Valerie hadn’t spoken to her brother since Saturday night.
Though she’d driven by his house and phoned him multiple times, he was never home and hadn’t bothered to return any of her calls. She’d even tried to catch him at work on Monday, but he’d had his boss cover for him and tell her that he wasn’t there…although his car was in the parking lot and she knew damn well that he was.
If he wanted to be like this, then fine. There was nothing she could do about it. She had way more important things to do than worry about Brett and whether or not he would get over his aggravation about her and Logan being together. Like figuring out why Logan had called her to come into work earlier than usual.
It was Tuesday, and thank goodness Leah had already gotten home from her honeymoon. Otherwise, Valerie wouldn’t have been able to cut out from the bakery in the middle of the day.
The front door to the bar was unlocked, but it didn’t appear that anyone was there. Strange since she’d seen two vehicles in the parking lot, one of which belonged to Logan. “Anyone home?” she called out.
Within seconds, Logan stepped through the swinging doors. “Hey, princess. Thanks for coming in early on such short notice. I hope it wasn’t a problem.”
“No, Leah was there so I asked her to watch the store for me. She had some paperwork to catch up on anyway since she’d been away for the entire weekend so it worked out.”
“Well, thank her for me too.”
Valerie nodded. “I will, but why did you need to see me? Your message sounded urgent. Did you talk to Brett or something?”
Logan shook his head, his lips straightening into a grim line. “No. But it’s not for a lack of trying. I’ve called him a dozen times since Saturday night, but he’s avoiding or ignoring me.”
“Same here,” she said, her voice softening. “I really thought he would get over it by now, but he’s taking this pretty hard. My mom is out of town this week, but when she gets back, I might have her try to talk to him for us and see if she can’t get through to him. I don’t know what else to do.”
He put his arms around her and hugged her to him. “I’m sorry, baby. I know this is hurting you.”
“It is. But it’s because he’s hurt. I don’t know. Maybe he just needs more time. It’s not like I can force him to forgive us.”
“There’s really nothing to forgive. You’re grown, and he needs to stop trying to run your life.”
“I know. But he’s done it so long that I don’t think he knows how to let me go.” She sighed. “Doesn’t matter. You obviously didn’t have me meet you here to talk about my brother. So what’s going on? Why am I here?”
“Paul came by here earlier today.”
“He’s out of the hospital? And he’s doing okay?”
“Yeah. He got out this morning. He had emergency surgery on Saturday night to remove the glass fragments from his side and stop the bleeding, but he seems to be doing all right.”
She gazed up at Logan warily. “So then what did he want? Did he stop by to apologize?”
“Uh, no.” He shook his head. “More like he came by to let me know that he’s thinking about suing me.”
“For what?”
“Medical expenses, pain and suffering…you name it. He’s claiming I assaulted him for no reason, and he’s threatening to find a lawyer to take his case, but I’m not all that worried about it. There were plenty of witnesses to corroborate my story.”
“Okay, then I don’t understand. Why did you have me rush over just to tell me about something that you aren’t even worried about?”
Logan smiled. “That’s not why you’re here. I called the insurance adjuster on Monday, and he wasn’t supposed to come out until next week. But he got an opening in his schedule and asked if I could meet with him today instead. It was perfect timing since Paul had threatened me with a lawsuit this morning. I told him that my insurance would cover his medical expenses, which I think will appease him.” He gestured to the back room. “The claims adjuster is in my office right now going over the police report I picked up this morning and the medical records Paul gave me.”
“Paul gave you copies of his medical records?”
“Well, yeah. He wants to be paid off and providing me copies of his medical records would help speed up the claim. If we had to go through other channels to get them, then it might take a lot longer. That’s why I’m pretty sure Paul will just settle for having his medical expenses taken care of.”
“What about the damage inside the bar?”
“The adjuster assured me that my liquor liability insurance will cover the damages for most things: the damages inside the building, the medical expenses, and any legal fees incurred, if necessary. We just need to finish up with the last few details.”
“Which are?”
“He needs to verify your account of Saturday night. That’s why I called you in. Paul claims that you sold him a drink after he arrived, and since they consider this a liquor-related incident and you were the bartender who served him, the insurance adjuster needs to talk to you.”
