Keith leaned forward, the pizza slice in his hand forgotten. Of the three of us, he was probably the smartest. Not that I would ever tell him. “What are you talking about, Fred?”
“That shipment.” I leaned back in the recliner. “The deal that’s going down in a few weeks. You said it was big?”
“It is.” Keith nodded slowly, his eyes darting around the room as he put the pieces together. “Our contact is just the middle man, but the payout is huge. Why?”
“You need to confirm that Snow Enterprises is the supplier.” My words were a clear order. “Use all your contacts, as needed. You know how to track and hack online. See if you can find someone called The Rival. He sent me a video that proved Theo was involved in my arrest. He might know something.”
“Who?” Keith’s frown deepened.
“The Rival. He’s like a ghost. I think he has eyes on Snow. Find him.”
Charlie shook his head. “And what if he does? Then what?”
My lips lifted into a smile. Probably the first one I’d had since I got home. We needed to plan. Everything needed to go perfectly. Justice needed to be served along with every meal. “The gala is next weekend. Theo will be there in all his glory. Showing off his fortune and the woman he stole. It's time to bring him down. And the first steps are at that gala. I want him cowering like the scared little boy he is.”
“I understand you wanting to get revenge for Maggie.” Keith was never one to act irrationally. “But this seems over the top. Even for you. What am I missing?”
My eyes darted between both my brothers. I could already see the headlines next Sunday morning. “Didn’t you hear me? He set me up. He was behind that weapons deal and narked. I am going to bring him down. But that’s weeks away.”
Both brothers nodded slowly. Charlie was the one to speak up. “So, what’s the plan?”
“We’re done being small time thugs.” I looked at each of my brothers as the plan formed in my mind. It was cold and ruthless and beautiful. “We’re not just going to just hit the shipment. That’s what everyone would expect. While he’s busy playingking, we’ll expose him as a coward. We’re going to crash that little party. Distract him.”
Charlie’s eyes widened. “Are you crazy? That place will be crawling with security.”
“So. There is always security.” I glared at him, not wanting more problems without solutions. “I have an advantage. The Rival wants Theo out of the picture, too. He’s the one who sent me proof. I’m sure he’ll give us whatever backup we need. We’re just going to use the chaos to our advantage.”
“Tell us you plan, brother.” Keith nodded, finally fully on board.
As I laid out the plan that had been forming in my mind, both my brothers listened intently, both knew better than to interrupt me. The gala was in seven days, everyone worth knowing would be in attendance, pretending to do good and donate to charity. It would be the perfect time to crash the party and embarrass the man who stole my wife. Everyone would see him run for safety and that was when I would get him.
As we all leaned back in our seats, I finished. “And that bitch will be the spoils of the war. Keith, find out about that shipment. Charlie, find out everything there is to know about the security at the dinner. And I am going to find a way in. I know I could never secure an invitation. But there are other ways.”
CHAPTER 16
THEO
Staringat my reflection in the full length mirror in my closet, something was different. I couldn’t pinpoint what it was, but that was not the same man I’d seen for the last twenty-nine years staring back at me.
I’d had a haircut the day before, but that wasn’t it. I’d worn the tux often enough to not be jarred by how it looked. Everything about me was exactly the same, yet it wasn’t.
The truth was, I wasn’t just Theo Snow, CEO of Snow Enterprises, and the keynote speaker for the evening. There were also parts I needed to explain to her. But for now, I was the man waiting for Maggie Bauman, the man who would be arriving with her on my arm.
The past week had been strange in the best way possible. The unfamiliar tension in my home was exhilarating and not altogether unwelcome. Operation: Wooing had turned into the most high stakes negotiation I’d had ever engaged in. I had gone from being a logical and practical man, whose entire objective was to move Maggie and her kids in to protect them, to a man with sweaty palms, pacing my bedroom contemplating all the ways I could woo her in a single evening.
I had no doubt I was crushing it.
In less than two weeks I got to witness Maggie in a way I hadn’t seen since college. The awe on her face at the picnic set up. The unguarded laughter when I told a dirty or punny joke. Then there was the soft way she’d leaned into our goodnight kiss. All of it was more than I had expected from our arrangement and it was everything I’d ever wanted.
The Snow Enterprises Charity Gala was one of the few things I enjoyed about my job. I didn’t mind the tuxedo and fake smiling at the ass-kissers because at the end of the night a lot of money would be going to various charities. The kind of charities my father would have sniffed at. Women’s causes were always at the top of my list, we also donated to a non-profit that provided legal assistance to those who couldn’t afford it.
But with all that came some scrutiny. I hadn’t taken a date to these events since I had taken over from my father. Neither had Tiffany. We’d arrive at the gala together with Hunter as our bodyguard a step or two away from us.
The fact that Maggie would be with me, was bound to raise some eyebrows. With her arm hooked in mine or her hand intertwined with my hand, people would speculate, and for once the speculation would be correct. I imagined the dress she would be wearing. I had no idea what it looked like since both her and Tiff had been so secretive about it. I remembered how her eyes lit up when she returned home from shopping and she found me plastered in make-up and glitter thanks to my little Pop-Tart.
She looked at me as if that was the real prize and not the black credit card I had told her to use. And maybe it was. Heaven knew handing over that card was infinitely easier than entertaining a four-year-old who’d felt left out.
My work phone buzzed on the dresser, and I ignored it. Rina could handle things, the evening was about Maggie. And I was the lucky asshole who got to show her off.
