Chapter Five
Chase
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On Monday morning, I went to our headquarters. Sterling Investments was in a high-rise in downtown San Diego. The building had twenty floors, and we had the top two.
I was the first of my brothers to arrive. My office was on the top floor, but I made a quick stop on the one below it, glancing at the open office where our brokers and analysts were.
Every week, my brothers and I had a general meeting. Even though we all had businesses besides Sterling Investments, we always wanted to be on top of what happened here. My assistant had left the briefing folder on my desk as usual. This one was thick: forty pages. Usually, it was between seven and ten, but because the past week had been a turbulent one on the stock market, this was no surprise.
Our brokers prepared these every Friday evening after the stock market closed, so it was current information. I went through it quicker than usual, even though my mind was elsewhere—namely on Hannah. I hadn’t managed to get her alone for the rest of the reception, but maybe that was for the best.
I couldn't forget what she'd said on Saturday, that things had to get better. Why were they not good now? I needed to know what was going on with the inn.
Fucking hell, if anyone had told me on Friday that I’d end up kissing the lunatic woman from the airport and then obsessing about her, I would’ve told them they were drunk.
At ten o'clock, I went to the meeting room. Duncan, Griffin, Wyatt, Finn, and Knox were all in their usual seats. I took mine next to Duncan and glared at Finn and Knox. Finn made a gesture to indicate he was bowing in front of me. Knox mimicked my dance moves.
“Knock it off,” Griffin said. “We’re at the office.”
“Really? We had no idea,” Finn said, but he fell completely silent as the rest of the team filtered in.
Wyatt glanced at all of us with raised eyebrows. No one had filled him in on the weekend.
Duncan cleared his throat once everyone was inside. "All right, everyone. Let's discuss last week’s shitstorm."
I rolled my eyes. Duncan liked to be dramatic. I’d repeatedly told him that needed to change. It was important for us to convey a more confident tone, as these were their investments, after all. Unless we were talking about the 2008 crash, nothing in my book deserved to be described as a shitstorm .
"Well, you're on a roll, as usual," Knox said in a mocking voice.
No one else from the team said anything. They were used to us bickering among each other, but they’d never dare to talk to us the way we did to each other. Duncan would never say anything like this in front of outsiders. Griffin and Wyatt usually had a good filter no matter who was around; however, the same could not be said about my youngest brothers.
After presenting the highs and lows of the week, Duncan asked us to pitch in with strategic suggestions.
"We should wait out this week," I said without hesitation. "I saw this pattern two years ago. It was almost the exact same level of volatility. It'll flatten out in a week."
"Thank God you have an eidetic memory,” Wyatt said.
“I don’t agree with Chase,” Cyrus said.
Cyrus Smith was one of the first employees at Sterling Investments. He’d run his own company before, but it had been a dinosaur. He hadn’t been able to keep up with the times, so a lot of his customers flocked to us. We ended up buying his company—we were primarily interested in his customer list—but also brought him in on the management team.
He usually liked to challenge me, but I enjoyed it.
Duncan shook his head. He disliked Cyrus’s belligerent nature.
“What are your arguments against it?” I asked.
He started listing them, but the team picked them apart one by one.
In the end, everyone agreed that we shouldn't make any hasty changes. In college, my professors used to say that I had a sixth sense for the stock market. It was true, but I read newspapers almost obsessively. I was always on top of news, not only in the States but in every region where we had investments. I correlated world events to the stock market even before the market itself reflected it. I was always ahead of the curve, and my clients were grateful for it. It had lined our pockets nicely over the years too.
The meeting concluded shortly after, but even after the team left, my brothers and I remained in the room. After the general meeting, we always discussed other investment opportunities we could do as a group and as a family. We all had stakes in each other's businesses.
“You know, I looked at some wineries last week,” Griffin said. “We’ve never explored the industry, but it’s interesting. I can do a report on it if you’re all interested.”
"Sounds good," I said.
Everyone pitched in with an idea, and then they stared at me.
"Your turn," Knox encouraged.
"I don't have anything this week," I said.
"How is that possible? You always have, like, fifty ideas," Finn said.
I shrugged. "Not this morning."
Finn chuckled. "Look at him, still pouting because his best friend got married. I'm so impressed you didn't scare him away from it."
I sat up straighter in my chair. "Why does everyone keep thinking I'm a jackass?"
Knox frowned. "Who's everyone? We're just making fun of you, dude."
“Hannah wasn't very—” I didn’t manage to finish my sentence, as Finn and Knox flashed cheeky grins, and Duncan exchanged a glance with Griffin.
Wyatt looked at the whole group. "I feel like I'm missing something. Why are you all making awkward facial expressions at each other?"
"Well, our brother here had a bit of a beef with the bride's sister," Knox began.
“They met at the airport and started off on the wrong foot. Then they danced,” Finn added. “It was my idea and turned out even better than I thought.”
"Yeah, and then he kissed her, didn't he?" Griffin said.
The room was silent. My brothers were shocked. So was I. I had no idea he knew.
"You saw us?" I asked, because it was the only logical conclusion I could draw.
"Yeah. Don't worry, I didn't watch for too long."
Duncan tilted his head toward me. "What's your game, man?"
"Nothing. It just happened. Why are we even discussing it at our round table?"
