Molly had to force her feet to move. Everything in her gut was telling her to cut and run and find a different source of information, but she was already here—plus she’d already dealt with Ashton’s sliminess. Surely she could survive his father’s as well?

Inside the office, Barney waved her toward a straight-backed wooden chair in front of his desk as he took the seat behind it. That chair protested just as Ashton’s had, and Molly had the whimsical thought that even the furniture was complaining about having to work with these two—or, more practically, Barney was just too cheap to buy new chairs.

“So…Molly.” Leaning back, he steepled his fingers and put on what Molly was pretty sure was supposed to be his thoughtful expression, but it ended up making him look even blanker than normal. “Since you’re here, I’m guessing you’ve decided to take the Sonny Zarver job after all.” Before she could refute this, he continued, “Figured you’d come around eventually. It’s a lot of money at stake.”

Even though she was almost painfully tempted to punch the smug condescension off his face, she crossed her legs and linked her fingers together in her lap instead. “Actually, I’m not here because of Sonny. Our decision not to take that job stands.”

His smarmy grin disappeared as quickly as if she’d really allowed herself to smack him. It was very satisfying to watch. Unfortunately, she could only enjoy it for a few seconds before he smiled again. This one was a little meaner-looking than the last, and a great deal colder. “You sure about that?” After moving the remains of a fast-food breakfast sandwich off a pile on his desk, he slid a large manila file from the top of the stack and opened it. He didn’t look down at the contents, so she knew he was already well aware of what they said. Her stomach twisted and turned as she waited for him to drop whatever bomb he had on her head.

Instead of answering, she waited. When she didn’t know all of the facts, the only thing running her mouth would do was get her in trouble. Barney loved to brag about his exploits, so she figured that he’d tell her everything if she just stayed quiet.

When she didn’t respond, his mouth tightened, and he tapped his fingers against the contents of the folder. Molly resisted the urge to glance down at the papers in front of him to get a peek at whatever he was about to throw her way. Instead, she held his gaze and kept her face calm…at least she hoped she was projecting a placid facade. After the turmoil of the past couple of days, her nerves were starting to fray, and she worried that her tension would show through.

Finally, he spoke. “Your mother got herself into a shitload of trouble.”

Tell me something I don’t know. Rather than letting her snarky words escape, Molly limited herself to raising her eyebrows slightly.