Baby It's Cold Outside by Addison Fox Page A

it start?”
    “Oh goodness, we married our sons off with a version of the competition, going on almost forty years ago. But the current competition is about fifteen years old.”
    Sloan’s eyebrows rose at that one. “Wow. That’s some longevity.”
    “Well, it’s grown over time,” Julia added. “When our kids were young we just sort of added on to an existing town dance we hold every winter. But when our grandsons proved to be so reluctant to settle down, we decided it needed resurrecting.”
    “Our grandsons are particularly stubborn,” Sophie added with a wry glance across the room.
    Sloan followed the woman’s gaze, not surprised when she locked eyes once again with the large guy from the town-hall meeting. With a slight nod of her head, Sloan added, “I take it that’s your grandson.”
    “My bull-headed grandson, Walker.”
    “Walker.” As his name left her lips, recognition hit. “Grier’s lawyer?”
    “Yes, dear.”
    Like a deflating balloon, Sloan couldn’t stop the rush of disappointment as it burst the tentative interest she’d had in the man. As far as she was concerned, Grier’s lawyer was a good portion of the reason her friend was in this mess. The man had advised Jonas Winston for years and he couldn’t be bothered to encourage the man to reach out to his daughter?
    What the hell kind of legal advice was that?
    “Oh.”
    If she heard the distinct chill that had frosted Sloan’s words, Sophie paid no attention as she waved her grandson over. With a wry grin, he accepted his grandmother’s invitation, crossing the room in confident strides.
    Sloan submitted to yet another round of introductions, but instead of the anticipation that had flowed through her earlier like warm honey at the prospect of meeting this man, all she could manage was the dull facade she’d honed for over a decade and a half in polite society.
    It also didn’t escape her notice that the grandmothers had found excuses to slip away before the introductions were complete.
    “Grier didn’t mention a friend was joining her. How are you finding Indigo?”
    Sloan couldn’t pinpoint why she was so disappointed; all she knew was that she couldn’t quite keep the righteous anger from seeping out. “Maybe if you spent more time with your client you’d have known I was coming up here.”
    His eyes clouded in confusion. “I do spend time with my client. She simply hasn’t mentioned your visit.”
    “Are you representing her sister, too?”
    “Not that it’s any of your business, but no, I don’t. It would be a considerable conflict.”
    “So why have you allowed the entire town to side with the sister?”
     
    Walker tried to reconcile the virago in front of him with the sloe-eyed beauty from the town-hall meeting and found himself coming up short. “Is there a problem?”
    “I think you’ve been shortchanging Grier.”
    “I’m sure you and Grier share a lot. And if that’s how she feels, then you should suggest to her she take it up with me.”
    “ I’m taking it up with you.”
    “It’s really none of your business.”
    A small line furrowed her brow and Walker saw a mixture of sympathy and anger in the blue depths of Sloan’s eyes. “She needs someone to stick up for her.”
    “I think she does just fine by herself. And I’m following the letter of the law in the execution of her father’s will. I’m sorry if you feel that’s somehow shortchanging her.”
    “And this”—Sloan spread an expansive hand out to the room at large—“these people don’t seem all that happy to have her here.”
    Walker turned to the spot in the room he’d noticed Grier had drifted to earlier. Truth be told, the woman had drifted among different groups of people all evening. “She seems to be doing just fine, mama bear. Your little experiment here is working wonders.”
    “Experiment?”
    “Sure. Butter up the locals. Flash a bit of cash and a few smiles. Great tactic, I’ll give you that. Most folks around