Tess stands next to Spender—or whatever the hell his name is—watching him laugh and rub elbows with the cluster of pricks circling him. He doesn’t care that she looks miserable. Instead he reaches for two glasses of champagne, one for him and one for the idiot next to him, while Tess’s hands stay empty except for the purse she’s clutching tight against her.
“Curran, what’s going on?” Lety asks. She glances in the direction I’m eyeing. “Oh, shit. It’s about that girl, isn’t it? Christ Almighty, you’re not going to start a fight, are you?”
“Humph,” Brody says. “And I thought this was going to be another boring-ass fundraiser.” He claps my shoulder. “I got your back if you need to throw down, dude.”
“Brody, do not encourage him.” She stops mid-sentence. “Oh, no. Here comes your dad.”
He looks to where his dad is maneuvering around a crowd of people making their way to the dance floor. “Yeah, he’s headed right toward us. Hey, Curran. He’ll probably do you one and mow over the bald prick to Spencer’s right. I think he slept with my mom.”
“Jesus,” Lety mumbles.
Brody’s dad stops his high-tech wheelchair directly beside his son. “Hello,” he says, frowning slightly, obviously aware something’s not right.
Lety inches to his opposite side, taking point directly in front of me. She’s trying to distract me, worried I’m going to do something stupid.
She’s probably right.
“Curran, this is Edward Moore. My…”
She seems to search for the right words. He smiles, and answers for her. “I’m Lety’s future father-in-law,” he says, causing Lety’s blush to return. “But you may call me Edward.”
I try to smile, knowing I need to keep it together. “Hey, man, and congrats. I hear Lety’s gonna pop out at least seven grandkids for you.”
His smile widens. “I was hoping for two, but this is excellent news indeed.”
Brody cracks up when Lety clasps her hand over her eyes. “I like this guy,” he says. He lowers himself so that he’s eye level with his father. “But hey, Dad, Curran here doesn’t like Spencer.”
Edward’s smile fades. “I can’t say that I blame him. He’s an imbecile, very much like his father.”
Lety places her purse on Edward’s tray and adjusts his collar. “Then why are we here? We could have stayed in and watched all those Wolfman movies we planned on.”
“Your mother-in-law insisted on getting me out, and her friend is the publicist running the event. She begged Dionna for her presence, and mine.”
I’m only half-listening. Spencer motions in Tess’s direction. Whatever he says makes the men laugh, and causes her to edge further away from him.
What did you just say about her, asshole?
Nails dig into my arm, keeping me in place when I take a step forward. “Curran, don’t,” Lety warns. “You’re a cop, and this is a highly publicized and political event.”
She’s right, and it pisses me off. I meant it when I said I wouldn’t embarrass her, especially now that others have seen me with her and her future family. I lean back on my heels, ready to apologize to Edward and Brody. They’re frowning, but it’s not because I’m seconds from charging Spencer and bashing his face in.
“You need to get that girl out of here. Don’t you?” Brody asks me, leaving me with the impression he realizes how Tess is being treated.
I square my shoulders. “Yeah. Will you help me?”
He and his father say yes at the same time Lety says no.
“I’ll go up first, Dad,” Brody says, straightening his tie. “You come up next and distract him so I can get her on the dance floor.” He grins at me then. “Curran, Lety’s one hell of a dancer,” he adds with a wink.
“Be sure to tell him I’m torn between parties,” Edward says.
Brody nods and takes off, leaving Lety to throw her hands out and swear. “Nice, Lety,” I tell her. “You kiss your future father-in-law with that mouth?”