AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Get to the point, Celeste.”
“I’ve just gotten off the phone with Gideon.”
Judge Gideon Anderson was the chairperson of the Zeta Society, nicknamed the Titans by an enterprising young reporter sometime during the 1930s.
“Noah has been in contact with him, and the judge wanted to know if I’d spoken with Theodore. There’s a steering committee meeting at the Parthenon on Saturday to finalize plans for the annual gathering. There’s also some executive business that requires a quorum. Your father hasn’t said he will be there. We can assume he won’t.”
“Christ.” He stared at the owl representing wisdom. Was it a coincidence the paint was peeling from the edges?
For more than a hundred and fifty years, a Sterling had been seated at the board table.
“Noah offered to attend in his stead.”
Tension gripped Rafe’s shoulder, making pain from the bicycle crash jackknife through his body.
“Find a woman who will best suit your needs and take away any doubt or potential challenges to your role as the leader of Sterling Worldwide.”
It was a warning, not a suggestion.
After Celeste rang off, Rafe pushed redial on his father’s number.
“Ahoy, Rafe!”
In relief, he loosened his tie. “When are you coming home, Dad?”
“Not anytime soon. Lillibet wants to go on an around-the-world cruise for our honeymoon.”
“Listen…” Rafe plowed a hand through his close-cropped hair. “A honeymoon happens after a wedding.”
“I’m aware.” Impatience clipped Theodore’s words.
“As far as I know, you already have a wife.”
“Oh, for Christ’s sake, Rafe. Don’t burden me with your details.”
“That you haven’t taken care of. Bigamy is against the law. You’ll need to file for a divorce if you’re serious. Have you even spoken to a lawyer?”
“Lillibet wants this trip, and I’ll damn well ensure she gets it.”
“Whether or not you’re still married to my mother?”
In the background, a female voice called out to his father, “Teddy! Teddy Bear!”
“She’s always wanted to see Casablanca.”
“Morocco?”
“So romantic.”
“She does know it doesn’t end well, right?” When his father didn’t respond, Rafe prompted, “The movie. Bogart doesn’t get the girl.”
“I’m not sure she’s interested in the details. We’re leaving in May.”
Next month?
“We’ve hired a crew for the Lunar Sea, and we’re planning to be gone something like ninety days, maybe a hundred.”
“Ted-dy!”
“Goddamn it, Dad. You need to think about the business.”
“Ted-dy!”
“Coming, my love!” His father was laughing as he ended the call.
Rafe lowered his phone. Then, uncharacteristically, frustration overtook him, and he slammed it onto the desktop.
“Problem?”
He looked up to see Noah on the threshold.
This was turning into Rafe’s lucky day. “What can I do for you?”
“Jeanine’s not at her desk, so I took the liberty of seeing if you were in.”
He wouldn’t put it past Noah to have waited until Jeanine left. How long had he been there? How much had he overheard?
“I’ve been trying to reach Uncle Theodore.”
“Have you?”
“There’s a piece of property that might be become available in Hong Kong. High-density area. Looking at it for a boutique-type of operation.”
“Send me the information.”
Noah adjusted his tie. “It’s not your particular expertise, is it?”
It wasn’t. Rafe had spent a lot of his career at Sterling in the financial department. In addition to oversight and compliance, he’d been focused on expanding the company into new areas, muscling into parts of the hospitality industry that were ripe for disruption. But in his father’s absence, he’d been sleeping less than usual as he juggled all the various arms of the conglomeration, adjusting to a steep learning curve while pretending his father was still in charge.
Aware of Noah waiting for him to snap, Rafe countered with, “Is there a reason you’re not confident in your own opinion?”
