Conklin's Corruption

by Brooke Page

  She shrugged her shoulders. We all knew he was an alcoholic like my mother, but Nathan didn’t recognize it as a problem.

  “Anyway,” I continued. “The only thing different about Nathan was his lack of attempt to hook up with women.”

  Becca’s eyes softened. Maybe it was the change in my tone.

  I turned so I was completely facing her on the bed, crossing my legs and meeting her eyes. “Nathan has never told me outright he’s gay. I always just knew. But Nathan’s tells weren’t as obvious in college. There was this one asshole named Jonah. He was my age and was constantly on Nathan’s ass about hooking up with the sorority chicks. I think I was the only one who could tell how uncomfortable Nathan was when Jonah would pester him to go after a girl or grind against one at a party. It seemed to happen more and more frequently. Every party, Jonah wouldn’t let it go.

  “Then he said something in front of everyone that made me lose all self control. I jumped him, literally beat the shit out of him. I remember blood running from his face. I couldn’t tell you how many swings I took until Cooper could finally pull me off him.”

  I looked away from Becca, recalling the evening and how floored I was. Nathan meant everything to me. I wouldn’t stand for someone bullying my brother for something he had no control over.

  Becca put her hands on my thighs. “What did he say that set you off?”

  “He shut off the music and called him a faggot. Everyone stopped talking and looked at Nathan. Then Jonah told everyone there was a queer in the house since he’d never go after a girl.”

  I chanced a glance at Becca, and her eyes were wet. I looked back down into my lap, not wanting to feel the emotion that was trying to show through.

  “The look on Nathan’s face was something I had never seen before. Nathan was always happy, always on a mission. He’s always radiating success and compassion. I know he loves money and shares that same driven mind like RJ, but Nathan has a heart. To see him trying to hide hurt and inner turmoil because some inconsiderate prick called him out in the most obscene way was destroying. I went crazy and just… lost it.”

  I felt Becca’s hands move from my thighs to my face as she straddled my lap. She forced me to look back at her. “Sounds to me like you were protecting your brother.”

  I gave her a slight smile. Only if the courts felt the same way. “I’m not proud that I put the kid in a hospital. That he had to eat out of a tube for a week because I fucked up his jaw so bad. Jonah’s parents were going to press charges, but once they realized whose kid they were dealing with, they went for a settlement.

  “RJ was furious, worried about how my actions would affect the company name. My grandfather was ashamed. I had never felt more awful then the day my grandfather wouldn’t meet my eyes because he was so disappointed in me.”

  “But Tyler, you were standing up for Nathan. What he said was a hate crime. How could they not stand by you?”

  I swallowed. “They didn’t know why I attacked Jonah.”

  Her eyes went wide again. “What? Why?” she said in shock.

  “I didn’t want Nathan to be outed that way. Sure, kids gave statements from the party, but none of it would have been used in court because of the settlement. RJ saw the statements, and I think that just gave him more reason to give Jonah’s family money to keep them quiet. As far as I know, all of it has been buried.”

  “So no one knows about Nathan? Surely Mary does. Would RJ really be that ashamed? I mean, would your grandfather? From how you spoke of him I would peg him to support Nathan 100% no matter what,” she said in confusion.

  I sighed. “I loved my grandfather dearly, but he was very conservative. I don’t know how he would have responded. Nathan would never admit it, but he was as fond of my grandfather as I was. He couldn’t face that kind of disappointment. I think that’s why he keeps quiet.”

  Becca shook her head. “Nathan shouldn’t be afraid to be who he really is.”

  I laughed. “Nathan is career driven. Yes, he’s gay, but he isn’t out to find the perfect partner. He cares more about his business life than love life. Trust me Becs, Nathan is and acts like himself. No hiding that. He just doesn’t outright tell people his sexual orientation.”

  Becca looked down into my lap as she dropped her hands from my face.

  “You said you got hot headed. Did you ever hurt anyone else like you did Jonah?”

