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“I miss him. This was so sudden and he was so full of life, Bran. We had so many years left together.” She turned her soft, green eyes to meet mine. “I know that there is a lot of pressure on you boys, now. I know that you’re going to have to grow up quickly with all of this responsibility, but it is what he wanted.” Her eyes asked me so many questions as I stared at her quietly. “Do him proud?” It was Mom that sat me down and talked to me when she started to hear about all the women and parties, telling me and Brent that we were so intelligent and better than that. However, when you are one of the wealthiest families in the world, a lot of stories get told. They weren’t all true.
Okay, most of them probably were.
“Of course, Mom. I know how hard he worked for all of us. He gave us everything.” I waved my hand around as she wiped a tear from her cheek and nodded. “We’re going Monday for a meeting with the heads. It’ll be good.” I faked my confidence, still unsure of this change in my life. I was going from a life of fast-paced parties and women to working, running a big and very successful company. I knew that I’d be leaning on Brent a lot through this but I wanted to do my part as well. Mom deserved not to worry herself amid all this grieving an
d Ashley should finish school without distractions, like Brent and I got to do.
“I know that you’re young and him and I both were as well, once upon a time. I don’t expect you to spend your life at the office. I want you to live your life. I just don’t want to sell his hard work, not yet.” She shook her head and looked back out of the window. “I never thought this would happen so soon.”
We drank our coffee and sat together in silence for a while, looking over the buildings.
CHAPTER 4
Brent
I woke up to the alarm Monday morning, rolling over as I sighed. I had to pull out my suit and go into the office to learn the ropes today. I’d been there as a kid and seen some of the operations, but it was mine now, as well as Brandon’s. I knew that we’d both been out this weekend, drinking and working the stress out of our systems but I felt guilty every moment. I knew that I needed to take care of Mom and Ashley, since our family happened to be small. There were a lot of friends and business partners offering help, making me feel the wonder of how many lives Dad had touched. I heard the alarm blaring through the room again and pushed the button to shut it off as I ran my hands through my hair.
Once I was showered and partly dressed, I walked downstairs with my tie and jacket to get some coffee. Brandon was already there and we exchanged a long look as he poured me a cup. He was dressed in similar black pants and a crisp white shirt and I sipped the hot liquid gratefully. “Ready for this?” His voice was gruff from sleep and I nodded as Mom walked into the room, admiring us both as she gave us each a tight hug.
“You boys look so handsome. Just like your father,” she sniffled a bit with those words, making slow work of preparing her coffee as we allowed her some privacy. “I think you’ll love everyone there. They are kind and welcoming because Dad wouldn’t have it any other way.”
We talked for a bit, eating some toast before we got into the Range Rover to head over to the office. M&P stood for Moyen and Parker, the last names of my father and his best friend. They started the company together, but eventually Jim moved onto something different. I looked at the tall building as we pulled into the garage, feeling my heart palpitating in my chest.
We got inside and went to the tenth floor, where the business took up the entire space. We greeted the receptionist, who gave us a sad smile before she directed us to the conference room in the right corner of the floor. I glanced around at all the offices along with Brandon and saw how many employees were busy with work in the generous spaces that offered beautiful views. Dad wanted nothing but the best for working conditions and I could see the expense of it all as I took a close look around.
The conference room was large and there was already some fruit and pastries on the table. We looked at a man sitting with a folder, who glanced up at us and stood immediately. “The Moyen boys. I have heard so much about you.” He shook our hands and gave us a sympathetic look. “Again, I am so sorry for your loss but we are going to make this as smooth a transition as possible. Your dad ran a tight ship and we are all here to help you keep that aspect of this company. He was also so generous to all of us and the average career here is twelve years and going strong.”
I looked at Brandon, all too aware that we never worked a job for a couple of weeks much less years. He showed us to the spacious break room that offered all the amenities and we made some fresh coffee in the machine before following him back to the conference room. Brandon and I took seats and watched as the room filled with a total of ten people, all shaking our hands and extending their condolences before we got to business.
Dad had an impressive staff of three managers that handled the company, all intelligent and business savvy men. They went over the basics with us, assuring us that there would be a more private meeting many times to come. We spoke with a representative from customer service, a manager, who explained that process to us. I already knew that M&P was one of the best shipping companies due to their stellar customer service and now I saw the reasons why. She was professional and comfortable with her position, not to mention gorgeous.
I noticed many attractive women walking through the offices and I knew that Brandon did as well. I also knew that we needed to keep business and pleasure separate when it came to this building. Dad was obviously a clearly well-respected man and we would never tarnish that image, though some of these people had to read the gossip column.
We sat with the accountant who kept strict detail of the daily finances of the company as well as meeting with us for the taxes on a quarterly basis. I knew that Dad always told us how easy Mark and his assistants made that for him so he could focus on everything else. That part took a while and afterward, we were excused for lunch with an immediate invitation to join Ted and the other managers.
Sitting at a table at The Modern, I looked around the bright room as the sunlight poured through the glass of the generous windows. Brandon seemed to relax beside me and I sensed how tense he was during parts of the meeting. He sipped water as we shared a glance, both noticing that there were a lot of stares in our direction. This would be a news story on close to the front pages, making me a little uncomfortable. I thought that I might be able to control some of my impulses but Brandon was the wilder twin. We sipped ice water over cocktails and ate the meals as we talked shop, though the managers were much more comfortable than the two of us. The lunch lasted over an hour and we headed back to the building, noticing a few cameras during the short walk.
Yes, this was going to be news.
We spent the rest of the day in my father’s former office, comfortable with sharing the space. Ted and the others came in with us, showing us the software on the computer and the ways that we could monitor every aspect of the business. It was fascinating and I marveled at the work that the IT team set into the system, feeling better that they were always available to us in case something went down. I was surprised to glance up and see the lights going off in the offices as people left, realizing that it was six at night.
We walked to the car, quiet until we were alone. “That place was a trip,” Brandon said softly as I started the engine. “Did you see all of the pussy in there?” I chuckled, knowing my brother all too well.
“I did but we have to keep it clean in there, Bran. It’s business and we have to do right by Dad.” I stopped at a light and gave him a firm look. “Shit, with the cameras I almost want to tone it down completely. This is a news story.”
“Lots of business tycoons make it work with a sketchy lifestyle. Look at Trump. He’s going for the presidency!” Brandon quipped as we both shook our heads. That was mind boggling to us. “We’re just running a shipping business.”
We got home where Mom heated up some chicken and vegetables, sitting down to enjoy a private family dinner for the first time in a while. She still looked a bit pale but listened to us with a strong smile on her face as we told her every detail. Ashley looked on as she took small bites of food, clearly missing Dad as she leaned back in the chair.
I offered to take her out to dinner sometime this week, wanting to get into my sister’s head. She was a good girl, not anywhere near as wild as Brandon or I at that age. Ashley agreed with a weak smile, disappearing to do some homework after dinner was over as I sighed and stretched.
I decided to work out in the home gym before shutting down for the night, putting in two hours before I looked into Brandon’s room to see him grinning as he sent a text to someone. I knew the look, having seen it for the past several years. We looked alike but he was the charmer, adding a few more notches to his bed than I had. He also put more effort into it than I did. “Who is your latest victim?” I asked as I walked into the room, causing him to look up.
“Her name is Nadia. She’s a bartender at The Sports Corner. I met her the other night,” he replied as I shook my head and walked over to the window. “You work out?”
“Yeah. You should try it sometime so you can be as hot as I am,” I joked as he gave me a smirk. “I’ll sleep like a good boy bef
ore work tomorrow. We’re going to be there a lot, you know. Just like Dad was.”
