P L A Y L I S T

Talk - Hozier

"Done."

Owen had no idea what the auction entailed, but he was pretty sure it must be something bad if hometown hero wanted no part of it. On top of that, it messed up his plan of never returning to Parkers Prairie and seeing Silbie again. Every time he saw her all he wanted to do was take her in his arms and kiss her senseless, and that was not good.

He kept telling himself as soon as he got back home he could forget all about the beautiful teenager. Damn, the word made his chest burn.

"Hold on just a minute, Dad. You can't make decisions for me. I may not want to take part in the event." He glared at Gabriel. "I assume it's auctioning men off like pieces of meat. Right?" Plenty of his exes had watched exploitative television like The Bachelorette and its male counterpart. He couldn't imagine having to deal with being treated like a new toy all the kids wanted to get their hands on. "I could have reserve that weekend," he protested.

Gabriel ignored him. "That's a crude description. The money raised goes to a lot of worthy causes. One date. Spend an evening with the person who wins you and then it's over. They even pick up the tab for whatever you choose to do."

It still sounded a bit exploitative to him.

Matthew placed his hand on Owen's shoulder. "In this case, Zari is the worthy cause. We should be trying to help her get over this memory block. You saw the difference in her. We need to help her get back to her old self."

Gabriel interrupted. "What do you mean by different?"

"She would have never told someone she didn't like them. Zari's always been sensitive and kind and thoughtful of others feelings. And what she said about her name. That's crazy. She's always loved the story of how it came about and that her middle name is connected to her grandmother. No, the Zari we just saw is nothing like she should be." He tapped his chin, contemplative.

Then he turned to Owen. "You have to do this, Owen. It's such a small thing, I won't allow you to refuse."

He was right. What kind of brother would he be if he wasn't willing to sacrifice for her? But then again, Gabriel wanted him away from his sister so there must be more to this than he was saying. "Hold on a minute. I don't have to parade around in a speedo, do I? Because if that's the case, there's no way in hell I'm doing it. Good luck talking Dante into that one, too."

Gabriel shook his head. "No speedo. You can wear whatever you like. Everything from jeans to a tuxedo."

"Then what's the catch? Don't say there isn't one because you and I both know you want me out of town as soon as possible, and this just brings me right back. So level with me or no deal."

Before Gabriel could answer, Matthew spoke to him. "Why do you want Owen to leave?"

"No concern of yours, Dad. It's between...."

Matthew pinned him with a glare strong enough to start a fire. Owen knew that look all too well. He'd seen it plenty of times over the years. He was never able to get away with anything without the old man finding out. Kline had become a father figure to him ever since his skipped out as a kid and Kline had married his mother. He even legally adopted him and his brothers and raised them as his own. Everything from missing curfews to getting drunk. It was like he had Owen under surveillance. Maybe he had.

No need to avoid the subject.

"I've been seeing Silbie. Sort of."

Matthew jerked his head so hard he probably got whiplash. "Gabriel's sister? His teenage sister? Don't you think she's a little young?" he chastised. As an attorney, his firm had enough cases with dubious consent with one party being a minor.

"Yes, I do, but I like her. And before you jump to any sordid conclusions, we're just friends. That's all."

"And I don't want it to go any further because I don't want her changing her plans for some temporary romance," Gabriel huffed, glaring at Owen.

"Let's get back to the main subject," Owen held his hands up in surrender. "Since you seem to be this town's native son, why don't you want to take part in the auction?"

Gabriel ran his hand over his face. "Okay. I'll come clean. There's this older woman who won the bid last year and I had to fight her off during our date. I'm not looking to repeat that experience."

"So, you want me to deal with her."

"No. I just want you to fill my spot. She may or may not bid on you."

"How old is the woman?"

"Fifty."

Now Owen risked whiplash and focused on Matthew. "You should take part. You're her age. It's for charity." He grinned mockingly at his dad.

Matthew shook his head. "If she bids on younger men, she wouldn't be interested in an old guy. But this isn't about me, it's about you. So what will it be? For Zari's sake. You in or out?"

"Of course, I'm in. I'll even convince Dante to take part."

Gabriel stuck out his hand, tamping down on the nervous rolling in his stomach. "Then it's a deal. I'll let her stay with me for a week."

Owen held his hand out then pulled it back. "Two."

"What?"

His expression flickered for a moment, but the grin stayed firmly in place. "You gotta let her stay two weeks or no deal."

*

Gabriel should be ashamed for using Zari's welfare as a bargaining chip, but when it came to Bea Bennett, desperation kicked in. Having Zari as a housemate for two weeks would be the lesser of two evils. What little time they'd be together, he'd avoid lying to her. At least outright. Well, the relationship was one big—scratch that, colossal lie. But once her memory returned, she'd understand what he'd done was for her benefit, not his. His biggest challenge would be to figure out a way to sleep with her, but not have sex. After the way she kissed him, that would not be easy.

"I want the two of you to understand how difficult this will be. You saw how she was with me."

"That's another major change," Matthew said. "The old Zari used to complain about PDA."

Down the hall, Gabriel caught a glimpse of Lewis and called out to him. "Hey, can I have a word?"

Seconds later, he joined the trio. "What's up?"

"We've reached an agreement. Zari can stay with me for two weeks. After that, they'll have to make other arrangements."

Lewis eyed Gabriel, probably silently wondering if he knew what he was getting himself into. "You sure about this?"

