Faking Ms. Right (Dirty Martini Running Club #1)(68)

“Shepherd, why don’t we both admit to what’s happening here.”

“How about you move out of my way.”

Her lips curled in a smile. “I know your engagement is a farce.”

I didn’t reply. Just took a sip of my whiskey.

“Aren’t you getting tired of this game we’re playing?” She dropped her arm and took a step forward.

Damn. She was using my father. Of course she was. I’d known it from the beginning.

“I’m tired of you taking advantage of my father.”

“Oh, Shepherd, don’t be silly. I’m doing no such thing. He’s not serious about me. I’m just a pretty distraction.”

“Indeed, although I doubt he sees you that way.”

She moved closer. I stayed where I was, refusing to give her any ground. This woman was not going to back me into a corner.

“Don’t worry about Richard.” She ran a finger down my chest.

“I don’t understand what you’re trying to accomplish. Have you been using my father as a way to get revenge? Or is this all a twisted attempt to get me to take you back?”

She splayed her hand on my chest. “A bit of both.”

I grabbed her wrist and removed her hand. “Don’t touch me.”

“Shepherd,” she purred. “I know you still want me. I can see it in your eyes.”

“Are you delusional?”

She surged in, invading my personal space. “Stop fighting it.”

I leaned away and backed up but ran into the refrigerator. My whiskey slipped from my hands, falling to the floor with a crash of broken glass. She pressed her body against me and grabbed the back of my neck. Popping up on her tiptoes, she slammed her lips against mine.

“Svetlana? Shepherd?”

At the sound of my dad’s voice, she pulled away. I dropped her wrist and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.

“Damn it,” I muttered.

Dad stood a few feet away, a paper grocery bag in his hand. He stared at us, his brow furrowed. “What’s going on here?”

“Dad—”

“He kissed me,” she said.

“What? You just threw yourself at me.”

She crossed her arms. “How dare you. I did no such thing.”

“Yes, you did. I certainly didn’t want you to.”

“Then why did you say all those things?” she asked. “You’re a terrible person, Shepherd Calloway. You know I’m in a relationship with your father. How could you betray him like that?”

I rolled my eyes. “For fuck’s sake. Enough of this bullshit. Dad, Svetlana is my ex. When you met her in Hawaii, I’d paid for her trip to soften the blow after breaking up with her.”

Dad’s eyes widened, moving between me and Svetlana. They came to rest on her. “Is this true?”

She blinked a few times, her face draining of color. She’d probably figured since I hadn’t outed her yet, I wasn’t going to. “I can explain.”

“You lied to me?” he asked.

“This isn’t what you think,” she said.

“No, it’s exactly what you think,” I said. “She’s been using you to get back at me for dumping her.”

Svetlana recovered quickly—she was good, I had to give her that. Her features smoothed and her shoulders relaxed, the guilt disappearing from her countenance. “Shepherd is sadly mistaken. Yes, he and I did date for a short time. But the truth is, I was ready to end things when Shepherd did. I knew it wasn’t going to work out between us. When I met you, everything changed. I knew you were different. You were special.”

“Then why would you keep the fact that you’d been dating my son from me?”

“I was afraid you’d reject me. I didn’t realize the connection until later, and by then, I already knew I wanted to be with you. And then we saw Shepherd at the gala, and he pretended not to know me. I didn’t know why, but I went along with it. I was afraid you’d leave me if you knew.”

My dad was a softie, but he wasn’t a complete idiot. Not even when it came to beautiful women who were far too young for him. He straightened, his back going stiff. “You expect me to believe that?”

“Yes, of course. Richard, I care about you. I’d never do anything to hurt you.”

“Interesting, considering I just caught you trying to seduce my son.”

“He came on to me,” she said, feigning shock.

I stared her down, my gaze hard. “I wouldn’t come on to you if you were the last woman on earth and the fate of humanity rested on us perpetuating the species.”

Dad took a deep breath and cleared his throat. “Well, that’s it, then. Svetlana, it’s been nice knowing you, but it’s time for you to leave.”

“You’re going to take his word over mine?” she asked, the pitch of her voice rising.

“In this case, absolutely,” he said.

She balled her hands into fists, her lips pressing together. Her eyes darted between me and my dad a few times, her nostrils flaring. Without another word, she stomped into the other room, grabbed her things, and slammed the door behind her.

I let out a long breath and wiped my mouth again. Fucking gross.

Dad didn’t say anything. He turned and went to his room.