How the tables have turned.
I consider bringing up Brooklyn’s request when I meet with my brother, but I don’t want to involve my family in my marital issues. We have bigger things to worry about, thanks to my father. Besides, my priority isn’t what my wife wants. My family business is back in the middle of a sinkhole and my focus needs to be on keeping it from going under.
Letting the blinds go, I step away from the window and check my watch. My brother is running late, so I refill my coffee and sit at my desk. Then I make the mistake of googling “Zoric scandal” on my computer and fall into a media black hole akin to the nine circles of Hell.
The door to my office opens and I startle out of my trance as Stefan strides in.
“It’s about damn time,” I snap, and immediately regret it.
Stefan doesn’t miss a beat as he sets his laptop on my desk and sinks into the plush leather chair across from me.
“Grab me a cup, would you?” he asks tiredly, nodding to the coffee pot on my sideboard. I pour him one, feeling guilty about my outburst, then take a seat behind my desk and prop my feet on the top edge.
We make eye contact, neither of us knowing where to start. I look to my older brother to be the initiator in all major things in my life. Always have. It’s not just that he’s older, either. He’s just such a go-getter. Nothing is more natural for him than taking the reins and pointing me in the direction I need to go. In fact, that’s what led me to marry Brooklyn. But I don’t have the heart to tell him that it’s been an epic failure, and that my heart is taking a fucking beating.
We sip our coffees in silence a moment longer before I can’t take it anymore. “What’s the plan, man? I know you have something brewing in that big brain of yours.”
He grins wryly and sets down his mug. “Honestly, I can’t get past the fact that the trial has actually started. It’s surreal and fucking god-awful. I wish it was done and over with.”
Lord, don’t I know it. “I thought I was ready for this day to come, but I’m not. Have you talked to Emzee?”
I feel a pang of guilt for not reaching out to our little sister myself, but she’s closer to Stefan—and honestly, I’ve been too preoccupied with my wife to play the part of good brother.
He nods. “She said she’s doing okay. She’ll be in the office later.”
“Of course she told you she’s okay,” I say, shaking my head. “She’s not okay. And neither are we.”
There’s part of me that feels like, in the grand scheme of things, this is par for the course. Because our whole lives, with our mom gone and our father at the helm, us kids were all in a constant state of “not okay.” There was always some drama to worry about with our dad. Not only his temper, but his unpredictable behavior. How he didn’t sink KZ Modeling years ago is a mystery. I suppose because he always had a competent team behind him, including my brother.
Stefan sighs and sits up straight, his fingers steepled. “But wewill be. We can control some of this, Luka. We can all do our part to keep up the company image. In fact, we need to, more than ever. We might not feel okay at this very moment, but this will pass. I promise.”
Some of the tension leaves my body, and I can feel my shoulders sag a little. I believe my brother in the way I’ve always believed him. I can tell by his steadfast expression that he has at least a semblance of a plan. There was a time in my life when I’d let him take charge completely, but something has subtly shifted. I don’t want to just sit back and watch anymore.
“What can I do to help?” I say.
He raises a brow. “I, or we? You’re part of a team, Luka. You have a wife, a partner, and you’re going to need her to get through this.”
I shift uncomfortably in my chair, nodding along.
My brother will never know how hard it is to smile and feign comfort at those words. He tilts his head with a knowing set to his lips. That’s one thing about me and my siblings. We can always read each other, so there’s no point in hiding anything.
Not for long, anyway.
“Hmm.” He makes an annoyed little sound. “Do I want to know what’s going on with the two of you?”
I haven’t said anything to anyone about what Brooklyn did. Certainly not to my family. They’re counting on this marriage to help pull our family business out of the ashes. We’d been doing a good job of it, too. Until suddenly…we weren’t. It’s difficult to be seen publicly with my wife now, because I’m afraid the media will see right through us the way my brother does.
One good reporter and our façade will be shattered. That’s my biggest fear. Then I’ll be a failure in my family’s eyes, as always.
“Nothing is going on with us,” I lie. “We’re fine.”
“Don’t tell me it’s some immature shit that you pulled.” Stefan’s eyes are half-amused as he looks at me over the rim of his coffee cup.
The back of my neck tingles as I fight the urge to throttle him. It fades fast. My family always assumes I’m the reason behind any and every bit of trouble. Considering my past, they’re not often wrong. But this time it was all Brooklyn. “It’s really not. And I said we’re fine.”
He shrugs. “Good to hear. Because we’re gonna have to ramp up our social and public presence. Remind people that at the heart of it, DRM is a family business. Dad blindsided us with his crimes, too. But he’s gone now and the Zorics are still going strong, as a family.”
“So that’s the plan? You expect us all to just…put on a happy face? Ride it out?”
