Chapter Seven
Remy
Sterling family gatherings are large and loud, and where they’re located is decided on the spur of the moment. That’s my family. No planning, just an agreement to get together. Sometimes it’s to catch up because it’s been a while and other times it’s to celebrate.
Today is the latter. Aiden, our traveling journalist brother, has come home from the dangerous war zones he reports from. Whether it’s for good or not is anyone’s guess. In all probability, Aiden isn’t sure either.
Where I dove into the police force and now deal in missing people to assuage my guilt over not being home when our mother was killed, Aiden ran away from his regret for being asleep upstairs during the murder.
It doesn’t matter that logic dictates neither of us were to blame.
Self-recrimination is hard to let go of.
My family sits around a long table. The gathering includes our father, Alex, and housekeeper, Elizabeth Snyder, though we call her Lizzie.
She’s an attractive woman, slightly younger than my dad.
Lizzie came with the house when Alex purchased the property in Old Brookville.
A widow, she resided in the gatehouse on the property when the original residents owned the place and her staying was part of the sales agreement.
Her daughter, Brooklyn, grew up in the gatehouse and is best friends with my sister, Fallon.
The women couldn’t be more different. Fallon is a bohemian artist and owns a gallery.
Brooklyn is a corporate type who dresses much more formally.
Since graduating, she’s worked at the Sterling family business with Jared, who’s the CFO under our dad. But the women couldn’t be closer.
The rest of my siblings are already seated too, as we wait for Aiden. While the joking and laughter goes on around me, I keep an eye and ear on Raven, who’s sitting with an iPadbehind the bar. Whether she’s absorbed in bar business or avoiding catching my gaze, I don’t know.
“She won’t disappear if you take your eyes off of her, you know,” Dex says.
I glare at my brother. “It’s not like you’d know what it’s like to settle on one woman,” I mutter.
Dex chuckles, not the least bit insulted. He loves his bachelor lifestyle in a way I never have, especially after being married. Once Sadie and I divorced because she couldn’t live with my dangerous job as a detective, being alone in the large house felt… odd.
Sadie didn’t want anything from me except a small lump sum to get back on her feet, leaving me with the house I’d bought, which I sold almost immediately after our separation. Getting back into the dating game sucks. I don’t like it the way Dex does but I have my share of women.
Maybe it’s Dex’s years of playing star quarterback and being idolized by women all over the state of Florida. Who knows?
“Is Raven okay?” Dex asks more seriously. “She’s a little pale.”
I sigh. “Not really.”
Raven’s truths are her own but even I need to let someone know what’s going on. “Look, this has to stay between us, but she has a psychotic brother who is getting out of prison and he’s going to target her.”
I go on to explain her past to Dex. All of it, from adoption on. “Though I have a feeling there’s more I don’t know.”
Dex runs a hand through his hair, messing up the top in a way no style could capture. He dabbles in modeling, and has done some ads in the past. “What you told me is enough.”
“I figured you’d understand her considering you were also adopted.”
“Except I got the good family and a chance to heal.” Dex lifts his gaze to where Raven is still working behind the bar. “Her, not so much.”
I nod. “Exactly. I’m trying to show her she can trust me but it’s a long, rough road. Right now she thinks we’re friends with benefits.” I let out a snort. “As if I’d settle for that.”
Dex doesn’t smile. “Just be careful you aren’t falling back into old habits.”
“Meaning?”
“Never mind,” Dex mutters. “If I need to bring it up again I will.”
I frown but decide to ignore my sibling. I’m not ready to go down that road, even if I know what my brother is getting at.
“I know you’ll make sure Raven is protected and you’ll be there when she finally gives in to your charm.”
“Always helpful.” I slap Dex on the back.
He and I are the same age which also helped when Dex’s parents died, courtesy of a drunk driver. Witnesses said the couple were arguing at the time, which contributed to his dad not being able to swerve to avoid the other vehicle in time.
Dex was always the next-door neighbor who hung out with the Sterling kids to avoid the constant yelling in his own home. After his parents passed away, Alex and my mom, Gloria, gave him a home and later, when Dex was ready, adopted him.
“Any ideas what you’re going to do now that you’ve retired from football?” I pick up a glass of water and take a long sip.
Dex shakes his head. “Ian’s trying to convince me to take a job in the front office but I’ve got no interest in that kind of desk job.”
