Ivan smiled automatically. “He’s perfect.”
“So… are we cool?”
“Course. But I was pretty surprised to see you behaving like that yesterday. Is there more on your mind than just the wedding?”
Adam chuckled and swigged his drink. “You know me too well.”
“I’ve known you a long time. What’s up?”
“Well, it’s still confidential, but me and Dylan are investing in a new product – something that’s guaranteed to make us a lot of money. But we’ve got this fucking federal health-and-safety official on our back… she’s such a pain in the ass – wants to find fault in everything we’re doing. She’s determined to stop us.”
“Oh yeah – what’s the new product? It’s nothing illegal, is it?”
Adam opened his mouth to reply, but his gaze landed on Amy who waved lovingly. “It’s my wedding day – maybe I shouldn’t be talking business. But, no, it’s not illegal… not exactly…”
“Alright, you can tell me all about it when you get back from your honeymoon. But be careful, Adam. I don’t know why we Quinlans attract trouble, but we do seem to.”
“I will – I know. But for now I need to apologize to your lovely wife. Dare I risk life and limb by cutting in when she’s enjoying herself with Joseph Quinlan – rock-god?”
Adam chuckled. Ivan glanced over. Samira was swaying her body in time with the music and smiling contentedly. But Ivan wanted Adam to make good with her before he got too busy with his guests again.
“Yeah, I’m sure she’d appreciate you cutting in.”
“Alright.” Adam hugged Ivan boisterously. “It’s great to have you here. I missed you, you know.”
“Me too.”
They shared a smile, then Adam strode off to the dance floor to cut in on Joseph – who got the message and left them to chat.
Samira looked worried as Adam started to talk to her, but Ivan could see from Adam’s stance that he was giving her a heartfelt apology – asking for her forgiveness. Samira’s face lit up as Adam charmed her in the way he was so good at – probably telling her a stupid joke and making her laugh to get her on side. But he seemed humble in her presence – genuinely wanting to make sure there were no hard feelings.
Eventually, Adam put out his hand and Samira shook it – chuckling and assuring him she was fine. Adam then opened up his arms and they hugged, warming Ivan’s heart with affection for his new wife and his little brother. The two fell into what looked like a normal conversation, until Amy dragged Adam away to mingle.
Samira drifted over to Ivan, looking peaceful. She kissed him.
“Nice chat with Adam?”
She straightened Ivan’s tie. “Yeah – he’s so sweet. He was saying sorry for yesterday. But I wasn’t upset with him. I was just feeling a little… you know.”
“Insecure?”
“Yeah, a little.”
“Well, I hope you’re beginning to realize how welcome you are in this family.”
She nodded. “Yeah… they’re all so lovely. Hey, I think I might just go check on Quin.”
“I just checked on him and he’s fine. Mrs. Bowden will call us if there’s a problem, I promise.”
She chuckled. “Okay, you’re right. I just love him, that’s all.”
“So do I – more than words can say. And his beautiful mommy too.” He brushed his fingers over her soft cheek. “Maybe we should slip out of here and find somewhere quieter. You’re too hot for me to resist you much longer.”
“Let’s hear Dylan’s speech,” Samira said. “He’s just about to give it. Then we can go somewhere and be alone. After we’ve checked Quin again.”
He chuckled. “Alright.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but the music faded and the DJ’s voice came over the sound system, almost deafening Ivan and Samira who were standing right next to the speaker. “Ladies and gentlemen,” the DJ said. “Please give a warm welcome to Adam’s best man – Dylan Quinlan!”
The room erupted into supportive applause. Full of renewed confidence, Dylan strode toward the DJ’s booth and halted in front of it to give his speech. “Good evening, everyone. It’s my honor to serve as Adam’s best man. If you didn’t know, there’s only a year between us, so people sometimes mistake us as twins…”
Ivan glanced at Jake, who glared down at the polished wooden floor.
“But obviously not identical twins…” Dylan continued. “Because only one of us got the good-looks, talent, and business acumen. But I’ll let you figure out who for yourselves.”
