Chapter 23
“I can’t believe Mom is making us come over on a weeknight,” I grumble as Ethan drives through evening traffic.
“I had plans.” The car glides silently around a corner as rain starts to spatter against the windshield.
Ethan switches on the wipers, his expression calm despite the dark circles under his eyes.
I check my phone battery again. Dead as a doornail. Great. Just perfect.
I let out an involuntary sigh, wondering what Eve is doing right now.
Probably settled on her couch watching that crime documentary series we started last weekend, wearing my blue button-down that she ‘borrowed.’ She thinks I haven’t noticed how she’s claimed three of my shirts already, wearing them around her apartment like they’ve always been hers.
I haven’t said a word about it—afraid she’ll stop if I point it out.
“Why are you sighing?” Ethan glances over, one eyebrow raised.
“Why do you have dark circles under your eyes?” I retort, deflecting with practiced ease. Ethan gives me a bland look. He turns his attention back to the road, apparently deciding I'm not worth the effort.
I slump against the door, watching the city lights blur past. “Eve and I had plans. We were going to order dinner and watch TV.”
I can feel Ethan’s eyes on me. “That’s your idea of a date? That’s very lazy of you.”
“Shut up, Ethan. You ruined my entire evening,” I mutter grumpily. I had planned everything out, and now Eve’s home all alone. “And I’m here with my stick-in-the mud brother.”
I didn’t realize I spoke out loud till Ethan mutters, “You’ve gotten rude as well.”
My eyes swivel towards him, and I grin. “Oops.”
“You’ve got it bad for Eve,” he says, not even bothering to phrase it as a question.
“Shut up,” I grumble. “Life was easier when all I had to worry about was sleeping with a woman, not all this... other stuff.” I run a hand through my hair, knowing there’s no point in denying it anymore. I do have it bad. Catastrophically bad.
“Nobody’s making you do ‘everything else,’” Ethan points out.
I give him an annoyed look. “You wouldn’t understand. Natalie actually loves you back, so it’s easy to be with her.”
Ethan raises his eyebrows. “If you love Eve,” he says, emphasizing the word in a way that makes me want to jump out of the moving car, “you’re going to have to do things you don’t usually do.”
I glance at him and notice the dark circles under his eyes again. A sly grin spreads across my face. “Oh, you mean like getting up four to five times a night to feed a kitten.”
Ethan’s jaw tightens almost imperceptibly. “It makes Natalie happy.”
I let out a bark of laughter. “You are whipped, Ethan. Admit it.”
“Would you like to walk home?” my brother asks icily. I immediately shut up.
“Anyway, why is Mom calling us over today? Is everything okay?”
Ethan overtakes a car, his tone thoughtful. “I believe it has something to do with Megan.”
“Oh.” I immediately press my lips together, and my silence has my older brother looking over suspiciously.
“You know something?”
“What? Me?” I give him a wide-eyed look, the picture of utter innocence. “Why would I know anything?”
“You and Megan are close. If she’s done something, it stands to reason you would know about it.” Ethan’s eyes are tiny slits. “What did she do?”
“Nothing.” I curse myself silently. “I’ve been so busy lately, I’ve not talked to her at all—”
“Call her.”
“Call who?” I ask stupidly.
“Megan.”
“Can’t.” I hold up my phone before smirking. “My phone’s dead.”
“She better not have done anything stupid, Caleb. And if she did and I find out you knew about it, you’ll be in just as much trouble,” Ethan warns.
“I’m a grown ass man,” I scowl. “I’m not scared of you.” The last part comes out smaller than I intended because Ethan’s glare pins me to my seat.
I’ll have to charge my phone quickly once we get home to warn Megan. I never told Ethan or Jake about the break-in at her apartment. I was going to, but Megan promised she wouldn’t stay there anymore. I should have checked in with her.
Stupid move.
“By the way, I’ve been looking into Joshua.” Ethan’s change of topic has me straightening in my seat.
“You found something?”
“IT’s been monitoring his computer activity. His computer’s been copying Serastra files to cloud storage despite the explicit ban on using any external services for sensitive projects.”
“So he is our leak.”
“It’s not confirmed yet, but it’s looking that way. He accessed the servers at three in the morning last Tuesday, downloaded all the Serastra marketing materials, and uploaded them somewhere off our network. We’re tracing the destination now.”
My jaw tightens. “He’s got nothing to do with the campaign anymore. He shouldn’t even have access to the cloud server. Nobody aside from me, Eve, and Iris do anymore.”