  I rapidly shook my head no. “The only other ‘fights’ I got into were petty ones, where we just pushed each other back and forth and got into each other’s faces. I never threw a punch as hard as I did at Jonah.”

  She nodded her head, but still kept her eyes to her lap, hugging her pillow to her chest. She was thinking, and I had an idea of what might be going through her head.

  I took her chin in my hand, forcing her to look at me. “Becs, I’d never hurt you. You know that right? No matter how mad I might get, I would never touch you that way.”

  She gave me a gentle smile. “I know,” she murmured.

  I leaned in to kiss her, softly sucking on her bottom lip. “I’ll always throw a punch to protect you. I can promise that much. No one will ever hurt my Becs. I take care of the ones I love.”

  She kissed me back. “You love your family a lot more than you think,” she whispered.

  “You are my family.”

  “I mean your brothers, RJ, your mom. I know you love them, Tyler.”

  I rolled my eyes then pulled the pillow from between us, bringing her so we were skin on skin. “I love you. That’s all that matters.”

  She frowned at me. “It’s okay to love them too, Ty.”

  That similar uneasy feeling started to rise in my chest again. The same feeling that was attempting to poke through when RJ told me he was proud. I needed to do something to push that feeling away. It made me uncomfortable and exposed, and I didn’t like how it tugged at my heart.

  I brought my lips to Becca’s and kissed her, squeezing her to my chest, my hands wrapped around her waist, holding onto her as though my life depended on it.

  She gasped when I finally pulled away as I tackled her to the bed. I hovered over her, settling myself in between her legs and began kissing her again. She raked her nails down my back. I welcomed the delicious sting, helping to distract me from the unnerving feelings that awakened in my heart. Becca was all I needed, not the rest of my family.

  ***

  I woke around 7:00 a.m. fidgety in bed. Becca was passed out, rightfully so. The second time we had made love was a bit rough and needy, and it lasted well into the evening. She literally passed out on top of me the second she got off for the fifth time that evening. The thought of making her come so many times stroked my ego.

  I got out of bed cautiously so as not to wake her. It was Saturday, and she deserved to sleep in after I had kept her up late last night. I pulled on a pair of graphite boxers and a t-shirt then made my way into the library. I didn’t want to take the chance of waking her by going into my office.

  When I had originally made the plans for my office to be connected to our bedroom I thought it was a brilliant idea. I didn’t think about how I might wake her when the spiral staircase creaked as I went up and down. And I didn’t want her to hear any of my phone calls. At least not lately.

  I grabbed my suitcase with my laptop and made myself cozy at the white desk. I logged into the Conklin server and went through my emails. Most of them were typical and mind numbing, until I ran across one from Chino.

  Tyler,

  I met with Becca today about the warehouses. I wanted a plan and RJ has been side stepping my requests. My assistant called and set up the appointment with ease.

  Becca was very pleasant to work with. I will look forward to meeting with her in the near future. She assured me you would be handling the finances and getting back to me in a timely manner.

  I would like to meet with you and RJ Monday morning in Grand Rapids. We can discuss our other projects further as well.

  My as
sistant will be calling to confirm times.

  -Lee Chino

  Owner of Chino Corporations

  I reread the email at least ten times. My blood was boiling with the fact that he went and scheduled the appointment without contacting RJ or myself. Who did he think he was? He has direct contact to RJ; why would he go to someone else in the company? He wasn’t going to get what he wanted from the typical staff. Unless he was trying to do more than find places to hide his drugs. I was going to have to look at Chino’s plans once Becca and Will were done with them.

  What pissed me off the most was the fact that he said he was looking forward to meeting with Becca in the near future.

  Not in this fucking lifetime.

  I was going to have to make that perfectly clear Monday morning. Normally I would tell him we needed to change the time to Tuesday, but I was floored and wanted to set this asshole straight. He needed to know the Conklin men weren’t going to put up with his outlandish demands. And we sure as hell weren’t going to let him hide his drugs on our properties. I didn’t care how many times he asked. I was fed up, and I was going to be an asshole.

