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Wilder sighed. “Avery. His name isAvery.”
“Ah, yes… that’s the name you used the other day, wasn’t it?” Vaughn smirked. “Well,Averytold me something interesting the morning of his heat, and I hadn’t had the chance to mention it.”
Wilder crossed his arms while his brother lingered over the pause following that tidbit. “Well? Go ahead.”
“Apparently, Hardwick was needling him for information as to what he was doing up here. Claimed he knew all about it. It was enough to shake Avery, from what it appeared.”
“So?”
“Clearly, Hardwick is paranoidandwith good reason. Is there any way he could’ve found out about you and Avery?”
Wilder considered that a moment. “There was the security guard, but I doubt he could tell what was going on besides something a bit out of the ordinary… and my driver. But I trust the latter implicitly. He’s worked for me for years and is most trustworthy. Besides you, those are the only two who saw anything.”
“The security guard?” Vaughn frowned. “Who was watching the security cameras?”
Wilder froze.The cameras!He hadn’t even considered those. Anyone in security could’ve witnessed what happened. Luckily there were none in the conference room. Only the hallways.
And the elevator.
Fuck.
He lifted his stare and met his brother’s gaze.
Vaughn narrowed his.
“It wasn’t you,” Wilder murmured, suddenly sure Vaughn was innocent.
“Itwasn’tme.” A flash of pain crossed his brother’s face. “I spent a lot of years trying to get your attention… and to be a part of the Jamie-Wilder brotherhood.” He widened his stance and leaned against the wall. “When I realized I’d never worm my way in there, I suppose I changed course and decided to be a pain in your asses instead. I got more attention that way, but not the kind I truly craved.”
“We never left you out.”
“No? You probably didn’t see it. You and Jamie had a bond. I don’t know where it started or why I could never have the same closeness…” Vaughn shrugged, his eyes glossing over. “Point is… I might like to push your buttons but that’s a far cry from sending the omega to prison. I saw the fire in your eyes. The possessiveness… when you shoved me aside. Hell, I saw a hint of itbeforehis heat, but I wasn’t completely sure.” Vaugh paused, searching his face. “He’s yours, isn’t he?”
Wilder refused to answer, still unsure if he could trust Vaughn.
“Iwouldn’tsend your omega to prison, Wilder. I’mnotthat cruel.”
Wilder looked away, ashamed of where his mind had gone. When he looked up, he saw pain in his brother’s eyes. “I never meant for you to feel like an outsider amongst your own brothers.” He nodded. “You’re right. Jamie and Ididhave a bond. Our parents fought a lot before you were born. For some reason, once you came, there seemed to be this uneasy peace between them before they suddenly seemed to accept life with one another. Being caught in the middle of that as a small child… it’s terrifying. Jamie was the one constant in my life. He was barely five years older than me, but he already had a nurturing soul and a loving heart. He was almost…” Wilder paused, the ache from losing Jamie just as raw as when it had happened. “He was more a papa to me than our own.”
His brother was silent a moment. “I didn’t know that,” Vaughn said.
“How could you? We tried to shield you from it. You lived in averydifferent home than we had, and we thought it better to not tell you how it had been.” Wilder stepped forward. “I wish you’d come to me sooner and told me how you felt.”
“I doubted it would change anything.”
“It’s not too late,” Wilder mentioned.
His brother eyed him.
“Truce?” Wilder asked.
A hint of a smile crossed his brother’s lips but was gone before he could be sure he’d seen it. “I suppose we can give it a try.”
Wilder glanced down at his messy desk. “Well, since you had my Green Trust notes, perhaps you could tell me where my timetables for current projects are? I’ve been looking for those to no avail.”
Vaughn walked over, shaking his head. “Your system of organization is terrible, brother.” He slid out a file from a basket on the right. “This is where all current projects are.”
“Would’ve helped had you told me that earlier.”
