivian who doesn’t appreciate a good catch.”

Vivian blinked. “You sound just like Sam.”

Hudson slid to Tessa’s side and opened his fist. The ruby caught the light as he slipped the ring on her finger. “Actually, this is what Pop left her.”

He barely heard Tessa’s inhale over Vivian’s gasp.

“You can’t seriously believe that Sam gave his ring to some…” Vivian waved her hand. “Some interloper. It’s a valuable family heirloom.” She splayed her hand over her heart. “It belongs⁠—"

“To Tessa.” He stepped into Vivian, close enough for her to feel the icy steel in his tone. “Now sit so we can begin this production you insisted on.”

She parted her lips. A clipped jerk of his chin stopped her next breath.

Accepting a drink from Malcolm, he cupped Tessa’s elbow and led her to one of the chairs in front of Pop’s desk. He nudged her to sit and stood beside her.

Malcolm waved in Ralphie and Josie and waited for them to take seats on the couch. “Let’s get started, shall we?”

As Nathaniel and Vivian settled into the remaining chairs next to Tessa, Malcolm took his place behind Pop's desk. Head bowed, he stood before the big leather chair with the reverence of a priest approaching an altar.

Ralphie pressed his hands together in prayer and bowed his head. “Amen.”

Tessa sighed. “This room. It’s everything about Sam.”

Hudson leaned toward her, his body moving without permission. She understood. He finally did too. She didn’t care about Pop’s money or the Langley name. She just cared.