"You didn't have anything else to talk about, so this topic is as good as any. Maybe we should have a round of gossiping on our Monday mornings. That would be a way to start the week," Finn said.
"Something's bothering you," Duncan remarked, ignoring Finn.
I nodded, not really wanting to share Hannah’s personal business situation but also thinking my brothers might be able to help. "I think she's in some kind of trouble."
"What do you mean?" Griffin asked quickly, not joking anymore.
"I don't know. I was just thinking about ways to figure that out. Maybe I'll reach out to a private investigator or something."
Finn and Knox burst out laughing.
"Guys, he's not kidding," Wyatt said.
It was Griffin's turn to look perplexed.
Duncan leaned slightly toward me. "Why don’t you ask her?" he suggested.
I stared at him. "You don't think I did that, genius?"
"Why don't you ask Josh?" Griffin countered.
“Finally, someone with a good idea,” I conceded.
Knox clapped his hands once. “Who said we can’t be productive after a weekend where we barely slept?”
Duncan laughed. "This is a day I think we'll all remember. Instead of pitching billion-dollar ideas, our brother asked for our advice on the girl he likes."
"I didn't ask for advice," I said right before striding out of the meeting room.
"But you didn't deny that you like her," Griffin said loudly, making me laugh.
I wasn't denying it because there was no point, but my brother had given me a good idea. Putting an investigator on this was stupid. Josh would know what was going on. She was his sister-in-law, after all.
I closed the door to my office before making the call. The last thing I wanted was for the team to hear me. I didn’t want them to have a front seat to my personal life.
It rang a few times before Josh answered.
"Morning, Chase. What's up?" he asked.
"Hey, dude. How are you?"
"Spoiling my wife."
Fuck! I forgot he was on his honeymoon. They’d flown to the Bahamas yesterday.
"Sorry. Thanks for picking up," I said sincerely.
"Something wrong?"
"Listen, do you have a few minutes to talk? I wanted to ask you something."
"Sure," he said.
"Away from your wife."
"I don't like where this is going," he replied in a cutting tone.
I hesitated. "It's about Hannah."
He gave a noncommittal grunt, and then I heard some rustling, maybe footsteps in the background. "It's good. Now we're alone. Please tell me you didn't sleep with her."
"I didn't."
"Thank fuck."
"Listen, I got the sense that she’s going through a challenging time with her inn. What is it?"
"What do you care?"
"Just tell me."
"I know you're used to being around people who just do your bidding from day to night, but I’m Josh, remember? That's not how it works."
I closed my eyes for a moment before opening them again and breathing in deeply. "Maybe I can help."
"Right. What's going on? Why would you even want to help? What is she to you?"
"Your wife's maid of honor and sister," I said, realizing I sounded like an idiot.
"I'm asking again. Did you sleep with her?"
"No. You know I’m not a liar. But there was something going on. We kissed.”
"Leave her alone."
"Fuck you! Why are you warning me off?"
"Because I know you, Chase. You don’t do relationships, and I don't want you messing around with my sister-in-law. Do you know how shitty that would be? If my best friend hurt her?"
"No," I admitted. "I only realize it now. I don't want to hurt her," I said truthfully. "I'm just wondering why she's going through a rough phase."
Josh groaned. “You won’t let this go.”
I could smell victory. “No.”
“You know she’s running that small inn on Point Loma.”
“She mentioned it, but I don’t know any details.”
“It’s a financial fiasco.”
"Why doesn't she sell it, then?" My business brain turned on instantly. "Point Loma is a popular spot, and the location would be appealing to someone. She’d get good money on it.”
"Loma House has sentimental value," Josh said. "It belonged to their grandmother. It actually could turn out to be a moneymaker, but it needs thorough renovations. I offered to invest, but Blair, Hannah, and their Mom shut me down quickly, saying they don't want to take money from family. They're a very proud bunch. At least that's what Blair says. I just find them stubborn. But maybe I'll wear them down eventually."
"All right," I said.
"Now, back to you and Hannah."
"There's nothing going on," I assured him.
"Can you give me your word that it’ll stay like that?"
I hesitated. I gave my word very rarely because I never broke it.
"Yes," I said eventually.
"Good. Thank you. The last thing Hannah needs is to be in a relationship with someone who doesn't want one."
"Right. Say hello to your wife."
"She likes you, by the way."
"Who? Hannah?"
"Fucking hell, Chase!"
"Not Hannah, then," I concluded.
"No. I was talking about Blair. Though if I tell her that you've got the hots for her sister, she might change her opinion. So do me a solid and stay far away from Hannah."
"I already gave you my word that nothing will happen. Now, I'm about to start my workday. Enjoy your honeymoon."
"Will do."
I sat down behind my desk, but instead of opening my email inbox, I looked up Loma House. I reviewed the website and even looked at it through Google Maps. It was a large Victorian house.
I could see why Hannah was having trouble keeping it afloat. There was a difference between charming and run-down, and this was teetering toward the latter.
I couldn't turn off my business brain. Right off the bat, I came up with three short-term solutions that could help Hannah out.
I needed to find out her phone number. I couldn't ask Josh or he'd be on my case, but I was confident enough that I'd get her number by the end of the day.
You made a promise to your best friend. Don't be a jerk .
I’d promised Josh that nothing would happen... not that I wouldn’t see her again.