People chuckled. Adam shook his head and refrained from making a comment.
“But seriously, Adam is my kid brother and I’ll always feel protective of him. I’m proud of the man he’s grown into… and since he met Amy and she’s forced him to grow up – for which we’re all eternally grateful.”
More laughter.
“I want to welcome Amy into the family. We always look out for our own. Anyone who’s a Quinlan will always have us to fall back on…”
Ivan glanced at Jake again. He was now looking away from Dylan, probably trying to keep it together. Ivan thought it was brave of him to come to this wedding – but he could see how humbled he was by the whole experience. Was that hard-boiled detective actually softening in the presence of the Quinlans?
“And so please raise a glass,” Dylan concluded. “To my wonderful brother Adam and my new wonderful sister Amy. To Adam and Amy.”
The crowd echoed “To Adam and Amy” and raised their glasses. Dylan took his seat to the sound of applause, then Amy’s dad got up to give his equally as sentimental and loving speech. After he sat back down, Ivan led Samira behind the DJ’s booth so they could kiss in private.
“Let’s get out of here,” Ivan said, kissing her. “I need to ravish you.”
“What about your family?” Samira said. “What if anyone finds out about Jake?”
“How will they find out?” Ivan said between kisses. “It’s not like someone’s going to announce over the PA system that Clara’s long-lost twin brother – who was supposed to have died at birth – was actually adopted out because of Jake’s blackmailing cop father – but now he’s back and secretly mingling with his biological family. Are they?”
Samira nodded. “I know.” She grinned. “Alright, come on – let’s go outside for some air.”
Ivan held her hand and they stepped out from behind the DJ’s booth. But then Ivan’s body filled with uneasy dread as he realized that the entire room had gone as quiet as a graveyard – there wasn’t even any music playing. And all eyes were on the two of them. His mom had dropped her drink and was frozen in shock. It was like surveying the aftermath of a massacre.
Or some shocking news…
Ivan glanced around to try to figure out what the problem was. It was almost as if they’d overheard what he’d just said to Samira about Jake – but surely there was no way that could’ve happened...
He slowly turned his head to look at the DJ, who was now reaching over to turn off the microphone. And then he realized that Jake’s secret was no longer safe with him.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ivan sat on the hotel steps in the searing sunshine, with his head in his hands, wondering what else could possibly go wrong. His body throbbed with regret at his gaffe – he couldn’t believe he’d given the game away like that. But at least he had the beautiful Samira by his side, sitting next to him with her hand on his knee, trying to cheer him up.
“They all seem really pleased,” she said. “Stop beating yourself up about this.”
“Yeah.” He thought back to how it’d been just now, when everyone had unfrozen and turned to look at Jake. Jake had been glaring hard at Ivan as if he was trying to set him alight with his eyes… so much for keeping him a secret until Ivan gave him permission to approach the family…
But Samira was right – everyone had been pleased. His mom had drifted over to Jake, then she’d halted in front of him and studied her long-
lost son, before throwing her arms around him and hugging him heartily – crying with joy on his shoulder. Jake had held her tight and tried not to cry himself. Then he’d been swamped with handshakes and hugs from everyone else.
Ivan had decided to leave them to it, so he’d snuck outside to sit in the sunshine. It was lush out here – the hotel was set in acres of landscaped parks and wild woodlands – and the tranquil view helped to give Ivan some perspective. Perhaps it wasn’t as terrible as he’d initially feared.
He rubbed his eyes. “What a fucking bombshell that must’ve been to my parents.”
Samira squeezed his knee. “They’re delighted, Ivan. I’ve never seen anyone look so happy as your mom did just now. And your brothers and Clara seemed thrilled. Even Adam was smiling like crazy – despite this overshadowing his special day.”
“Well, I guess they’ve gained a new brother – that’s got to be good news.”