She nodded. “Okay, sure. That’s not a problem.”
An older gentleman in a brown suit came out of the swinging doors, carrying a briefcase in one hand. He was tall with light brown hair and sported a pair of small, round reading glasses with black frames. “Hi, you must be Miss Carmichael. I’m John Palmer.”
She stuck out her hand. “Nice to meet you, sir.”
Likewise, young lady,” he said, giving her a quick shake. “I’m glad you’re here. I was just going through your employee records, and I noticed that your TABC certification isn’t on file.”
Valerie cringed, but before she could say anything, Logan spoke up. “Oh, that’s because I hired Valerie in a pinch. It was completely unexpected, but she’d just moved to a new apartment and didn’t know where her certificate was at the time. I forgot to get it from her later.”
“Well, since Miss Carmichael is the one who sold Paul the liquor consumed during the accident, I’ll need her to provide me that as soon as possible. Today would be ideal. In fact, if you could run home and get it right now, then that would be even better. I won’t be able to move on with the claim without it.”
Logan nodded his agreement. “That’s fine. You can do that, right, Val?”
Her heart beat so hard that she thought it would jump out of her body. God. She couldn’t believe this was happening to her. She was backed into a corner and had no choice but to tell him the truth.
Valerie turned to face Logan full-on, ignoring the persistent ache in her chest. She closed her eyes for a moment and tried to calm her erratic pulse. “I…um, can’t.”
“That’s okay. If you need help searching through boxes for it, I can call James to come in and sit here with Mr. Palmer while I run and help you find it.”
Damn. She wished she could run away and hide right now. The last thing she wanted to do was tell him that she lied. Especially right in front of Mr. Palmer. But she didn’t really have much of a choice. “No. That’s not what I mean.” She swallowed. “I can’t get you the certificate.”
Logan looked confused. “Why not?”
“Because…I don’t have one.”
His eyes widened. “What do you mean you don’t have one? Where is it?”
“I’ve never had a TABC certification.”
His eyes darkened and narrowed, pinning her in place. “But you told me you did.”
“Um, no. Actually, you just assumed I did…and I didn’t correct you.”
Fire flashed in his eyes as he growled out, “That’s the same damn thing, and you know it. Why the hell did you lie to me?”
Valerie wrung her hands together, not knowing what to say. But she knew it was best to just tell the truth. “Because I wasn’t entirely sure you would let me work here if you knew that I didn’t have the certification.”
“Val, you could have gotten one. It’s a one-day course that lasts only a few hours.”
She lowered her head. “I know. I looked it up the night you hired me. But they have limited classes, and the closest one was three hours away. Working two jobs, I didn’t have time to get it done. And even if I could’ve found the time to sneak off and take the course, you would’ve noticed the date on the certificate and knew I fibbed about the whole thing. I couldn’t take that chance.”
“So you just lied about it this whole time?”
Valerie nodded. “I was already in way over my head, but since it was only supposed to be a temporary position, I figured no one would know.”
“Damn it, Valerie. You should’ve come to me and told me the truth. I could have helped you resolve it. Why didn’t you just say something when I asked you about the certificate the first time?”
Tears invaded her eyes. “I overheard you tell James that you couldn’t hire anyone without bar experience. So when you assumed I had some, I kept my mouth shut.” She sighed heavily. “I really wanted to work here to help you out of the bind you were in, and part of me wanted to see if the bar industry was something I wanted to do in the future.”
“So you just kept it from me? Even after we started seeing each other?”
“Yes. I’m sorry. I didn’t say anything because I figured you’d be mad at me.” She reached for his arm.
He jerked away from her. “Oh, you mean like right now?” Logan fixed a hard gaze on her before glancing over at Mr. Palmer, who wasn’t saying anything, and then he shook his head. “This isn’t a good time to discuss this. We’ll talk about it later. After I finish up with Mr. Palmer.”
“Uh, actually…” the man began, “I’m sorry to say that you have a much bigger problem on your hands now.”
Logan ran his hands through his hair. “What do you mean? What problem?”
“Well, this is sort of a gray area actually, but your liquor liability insurance isn’t able to cover your claim after all.”
