Make Me Say It by Beth Kery Page A

Jarvis Atwater was not a man to tolerate anything foreign. What had infuriated Jarvis was not only his son’s open homosexuality, but a stubborn streak that ran a mile wide. Cyril refused to bend or alter, no matter the amount of threats and physical abuse.
    Predictably, Cyril brought up the topic of the film before Lisa, his cook, had even served the soup.
    “I might have complicated things for you in regard to that,” Jacob told his friend.
    “What do you mean?” Cyril demanded, peering at him through a pair of antique Edwardian pince-nez glasses that Cyril was particularly proud of.
    “I might have . . . insulted Ms. McFadden.”
    “
Insulted
her.” A flabbergasted expression slowly broke over his thin face. “Good Lord, you don’t mean insulted in the antiquated sense of the word, do you?”
    Jacob gave him a bland look.
    “You
slept
with her?” Cyril nearly shouted.
    “Quiet,” Jacob insisted as Lisa stepped out on the balcony with a tray in her hand. Cyril snapped his mouth shut into a frown as Lisa served them.
    “I’m shocked. And I disapprove,” Cyril said when Lisa had left.
    “I didn’t ask for your approval,” Jacob replied, his mild tone disguising his irritation.
    “That girl isn’t your type, is she? I mean . . . she’s stunning, of course. But she’s a bit on the sweet side for someone of your tastes, isn’t she?”
    “And so we get to the portion of the story where I insulted her,” Jacob said stoically, picking up his spoon.
    Cyril shook his head, clearly bewildered. “She lives here in Tahoe Shores. What about your policy on avoiding local complications?”
    “You make it sound like I have it printed out in a company policy regulation manual. It’s just a preference, not a hard-and-fast rule.”
    “You’ve followed that policy like you were a devout Catholic and it was strict dogma. I’ve seen you walk away from considerable temptation when it comes to local women. Why is Harper McFadden worth the exception?”
    “I
did
make an exception. Let’s just leave it at that. And now I’m facing the unpleasant consequence,” he grated out. “Not just from Harper. From you, too, apparently.”
    He took a bite of Lisa’s usually delicious-tasting tomato bisque and frowned. Discussing his mistake could make ambrosia taste bitter on his tongue. He had gotten where he had in life by making smart, often risky choices accompanied by strict, unwavering self-discipline. His complete lack of self-control in regard to Harper had been plaguing him every waking second since she’d jumped off his boat last night like she was leaping from the mouth of hell to safe ground. She’d walked away on the dock without looking back, a fact that still infuriated and agitated him as he recalled it presently.
    He
hated
when Harper walked away.
    “It can’t be all that bad,” Cyril decided. “You’ll just have to apologize to her for whatever you did.” He paused in the action of bringing his spoon to his mouth. “What
did
you do?”
    “I was distant in the aftermath, apparently.”
    “You really shouldn’t have seduced a woman like that. She’s not the type to be satisfied with your limitations in regard to relationships.” Cyril set down his spoon abruptly. “I can’t imagine what you were thinking, although I suppose I shouldn’t be completely shocked. I saw the way you were looking at her the other night.”
    Jacob stiffened.
    “Everyone was talking about it,” Cyril said, shrugging. “It’s not every day you see Jacob Latimer panting to go and greet a girl.”
    “I wasn’t
panting
.”
    Cyril’s gaze on him was annoyingly sharp. “You think she’s special. That’s why you brought up the topic of her story and the film.
Why
?” Cyril asked, his irritation seemingly replaced by fascination.
    “If you want the second course, mind your own business.”
    Cyril was chastened only briefly.
    “I think you should apologize. What’s more, I think
you
think you should