Page 110 of Truck Up
Linden snorts. “What’s the matter? Can’t hang?”
I glare at him. He’s gloating, and I hate gloaters. “Nah. I’m just smart enough to know when to call it. That’s something you’ve never understood. Is it a family trait?”
The smile on Linden’s face instantly vanishes, and he matches my glare. He’s trying to look mean, but he just looks like an asshole instead.
“My winnings tonight say you’re full of shit.” He counters.
I look down at his pile of chips. He’s done well tonight. As much as I hate to admit it, Linden is a decent poker player. Not as good as me, but he does alright. I’ll never admit that to him.
“Nothing but luck,” I say.
“You’re an asshole, you know that?” Linden says.
I shrug. “It takes one to know one.”
Linden has a weird smile on his face. It’s not a pleasant smile. It’s untrusting and leaves me with an uneasy feeling in my gut. He leans forward like he’s about to say something private that he doesn’t want anyone else to hear. “Since we’re both assholes, what do you say we make this more interesting?”
I raise an eyebrow, more than a little curious about what he’s got to say. “Go on.”
He sits back in his chair. His smile grows like he’s a proud man, although I’ve no clue what he’s got to be proud of. “You and me. One on one in a poker match. It’s time for the Kochs to be back on top.”
I snort. “When hell freezes over.”
He spreads his arms out wide and chuckles. “Well, I guess that day is today.”
“What the hell are you going on about?” Garret grumbles. “Are we going to play or not?”
“Oh, we’ll play alright,” Linden says. “But not with you.”
“What?” Garret rears his head back with a deep furrow in his brow. He’s clearly confused and offended by Linden’s comment. I can’t say I blame him. Garret always plays with us.
“Will you get to the point?” I insist. I’ve no clue where he’s going with this, but I have a feeling it’s not good.
Linden’s grin grows as he stares at me like I’m his prey and I’m about to be destroyed. It’s laughable that he thinks he can take me down. “I’m challenging you to a high-stakes game. Just you and me. It’s time to correct the mistakes of our ancestors.”
I laugh. It’s such a rare thing for me to do that those around us fall silent and stare at me like I just transformed into a different person. “You have lost your mind.”
“What’s the matter?” he asks. “Afraid you can’t beat me.”
“Oh, no,” I chuckle. “I know I can beat you.”
“Then what’s the problem?” He picks up his beer and takes a long pull, keeping his eyes focused on me.
“I don’t have any say over what happens to the homestead. I’m not on the deed.”
Now Linden is the one to laugh. “Who said anything about the homestead?”
I furrow my brows. “You said you wanted to correct the mistakes ofyourancestors.”
I emphasizeyourclarifying that the Mutter ancestors weren’t the idiots that made such a stupid gamble. He doesn’t seem to catch on to that detail, further proving just how stupid he is.
“I did.” His grin turns wicked. He’s up to something and I don’t think I’m going to like it. “But not by winning back the homestead.”
I let out a frustrated sigh and lean forward on the table. I’m tired of this cryptic conversation. “Say what you want, asshole.”
He matches my position and meets my glare. “If I win, you break it off with Lia. You never see her again. And if you win, we’ll back off and you get to keep her.”
“What the actual fuck!” This comes from Lina, who’s sitting at a table right behind Garret and me with Charlotte and Chase. “She’s not a piece of property.”