AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What’s in it?”
“Fermented sugar cane juice, sugar, and lime. If you don’t like it, you can order something else.”
“You only live once,” she said, with a shy smile. “What did Gilberto call you?”
“Meu meninois Portuguese for ‘my boy.’”
“That’s sweet.” Cassandra tilted her head. “I think there’s a story there.”
Leo gave a sharp nod. “I was pretty lost when I came to London.”
“Lost?”
“Yeah. I was born in the States, but my mom sent me to stay with some relatives in Rio de Janeiro.” He shoved aside his uneasiness to open up because he wanted Cassandra to know everything about him.
She tipped her head to the side, her eyes curious. “Why would she send you so far away?”
He leaned his arms on the table. “My father.”
“I don’t understand.”
Juliana returned with their drinks. “Gilberto is beside himself in the kitchen. He insists on surprising you with a few special dishes.”
“Tell him not to go to any trouble.”
“I’ll try, but you know he won’t listen to me.” Juliana laughed, mussed up his hair, and headed back inside.
He lifted his glass to her. “Cheers, Cassandra.”
They clinked glasses. Taking a sip, she kept her eyes on his.
“Wow, it is strong, but it’s delicious. I’ll be nursing it for a while.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
“Finish what you were saying about your father. I want to know.”
He sipped his drink, considering how to simplify this story. “My mother was single. My father was married and had a son. He’d had many affairs, and so did my mother. What happened between him and my mother was different. It caused an enormous scandal.”
“What was different?” Cassandra leaned forward.
“He fell in love with her.”
Without saying a word, her eyes searched his with kindness. “Why didn’t he leave his wife?” she asked with care.
“Because my great-grandfather, Leonard Sutton, was a strict moralist. He believed in marriage, family, business, and absolutely no hint of scandal.”
“It’s not immoral to divorce someone.”
“The moral issue is more of a philosophy. Think of it as the public face of the company. If James Sutton left his wife for another woman, he would risk his position. And I, the product of this affair, would be a permanent embarrassment to the family values.” Those were the basics, but there was more he wanted to share. “Leonard Sutton also created a by-law that the company can only be headed by a biological child. A true Sutton was how he described it.”
Her eyebrows rose. “That seems extreme.”
“It is. He did it to ensure the family was always in control of the company. My great-great-grandfather, Charles Sutton, had a notorious reputation with women and had several illegitimate children. When Leonard inherited the company, he created the by-law in case another Sutton was tempted to have an extra-marital affair and had a child who would stake a claim for the company. There were no DNA tests in those days, so it was impossible to prove paternity. It’s possible to remove the by-law, but that’s not likely right now.”
“Your brother, Malcolm, heads the company now, right?”
“He’s my half brother.” This was a mistake many people made. It was bad enough they shared a biological relation. “How do you know about him?”