“That’s why I told you to keep all data about the Serastra event solely on your computer. No shared drives, no emails with attachments. Work offline completely if possible.” Ethan’s voice is tense. “Keep things off the cloud. I don’t know how he could access it. But it’s troubling.”
“If he got any information, it was outdated,” I point out. “We’ve been offline since the craftsmen cancelled on us. Eve’s been on top of it. She’s been uploading wrong information on the server just to throw anyone off.”
Ethan looks impressed by her devious action. “She’s smart.”
“I know.” I feel pleased at the praise directed towards her.
We pull into the curved driveway of our parents’ house, and I spot Jake’s cherry-red Porsche already parked near the entrance. “Is this some sort of intervention?” I ask warily. “What is Jake doing here?”
“Don’t be dramatic,” Ethan says, killing the engine. “Jake had to take Natalie and Sophie to the vet after work. I couldn’t go because of my meetings with the investors and then with you.”
It takes me a moment to process this information. “Wait—Natalie’s been bringing Sophie to work?”
“Yes.”
A grin spreads across my face. “Can I get a puppy and start bringing it to work, too?”
“No,” Ethan says flatly.
“How about a lizard?” I ask as I get out of the car. “Or a pet tarantula? I hear they’re super cuddly."
“Get inside, Caleb.”
The imposing brownstone on Park Avenue stands like a sentinel of old money elegance, its warm brick exterior and polished brass fixtures a testament to generations of wealth.
I grew up running through these hallways, sliding down banisters when Mom wasn’t looking, hiding from Jake and Nick during games of tag that usually ended with me in trouble.
We step inside, and I immediately spot Dad walking towards the entrance.
The man has dark hair and amber eyes filled with mild irritation.
He looks like an older version of Ethan, apart from the casual navy cardigan and slacks he’s wearing instead of Ethan’s usual impeccable suits.
But what catches my attention is the tiny gray head peeking out from one of his pockets, bright blue eyes looking curiously at the world.
“Sophie!” I exclaim, instantly forgetting the irritation about missing my evening with Eve. “Is that her? She’s so tiny!”
I reach out to pet the kitten, but Dad pulls back, scowling. “Don’t just lunge at her like that, Caleb. You’ll frighten her.”
“I wasn’t lunging,” I protest, but I lower my hand anyway. “I was going to pet her gently.”
Ethan raises an eyebrow at our father. “Why are you carrying her around, Dad?”
Dad straightens, looking oddly defensive.
“Natalie’s busy with your mother, so I’m looking after Sophie.
” He clears his throat, trying to sound casual.
“I’m taking her for a walk around the house to acquaint her with the furniture.
” I bite back a laugh. The mighty Harold Wilder, terror of the courtroom for thirty years, reduced to kitten daycare.
“Can I at least touch her?” I ask, keeping my voice soft.
Dad hesitates, then nods reluctantly. I reach out and tap Sophie gently on her tiny nose. She blinks at me, then lets out the smallest, most pathetic meow I’ve ever heard.
“That’s enough,” Dad says, pulling her back protectively. “You’re overwhelming her.”
I roll my eyes. “A nose tap is overwhelming? She’s not made of glass, Dad.”
“She’s adjusting to a new environment,” he says with a frown, stroking the kitten’s head with one finger. “She needs stability and routine.”
I exchange a look with Ethan, who seems just as amused as I am. Who would’ve thought Dad would become a cat person? Then again, he’s always had a soft spot for small, helpless things. It’s why Megan gets away with murder.
“I’m going to see Mom,” I announce, heading toward the living room.
The luxurious scent of Mom’s jasmine perfume mingles with fresh flowers as I walk in.
Mom and Natalie are seated on the cream-colored sofa, heads bent together over what looks like a catalog.
Mom’s silver-gray hair falls loosely around her shoulders today instead of in her usual updo, and she’s wearing a cream silk blouse with a long charcoal skirt.
“Caleb, darling!” Mom looks up, her warm hazel eyes lighting up at the sight of me. “Come look at these cribs with us.”
I lean down to kiss her cheek. “Hey, Mom. Is that a new necklace?” I gesture to the thin gold chain around her neck.
She touches it lightly, smiling. “Your father gave it to me for our anniversary. Do you like it?”
“It’s nice,” I say, noticing the small diamond pendant I missed at first glance. “Very you.”
Natalie smiles up at me, her hand resting on her swollen belly. “Your mom thinks the mahogany crib with the hand-carved details would be perfect.”
“Of course she does.” I plop down next to them, peering at the catalog. “Mom believes in the finest things.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Mom waves dismissively. “Quality matters, especially for a baby. This will become a family heirloom.”
I glance at the price tag and whistle. “Five thousand dollars for a crib?”