  Maybe I wouldn’t even do his finances and tell him to fuck off and find some other architect and building company to try and push around. But Nathan and RJ would duct tape my mouth shut and backtrack my words before I knew what was happening.

  The only reason they wanted to keep Chino on as a client was because of his residential properties. He had numerous subdivisions throughout Michigan and the suburbs of Chicago. Conklin built every single one of them. I would be lying if I said we wouldn’t feel a financial blow if we lost his business.

  Chino wanted to partner with Conklin on his subdivisions. He wanted our names to be on the signs as his co-owners and not just the builders. Great idea and profitable one might say, but no. The problem with Chino’s subdivisions? He hides his drugs on the properties. It’s one thing if our company is subcontracted to build the homes where drugs are found and completely something else if we are part owners. More questions would be asked and could turn in to a big sloppy multi-billion dollar drug bust that could be pinned on us.

  Not cool. Not cool at all.

  RJ and Nathan knew it was something we shouldn’t get involved in, but Chino was persistent and constantly throwing dollar signs in their faces. RJ and Nathan loved money, and each day brought on new fear of them signing a contract without me being around to knock some sense into them.

  My phone started to ring as I was going to respond to Chino.

  “Hello, Nathan.”

  “You sound chipper this morning,” he teased.

  I rolled my eyes. I wasn’t in the mood for his playfulness. “Maybe because that asshole Chino made an appointment to meet with Becca about building warehouses.”

  “Oh,” he sounded surprised. “Guess he was sick of waiting on RJ.”

  I wanted to slam my fists down on the desk but restrained myself. “Why would he go through Becca?”

  “Probably because Becca deals with our commercial plans,” he said. “I’m surprised he didn’t set up the appointment with Will though.”

  “Will is out for the week. His wife just had her baby. Becca is helping with his clients.”

  “I don’t see what your problem is, Tyler.”

  I clenched my jaw. “I don’t like Chino talking to Becca. She doesn’t need to deal with him. And I want to be done with him. I think we need to completely cut our business from him. I’m talking to RJ about it first thing Monday morning.”

  I heard Nathan gasp. “We can’t cut ties with Chino. You of all people know how much of our profit is from his subdivisions. He gives us what, 20% of our income?”

  “27%,” I sighed. “But we cannot get caught up in his scheme. Do you realize how screwed we’ll be if his drugs show up on our building sites?”

  “Tyler, we haven’t agreed to that yet. Don’t worry about him meeting with Becca. Is that really what this is about? Are you feeling threatened by him?”

  “I know he was responsible for the tear gas, Nathan. Why would I want him anywhere near Becca?”

  “Why would he let tear gas off in a room with his girlfriend inside?” Nathan asked smoothly. “He’s been seeing Margo for awhile now to my knowledge.”

  “Margo sees everyone,” I snorted. “I doubt they are serious.”

  “People change Tyler. We can’t jump to conclusions, and we sure as hell can’t lose a profit holder, especially a holder that makes up 27% of our assets!”

  I put my hand on my head, frustrated that Nathan wasn’t on my side. “Something bad is going to happen. I can feel it.”

  “God, would you stop worrying? Anderson hasn’t been by the building in months.”

  Detective Anderson. How could I forget about him. For a while, he was constantly snooping around the building trying to find dirt on our company. We earned our way legally, at least as of now.

  “I’m meeting with RJ about Chino Monday morning regardless. I don’t want him going through Becca or Will when it comes to the plans for the warehouses. He has her fooled already. He told her it was for furniture building because he wanted to help Grand Rapids get back in the furniture industry. You and I both know those warehouses aren’t for furniture.”

  “Maybe it is. Stop thinking the worst of him, Tyler.”

  “Nathan, this man wants us to co-own his subdivisions where he hides billions of dollars worth of drugs and drug money. Do you really think he’s a good guy?” I was fuming. How could Nathan fall for Chino’s charm?

