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“Sir, you can’t just go in there.”
Jared looked up, instantly recognizing the voice of his brother, William, who responded to his assistant. Jared was the oldest of all the Peltzer kids. William had come three years after him and was his father’s true protégé.
Standing up, he stared at William.
“I’m so sorry, sir, he just wouldn’t let me call through,” Mary, his PA, said.
“It’s fine, Mary. Have you rearranged all of my meetings to next week?” he asked.
“Yes, sir. Also, a Ms. Meredith Shaw said she’d be a bit late. If you could pick her up at seven, rather than six.”
He didn’t want his brother hearing her name. Once his family realized what he was doing, they would try to destroy it.
“Thank you, Mary.”
She left.
“Who is Meredith?” William asked.
Damn it. “None of your business. What are you doing here?”
“I need a reason to come and see my big brother?”
“Most of the time, yes,” he said, taking a seat. He was disappointed he’d have to wait another full hour before he got to see his woman. He had no doubt in his mind Meredith was going to hate his apartment, but that was another reason he wanted her to see it. His hope was the moment she did, she’d start flooding his place with all her stuff. The blankets, pillows, throws, he wanted it all. The truth was, he’d never been good at the bachelor lifestyle. Screwing random women and having a little notebook with a woman on call didn’t appeal to him. What he wanted was a family, but one that wasn’t set on world domination and building an empire. He had all of that.
What he truly wanted now was a family. A woman to come home to every single night. Children. He didn’t want to even start talking about holidays and celebrations.
The newspapers had his entire life and who he was as a person all wrong, but he’d always been good at hiding who he really was. With Meredith, he could see his other dreams coming true. He also didn’t expect Meredith to give up her life either. He’d help her businesses in any way that he could, without taking over, of course. It was all a balancing act, one he intended to excel in.
“I was worried about you. We missed you at Sunday lunch.”
“William, you know I don’t go to Sunday lunch. I haven’t in a long time.” The last time he’d given in and gone to his parents, a woman, a little heiress, had been seated right next to him. The entire time, she’d talked about her social media presence and what she hoped to gain and how she was in a rivalry with another heiress.
He’d been so bored he’d wondered what it would take to get him out of there fast. At one point, he’d been tempted to drive his steak knife right through his thigh, just for the fun of it.
“Okay, fine, Dad sent me.”
“Of course he did.”
“He wants you to take the Baller account.”
The Baller account was a new and upcoming software developer who was looking for investment. He wasn’t interested in what the man had to offer, and he hadn’t even put in a bid, but he hadn’t been surprised to hear his family had. They were all about moving forward, going from fad to fad.
It was what differed between their companies. His family was in it for the now and the big. For him, he was in it for longevity. To most, it was an outdated business model, but it had worked more than once.
“No.”
“Come on, Jared. Stop being a royal pain in the ass.”
“I’ve told you, William. I’m not going to take these clients you have no idea what to do with. There’s a reason I didn’t go for the Baller account. The man is completely unethical, and his little popularity contest app sounds like fun, but it’s insulting.” He’d briefly read the description and hadn’t been impressed, which was why he was now having this conversation with his brother.
It wasn’t a good one.
“You’ve always been a bit of a weird one, but I thought you’d appreciate a heads-up.”
Jared stared at his brother. “Do I look like I was born yesterday? You go out trying to get all the latest people and software, for what? Trying to piss me off?”
“Oh, please, this is about business.”
“If it was exclusively about business, you wouldn’t be here. Now if you don’t mind, I’ve got actual clients and accounts that need me. Get the hell out of my office.”
“You know, we could all work together if you were to just get your head out of your ass,” William said. “No one cares about your family and pansy-ass approach.”
Jared sat back and looked at his brother. He smiled. “Really? Then tell me why I’m sitting on my own empire, going from strength to strength, and you’re here trying to sell me a client. Even though I’m family, I know everything comes with a price, and it’s one I’m not prepared to pay.”
