Six
Dalton opened the door to find his brothers standing there...with their wives. He knew Jace and Caden had questions and wanted answers. When he’d called, the only thing he’d said was that he’d been followed that night and that their father’s attorney was going to explain why. He wanted them to get their asses over to his place as soon as possible. That had been less than twenty minutes ago, so they’d made good time.
“Come on in,” he said, stepping aside. “Boyett will explain everything.”
Being the gentlemen they were, of course, his brothers stood back to let their wives enter first. That gave Dalton a chance to pull Jace and Caden aside. “Why are Wonder Woman and Wine Lady here? What Boyett has to say might be private.”
Jace rolled his eyes. “Privacy is not an issue when it comes to our wives, Dalton. They’re now part of this family, so get over it.”
Dalton drew in a deep breath. He was over it, since being married was what they’d undoubtedly wanted. But he hadn’t gotten used to having additional players in their family business, especially when it concerned their father. Hell, he’d tried sending Jules home, but she had refused to leave. Since she was the one who’d nailed the fact he’d been followed, he had allowed her to stay.
“Jules? You’re here?” he heard Shana ask her sister, surprised.
From the look on his brothers’ faces, they were surprised, as well. Caden leaned in to whisper, “You questioned us about bringing our wives, yet Jules is here? A woman you claim you can’t stand?”
Dalton frowned. “She’s not here by choice, trust me. And I can’t stand her. Nothing has changed.”
“Then why is she here?” Jace asked with a speculative look on his face.
“Not for the reasons you think. All of your questions will be answered soon, so come on and join the club.” He couldn’t wait to see the expressions on his brothers’ faces when they discovered that Carson Boyett was a woman.
Dalton quickly moved to stand in the center of his living room. Deciding not to delay the introductions, he said, “Everyone, I’d like you to meet Roland Summers, Stonewall Courson, Carson Boyett and Bobby Turner. As you know, Carson is Dad’s attorney and has information to share with us.”
His brothers and their wives glanced at the three men expectantly, having assumed that Bobby Turner was the female. Dalton couldn’t help but chuckle when Carson moved forward and presented her hand to Jace. “I’m glad we’re finally meeting. Your father speaks highly of his sons.”
The shock on their faces was priceless. “You’re Carson Boyett?” Jace asked, stunned. “Dad never said you were a woman.”
“That must be true since Dalton had the same reaction,” Carson said, grinning. “You’ll need to mention that to Sheppard next time you see him.”
“He fired his former attorney, Jess Washington,” Caden said, eyeing Carson curiously. “He never said why. Granddad didn’t, either.”
Carson nodded. “Yes, he felt Washington didn’t do a good job representing him at the trial. And now he’s wondering whether it was intentional, since Vidal Duncan was the one who recommended Washington.”
Jace shrugged. “Duncan recommended Shana,” he said, smiling over at his wife. “And she worked out just great for Granger Aeronautics.”
“Yes, but he had an ulterior motive in making sure that I did,” Shana reminded her husband.
Caden glanced over at the other three men. “So who are you three?”
“They’re friends of mine,” Carson said. “They are also friends of your father.”
Dalton frowned. “Since when?”
Roland chuckled. “I’ve known your father since Carson became his attorney. He was going into the slammer just as I was getting out, so our paths never crossed.”
“You served time in jail?” Caden asked, beating Dalton to the punch.
“Yes. We all have.”