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Jack stood, but Neil put his hand on his arm to keep him from following. When Cole got into one of his moods it was best to leave him alone. All four brothers carried guilt. They all wrestled with similar demons. But Cole’s seemed to be the darkest and most haunting.
The back door banged shut after him, and they all cringed.
“He’s not going to let this go, is he?” Jack asked.
“Just let him cool down for a couple of days,” Finn said.
“I’ll text Penn and let her know to expect a ranting phone call or visit.” Neil pulled his phone out of the inner pocket of his suit.
“Good idea,” Finn answered.
For some reason, Penn was one of the few people who could talk him down off a cliff. That Cole was smitten was utterly obvious to everyone but himself. The man had issues. Hell, who didn’t?
Gloria rustled inside her purse. “I expected this meeting to be civil, and I am reluctant to bring this up without Cole here, but the news is just too big to keep a secret.”
She smiled wide and laid a piece of paper on the table. “The National Philanthropy Association has honored our Jack with the Young Philanthropists Award.”
“You’re not serious,” Jack said. He picked up the letter and read it over. “Me? A philanthropy award?”
Neil stood and patted Jack on the back. “Good boy, Jackie. You’ve worked really hard this year. You deserve it.”
“Wow. This is going to bring really big attention to the foundation and to the Cooking for the Future program. Awesome.”
“Congratulations, Jack,” Finn said. He knew how important an award like this could be for the foundation. But he couldn’t help feeling a spurt of impatience. His brothers valued the public accolades far more than he did. And okay, maybe there was a tiny twinge of envy, too. Everyone seemed to be recognized for their good deeds except for Finn. It would be nice if his hard work were acknowledged just once. But hell, there were more important things than awards…like family and friends.
Speak of the devil. He looked up as Mark walked into the dining room dressed in jeans and button-down shirt. It was one of only a few times since their early twenties that Finn had seen him not wearing a suit. “Sorry I’m late. I got stuck waiting for the train.”
Mark peeked around Jack and smiled, “Hello, Gloria.”
She returned his greeting with a tiny wave of her fingers.
Like Neil, Mark was a businessman to the core. But unlike Neil, Mark was truly corporate. He worked for an advertising agency in Vancouver, specializing in fashion.
Jack acknowledged Mark with a shake of his head. “What are you doing here?”
“Cole sent me a text. He said he needed my advertising expertise.” Mark rocked back on his heels and his eyes darted from one person to another. “Where is he? I don’t have much time. We’re dropping Ali off at school this afternoon.”
“That boy is getting way ahead of himself.” Neil gripped the back of the chair he was still straddling. “He’s already thinking about advertising.”
“Did I miss something?” Mark asked hesitantly.
Jack fiddled with the paper evidence that Cole had just visited Crazy Town. “Just Cole flying off the rails.”
Mark blew out a long breath. “Haven’t seen one of those in a while.”
Jack shook his head. “It wasn’t pretty.”
Finn’s stomach growled. The loud sort of growl that caused Neil to look over and snicker. “Since we’re here, why don’t we have a celebratory breakfast?” He smiled at Jack.
“But Cole left.” Jack eyed the exit to the back door.
Cole clearly wasn’t coming back. Not anytime soon. And since it was still midmorning, they wouldn’t be in the way of Cole’s staff. “Bistro has a kitchen full of food and I’m starving,” Finn said.
Neil grinned. “What else is new?”
“Besides, I think we should ditch the drama and talk instead about organizing a bachelor party for this fool.” He poked a finger at Jack.
Gloria rose. “You boys have fun. I have a few errands to run.”