He sighed, exasperated. "No, but I'm going to do it. How much longer can you keep her here?"

"Don't know. I'll abide by whatever Dr. Rodriguez recommends."

Gabriel glanced at Matthew and Owen, then turned his attention back to Lewis. "Can I speak to you privately?"

"Sure."

Gabriel walked down the hallway with Lewis on his heels, then turned to face him. "I have a request."

"What?"

He lowered his voice an octave. "I need for you to tell her she can't have sex."

Lewis pulled his brows together. "You realize it will be unethical for me to lie to her."

Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look. I don't want you to break your oath, but you've got to come up with something. You saw how she acted. She was all over me. I can't have that. If something isn't done to protect me from her advances, then I'll have to tell her what's going on."

"As her physician, I wouldn't recommend it. At least, not at first. She's going to suffer enough anxiety because she can't remember things, but telling her this lie of yours might cause even more. You're her only lifeline, Gabriel. The one person she trusts. Break that, and it might not be good for her." Lewis pretended to thumb through the chart on another patient's door.

He quirked an eyebrow. "So it's alright for us to lie to her, but not you? You know this entire plan is whack."

"Hey, I didn't come up with this plan and I'm not condoning it. It'll be stressful for her to return to Dallas since she doesn't have any recollection of her family, but I'm not sure this plan is any better."

"Well then, just keep her in the hospital or send her to some kind of rehab."

"You're missing the point," he emphasized. "She knows you. Depends on you. Feels safe with you." He held up his hand. "I know what you're going to say and you're right. That's all a lie. But not in her mind. Thus, the problem."

Gabriel rubbed the back of his neck, then pulled the antacids from his pocket and popped a couple in his mouth.

Lewis eyed him. "You should probably go ahead and get that script I gave you filled. I have a feeling you're going to need it."

"No shit." He glared.

Lewis's phone dinged and he glanced at the screen. "I have to go. Dr. Rodriguez is waiting in my office. As soon as I know something, I'll let you know."

When Gabriel returned, Matthew waited, but Owen had disappeared. Probably went to see Silbie and Gabriel didn't like the thought of that. But this gave him one last opportunity to convince Zari's godfather this harebrained scheme might not be a good idea.

Gabriel scrubbed a palm over his face. Zari and her entire family were so mind-bogglingly exhausting, he felt like he could lay down and nap for a week. "I want to make sure you're clear about the situation you're putting Zari in. My house has one bedroom, which means we'll be sleeping together. Knowing how she feels about me—or thinks she feels about me, you good with that?"

"Even if I'd not checked you out, the fact you're asking tells me you're an honorable man," Matthew said.

"Yeah, well I may not be that righteous. She's already questioning why I'm not more affectionate so that's going to be a big problem. I'm not sure how I'm going to deal with it." He really wanted to stress what a bad idea this was.

Matthew placed his hand on Gabriel's shoulder and squeezed roughly. "I trust you to do the right thing."

It sounded like a threat.

"There's just one problem. I don't know what that is. Let's just pray she gets her memory back sooner than later because if she doesn't this could blow up and she might never forgive you. Are you willing to risk that?" Come on, take the bait, he thought.

"Right now, I'm willing to risk any and everything to get my daughter back." It had been the first time he referred to Zari as his daughter, not just Alisha's daughter, or his goddaughter. He went above and beyond his duties as a godparent. He treated Zari as if she were his own, just like Silbie's dad had treated him the same as he did his kin.

Both his eyebrows rose into his hairline. He hadn't expected that. "Even her having sex with a stranger?" He absolutely had no intent on forming any sort of relationship with Zari beyond begrudging housemate. Surely Matthew wouldn't agree to such an atrocity. He had to see reason.

Matthew swallowed hard and stared at him for a long moment, deathly silent. His eyes were distant, and Gabriel got the impression that he was looking through him, not at him.

"Yes," he croaked, as if the thought had physically pained him. "Even that."

Holy hell. Things were going from bad to worse. That eerie calm settled over the two of them – like the silence before the storm. Gabriel had an overwhelming sensation of standing in the eye of a tornado.

None of this was going to end well.

*

Two hours later, Gabriel and Matthew waited for Dr. Rodriguez and Lewis to finish their evaluation of Zari. Gabriel had taken the opportunity to learn as much about her as he could because he knew she would have questions, and for this charade to be successful, he needed to have answers. He and Matthew had fallen into a companionable conversation which surprised Gabriel. He'd thought the man would be apprehensive given the circumstances, but if he was, he didn't show it. He supposed that came from his profession. Lawyers hid their emotions better than most. Especially criminal attorneys.

One thing had been crystal clear. Zari Aliehs Davis was Matthew's pride and joy. Especially if he was willing to risk the wrath of both Davis women.

Fourteen days. Not a lifetime. Surely he could pull this off. Make it through Thanksgiving, then send her back home, right along with Owen. She'd probably willfully run for the hills if Dawn served up crispy pata and whiskey rhubarb pie. After that, Gabriel only had to worry about Silbie's crush returning for the auction.

He took a deep breath. Yeah, he looked forward to when the Davis-Kline-Filgard-whatever clan would be out of his life—forever.

____________________________

Daaaaaang, who was expecting THAT.

Kline risking some serious ass kicking.

What do yall think will happen next?

Please consider voting and commenting, even if its super simple. That'd be super cool and always makes me hella happy.