Chapter 30
Ryleigh
Everything happens quickly after Angus tells me that his grandfather passed away. One minute we’re having a great time at the party, and the next we’re back in our room. I’m packing while he calls the airline to get us on a flight first thing in the morning. There’s one leaving at seven, and we’re two hours from the airport, so he hires a car service to drive us there.
We shower, pack, say goodbye to the band and Kirsten, and then we’re on our way to the airport. It’s three in the morning at this point, and I’m tired, but I want to be there for him.
He hasn’t said much since we got on the road and I’m not sure if I should try to say something soothing or just leave him to his thoughts. I lean against his shoulder and close my eyes.
“Thanks for coming with me,” he whispers.
I look up. “Of course. I want to be here for you—I’m just not sure what you need from me. I can go home to my place if it’s easier for you.”
“Not at all. I want you with me, and knowing I have someone in my corner means the world to me. As I’ve mentioned, my family isn’t easy. Most of them aren’t nice. My father will be condescending. My mother will get drunk and probably say something inappropriate. My sister will look down her nose at you. My brother Abe and his wife are okay—they’ll be polite. Alden is a good kid who gets pulled in a lot of different directions. And my Uncle Alex is decent. My father’s brother.”
“Don’t worry about me. I can hold my own.”
He chuckles. “You have no idea the kind of viper pit I’m pulling you into. But I’ll run interference if necessary. Don’t worry about that.”
“I’m not worried—I trust you.”
And I do.
Of course, that just makes the conversation we need to have that much more difficult. But it’s not going to be now. He has to see his family and get through the funeral. Once we’re back on the tour I’ll talk to him. It seems like he needs me now, and I don’t want to let him down at a time like this.
There’s plenty of time for me to disappoint him once we’re back on the road.
It’s not a long flight to Minneapolis and we’re pulling up to a huge, gated estate by noon.
“Jesus,” I breathe, staring out the window of the limousine that picked us up at the airport. “Is this where you grew up?”
He nods. “Yup.”
“How big is it?”
He pauses. “Thirty-two thousand square feet.”
“Oh my gosh.” I stare at him. “Go on—tell me the rest.”
“Eleven bedrooms, twenty bathrooms, two full indoor kitchens plus an outdoor kitchen, seven fireplaces, and an Olympic-size swimming pool.”
“Elevator?”
“Yup. Butler’s pantry, two hidden pantries, and every bedroom has a walk-in closet. There’s also a wine cellar, fitness center, a screening room, and a panic room.”
I stare as we drive past multiple fountains, gardens, and foliage. It’s breathtaking if not a tiny bit ostentatious.
“Do you hate me yet?” he asks.
I shake my head. “Of course not. Don’t be ridiculous. I’m just a little in awe.”
“Well, you’ll be less awed once you meet my family.”
As he’d predicted, his father is rude, his mother is drunk, and his sister seems put out by the fact that she has to be here. Abe, his wife, and Alden aren’t here yet, but his Uncle Alex is, and he’s the only one who actually smiles at me.
Angus and I settle into the guest room and it’s… almost as big as my entire two-bedroom condo.
“Do you want to take a nap?” he asks. “We don’t have anywhere to be until dinner.”
“Where are you going to be?” I ask.
“I’ve been summoned to my father’s office.”
My brows lift of their own volition. “What does that mean?”
“He probably wants to tell me that I’m not in the will or something.” He shrugs.
“I’ll come with you if you want. Or I could take a nap.”
“You may as well nap. Money doesn’t matter to me, so I might as well get whatever this is over with. You don’t need to witness my father berating me.”
I hesitate—because the need to protect him is strong—but then nod. He’s much better equipped to handle his family than I am.
“All right. I could use some sleep.”
He leans over and lightly presses his lips to mine. “Get some rest. I’ll come lie down with you when I’m done with my dad.”
“See you later.” I watch him go and then get into bed.
It’s like lying on a cloud and I realize how exhausted I am. I dozed on the plane, but that was only about an hour before it was time to deboard. It’s only one o’clock now, and his mother said dinner was at seven, which means I can sleep for four hours or so before I need to get up and make myself presentable for dinner.
I set the alarm on my phone and drift off.
* * *
I wake up before the alarm and realize it’s only four o’clock. For whatever reason, I can’t get comfortable, and I figure it probably has to do with the fact that Angus never came back. He’s been gone a long time, and he must be tired too.
I pull on a pair of shorts and decide to go exploring. Maybe I’ll find Angus and convince him to get a little rest before dinner.
