Heartbreaker

by Claire, Grahame

  “What if it was your brother?” I threw back at her.

  She deflated but not without a glare that cut through me.

  Mulaney crossed her arms, refusing to look at me. “Don’t talk to him about this. We can dump the pipeline and be done with this whole mess.”

  “Dump the pipeline? With everything we know, if we try to sell it without disclosure, we’d be in it even deeper. In case you missed it, it looks like we bought the damn thing with stolen money.” How? Why would he do this?

  “In case you missed it, your brother is a manipulative, conniving, lying shithead.” She stalked toward me until she was right up in my face. “Don’t talk to him.”

  Our gazes clashed, this was one war we weren’t on the same side of. “I have to.”

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Easton

  “I just ordered pizza. Want a beer?”

  I reared back and punched Drew square in the jaw. He reached for his face and blinked at me, stunned.

  “I offered you a beer,” he said in disbelief.

  I charged, tackling him to the ground, and landed another blow.

  “What the fuck?” He grabbed my shirt collar and yanked in an attempt to throw me off him.

  “Why’d you do it?” I clamped a hand around his throat.

  “Do what?” He head-butted me, though I barely felt it, and rolled us over. We kept tumbling until we hit a wall.

  I had the upper hand again. He squirmed and kicked underneath me.

  “You stole everything,” I shouted, slamming his head against the floor. “How could you do it? Why did you do it?”

  He landed a punch, narrowly missing my nose. I shook it off and shoved him down.

  “Who the hell are you? Because you sure as shit aren’t my brother.” I pushed to my feet and stared at him in disgust.

  His face had red splotches and his shirt was torn. He had the audacity to look at me like a wounded dog. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  Drew sat up on his elbow and rubbed his jaw again.

  “You stole a billion dollars from Carter Energy.” I heaved, out of breath from the realization of what he’d done.

  He flew to his feet. “The hell I did.” He grimaced. “That wife of yours has played everybody for a fool.”

  “You’re the one who’s done that.”

  “Me? Am I the CEO of Carter Energy?”

  “Nobody is. You destroyed it,” I yelled, pushing him.

  He shoved me back. “I should’ve been.”

  “Is that what this is about?” I asked incredulously. “What if it had been me? Would you have done the same thing?”

  He averted his gaze. “I didn’t do anything.”

  “When did you start manipulating EXODUS?” I got in his face. We were almost the same height, but I was a quarter inch taller. I looked down on him every bit of that quarter inch. He stared at me with contempt. “Answer me.”

  “She poisoned you. We used to hang out, you used to confide in me. Now you believe some bitch who fucks around.”

  I punched before I thought. He doubled over, blood dripping down his cheek to the floor. I grabbed him by the hair and made him look at me. “Mama is dying. Do you get that? What if you took the chance she had to be cured?”

  He flinched. “I know damn well exactly how sick she is.”

  “Then how could you do this to her?”

  “I. Didn’t. Do. Anything.” He wiped the blood on his sleeve.

  I released his hair, and he stumbled backward. “I don’t want to turn you in, but you aren’t leaving me much choice. You could go to jail for a very long time, Drew. Don’t you get it?”

  “Was that your wife’s idea too? Don’t you see how she’s ruined our family legacy?”

  My face fell. All the years between us flashed in my mind. We’d been close from the minute he came into this world. Everything that meant something to me had been nothing to him.

  “I want the truth,” I said in defeat.

  “You and Dad picked the wrong side.”

  “There were no sides until you made them.” I moved to the open front door of his apartment. We were done.

  “What are you going to do?”

  I paused, keeping my back to him. “Go to the police.”

  “Are you sure you want them digging into this situation?” The malice in his voice told me everything. No, I didn’t want them looking further into this, but what choice did I have, even if it cost me?

  Slowly, I turned. “I trusted you. I thought—I thought we’d run Carter Energy until we died. That was the ultimate for me.”

  “We still can. Just get rid of the bitch.” My God. He hated her. He absolutely despised Mulaney.

  “Shut the hell up. She’s my wife. And you took everything away.”

  “I’m your brother.”

  “Are you? Family would not do this to family.”

  “If you have to ask, then I guess I see things differently than you.”

  A heaviness settled over me as I crossed the threshold out of the apartment.

  “If I go down, she goes with me,” Drew called.

  “It’s not just her you set up.” I didn’t bother to look back. I couldn’t stand to.

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Mulaney

  “What happened to your face?”

  Easton had a shiner on his cheek and his shirt was untucked when he walked into his parents’ apartment. “You should see the other guy,” he grunted.

  “It didn’t go well with Drew?”

  He pulled me into his arms, rested his head on top of mine, and didn’t say a word.

  “If I’d known you were going to kick his ass, I’d have gone with you.”

  “You’d have handled it better.” He sounded so bitter. This situation was awful.

  “Easton?” Loretta rushed over and touched his cheek. “Let me get you an ice pack.”

  “I don’t need it,” he said, trudging over to the dining room table where Harris sat.

  She made a dissatisfied noise but joined us. While Easton had gone to confront Drew, I’d filled in Harris and Loretta on what their youngest son had been up to, but we hadn’t come up with a solution to the problems.