Stunned, Logan’s eyes went wide. “What? Why the hell not? I’ve paid all of the premiums, and I haven’t been late a single time.”
“I understand,” Mr. Palmer replied. “But let me explain. While technically bartenders and servers are not required to have a seller’s certification, the establishment is required to have a TABC-trained and certified staff.”
“I don’t get it. What’s the difference?”
“Basically, by indirectly requiring the TABC certification, it’s the way for the establishment to show due diligence in the court’s eyes and that sometimes might help lessen the liability if this ever became a civil case. Which is very well what could happen if the young man who got injured decides to follow through with his threat to get a lawyer and take you to court.”
Logan let out a frustrated breath. “I’m not following you. What does any of this have to do with whether or not my insurance covers the claim?”
“Unfortunately, the terms of your contract with the insurance company clearly state that the insurance will not cover claims arising from the sale of liquor in a manner that violates the law or terms of your contract.”
“Since the bartender, which in this case was Miss Carmichael, wasn’t legally certified by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission to sell or serve alcohol to the complainant, then the insurance won’t cover the alcohol-related incident.”
“B-but I didn’t know,” Valerie said, her words stuttering out.
“I understand that. But whether or not you were aware of the coverage terms or not, that doesn’t change the conditions of his contract with the insurance agency. He would still be responsible for all the damage, medical bills, and court fees that may occur surrounding this incident.”
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. So let me get this straight. You’re saying the insurance isn’t going to pay a damn dime on any of this all because my bartender doesn’t have a TABC certification?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying. I’m sorry, but since Miss Carmichael isn’t certified to sell alcohol out of your establishment, she has basically voided out your insurance coverage.”
* * *
Logan couldn’t believe it. Any of it. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
The insurance adjuster shook his head. “I’m sorry. I wish I were. If there was some way I could help you, I would. But according to Paul’s statement and the police report, it’s already on record that Miss Carmichael was the one who served the injured party a drink right before the incident occurred. Nothing I can do will change any of that.”
“Great. So now what am I supposed to do?”
Mr. Palmer paused thoughtfully. “Well, I don’t normally give out legal advice in situations like this, but I’ve been doing this a long time and know all about risk management. I’ve seen enough to know that you’re in a tough position.”
“What exactly does that mean?”
“If the person who was injured in your bar takes you to court, you could be held criminally responsible for his injuries. You would most likely have to hire a criminal defense lawyer to help you with your case, which is not cheap by any means. And if you lose, your legal fees alone would probably be upward of fifty grand.” Mr. Palmer set his briefcase on a nearby table and opened it, pulling out a card. “I can give you the name of a good lawyer, but honestly, your best bet is to settle out of court with this guy as quickly as possible to avoid him suing you for everything you’re worth.”
“You actually think Paul might have a case against me?”
“It’s possible. But if you can get him to agree to just accepting a lump sum that would cover his medical bills, you would save yourself a ton of money…and wouldn’t be possibly facing jail time.”
“Jesus. This can’t be fucking happening right now.” Logan rubbed a hand over his face. “What does this mean for the bar?”
Mr. Palmer shook his head dismally. “Unfortunately, there are some stiff penalties for things like this. Chances are good that the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission will suspend your establishment’s alcohol-selling permit for a period of sixty to ninety days or maybe even permanently for violating a provision of the code.”
Logan blinked. “Say that again, only more slowly this time.”
Mr. Palmer repeated himself while Logan hung on every word.
“That’s what I thought you said. So in other words, they’re going to close me down?”
“Yes. I’m sorry. I wish I had better news for you.”
“Well, that’s just fucking great. Guess I’m pretty much screwed.” He glared at Valerie.
The insurance adjuster closed his briefcase and lifted it from the table. “Look, I have a few contacts over at the TABC office. I can give them a call and put in a good word for you,” Mr. Palmer said. “I can’t guarantee it will help in the long run, but some favorable words from me on your behalf might be enough to keep them from canceling your permits on a permanent basis. It’s not much, but it’s something.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it, Mr. Palmer. Anything you can do to help would be great.” Logan shook his head and led him to the door.
