“Andre is going to kick your ass, you know.” Quaid stepped out onto the porch. He was the last of his friends to leave, but then he was likely sticking around to lecture him again on what a bad idea this whole thing was.

Quaid had been his attorney since Quaid’s father had retired and taken on fishing as a lifestyle.

“You know why I didn’t call him.”

“Because you think he’s going to have a problem with you using his sister to solve your business issues,” Quaid pointed out. “Which is precisely why you should have let me find a woman who won’t cause chaos. Or you could explain to Dre that you’ve been in love with his sister since college, and maybe he’ll be cool with his best friend and his sister having a shot at happiness.”

There was a problem with that scenario. “I’m worried he doesn’t think anyone can be happy in my family. He thinks my relatives are all toxic. Not me or Mom, but he thinks anyone who marries me will get tainted by the rest of my family.”

It was one more reason he’d stayed away from Sylvie in the beginning.

“That’s harsh.”

Rene shrugged. “And probably accurate since I find myself in the position I’m in. Charles came into the office today. He made a big deal out of requesting some accounting files.”

“Is there an accounting problem?”

“Only in his mind.” His cousin was a constant headache now. “Though the assistant who was retrieving them had some trouble with her password and Charles made a stink about how my office is obviously trying to cover up something.”

“We need to make sure everything is airtight.” Quaid had his keys in hand. “I’m afraid Charles is going to come after you on every front. He knows this is probably his last shot. If the Lowestone project makes as much money as we think it will, no one will question you for the next decade at least.”

Rene agreed with his friend’s assessment. All he had to do was hold on. And maybe if he presented Dre with a fait accompli, he wouldn’t have a choice but to accept the marriage. He was a manipulative bastard, since he’d timed his proposal with Dre being out of touch. Dre was out of the country chasing a big story and wouldn’t be home for a while. By then Rene would have moved Sylvie into his home, gotten a ring on her finger, and hopefully he would be well on the way to seducing his wife.

Was he giving up his best friend? God, he hoped not.

“You know if you showed them our projections, you might not have to do this,” Quaid said softly. “You could likely still keep your seat and the house and court Sylvie properly.”