“I need to check my email, little one, so as much as it pains me to say, you take the first shower. That way I’m not distracted by temptation, and I can get some stuff done before my brother and cousin arrive.”
I playfully pout but nod.
“I’ll need to do the same thing.”
I’ve taken unexpected days off, but I still have duties to my clients, so I’m checking emails throughout the day. We’ve told the staff that we had a family emergency with someone in Brahm, and that’s where Papa has been. It just happened to coincide with me catching a cold, or so people at the office believe.
The half an hour between Jorge’s phone call and his family arriving feels like it was about thirty seconds. He’s barely out of the shower before there’s a knock on the suite’s door. He goes to answer it, and two of the most remarkable men I’ve ever seen walk in. In an instant, I can tell which one is Joaquin. He couldn’t be confused as Jorge’s twin, but the resemblance is strong.
And Alejandro—makes any fashion model look like some schlub off the street. Okay. He is the pretty one. Maybe I would’ve been attracted to him if I’d never met Jorge. But it’s everything about Jorge that appeals to me. His looks and his sheer presence. It’s different from Alejandro because I don’t get a sense his cousin is as introverted as Jorge. It doesn’t make him as mysterious as my man.
My man. Fuck if that doesn’t sound good.
Jorge greets them with hugs that last longer than most would deem manly. It’s obvious how close he is to them. His embrace with Alejandro is just as sincere as the one he shares with Joaquin. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he and Alejandro were brothers not cousins. I think they were likely raised that way.
“This is Anneliese.”
It still sounds odd when I hear him use my full name. He hasn’t done it since we first met, and that was rare. I love my name. I think it’s beautiful, but I prefer Liesel with Jorge. I’ve never loved Anne, but some time in elementary school, it became a default.
“Hello. How was the flight?”
I shake both men’s hand, and their smiles appear genuine. It puts me at ease. I wouldn’t want to meet either of them as shadowy figures in a dark alley, but they’re relaxed and friendly here.
“We’re nepo-babies, so a private jet makes travel easy.”
Joaquin grins with his self-deprecating comment. I’ve hated being called that because of my executive position at the family firm. I’ve shied away from it, but these three men appear to own it. I don’t doubt they all contribute to their family’s businesses—legal or otherwise.
“Thank you for coming. I?—”
A lump forms in my throat. The benefits of a few hours of intimacy with Jorge to forget what’s happening slip away. It crashes back down on me when I recall—again—that these men are only here because we need more help than Jorge can do on his own. He pulls me into his embrace and kisses my forehead. I know he’s looking at Alejandro and Joaquin, but I have no idea what their silent communication means. I can see the other men’s faces, but I can read nothing from them.
“You matter to Jorge, so you matter to all of us. Not quite the welcome to the family we’d like to offer, but we’ll do everything we can.”
I tense and feel him do the same.
Welcome to the family?
I can daydream about that, but we live on two different continents. I’m set to inherit a family business I can’t easily run remotely. Not without making trips back here every few weeks. That’s not the kind of jet-setting I’d like. Could I walk away? After this and what I’ve dealt with, I think I could.
But Jorge and I haven’t spoken about the future beyond saying we want to be together. Considering me a member of the family is a tremendous leap. The idea warms me from my chest down to my belly and out to my limbs. It makes my cunt ache for him again.
“Thank you.”
“We should sit down and review everything. Liesel, you need to tell us more about what’s happened since the supposed Parisian syndicate approached you. Beyond the bank transactions and emails, did anyone start acting differently toward you?”
Jorge steers the conversation away as we walk toward the sofa and armchairs. He lifts his arm from around my waist to around my shoulders as we settle beside each other on the sofa. The men fill the chairs as though they’re thrones when they put their arms on the rests. They cross their left legs over their right, and I have to wonder if that’s a family genetic trait because they do it so naturally and identically.
I know my father’s secretary was the leak who shared the Diaz Holdings investment intentions, but I don’t know that she has the means to pull off a plan this intricate. I know she sold the information to the Kutsenkos because Jorge told me yesterday. How they leaked it from there, I don’t know.
Friedrich’s revelations yesterday about his family connections would make me question him, but there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for Heidi. Now that I know the thingsOnkelClyde’s been up to, I wonder if there’s something between him and Papa I don’t know about.
They’ve always been super close. As far as I know, they rarely argue and have been happy working together, but I’m starting to realize there’s far more I don’t know about my family business than I ever could’ve fathomed. I look over at Jorge before I share my next thoughts.
“How far have you dug forOnkelClyde’s clients? Are there ones he could have that I don’t know about? It seems like there are more secrets at every turn. Clients Papa andOnkelClyde kept hidden records for, or maybe even ones Papa doesn’t know about. Despite being family and having a solid working relationship, this confirms what I’ve always suspected about human nature. You should never underestimate people’s ability for duplicity and ambition. You never know how deep that could run.”
All three men nod, and I suspect if anybody understands the truth behind that, it’s them. Joaquin is the one who answers my questions.
“From what we can tell, both by your uncle’s banking records and investigating his connections with American syndicates, there’s nothing new for us to question. We’ve been aware of everything that’s happened within the last couple of years. I planted some information to see if it might draw our Irish rivals out and make them contact him, but nothing’s been a go.”