I stuff my phone in my back pocket and leave the bedroom, closing the door behind me with a soft click. The house is quiet as I descend the stairs, and I pause at the bottom, looking around. I have no idea where anything is and since I don’t necessarily want to interrupt Angus if he’s still with his father, I head outside. The pool area was pretty, and a walk might energize me.
As I stare at the crystalline waters, I desperately want to jump in.
It’s hot and muggy today, so a swim would feel great, but I didn’t bring my bathing suit. Not that I’d go swimming without an invitation, but it looks so relaxing. I move out of the sun toward the covered part of the patio and sink into a lounge chair. If I’m not careful, I’ll fall asleep again, so I pull out my phone and check my email.
Rich wants to talk to me.
Not today.
The maintenance on my condo is due, but that’s not something I want to deal with today either.
I delete most of the emails and then go through my texts.
Kirsten wants to know how Angus is doing.
Taryn sends me a funny meme.
One of my neighbors reminds me that maintenance is due.
I’m about to respond to Kirsten’s text when I hear voices.
“…it’s time, Violetta.”
“It is not time, Alex!”
Yikes.
That’s Angus’s mom and his uncle.
I shrink down a little in the lounge chair, hoping they keep walking, but I’m not that lucky.
“He needs to know.”
“He’s gone thirty-two years without knowing—and nothing has changed.”
“My father is dead. My brother is now expecting his first-born son to join the family business. They’ve been locked away all afternoon.”
“It’s his rightful place.”
“It’s not .”
“Dammit, Alex, shut your mouth! Just because you’re bitter about not being the first-born, don’t put that on my son!”
“ Our son.”
Wait—did he just say our son?
As in Alex and Violetta’s ? Not Violetta’s and August, Jr.’s son?
What the fuck is going on?
“ Our son will sit at my husband’s side and run the family business. Just like all the first-born sons before him.”
“Except he’s my first-born son, not August’s.”
“Stop saying that!” Violetta hisses. “We had an agreement.”
“When he was a child, and while my father was alive, yes. Now Angus is an adult and my father is gone. It’s time for him to know the truth. About everything. Not to mention make his own choices.”
“There’s no reason for it! And you’ll ruin my marriage to boot.”
“Give me a break. You haven’t shared a bed with August in a decade. Probably more.”
“Not everything is about sex.”
“No, it’s not. But Angus doesn’t want to join the family business. He’s happy playing music and?—”
“His name is August, and spare me with his little rock and roll venture. It’s a distraction. We spoiled him and he had something to prove. Young men like to sow oats. Now that he’s proven to himself that he can make it without us, he’ll be coming home. The band is already on the outs thanks to his duplicity, and I’m going to keep feeding that little media circus.”
“What have you done, Vi?”
“I did what was necessary. Just like I always do. He’s not going to—to—spend the rest of his life playing that dreadful music and sleeping with little harlots like Ryleigh!”
I bristle.
Who the hell is she calling a harlot?
My face flames with embarrassment, but it’s way too late for me to move from this spot. All I can do now is keep listening—and pray they don’t see me.
“She seems like a nice girl,” Alex is saying. “And he adores her.”
Thank you.
“I’m sure she’s fine, but she’s a wannabe reporter who’s sleeping with someone in the band she’s supposed to be covering—that tells me everything I need to know about her.”
Ugh.
I’d been afraid of this.
I just hadn’t expected to hear it from Angus’s mother.
“Vi, listen to me. I’ve loved you most of my life, and I accept the fact that you don’t return my feelings, but I want a relationship with my son. You owe me that much.”
“You have a relationship with him! He likes you much more than his father. What more do you want?”
“I’m his uncle and we barely see each other.”
“He’s a little old for a daddy.”
“You’re never too old for a parent. The relationship just changes.”
“The answer is no, Alex.”
“You know it’s not just up to you, right?”
“If you ruin my marriage?—”
“What?” he asks. “What’s the worst thing that will happen? You don’t love the man, you have your own money, and your prenuptial clearly states that after twenty years of marriage, you’re entitled to half of everything outside of the business, regardless of blame.”
“I like being a Hollingsworth and the status it affords me. I’m not giving up my place as the matriarch of this family. Don’t force my hand, Alex.”
“Fuck you, Vi.”
I hear a set of footsteps and then the click of Violetta’s heels.
Then blissful silence.
Holy fucking shit.
What did I just hear?
I have to tell Angus before this blows up in his face.
And then I have to rewrite my article.
My way.
Whether Rich likes it or not.