“Your parents still together after the whole secret baby thing?” I’m still processing what she told me and desperate to turn the conversation away from Archer.

“Nope. They tried, but it was hopeless.” She props an elbow on the bar. “Not that I blame my mother for leaving him. If I found out my husband did what my father did, I’d file those divorce papers in a heartbeat.” She smirks. “If I didn’t kill him so he no longer had a heartbeat.”

I can’t help but chuckle.

Apparently, I find homicidal innuendos made by tiny blondes funny.

“What about you?” she asks. “Your parents still together? Any other siblings?”

My mouth turns dry, and I gulp in an attempt to fix it.

I shouldn’t have asked her any family questions.

Should’ve known those questions always circle back.

“It’s just Archer and me,” I reply, a pain in the back of my throat. “And my father … he’s dead.”

My chest tightens in surprise at my revelation. While I’m not as closed off as Archer, I don’t openly talk about his death. It’s a sore subject for me. I’m not sure when it won’t be.

Her face falls in apology. “Lincoln, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”

He died in prison shortly after I was released. He died somewhere he shouldn’t have. Sure, maybe he deserved his place of residence for his actions, but no one should die there.

That’s why I fought so hard to prevent it.

And failed.

It nearly killed me when I got the call.

Slaughtered my mother.

Crushed Archer, even with their strained relationship.

Lucky for him, he had Georgia at his side.

Me? I had no one.

I clear my throat, shaking my head. “Nah, it’s cool. I asked. You asked back. No biggie.”

“You get to work with the cool bartender today, ladies and gents!”

Our attention shifts to Silas as he saunters across the bar. His leather jacket and shredded jeans break the dress code per our employee handbook, but from what I’ve discovered about Silas, he’s the epitome of a man who gives no fucks.

I was him once.

Parties. Drugs. Booze. Sex.

I lived my life day to day and traveled to exotic locations on a whim, and rules were only for those who couldn’t afford to break them. A slice of that changed after my grandfather’s death. That was when I stepped up in our family business since Archer refused to. Within a year, I went from a highly educated trust-fund kid to the VP of a multimillion-dollar empire.

How did that give no fucks attitude evaporate from my body?

When my father started committing felonies and leaving me to cover up his crimes.

“I beg to differ,” Cassidy argues, wagging a finger at him. “Linc is the coolest-slash-best-slash-hottest bartender here.”