3
“Charles, staying there wasn’t going to change anything. What Dylan needs isn’t my advice, it’s yours. Be glad I’m not giving him a sympathy card instead of a wedding card.”
“You’re lucky Rosslyn isn’t here listening to you right now,” Charles warned.
Exactly my point.Gareth didn’t dance around watching his words. Rosslyn seemed to have already figured that out. “She’s not that delicate wallflower you make her out to be. Hell, she’s running Grayson Corp. From what Dylan told me, she’s not a pushover either. Thankfully, she’s not her uncle Maxwell, or we might all be in trouble.”
“Just because she’s strong, doesn’t mean she’d appreciate your comments. And for the record, I wasn’t protecting her; I was protecting your dumb ass.”
“Ouch. Where are your HR words?” Gareth asked teasingly.
Charles laughed. “Probably out on vacation just like you. Good thing the others are picking up all the slack.”
“What slack are you guys talking about? From what I saw before I left, we had nothing pending. The only thing I’m missing is baby and wedding talk. You can have both of those.” Gareth wasn’t ignorant enough to think the day-to-day work wouldn’t back up a bit, but it was nothing he couldn’t handle when he returned. If something was pressing, his brothers would handle it. They always do.
“That is beside the point. You can’t just take off anytime you want.”
“What’s the point of owning a company if you need to ask permission?” Gareth asked sarcastically.
“And what’s the point of owning a company if you’re not going to be here to run it? Where exactly are you, by the way?” Charles asked.
Fuck.He’d been hoping to avoid that question. “A tropical island soaking up the sun.”
“What you mean is that it’s none of my business,” Charles stated.
“Did you really want to hear all about it?” Gareth asked.
“No. You can keep all those details to yourself. Should we expect you back next week?”
“I don’t have a return date yet, but I promised Dylan I would be back in plenty of time to throw him a bachelor party.”
Charles sighed. “Do you really think that is necessary?”
“Just because you didn’t want one, doesn’t mean he doesn’t,” Gareth clarified. “Don’t worry, Charles. I’m not ordering strippers. I was actually thinking we’d fly out to Vegas for the night and try our luck.”
“You don’t think we are lucky enough?” Charles asked.
“Are you becoming Dad? Old and no fun?”
“I’m nothing like Dad. And if you even say Granddad, I’ll come find you and kick your ass. The last thing I want is to be anything like our ancestors.”
He could hear the anger in Charles’s voice. “What’s got you so pissed off?” Charles didn’t answer so Gareth added, “Listen, I know I joke around a lot, but if there is something you want to talk about, I’m here.”
“Dad made a comment yesterday when he was holding Penelope.”
“What did he say?” Their father was unpredictable so Gareth didn’t even want to take a guess.
“He said he hoped she didn’t grow up to be like her auntie.”
“And you think he meant Aunt Audrey?” Gareth asked.
“Who else would he mean? She was the only female on either side, and since Dylan isn’t married yet, I doubt he was talking about Sofia.”
That was a fucked-up statement. But what shocked him more was his father making it. “I thought he didn’t know anything. This sounds like he was—”
“Lying. I know. What I don’t get is why would he lie to us? Dylan said he spoke to him. That was Dad’s time to come clean with everything he knew. He should know us by now. If we want to know something, we won’t stop until we get it.”
Ain’t that the truth?“Maybe he thought he was protecting us.”