  “What now?” I asked. None of us had bothered to bring the meal Loretta fixed to the table. I couldn’t eat.

  “We have to go to the authorities,” Easton said, staring over my head out the windows.

  “No.” All eyes went to Loretta. “By all appearances the two of you took the money. What if that backfires? We can’t risk any of you being in jail. Not when I may not have much time left.”

  “Mama.” He reached for her hand.

  She took it and squeezed. “Please. I know if Drew did wrong he should pay for the crime, but I can’t spend my last days worried about this, whatever kind of person that may make me.”

  “I can’t understand what that boy was thinking,” Harris said, almost dazed. “I thought you were in trouble.” He looked at Easton. “I thought if I could sell the company and secure all of us a position, we’d be okay. How did this happen? Did I go wrong somewhere?”

  Silence descended on the room. Unable to sit still, I bolted to the kitchen for a bottle of water and finally settled in front of the windows.

  “He kept saying Mulaney shouldn’t have been named CEO.”

  “Mulaney absolutely was the right person,” Loretta said. “Any of you would have been.”

  “Is that why Drew did this?” I asked incredulously. Drew was an asshole, but this was beyond petty.

  “I think it has something to do with it.” Easton looked at me apologetically.

  “He can’t get away with this,” I said, more determined than ever to bring justice to this family, especially if all of this had happened because of Drew’s jealousy toward me.

  “Please. Isn’t there something we can do without bringing the authorities into it?” Loretta’s voice cracked.

  I rested my forehead against the window, defea
ted. “We can’t get the money back. We can’t change anything. We might as well move forward.”

  I thought about what I’d do if it were my brothers in this situation. As much as I wanted Drew to burn for what he’d done, if I were in the Carters’ position, I couldn’t turn him in. More than that, I couldn’t hurt Loretta. I loved her. It wasn’t fair to make her suffer just to make me feel better.

  “The paperwork came back today for Renegade. Muriella gave it to me when I went to the apartment a second ago to look for you,” Easton said.

  “So we’re in business?” I asked, a hint of excitement zipping through me. These past few weeks had been shit, and this was a glimmer of the future I wanted for us.

  “Yeah, we’re in business.” He tried to smile, but it fell flat. “Dad, we’d like you to be part of the new company. Just the basics. Chasing oil.”

  “Of course he will,” Loretta answered for him. He opened his mouth to protest, but she stopped him. “The two things you loved about Carter Energy was working with your family and striking it big.” She pointed a finger at him. “You’re still like a kid when you do. It’ll be good for you to go back to what you enjoy most.”

  Harris cleared his throat. “I’d like that.”

  What wasn’t said was Drew was missing from the new venture. While it didn’t bother me, I knew both of them would have preferred him to be part of it.

  “I found a promising prospect,” I said.

  “When did you have time for that?” Easton canted his head.

  “I did what I’ve always done, only I didn’t share anything I found with SPE.” I shrugged. Doing what I did best was stress relief in its finest form.

  “Think Muriella and Stone will let us run it out of their home office?” Easton asked.

  “We’ve got a study here you’re more than welcome to,” Harris offered.

  “When are you getting your own place?” Loretta looked between Easton and me.

  “We’re staying put until construction on the apartment upstairs is finished,” I said.

  Easton’s brows shot to his hairline. “We are?”

  I lifted a shoulder and lowered it. “I kinda like the bunk beds. Plus, we can annoy my brother.”

  “That’s the heart of it,” he concluded and stood. “Mama, I’m sorry we didn’t eat, but I’m ready to call it a day.”

  She yawned. “Me too.”

  I hugged her and Harris. “Maybe Drew can be saved.”

  He held me at arm’s length, a look of disbelief on his face. I couldn’t believe I’d said it either, but if it healed my family, I hoped like hell it was true.

  Chapter Fifty

  Easton

  “He’s right you know.”

  For three days Mulaney had put a damper on my warpath of going to the authorities, but my anger had flared with a vengeance once again.

  I straightened my tie with a little more force than necessary. She batted my hands away and took over. My anger immediately simmered. The sight of us doing such a domestic thing meant more than I could have imagined. All these years I’d been missing this right here, even if I hadn’t been able to put my finger on it. Or in this case, a ring on it.

  “I’m prepared to face the consequences,” I said resolutely.

  “What about your parents? If your dad sold Carter Energy to SPE with incorrect numbers—”

  “We’ve already been through that,” I snapped. She lifted a brow, and I relented. “I have to do something.”

  “I get it. But maybe doing nothing is best.”

  I wound her ponytail around my fist, the feel of her silky hair against my skin calming. “What he did wasn’t right.”

  “No, it wasn’t. All I’m suggesting is to think about what turning him in will accomplish,” she said, far too reasonably for my liking.

  Damn it. She was right. What good would it do to send Drew to jail if it destroyed everything else? We wouldn’t get Carter Energy back. Nothing would be the same.

  “It doesn’t feel right letting him get away with what he’s done,” I complained.

  “I have to give him credit. He set it up well,” she said with disgust.

  I tugged on her hair, those dark eyes widening a fraction. “Are you with me? If I turn him in?”