Ian Dare, the team owner, wants Dex to take a desk job? That won’t be happening, I think. “What about broadcasting?”
Between my brother’s good looks, talent on the field, and inherent smarts, something a quarterback needs to succeed, Dex would make a phenomenal sportscaster.
He leans back and grins. “Let’s just say my agent has many irons in the fire.”
His agent is Austin Prescott, one of the best in the business. “I have no doubt you’ll be signing a multimillion-dollar deal soon.”
“Maybe. There’s a lot to consider.”
Just then, I catch sight of Aiden walking into the bar and rise from my chair. “Look who’s here! The wanderer has returned.”
My words get the rest of the family’s attention and soon our world-traveling brother is being embraced by the family, one by one.
After a hug and slap on the back by Dex, I grab my middle sibling’s forearms. “You look good,” I lie.
Aiden has dark circles under his eyes and the weight of the world on his shoulders. But there’s time for one of the siblings to crack his hardened shell.
“Home to stay?” Dex asks, as my throat fills at the possibility Aiden might take off again.
“I’ll decide for sure after my vacation time’s up. Right now, I just want to enjoy being home.”
In other words, don’t pressure him. “Got it,” I say. “Take a seat and let’s do just that.”
As Aiden pulls off his jacket and hangs it over the empty chair, my gaze comes to rest on Raven’s once more.
A wistful look is on her face, her eyes sad, lips pursed as she watches my family.
She stares at Brooklyn, who’s come around to talk to Aiden, then her gaze slides to my father and Lizzy, whose heads are tilted toward each other.
Suddenly she puts the iPad onto the counter, pushes up from her chair, and walks out from behind the bar and toward the kitchen.
Without hesitation or a word to anyone, I shove back my seat and head to find her.
* * *
Raven
I’ve never considered myself a jealous or envious person and I can’t say those are the emotions squeezing inside my chest now.
But watching Remy’s big family caused a pang of sadness to fill me at what might have been if my father hadn’t run off, if my biological mother hadn’t passed away, if I hadn’t been adopted. If the Kanes had been a normal family.
I jerk my head from the warm, fuzzy scene, place my iPad on the counter and stride to the kitchen, certain I can find something to do to keep myself busy. The last thing I want to be is the outsider looking in.
Once in the professional kitchen, I say hello to the chef and his staff. Noticing an empty counter that needs wiping down, I pick up a rag and begin to clean.
I’ve just finished and tossed the dishrag into a gray bin when the double doors swing open and Remy walks inside, coming straight toward me.
He looks sexy, as usual, wearing a pair of dark jeans and sneakers, and a men’s white dress shirt, rolled at the sleeves and unbuttoned at the neck.
The urge to place my nose into that space and sniff his bare skin is strong.
“Hiding out?” he asks, obviously oblivious to my sudden need to lose myself in him.
I force a smile. “I figured it was time to check on Thomas.”
“You lie, little bird,” the chef says, using his nickname for me based on my name. “I never need checking up on.”
I shrug. “What can I say? I wanted a few minutes away from the crowd.”
Remy glances at the chef, who’s returned to chopping chicken for the tenders we serve, before giving me his full attention. “Everything okay?”
I nod then, with a tip of my head, lead him out of the kitchen and into the hall. If I’m going to be honest, I want privacy. It also isn’t like me to open a vein for anyone, male or female. But, as I’m coming to realize, Remy isn’t just anyone.
I lean against the wall behind me and draw a deep breath.
“I was watching all you Sterlings and it got me thinking about how different my life would have been if the people who adopted me had been more like your family. Warm, caring, supportive.” My chest tightens at the hurt I still feel when I allow myself to think too hard.
“Nobody’s family is perfect,” he says, reaching out and curling a strand of hair that has escaped my ponytail around his finger. “In public, you only see a snippet of life.”
“I suppose.”
He places his palm against the plaster over my shoulder. “I have no idea how much you know about my life but it wasn’t all sunshine and roses.”
I really have no idea what his childhood was like, and meet his gaze, curious about what he has to say.
“When I was seventeen, my mother was murdered by a financial client of my father’s.”
I gasp, covering my mouth, before dropping my arm once more. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea.” And I hate that I inadvertently caused him to bring up his pain.
