Chapter One #3
“I know it's not their fault.” It wasn't their mother's fault either. The whole story came out soon after I discovered our father’s infidelity.
The woman had worked with him years before he married our mom, then moved to Maine.
He continued a relationship with her, unbeknownst to anyone.
Back then, there was no social media where you could track someone's every move. It had been easy for my father to keep his other family hidden. She’d never known about Mom.
He'd always told her he couldn’t marry her because his parents wouldn't approve.
For some reason, she didn't question that.
There was a single person responsible for all this: Ryan Whitley.
But that didn't mean I was going to be best friends with my half brothers. I didn’t want a daily reminder of what a fuckup my father is.
Cade and Spencer were on good terms with them but not friends—as far as I knew. Gabe was closest to them.
"I vote for you to move to Boston for a while," Spencer said.
“So do I,” Gabe said.
Colton nodded. “Count me in.”
“As much as I’d love to be around the family, this is not up for vote,” I interjected.
"That way we'll be around to give you shit,” Cade went on as if I hadn’t said anything.
“It would be a shame for the advertising branch to go bankrupt," Colton said.
"Me taking up the role is not even an option." I didn't want anyone raising their expectations. "I have my own company to run, as you do yours. Finding a CEO quickly is all we can do."
"All right. Well, Grandmother usually gets what she wants, one way or the other," Spencer said, and he was right.
"Is anyone slightly concerned that she seems intent on having great-grandchildren?” Gabe asked no one in particular.
We all turned to stare at him.
"She hints that her friends are bullying her for not having any. And she's even more insistent than usual," Gabe continued.
Colton waved his hand. "That's just Grandmother thinking if she nags us long enough, we’ll do her bidding.”
“Which sometimes does happen," Spencer said slowly, as if he was thinking out loud.
There was a beeping sound, and Colton quickly checked his watch.
"I need to get back to the lab."
"Jesus, dude, Jake just arrived," Cade said.
"I don't want to miss a possible breakthrough."
"See, that one has two jobs," Spencer said, pointing at Colton. "He's a CEO and a scientist. And he does both full-time. I have no idea how."
Colton looked very smug. “Bye, Jake. I'm going to be in New York next week. We'll catch up, okay?"
"Sure." I shook his hand before he left. Some days, I still couldn't believe my brother studied biotech. Growing up, all he talked about was soccer. When Mom passed away, he completely changed his career.
"I’ll never understand him," Gabe said. "Then again, I'm the complete opposite. Take Colton's brain, flip it, and you'll get mine."
We all chuckled at that, mostly because it was true. Gabe was the creative mind in the family—he’d taken the craft distillery to unparalleled heights by coming up with new recipes.
That gave me an idea.
"Gabe, you do all your advertising in-house, right?" I asked.
"Yes, but I know where you're going with this."
"Really? Humor me."
"You want me to take over as CEO?"
"Not even close.” I wasn't a fool. I knew being creative with a product and leading a creative company were two very different sets of skills. “But I think it would help if you would consult them on their actual campaigns, at least the ones that are related to your industry.”
“Grandfather already asked my advice on a few campaigns, but I’ll be more proactive about it.”
"Thanks, man," I said.
"Who wants drinks?" Spencer asked.
"I can't believe Colton left before we even had drinks." Cade shook his head.
"Stop giving the man a hard time. He's working on a ‘breakthrough discovery,’" I said, complete with air quotes.
"Yeah, yeah. You and Colton are like pot and kettle."
Once upon a time, we were a team. The two older brothers who found out their father was a jackass and had to protect their younger brothers from it as well as deal with their mother's illness.
Mom learned she had melanoma six months after finding out my father had cheated on her.
It was at an advanced stage, and she passed away four months later.
A waiter came by, and they all ordered an assortment of cocktails. I stuck to an energy drink.
Spencer cocked a brow. "And you're not toasting with us why?"
"I've got a call once I'm back."
"In New York?" He looked stunned.
"Yes."
"With whom? The whole US is sleeping. Europe too."
"Thank you for reminding me how time zones work. It's with Asia. The pitch is at 10:00 p.m. our time. It’s eleven in the morning for them."
"Okay. Well, cheers," Gabe said.
I might not act like it, but it was good to be back with my brothers. I wouldn't admit it out loud because they'd never let me forget it, but I missed the banter and catching up with them face-to-face.
I stayed with them for another forty minutes before I ordered an Uber to drive me to the private airport just outside the city.
As soon as I got inside the car, I started making phone calls, putting in motion the search for the CEO. Whitley Advertising needed one as soon as possible, and it wasn't going to be me.