  “That’s why we haven’t said yes. RJ isn’t being dumb about this. He won’t jeopardize this company. I know you have no faith in him.”

  “You’re right. He’s a money-hungry asshole, and I know he will choose dollar signs over Papa’s integrity. This company isn’t just his. It was Papa’s. He needs to remember that.” I was floored now, standing on my feet and pacing the library.

  I heard Nathan sigh in defeat over the phone. “Don’t do anything stupid, okay. I am supposed to be in Cleveland on Monday, but it sounds like I need to be meeting with you and RJ in Grand Rapids instead.”

  “Do what you want. We’re meeting with Chino after I meet with RJ. Chino was so nice as to email about the finances of his so-called furniture warehouses. He wants the numbers by Monday. Guess I will be busier than I planned this weekend.” I was annoyed by that as well. Sometimes I wish I were better about setting my business to the side for the weekend, but it would consume my mind until the projects were finished. Becca was meticulous about her notes for projects. She would leave me a good report that would help with my research. She was so amazing at her job.

  “I would offer to help, but we both know I’m worthless when it comes to working numbers.”

  I laughed. “I appreciate the thought.”

  “Now, I originally called about some weekend RJ wants to have?” Nathan began in confusion.

  I groaned in annoyance. “Did he attempt to get all sappy with you, too?”

  “Not really. He just said Mom was having a wedding shower, and we all were going to go golfing or something.”

  I frowned and a small part of me was disappointed. RJ really did just want something from me. If he didn’t get sentimental with Nathan then it was surely a show for me. My heart made that weird tugging feeling again, and I shook my head to rid myself of the awkward feeling.

  “I have to talk to Becca about a weekend still. I’m sure she will be all for it,” I grumbled. The fact that Becs got along with my mother was irritating to me.

  “Let me know. I’ll be there. When are we going tux shopping? Has she picked out her colors yet? You are having the reception at Amway, right?”

  God, he was just as bad as Missy Stine. “Jesus Nathan, I don’t know about that shit. Becca and her mother are handling it.”

  “Well then I’ll handle the tuxes. You clearly don’t have a sense of style nor do you seem to care. I’ll make the arrangements and call Becca. You can sit around an
d be your grumpy self,” he said snarkily into the phone. “You really don’t know what colors she’s planning?”

  I leaned back in my chair in frustration. I really didn’t care about this as long as everything was what Becca wanted. Isn’t that what little girls dream about anyway? Cakes, bridesmaids, the dress? All that shit? Just tell me what to wear and where to stand. I get the love of my life and amazing wedding-night sex. That’s all I cared about. And seeing Becca in a white wedding dress. The thought made me shift in my seat. I might have to go wake her before breakfast.

  “It’s some type of purple,” I mumbled.

  “Pale purple? Dark purple? Plum?”

  “I don’t fucking know! Ask Becca!” I shouted.

  “Well hand her the phone then!” he shouted back.

  “She’s sleeping. Look, I have to go. Maybe I will see you Monday,” I said in a rush, opening a new worksheet on my laptop to try and work on Chino’s finances.

  “I’ll be there. Relax a little, will you?” he pleaded.

  “Yeah, yeah, goodbye, Nathan.”

  Chapter 3

  Becca

  “Want to hang out on the beach for a little while?” I asked Tyler as I towel dried my body from our very sensual shower.

  His eyes lit up as he finished brushing his teeth. “Sure. Can I pick out your bathing suit?” I smacked his bicep with my hand as I went to get dressed. He smirked and followed me into our closet. Tyler came beside me and reached into the drawer I was skimming through. “Wear this one. It tends to ride up.” He handed me navy blue Tommy Hilfiger bikini bottoms.

  I shook my head at him.

  “What? I enjoy the view when you lay on your stomach,” he flirted, his hands finding their way underneath my towel. “Although, I doubt it will beat the view I had last night.”