“I’d like to say it was a long time ago, and I’m over it but…
it stays with me.” He swallows hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
“Aiden was home sleeping, Dad was at a business dinner, and the rest of my brothers and my sister were busy out of the house, too. At different places. It doesn’t matter.
Mom and I were supposed to go out for dinner but when a girl I’d been into broke up with her long-term boyfriend and showed me some attention… ”
“You went for it,” I say with an understanding smile.
He raises one shoulder and lowers it again, trying to seem casual, but his pain is somehow mine. I feel the heavy, rhythmic beating of my heart, the fullness in my throat, and know he’s experiencing the same emotions.
“I was a typical teenager,” he says with disgust. “Selfish and self-absorbed. Mom said she understood and told me to go. If I’d just gone out with her like we’d planned…”
I clasp his free hand. “Then maybe you’d have been hurt or killed, too. Or maybe it was fate and the murderer would have found another time when your mom was alone. All I know is you can’t blame yourself.”
He curls his fingers around my hand, squeezing to express his gratitude. “As a kid, I couldn’t get past it. Now, as an adult, I know all the same things you just said but it’s hard not to blame myself.”
“I know,” I whisper, my gaze on his.
“But we’re both doing the same thing. There’s no point in wishing away something bad. You can’t change what happened with the Kanes any more than I can with my mom.”
I nod and tip my head up, my eyes locking on the warmth in his golden-brown gaze. Leaning down, he brushes his lips over mine. Once, twice, then a third time that makes me moan and press my body against his.
“Raven Walsh, stop making out and get your ass out here. The cake from Juniper’s is here and as manager, you need to sign for the order,” a familiar voice calls out.
Stevie.
Like caught teenagers, Remy and I jump back, me mortified I’ve crossed boundaries at work.
“Get that look off your face,” he whispers. “You did nothing wrong. Stevie’s your friend. It’s all good.”
A friend I need to keep at a distance once my brother gets out of prison. I shake my head and push that thought aside. I still have time.
“She’s lucky I like her or I’d fire her,” Remy mutters.
But we both know he’ll never do such a thing. Stevie is the best of the waitstaff we have.
“Boss, your family’s waiting,” Stevie calls, this time in a singsong voice.
He shakes his head, a smirk on those perfect lips.
“We’ll pick this up again later,” he says in a gruff voice.
“So sure of yourself, aren’t you?” I tease, surprising myself again.
I like this lighter side I rarely show. Too bad it’ll be locked down soon enough. Not wanting to deal with thoughts of Lance, I push the reality aside.
“After I finish with my family, I need to meet with a client,” Remy is saying and I focus on his steady voice instead. “Can I come by afterward?”
As he leans down, I expect another slide of his mouth over mine. Instead, he licks my bottom lip and I groan.
“Vanilla and mint. Yum,” he says, then stands to his full height.
I glance down and realize his cock is thick and aroused, tenting against his jeans.
He gives me a soft, pleading stare. “Please?”
I laugh at his antics. “Yes! Now go before someone comes looking for you again.”
Obviously satisfied he’s gotten his way, he winks, and walks away, giving me the perfect view of a perfect ass.
* * *
Raven
The bar gets busier after the Sterling family leaves and I even help serve drinks. By the time the night ends, I’m tired and ready to turn in for the night. Stevie walks out to an Uber she called and waves good night. I lock up the restaurant.
I stride past the tables and chairs to the door in the back that leads to the apartment I rent.
Stepping out, I lock up and set the alarm to the bar.
One of the things I like about the setup is that I have to go through the business in order to reach my front door. Nobody can sneak in and I feel safe.
At my apartment door, I unlock the Medeco lock on the bottom and the deadbolt on top. Once inside, I unset the alarm and lock up behind me, resetting the alarm.
“Whew.” I kick off my shoes, leaving them by the door. All I want is a hot shower and to crawl under the covers and get some sleep.
The apartment came decorated in furniture much nicer than anything I’d be able to afford on my own. I have a feeling Zach initially liked me enough or sensed I was one of his needy women and cut me a break on the rent. Either way, the place is homey and perfect for me.
I enter my bedroom. Just as I reach for the light switch, the window by my bed shatters. I scream and out of instinct, rush out and slam the door behind me.
Though I hope the blare of the alarm has scared them off, I run out of the apartment and rush back to the bar, locking myself inside.