  I could lose the rest of my family if I did. Having Mulaney’s support was crucial to face what may lie ahead.

  “I’m with you.”

  Relief flooded me. She slid her hands up my chest and around my neck. We stared at one another. For better or worse. We’d nailed handling the worse part, even if it had been a bumpy ride. I was beyond ready to get to the better.

  My lips collided with hers, and immediately everything else fell away. Sparks of need jolted through me in a way only Heartbreaker could incite. She ran her tongue over my bottom lip before slipping it into my mouth. Ours tangled and tumbled together. I got lost in the fire that she was.

  The shrill ring of my cell phone sliced through the air. I kept kissing her even when it stopped. She didn’t even seem to hear it. Immediately, another ringtone interrupted, this time hers.

  “Damn it,” she cursed against my mouth. Then she snickered. “All that work I put in to straightening your tie. Now look.”

  It was wrinkled and askew. I grinned. “That’s better anyway.”

  Her phone stopped ringing and mine started again. “What the hell could be so important?”

  We both froze when the answer hit us at the same time.

  Mama.

  I scrambled to dig my phone out of my pocket and fumbled as I swiped across the screen to answer without looking at the caller ID.

  “Easton, are you home?” My father’s distressed voice came through the line.

  “Yeah. What’s going on?” I forced the panic I felt from my tone. Mulaney implored me with her eyes, as desperate to know what was happening as I was.

  “I got a letter from SPE’s legal counsel requesting a forensic accounting of Carter Energy’s assets before the sale,” he said roughly.

  “The transaction is complete. There’s no basis for it,” I argued, even though we all knew there damn well was a very good reason.

  “They claim they’ve discovered some substantial discrepancies, and if we don’t comply, they’ll be forced to take legal action,” he spat.

  “Son of a bitch.”

  Mulaney shook my shoulders. “What is it?”

  I held up my finger. “Come upstairs. I’ll call Daniel to see if he has any other information to help us fight this.”

  I hung up. I had no idea who my brother was anymore. Good God.

  “He fucking told them to save his own ass.”

  She stormed from the bathroom and shoved her boots on her feet. “I’ve had enough of his shit.”

  I grabbed her by the arm as she threw open the bedroom door. “Hold up.” Apparently we’d switched roles. Three minutes ago, she’d been the voice of reason. Now I was.

  “How could he do this to her?” she screamed as she tried to yank from my grasp.

  I’d asked myself the same question a thousand times. I had no idea what was happening in my brother’s head, but I’d never doubted he loved our mother.

  “Everything all right here?” Stone appeared down the hallway, eyeing my hand wrapped around Mulaney’s arm. Daniel was right behind him.

  “No.” She spun around to face her brother. “Where’s your shotgun?”

  “I thought you two worked things out?” Stone spoke cautiously as he and Daniel closed in.

  She threw her hands up. “I’m not going to kill him.”

  “That’s a relief.” Her brother cast a glance at me to help fill in the blanks.

  I touched Mulaney’s shoulder, and she looked back at me. “You can’t kill Drew either.”

  Fiery eyes lifted to the ceiling. “I’m just going to threaten him.” She tapped her boot on the hardwood floor. “And maybe make him feel a little pain.”

  “At least have some breakfast first. It’s not wise to
shoot on an empty stomach.” Stone motioned toward the kitchen.

  Mulaney smacked him in the back of the head. “I don’t have time for that.”

  He rubbed the spot where she’d hit him. “Ow. Are you ever going to grow up?”

  “Are you?”

  “Perhaps we should discuss the problem before solving it in an irreversible way,” Daniel suggested diplomatically.

  Stone nodded. “I don’t have a shotgun here anyway.”

  Mulaney grumbled something under her breath as Muriella appeared from the kitchen.

  “Easton, your father is here,” she said politely. “Why don’t you come have breakfast in the kitchen? We were just finishing.”

  “I haven’t had my eggs—” Stone snapped his mouth shut at the withering look he received from his wife. “Yeah, we’re done,” he muttered, rubbing his stomach.

  “Thank you,” I said. Mulaney stormed past us. “Daniel, I’d appreciate if you’d join us. Stone, you’re welcome to also.” Hell, we were family. He’d opened his home to me, and we were all up in each other’s business anyway.

  “Is my sister in trouble?” He crossed his arms over his chest.

  I heaved out a sigh. “I don’t know.”

  Stone pointed at Daniel. “Can you fix whatever mess they’re in?”

  “I’ll do my best.”

  “Mulaney can handle anything you throw at her, but if you need me, I’ll be in the living room.” Stone walked down the hall and ducked in the kitchen.

  I filled Daniel in about the letter from SPE as we headed in the same direction. By the time we made it, the room had cleared other than Dad and Mulaney. She was by the coffee pot pouring two cups. He sat slumped at the table, head bowed, an envelope in front of him. We’d faced hard times before. The worst I’d ever seen him look was when we got the news of Mama’s illness. With the weight of that plus this, he was defeated.

  I pulled out the chair beside him and sat. He pushed the envelope toward me.

  “Drew told them about the money you’d moved that I didn’t know about,” his dad said quietly.