Kent
“Little bit of rain, and those prices skyrocket!” Kevin talks too loudly at his cellphone, trying to order a car service. This always happens and I always ignore him.
We have the damn money, why bother whining?
My tie is being a jackass today. The length isn’t right, the knot is all lopsided. But it’s a big day so I broke out the good one. Not the best one—that would be jinxing things. This one is in the top five.
“Why the tie, douche-nozzle?” Kevin asks. He’s leaning in my bedroom doorway, opting for an open collar and sweater.
He is always so quick with a fucking compliment, that one.
“Oh, I dunno, bro. Maybe because there is this big meeting today, remember? Dad might be handing over the reins today and I want to look like I’m ready to take it on.” I say this over my shoulder, still messing with my tie. I don’t want to look at his smirk right now.
“You really think there’s any doubt how this is going to go? It’s ours,bro. We earned it. And even if we hadn’t, we were born into it. That’s the rule, man. Goes back to ancient medieval kings and shit.”
I sigh. I wish I could see the world as simply as Kevin does, but that’s one of the many differences between us. Even though we’re close in age and height (although my extra two inches bug the shit out of Kevin and he knows that I know that), he thinks the world owes him all the time.
And, while I think I deserve to run this company, I’m not going to assume. Dad is too fucking wily for that. He didn’t get where he is now by being Mr. Nice Guy.
“No way you have royal blood. They’re not going to put you on a postage stamp anytime soon. And, to answer your question, yes, I do doubt it. Dad can be ruthless. It’s why he’s a success. And why he trusted me to run things while he recovered from his heart attack. The tie is just one more way I show him I’m the right guy to take over.”
My tie is finally in place. I step back to see the full effect in the mirror. All 6’2” of me is looking sharp. I’m wearing my dark gray suit, lilac shirt, deep purple tie. My fresh haircut is short, but still has a slight wave in my brown hair. My blue eyes look fierce. Like they’re ready for one of those corporate portraits you see in fancy boardrooms.
Yeah, I’d be ok with that.
“What? You worried he’s gonna skip right over you and give it to sonny boy number 2? You’re not the only one who’s been working his ass off, you know.” Kevin’s trying to sound casual, but I can hear the hint of resentment in his voice. Like it was my fault for being born first and taller.
The thing is, he is right. I do have that fear. Kevin might throw a lot of hot air around, but he works damn hard. Especially after Dad’s heart attack (while playing golf of all things, how fucking stereotypical), Kevin dove right in and worked side by side with me to keep things flowing.
“All I’m saying is that I’m taking this meeting seriously. If it was just us being called in, I might not. But it’s not a family dinner. I saw another name on the meeting invite. New name. An M. Vale. Probably some hotshot economics major from Dad’s alma mater.”
Kevin groans. He hates it when Dad takes some young protégé under his wing. It was like he didn’t have two smart, handsome sons that could benefit from some of that attention.
“Fuck that. They’re probably some snot-nosed punk. Gets a boner over spreadsheets or something. I’m not dressing up for that. Dad knows what I’m capable of.” Kevin’s bluster is appealing, but I’m not convinced.
“Well, I’m not taking chances. And maybe this M. Vale is just there to observe. Who knows? If they’re cool, I have no problem. Maybe they can do some of the shitty busy-work around here, and leave me to think about bigger projects.”
I squeeze past Kevin and head into the living room. The morning light is competing with the dreary drizzle falling outside. My briefcase is packed and ready, my cell phone charged. All I need now is the car service.
“Well, takes all kinds to make a world. You have your ways and I have mine. Wanna make a friendly bet out of it?” Kevin sidles into the room, shrugging on an overcoat.
“What? That Dad is going to get all weepy, give me a long, manly hug, and hand you the fucking keys today?”
Guy’s got balls, I’ll give him that.
“Yeah. That. Well, not the weepy man-hug or anything, but the part about me getting the joint.” Kevin knows it’s a long shot, but he can’t help himself.
“You’re on. I get the business, you give me $10,000. You get it, I’ll give you $14,000. You know, because I’m four years older. Seems only fair.”
Kevin can’t hide his flinch. He hates spending money like that, but he’s painted himself into a corner.
“Deal,” he says, begrudgingly.
We shake on it. I grab my phone and check the time.
“Where’s that car service?” I ask. I’m starting to feel anxious about this meeting.
“Just arrived.” Kevin looks into his phone. “Let’s go.”
We step out into the hallway and take the elevator down. We share a nice condo in the center of things. Usually, I like to walk to work, but the rain is messing with that today.
“Gonna make friends with this M. Vale, then?” Kevin asks, breaking into my thoughts.
“Dude, I really don’t care. The only Vale I care about is where I can find good skiing and hot girls wearing fur. Let’s just get this over with.”
The elevator arrives at the lobby. The doors open.
“After you, my liege….” Kevin gestures, bowing like a jester. I playfully punch him in the arm as I pass.
“Douche,” I mutter, striding out to the waiting car.