Page 34 of Finding Love

The man was about ten years older than Ryder and had been a staple in his father’s business since graduating from law school. For some reason, his father had taken Mark under his wing, and the guy had climbed the corporate ladder quickly under his father’s tutelage.

He, along with everyone else in the business, knew that Mark had his eye on the CEO position. Especially after Ryder’s father’s death.

It was also one of the reasons Ryder had stepped aside last year. The man had been relentless in his criticism of how Ryder had been running the business.

From his brief conversation with Kelly, it appeared that the man hadn’t been doing such a bang-up job in Ryder’s absence. Ryder had wanted to know more, but Kelly had been very vague. She’d almost sounded scared.

“I am,” Ryder answered Mark as he headed up the stairs.

“Why now? Did Harry call you?” Mark asked.

Ryder stopped at the base of the stairs with a frown.

Harry Trillian had been his old man’s best friend. He was on the board of directors and, out of all of his father’s friends, the only one that Ryder felt he could trust.

“No, is there a reason he should have?” Ryder asked.

Mark was silent for a while. “The board is voting later this week on making my position as CEO more… permanent.”

And there it was, Ryder thought. The reason his gut had drawn him back home. He knew it was bound to happen. Feared it. This was why he was here. To stop that. But the fact was, Ryder didn’t want the position either. It wasn’t for him. But then why did it eat at him so much if Mark took over?

He climbed the stairs, no longer having the patience for the games Mark was playing.

“I’ll be in the office in half an hour,” he said. “We can talk then.” He hung up before giving the man a chance to respond.

When his phone rang again, he set it on the counter and climbed into the shower, knowing Mark’s calls would go to voicemail.

The man was persistent. Which is why he’d left his cell phones at home when he’d taken off a year ago. He’d purchased a new one for emergencies on the road, but he hadn’t given out the number to anyone except Harry. The man had called him only twice over the past year.

The fact that he hadn’t called to inform Ryder about the board voting on Mark weighed heavy on his mind.

After dressing in one of his old suits, he looked at himself in the mirror. His hair was a lot longer than it had been last year, as was his beard. He’d thought of shaving it off and cutting his hair, but then quickly dismissed those ideas. This was who he was now.

He slicked his hair back and tied it with one of Brook’s black hair bands, then trimmed his beard a little shorter.

He was tan, toned, a lot thinner, and had far more muscles than he had the last time he’d worn the suit. The shirt stretched over his arms and chest and yet was baggy around his narrow waist.

He looked… completely out of his element. Like a hobo at a black-tie event. Yet, underneath the exterior, he knew this business was in his blood.

He could probably buy and sell investments in his sleep. It was as ingrained in him as breathing.

Taking a deep breath, he headed back downstairs. Brook and Willy were standing at the base of the stairs, waiting for him. The pair of them looked at him as if he’d gone mad. Willy even let out a low whine.

“I know, buddy.” He knelt and gave his dog a scratch between the ears. “I feel as stupid as I look.”

“You look great,” Brook said with a smile. “Sexy.” She ran her eyes over him.

He straightened. “Thanks. There are cars in the garage if you want to go anywhere. The keys are in a box hanging on the wall. There is a gate fob in each one. Feel free to use them. I told security that you were a guest so you shouldn’t have any problems coming or going.”

“Thanks,” she said, and kissed him. “If you need me.” She wiggled her cell phone. “I’m only a call away.”

He kissed her back. “See you for dinner.”

She nodded as he headed toward the garage. Inside sat the four cars that his father had purchased and babied in the years before his death. His father had treated his cars better than he’d treated his son. Still, Ryder had always enjoyed driving the four luxury vehicles, which included a blue and silver Lamborghini Veneno, a black Rolls-Royce, a Mercedes-Benz sedan, and Ryder’s favorite, a black and silver Bugatti Chiron.

He knew that the staff that he’d continued to pay for over the last year would have seen to their maintenance. Much like everything else around the massive home.

He grabbed the keys to the Bugatti and headed into the city.