“Don’t feel bad for him. If half the stuff I’ve heard about him is true, Jacob’s the biggest asshole around. You know he used to steal his younger brother’s girlfriends just for the hell of it?”
“What?” Tread carefully, Kerri. “Um, isn’t Ethan Lloyd supposed to be kind of a player? He doesn’t seem like the type to lose women to another guy, even if it’s his older brother.”
“Not Ethan. I’m talking about Gavin, the youngest.” She could hear Justin click his tongue. “Big mistake, too. Jacob antagonized his brothers, and they’re the real business brains. Gavin’s even built an investment and trading firm in California. Good for me though, since I’m managing the real estate side of things. It would’ve been a lot harder to compete with TLD if Ethan or Gavin had been in charge.”
She tossed herself back on the couch, leaning back with her feet propped on the arm-rest. She and Justin ended the call, promising to meet for coffee when he was in the neighborhood. A polite formality since he was too busy to take the time to come out to see her. Barron was grooming him to take over the real estate division of Sterling & Wilson, and Barron didn’t believe in taking time off. Kerri didn’t mind. Justin was one of the smartest people she knew, and he was probably the most qualified out of all the cousins.
What Justin had said clarified everything that made Kerri wonder about her new job. Ethan’s vagueness about the CEO position being somewhat vacant, the indefinite term of employment and so on. He wouldn’t want to talk about family scandal with her, and he couldn’t be sure how much impact the whole mess would have on TLD.
Then something else Justin had said registered and she sat up. If Jacob Lloyd wasn’t all that great at his job—and her cousin was an excellent judge of competence—how could Ethan be so confident that the company was doing fine? Was he under some kind of delusion, or had he fudged the details a little to make her not work as fast or as hard?
She went to the study and booted up her computer.
*
Ethan parked his Aston Martin in front of a stately three-story home in Chevy Chase Village, one of the nicest neighborhoods in Maryland. After his father’s death, his mother had moved back to where she’d been born, saying it was more comforting that way than to live in the home she’d created and shared with the man she’d loved more than anything in the world.
He found her in the yard, planting a rosebush.
“Mom, get the gardener to do that for you,” he said, slightly exasperated. Stella Lloyd’s hair was grayer every time he saw her, and he hated the idea of his mother digging and pulling weeds. He’d hired a gardener, and from what he could see, the man had done a good job. Everything was carefully trimmed, lush and green.
“I’m not that old.” She stood stiffly, brushed the dirt from her gloved hands and overalls, then stood on tiptoe to give him a peck on the cheek. “Want some iced tea? I’ve worked up a thirst.”
“Sure. Inside or out?”
“Oh, it’s a nice day. Out.”
His mother went into the house, then reappeared a couple of minutes later carrying a tray laden with two tall glasses of tea and a plate of home-baked chocolate chip cookies, his favorite childhood treat.
She set everything on a small table under a large spreading oak. “Thought you’d be visiting soon.”
“Thanks.” He bit into one of the cookies, which was just as good as he remembered. “Isn’t it a little late for roses?” he said, looking at the bush.
“It is, but I felt like I should.”
“It must be a pretty special one for you to feel that way.”
“Yes. Yellow roses. Took them all out but then decided maybe I was being too hasty.”
She’d redone her garden when Jacob had announced his engagement to Catherine. It wasn’t until a few months later that Ethan had learned yellow roses were Catherine’s favorite.
A large green sun-visor shaded her eyes, but that wasn’t the only thing darkening them. The good humor that usually sparkled there had vanished. “Ethan, are we all right?”
She didn’t have to say the rest. Ethan knew.
Can we withstand the scandal? Can we provide for everyone like nothing’s happened? Can we pretend nothing’s wrong and go on as before?
There would be nothing about standing behind Jacob. His mother’s sense of propriety wouldn’t allow it.
He nodded. “The scandal is going to be embarrassing, but we’ll be all right. Pattington’s looking into Jacob’s whereabouts. I’ve hired a well-qualified person to check the books, and I’ll be more actively involved to ensure everything stays as is. No matter what, we’re a family. We take care of our own.”
“Of course. But what Jacob’s done… I still can’t believe it.” She picked up her tea and took a long swallow. Her throat worked as she put the glass back on the table. “I can’t imagine where we went wrong with him. Your father always wanted the very best from Jacob, and so did I.” She ran her index finger along the side of the glass. The condensation flowed down in a thin rivulet. She looked at the table, her face lax and heavy. It was a lighter version of the expression she’d worn at her husband’s funeral. “I wonder if that was too much for him. He was never like you or Gavin.”
Jacob had been hyper-competitive from the start and couldn’t stand to lose to anybody, especially his two younger brothers. There were whispers he’d even poached a few of Gavin’s girlfriends, something Ethan considered a pointless rumor that had started because of the way Catherine had played both brothers. Catherine had dated both and chosen Jacob over Gavin. Jacob wasn’t stupid; he’d known his fiancée was a scheming two-timer, but married her anyway.
Ethan had never hinted he knew about the trio’s complicated relationship. No one involved in the sordid affair had told him, but it hadn’t been difficult to figure things out. Gavin had confided he was planning to propose to some girl he’d been dating for about a year—but then suddenly there was nothing, and his attitude had been positively arctic at Jacob’s wedding. In fact, he’d hooked up with the maid of honor and promptly had her move in with him, something totally out of char
acter. Since then he’d avoided being anywhere near Jacob and Catherine, which wasn’t difficult. Gavin lived in California and had a busy life.