Once the insurance adjuster left the premises, Logan spun around on Valerie with heat blasting through his entire body. Knowing she’d orchestrated this entire lie from the beginning and hadn’t bothered to come clean hurt him deeply. He couldn’t believe she’d do this to him. Yet she had.
Valerie turned to face him with tears in her eyes. “Say something.”
“There’s nothing left to say.”
“Logan.”
He shook his head. “No, I don’t want to hear it. We both know I’m in a world of trouble, thanks to you. There’s no way I can afford to pay some big damage claims out of my pocket right now. If I don’t pay ten thousand dollars to the bank by Friday, my mother loses her home.”
“I understand that. But you heard what Mr. Palmer said. If you don’t settle this with Paul now, he’s probably going to sue you. And that might end up costing you more than what a new home would be worth. I think it would be smarter to—”
“No. I won’t lose my mother’s home. With my dad gone, it’s the only damn thing she has left.”
“That’s not true. She has you.”
“Not good enough,” he said, shaking his head.
“No, what you’re saying is that you’re not good enough. And that’s the biggest load of crap I’ve ever heard. Damn it, Logan. You’re not your father. You didn’t get her into this mess. He did. And you’ve done nothing but try to help her fix it.”
His eyes narrowed. “No, that’s not what I’m saying at all. I know better than anyone that I’ve been working my ass off so that I don’t end up like him. But now you’ve come along and…” His words trailed off.
She blinked at him. “And what? I came along and screwed everything up? Is that what you were going to say?”
“Doesn’t matter. This is my problem, not yours.”
“I—I’m sorry.”
“Oh, I’m sure you are,” he ground out, taking his frustrations out on her. “But the only thing I don’t know is whether you’re sorry that you ruined my business or sorry that you got caught in a lie.”
Anger flashed through her eyes. “It wasn’t like I did any of this on purpose. You have to know that.”
“Maybe not, but you lied to me more than once about that damn certificate. If you would’ve stopped to think about what you were doing, then none of this would’ve happened. But you didn’t think. In fact, you never do. It’s like as long you get what you want, nothing else matters.” Logan’s jaw tightened, and his stomach clenched. He remembered saying those exact words to someone else years ago. “I guess that makes you more like my father than I am.”
Valerie's expression hardened. “No, there’s a big difference between the two of us. Your dad purposely deceived your mom, whereas I didn’t intentionally hurt you.”
“Yeah? Well, from where I’m standing, it doesn’t feel all that different.”
She winced. “I know you’re pissed at me, Logan, but you don’t have to be a jerk.”
“Oh, okay,” he said, rolling his eyes. “You lie to me for the past two weeks and somehow, I’m the jerk? Figures.”
Temper flared in her catlike eyes. “No, you’ve always been the jerk. I’m only just now pointing it out.”
Anger consumed him. Just where the hell did she get off? It wasn’t like he was the one who’d screwed her…at least not in the way he meant it today. “Don’t push me, Valerie. I mean it.”
She flipped her hair off her shoulder and stuck out her chin. “Or what?”
Logan’s eyes connected to hers. He was still way too pissed off to be talking about any of this right now. But he couldn’t seem to stop himself. “You have some fucking nerve getting all haughty on me. I just lost everything because of you: my best friend, my bar, and now probably my mother’s house.”
Valerie flinched. “Damn it, Logan. That isn’t fair.”
“Yeah, well, neither was you lying to me, but that didn’t seem to stop you from doing it.”
She glared at him and then turned and walked toward the door without a word.
“So that’s it, huh? You don’t like what I’m saying so you just walk away?”
She swung back around and threw her hands in the air. “Well, it’s a better option than standing here and listening to you go on and on about a stupid little lie I told.”
Little? That “little” lie fucked up his whole life. No, actually, she did. His hands fisted at his sides. “I can’t believe I didn’t see how selfish you really were. Not everything revolves around you.”
“I never said it did. But I already told you that I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. You just aren’t listening.”
“Oh, I’m listening. You didn’t mean for any of this to happen? Good. Then maybe we should go back to a time before it did and forget everything…including us.”
Her mouth fell open slightly. “You don’t mean that.”
“Yeah, I think I do. And one more thing. You’re fired.”