Chapter 2 Family Ties and Lies #3
He was an all-around incredible brother, which she intended to tell him sometime. “I didn’t know you were even dating anyone.” If only it were true! More than anything, she wanted proof that he was over his ex, a duplicitous woman who currently served as their uncle’s personal assistant.
“I’m not.” His voice was clipped as he stuffed the ring into his pocket.
“The diamond solitaire my clever cat found says otherwise.” She pointed at his pocket. “If you’re truly still single, you’re going to have to come up with a more convincing story.”
“Okay. How’s this?” The look in his eyes told her she’d taken things far enough. She was going to get an earful about it the next time he got her alone. “I’ll contact the landlords and tell them we found a ring. I’m sure whoever lost it will be happy to hear it.”
Nice one. She wrinkled her nose at him. “My story about a clandestine relationship was more exciting.”
“And complete fiction.” His voice was dry.
“Too bad,” she mourned, wishing he’d loosen up a little. He was a workaholic who didn’t smile much. She wished for A.J.’s sake that he would at least try to be friendly.
To nudge him forward in that department, she silently begged him to continue playing along with what she said next.
“Hey! Since A.J. is here and you’re home early, how does a game night sound to you?
We can order pizza.” Back when their parents had been alive, they’d often ended their evenings with a board game or cards.
Their mom hadn’t been much of a cook, so they’d ordered a lot of takeout.
Interest flickered in her brother’s eyes. For a moment, she was sure he was going to say yes. Then he turned away from her. “Can’t. I agreed to trade shifts with the guy who was originally scheduled to work this evening.”
So, that was why he was home early. She made a face at his shoulder blades. “Are you sure it’s a good idea to work late while you’re supposed to be resting and recovering?”
“I’m fine.” He angled his head toward the kitchen. “Hey, can I talk to you for a second?” It was obvious he was asking to speak with her alone.
“Sure.” She sent an apologetic look at A.J. “Do you mind keeping Bandit company while I have a quick powwow with my cranky brother?”
A.J. sent her a thumbs up, while her brother cut across the kitchen to the adjoining office. She followed, and he shut the door behind them.
“What are you doing?” He faced her with his hands on his hips.
She gave him her most innocent look. “Following you into your office.”
“You know what I mean.” He jammed a finger in A.J.’s direction. “You do realize that having a boyfriend hanging around all the time could easily become a problem for us?”
She lifted her chin. “He’s a retired policeman and soldier. If that doesn’t put him in the trustworthy category, nothing will.”
Aaron reached up to pinch his nose. “I’m not arguing about his trustworthiness. I’m reminding you about the confidentiality of your work at Diamondback.”
She rolled her eyes. “As if you or Uncle Cary would let me forget!” She’d about had it with their collective obsession with her personal safety.
Uncle Cary was far worse, though. Ever since losing his brother and sister-in-law, he’d been acting afraid of his own shadow.
She couldn’t keep up with all the new rules and regulations he kept coming up with.
“He’s only trying to protect you,” her brother said mildly. “We both are.”
“Not true. You’re the only one doing that.
” She eyed him bleakly. “As much as I love Uncle Cary, he rarely ventures outside our home office.” All he did was give orders and dole out assignments from the safety of his swivel chair.
Some of his demands were downright unrealistic, too.
Aaron didn’t yet grasp how much of a problem the man was becoming, because he didn’t have to work as closely with the guy.
Her brother merely shrugged.
She ground her teeth in frustration. “Because of him, I no longer have a life,” she fumed, “and neither do you. We’re constantly on the move, constantly looking over our shoulders…
” She didn’t know how much more of it she could take.
Now that she had A.J. in her life, she was considering making some drastic changes, like settling down in one place and working remotely.
If she did, Diamondback would be forced to finally bring some fresh blood on board instead of continuing to work her into the ground.
Her brother leaned back against his desk. “Next topic. Why did you show A.J. the diamond ring your goofy cat swiped?”
“I didn’t.” Did he really think she’d be so careless? “He was there when I found it. The better question is how Bandit ever got his paws on it.”
Aaron gave her an annoyed look. “I was going through some files in the safe when he jumped inside and had a heyday with the jewelry boxes—something we wouldn’t have to worry about if you hadn’t brought a stray cat home.”
Being outwitted by a cat didn’t sound like the brother she knew, but it wasn’t worth arguing over.
Instead, she changed the subject. “You’re exhausted.