Samira opened her mouth to reply, but a pair of men’s boots stepped in front of them. She gazed up the leather trousers, past the open shirt, and into the eyes of Joseph Quinlan – making her heart wash with affection. She was a similar age to her youngest brother-in-law, so she felt connected to him. But it was more than that – there seemed to be an affinity between them. He was so sweet and friendly, and Samira was looking forward to them being friends.
“Hi, you guys,” he said. “I saw you escaping out here.”
Ivan gazed up at him. “Hey, Joe. How’s it going in there?”
“Amazing. Jake’s discovering how it feels to be famous. You two alright?”
“Yeah, we’re alright, huh, sweetheart?”
“We’re alright,” Samira said with a nod.
“Good.” Joseph sat down on the stone steps with them. “So what are we going to do about these drug dealers, then?”
Ivan shifted uncomfortably. “What drug dealers? And what do you mean ‘we’?”
“Ivan, you’ve got a suitcase full of cocaine under your bed, and I’m pretty sure you didn’t bring it back for personal use. My guess is you took it from a bad guy and now you’re trying to figure out how best to deal with the situation. Am I right?”
Ivan stared at his little brother. “You might be.”
Samira swept her hair out of her eyes as a gentle breeze caressed her skin. “The ‘bad guy’ has my passport, which I desperately need back, otherwise I’m facing deportation. Well, I’m facing it anyway, but without my passport, there’s no hope.”
“Well then,” Joseph said. “It’s just a game of swapsies, right?”
Ivan frowned. “Huh?”
“You’ve got his coke; he’s got Samira’s passport. So you offer him a swap, then you’re both happy.”
“Simple as that, huh?” Ivan said. “Joseph, sometimes you’re so…” he trailed off and shook his head.
“What, naïve?” He flashed a mischievous grin. “Genius?”
Ivan smirked. “Alright, so it might work. I’ll go back to Texas tomorrow to get Samira’s passport and take the coke as a way to force his hand.”
“I’ll help,” Joseph said. “I’ve got a particular dislike of drug dealers.”
“No way. I don’t want you involved in this.”
“I’ve dealt with worse… But, how come you don’t just tell the police?”
Ivan raised a skeptical eyebrow. “You really think they’ll believe we just happened to pick up the wrong suitcase?” He fell pensive for a beat, then he gasped. “Jesus, we were pulled over by a cop on our drive to the airport… imagine if he’d checked in the case...”
Samira chuckled. “That would’ve been a surprise for us all. Thank god customs didn’t check!”
Joseph frowned. “Oh come on, Ivan, you can’t seriously be telling me you think the cops wouldn’t believe you. I mean, if you just told them about Langdon, surely –”
“No cops, Joe.” He lowered his voice. “Don’t breathe a word of this, but Samira was trafficking drugs for him, and she can’t really hand-on-heart say she had no clue she was breaking the law. Right, sweetheart?”
Samira’s face flashed with guilt. “I never looked in the suitcases or asked any questions. I just wanted what was best for Quin.”
Ivan draped his arm around her shoulders. “It’s okay, sweetheart, you haven’t done anything wrong – Langdon’s exploited you. But after we get your passport back and get rid of the coke, he’ll be out of our lives forever.”
Samira leaned into his warm body. “I’m definitely looking forward to getting him out of our lives. But it’s a shame in a way, because I would’ve liked to get justice for his late-wife after what he apparently did to her. And he should be charged with planning to murder me, too.”
“I know what you mean,” Ivan said. “But let’s just get his coke back to him and your passport back to you before we start meddling in justice.”
“Alright.”
Joseph clapped his hands decisively. “So we just need to return the coke and use it as a bartering tool to get your passport back, Samira, right?”
Ivan shook his head. “I told you, Joe, I don’t want you getting involved in this. I’ll get Adam’s pilot to fly me back to Texas first thing. Jake can come with me – he seems like a good guy to have on your side in a fight – and he already knows Langdon. As long as he doesn’t pull any double-crossing selfish asshole shit.”
