Free ARROGANT BRIT (A BRITISH BAD BOY ROMANCE) by Nikki Wild Page A

responsible for that.”

 
    “Right,” Father nodded, sipping from his beer
again. “Well, it’s just that…”

 
    Things suddenly clicked.

 
    “You want to know my plans for the future? Is
this because of the money?” I asked, trying to determine where he was going
with this. “Are you hard up for cash?”

 
    “What? No, of course not!” He replied almost
indignantly. After a second, the anger calmed down out of his eyes – the last
vestiges of his former self, sometimes threatening to resurface out from his
calm and pleasant demeanor. “This has nothing to do with the money… for me.
I’ve made my own way, and I’m lucky that my career has paid as well as it has.”

 
    “You were robbed of it,” I contested.

 
    “Be that as it may… I want to know what your
designs for your inheritance are. As you’re aware, you’ll receive it on your 30 th birthday, assuming that you’ve fulfilled your grandparents’ criteria. You’re 26
years old now. What are you doing until then?”

 
    I was taken slightly aback by the question,
but I drank from my glass and answered anyway.

 
    “Seeing as I’ve done nothing to diminish the
family name, not that they’re aware of,
at any rate, I’m certain that I’ll be–”

 
    “The whoring around?” He cut in,
questioningly. I knew that he meant it as an innocent question, and not an
insult.

 
    “–Yes, they’re none the wiser. This leaves my
place of standing in society, and my higher education. It would appear that
things lined up properly. Eight years in the marines, a veteran of the Iraq
War, and now four years of college until I obtain my degree. All of that, just
in time to have my 30 th birthday and win my birthright – the
birthright that should have been
yours.”

 
    “So that’s the plan, then? No surprises?”

 
    I felt suddenly compelled to mention Clara,
but banished the thought. Why on earth
would I do something as stupid as that?

 
    “If there are any surprises, they’ll be as
much to you as they are to me,” I replied coolly, taking another sip of whiskey
before the ice began to melt in earnest. “Being preoccupied with these things
means that I wouldn’t have the time to get into too much trouble.”

 
    “Wise choice,” he nodded approvingly. “What
are you pursing for your degree?”

 
    “Haven’t quite decided,” I mused aloud. “I’d
like to say something practical, just in case I manage to piss off my
grandparents before the inheritance kicks in… but honestly, I’m thinking
something easy. I think I’ve got this in the bag.”

 
    My father took a deep swig, watching me
carefully over the tip of his beer. “You realize, of course, that dearest Mum and Dad have incredibly high
standards... what makes you so sure?”

 
    “Simple,” I shrugged. “The worst thing I’ve
done is fuck a lot of women, a detail that they won’t ever need to know.
They’ve already accepted my Marine career as meeting their needs. School is
literally all I have left to do… that, and bide my time.”

 
    “And what will you do with all that money?”
He asked curiously, clicking his fingers to request another beer for himself.
“What happens when you earn your birthright?”

 
    “I give you yours, and I travel the world.”

 
    “No, son, my time’s passed,” he shook his
head. “That’s all yours. I have enough money to live happily. I can retire in
ten years and call that that until
the end of my days.”

 
    “Yeah, but Dad… you shouldn’t have had to work,” I countered.

 
    “Originally, no,” he conceded. “But I made
do. I made my own way in the world, without their support or their money.”

 
    “And where has that gotten you?” I asked,
growing weary of his tone.

 
    “ Happy ,”
he explained. “Once I understood the ramifications of losing the inheritance,
it was just William Carlyle versus the world. I made do. I survived. Nay, I persevered. And from