Page 43 of Between Steel and Secrets
I smile at her little scolding to her father.
Cute.
“I’m concerned when I get a phone call that you were at a hotel with your boss!” Kyler is like a train at full-speed, unable to slow. “Jaxson, do you want to tell me what the hell you’re doing bringing my daughter to a hotel?”
I shift, albeit uncomfortably, and realize how this actually looks. I laugh under my breath. “I see how this could be construed as something nefarious, but I can assure you that I was bringing your daughter to meet with our clients, who are being housed off-site for their protection. I thought she could help with some arrangements, but clearly, it was too much for her.”
Bristol is shooting me daggers, but I ignore it. I’m more concerned about one of my best paying clients, Kyler Greyson. Not to mention that his wife works for me, and when she gets wind, I’ll get another earful at the office.
“Too much for me?” Bristol chokes and sneers at me. “That’s not fair. You bring me to a hotel room, what was I supposed to think?”
My jaw drops.
She was overreacting.
Maybe I was under-reacting in bringing her with me. I could have brought Emerson along, perhaps I should have, but that’s all in the past.
“I won’t make that mistake again,” I grit between clenched teeth.
You do a favor for someone, hire their college kid for a summer, and this is the thanks I get?
I take a few deep breaths and release my tightened grasp on the steering wheel as I take the exit toward Great Falls. We’re still thirty minutes out, and this drive is growing all the more tense.
“Anything else, Kyler?” I’m hesitant to even ask, but I also want this conversation over.
Kyler clears his throat then answers. “Yes, what was that earlier about my daughter having a dizzy spell?”
“She fainted in the hotel hallway.” I glance at Bristol and her eyes widen in horror, like I just revealed that she’s pregnant to her father.
My brow pinches and I glance her over.
She isn’t pregnant, is she?
“It’s nothing, Dad, just another dizzy spell,” Bristol quips, making it known to her father that she’s fine.
“Fainting isn’t a dizzy spell, Bristol. And this is the second day in a row.”
“It was Saturday night when I went to the Emergency Room,” Bristol counters. “Well, Sunday morning by the time I left, but it’s not a big deal.”
“It is a big deal.” Kyler’s voice is gruff. “Mom and I are concerned about your health. Are you having issues in class?”
“I don’t know, Dad. It’s summer break!”
I roll my lips and keep my mouth shut. There’s no sense in me getting between those two. I’d offer her my phone to take the call with a little more privacy, but it’s in my pocket, and quite frankly, I’m slightly amused at the antics between those two.
She’s flustered and frustrated.
I can only imagine Kyler up in arms, not being able to do anything.
Perhaps that’s why Emerson decided to move out here? Had she sensed something was off with their daughter?
Kyler grumbles and I suppress a smirk. Oh yeah, he’s definitely pissed.
“You’ve been fainting a lot, Bristol. That’s not normal. I’m going to bring in a specialist, someone to make sure everything is all right.”
“Dad!”
I glance at Bristol. I should keep my mouth shut, but I can’t. “Listen, my wife has some health anomalies as well. We found a good autonomic neurologist for Ariella. The doctor is hard to get an appointment with, but Ariella can reach out and try to get an appointment for Bristol. She’s the best in the area, and I’m sure if Ariella reaches out, then she can get Bristol in for a work-up. She’s in Billings, which is a six-hour drive?—”