Joseph frowned. “Double-crossing? He seems really decent to me. I think you might’ve misjudged him, Ivan. I get the feeling all he wanted was a family.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Ivan and Samira drifted back inside and strolled over to where Jake was chatting with his reunited mom. She looked shell-shocked from the revelation and she was crying, but Jake was comforting her, with his arms tightly around her, trying to make her feel better. Ivan knew he could’ve easily started demanding apologies for what had happened and upsetting everyone around him, but he was staying calm and behaving like an adult. Perhaps Joseph was right and he was a decent guy under all that smug private detective bullshit.
Ivan gazed around the room and saw that his father was deep in conversation with Clara. His dad’s expression was plastered with agitated worry – he clearly wasn’t taking the news as well as his wife.
Jake noticed Ivan and Samira, and excused himself from Mrs. Quinlan, coming over to join them. “Hey… well, that could’ve been handled better.”
“Jake, I’m sorry I outed you like that. I honestly had no intention to. You know I wanted to keep this a secret until I found out what sort of person you were.”
“It’s okay, Ivan. It’s awesome to finally get the chance to meet my mom. My real mom. Your family – I mean our family – are so friendly and welcoming. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do. But there’s plenty of time.”
“Yeah… actually, you and me are leaving for Texas first thing in the morning.”
Jake laughed. “Oh right. Off to finish what we started, huh?”
“Yeah. Our youngest brother’s not only a musical genius, but he’s pretty with-it when it comes to smarts too.”
They glanced over at Joseph, who was now kissing Ellie passionately.
“Looks like someone’s in for a fun night,” Jake said.
“I hope so,” Samira said, smiling at Ivan. She gazed at Jake. “And what about you Jake? Any romance in your life?”
He scoffed. “Nah. The only person I love is the guy I see in the mirror on those rare occasions I bother to shave.”
Samira squeezed him on the arm affectionately. “There’s someone out there for everyone. Even a tough guy like you.”
Jake opened his mouth to argue, but Mr. Quinlan strode over, looking upset.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve showing up like this without warning.”
Jake’s friendly expression morphed to anger. “Hey, you’ve got a lot of nerve exchanging me for your freedom – even though you were blatantly breaking the law and should’ve been punished accordingly.”
“Now, listen her
e you little piece of shit, I don’t know who you think you are, but–”
Ivan put out his hands to prevent a punch up. “Dad, please stop it. Jake, maybe you should go.”
Mr. Quinlan’s eyes welled with tears. “How do you think this is affecting your mother, huh?”
Ivan glanced over. “She looks happier than I’ve ever seen her.”
“Don’t you cheek me, Ivan. This man may be genetically related to us, but his upbringing would’ve made him sour. Just like his old man.”
Jake gazed blankly at Mr. Quinlan. “You’re my old man.”
“You know who I mean. That asshole who forced me to choose between my freedom and my family. You think you can just waltz back in here and drag up the past again?”
Samira stepped forward. “Mr. Quinlan, please don’t think I’m speaking out of line, but Jake had nothing to do with what happened when he was a baby. I know you’re upset right now, but I wonder if you’re more upset with yourself than Jake.”
He stared at her for what seemed like an eternity. Then his face softened. “Of course I’m upset with myself, Samira. You think I haven’t spent the last twenty-four years upset with myself?”
“But now Jake’s here,” Samira said, smiling gently. “And this is your chance to talk to him about what happened. So he can understand. But don’t push him away... I’d give anything to see my parents again. I know what it feels like to be separated from my family. It’s horrible…”
Mr. Quinlan looked at his shoes, then he shifted to gaze at Jake. “I guess she’s right.”
“I guess she is,” Jake said.
Mr. Quinlan thrust out his hand and Jake shook it slowly. “Wanna grab a beer?” Mr. Quinlan asked.
“Sure.”
They started to walk toward the bar. “Hey,” Mr. Quinlan said. “Did you catch the Yankees game last week?”
“Oh, I’m a Mets fan, sir.”
He stopped dead in shock. “You are?”
The Billionaire's Heir: Billionaire Obsession (Tycoon Billionaires Book 4) Page 13