Maybe you should be resting instead of swapping shifts with the other deputies.
Don’t even get me started on how bad working evenings is for your love life,” she joked, knowing he wasn’t dating anyone.
It wasn’t that women didn’t notice him. The problem was that he didn’t notice them.
He was too fixated on getting justice for their parents.
“My nonexistent love life,” he muttered.
“Which you could easily do something about,” she suggested playfully. “I just found out there’s a line dancing class in town on Monday nights.” He was two years older than her, wore a badge, and packed heat. The single ladies would go nuts over a guy like him.
He looked at her as if she was crazy. “Are you forgetting what we do for a living?”
“Not at all.” She wasn’t sure what it would take to make him understand. “I’m just reminding you that we’re real people.”
“Real? Yes. Normal? No.” His voice was clipped. “Which brings us back to A.J.”
She wasn’t in the mood to hear more of his objections about them dating. “I’m in love with him, Aaron. I think he’s the one.” Though it wasn’t the best time to have this conversation, it was long overdue.
Her brother looked alarmed. “You just met him.”
“No, it was over a month ago,” she corrected.
He glared at her. “Same thing.”
“No, it’s not.” She lifted her chin. “This isn’t a fling, Aaron. I’m in a serious relationship.”
His glare deepened. “What exactly are you saying?”
She bit her lower lip, choosing her next words carefully. “I want to cut back on my hours.” Way back. “And maybe work remotely. I know it’s something you, Uncle Cary, and I would need to discuss first, but I’ve already put a lot of thought into it. This is what I want, Aaron.”
His jaw dropped.
“Not right this second,” she said quickly, “but soon.”
A nerve in his jaw ticked. “How soon?”
“Ideally, my assignment at Modello’s will be the last one of its kind before I make the aforementioned changes.” There. She’d finally said it. She could barely breathe while she waited for him to respond.
He cleared his throat. “How long have you been planning this?”
“The better part of a year.” She ignored the choking sound that came out of him. “You’d be lying if you said you like the direction our company is headed any more than I do.”
“Like every business, we have our ups and downs.” He gestured between them. “What makes Diamondback extra special to me is that we’re a family business.”
“Mostly,” she returned bitterly. For her, it no longer felt that way now that their parents were gone.
“Uncle Cary is family,” he reminded quietly.
“Yes, he is, though his many eccentricities get on my last nerve sometimes.” She blew out a breath. It didn’t help that he’d kept her father’s personal assistant on board—a woman Aaron had dated for a short time. Elise Hathaway should’ve been let go after they’d broken up.
“Mine, too, but he’s trustworthy.” A crooked smile curved Aaron’s mouth upward, reminding her how handsome he was when he wasn’t snarling and growling at her. “That counts for a lot in my book.”
“So is A.J. Pike.” She couldn’t resist putting in a plug for her boyfriend. “I know you don’t trust many people, but he’s as good as they come. Pure gold.”
Aaron’s smile disappeared. “What have you told him about your job?”
“Very little.” She wrinkled her nose. “He thinks I’m a perfumer.”
He gave her a rigid nod. “It needs to stay that way.”
A disbelieving sound escaped her. “Did you miss the part about how I’m considering making this assignment my last one?”
“Not at all.” His expression tightened. “If you want to ditch our family, I reckon there’s nothing I can do to stop you.”
“I’m not ditching you.” She was aghast that he would think that. “It’s the last thing I’d want. You and Uncle Cary are all the family I have left!”
Her brother shrugged again. “You’re the one talking about making earth-shattering changes to your career. What were you hoping I would say?”
“That you’ll still be my brother after I leave Diamondback.” Her voice cracked.
“Of course.” His expression was difficult to read.
“Stop doing that,” she snapped.
He surveyed her dispassionately. “Doing what?”
“Shutting me out. I’m baring my soul to you here!”
“Okay.” He lowered his arms and faced her squarely.
“You want the truth? Well, here it is. I’m not cutting back my work schedule or making any other major changes to my career until I figure out who crashed our parents’ helicopter.
I won’t stop until I find them. If that means putting up with Uncle Cary’s peculiarities awhile longer, then so be it. ”
Aha! She waved a finger excitedly at him. “So, you admit he’s weird?”
“A little, I suppose.” His voice was dry. “But he’s in the driver’s seat of the company whose resources we need to find our parents. Working for him allows you and me to stay out here. In the game,” he added in a fiercer voice.