Love Me Sweet (Love Me book 1)

Chapter 25

Lia, her father, and her brothers all went to the restaurant without Ben. He had called and said that his appointment was taking more time than usual, and he would meet them at the restaurant. Her father, Larry, and her brothers, Leo and Lawson were antsy and wanted to head to the restaurant early to grab a drink.

Liam remained silent, but that was his way. One of the good things about her family was that they tended to reserve judgment, and they often kept their opinion to themselves. Lia was good at reserving judgment, but she had never been very good at keeping her opinions to herself. They had all been served with drinks of their choice and had settled into a table at the bar. The restaurant was a casual one and people were dressed in a mix of styles. Lia had opted for a pretty sundress, and her brothers were all wearing jeans and button-down shirts. Her father was in a polo shirt and khakis

They were all discussing whether they should hire a charter to take them deep sea fishing while they were visiting when Lawson looked up, pausing with his glass halfway to his lips.

Lia looked over her shoulder, expecting to see Ben in his raggedy clothes, but she saw Chance instead. He had noticed them and was headed right for them. Lia rolled her eyes, prayed for patience, and set her glass down so she wouldn't throw her drink in his face.

"Lia," Chance greeted, "Larry, Leo, Liam, Lawson." He went wound the table shaking everyone's hands. "What brings you all to town?" he asked carelessly, for all the world like he wasn't Lia's ex. "Oh, I bet I know, you wanted to meet Lia's new fiancé. She replaced me pretty quick didn't she." Her brothers and father had always seemed to like Chance, and Chance must have felt confident in their friendship because he was talking and acting as if they were old friends.

The four men looked from Lia to Chance and then back again, perplexed as to why he was even talking to them.

"Savannah's a small town, Daddy. You can't even get away from those you don't like." Lia picked up her glass with a hand that shook only slightly, partly in anger, but also out of fear of what Chance might say or do.

"It is a small town, isn't it?" he agreed. "Have you met Ben yet? I'm sure you'll like him, almost everyone does, despite the rumors about him." Chance leaned in and whispered the last bit. It was comical really as if he was a little girl or old biddy dishing out juicy gossip. However, Lia was too nervous to find it funny.

Her father and brothers didn't bite, they didn't say a word, they silently stared at Chance, waiting for him to get to the point.

Chance looked over his shoulder as if checking to see who was around, and he couldn't have missed Ben's entrance because he waited for a beat until Ben was in earshot. "You know they, the police and others, think he killed his first wife."

Lia closed her eyes in frustration. They hadn't even met Ben yet and this was the first story they were going to hear about him. He wouldn't stand a chance.

Ben's hand clapped down on Chance's shoulder, seemingly in greeting, but she saw Chance wince at the firmness of it. "Chance, what a surprise seeing you here, and it must feel terribly awkward for Lia and her family. Why don't you leave?" he suggested, sitting next to Lia and placing a kiss on her cheek.

"I just thought they should be warned about you, I doubt you or Lia will tell them the truth," he said defensively.

"Ah, the truth. If that was something you were really interested in you wouldn't be here spreading defamatory statements. I think you're jealous that you lost the girl, or you still could be mad that Huck pissed on you during the wedding, and your bride took it as an omen and ran away."

Lia bit her lip to keep from grinning at Ben's words. "Either way, as far as Lia is concerned, your loss is my definite gain." He reached for Lia's glass and turned to her with it raised in a toast. "To the prettiest girl in the room," he took a sip and placed it back on the table.