by Pamela Yaye
“Shouldn’t take long. Mostly everyone’s somewhere on the park today. If we hustle...should have everybody here in a couple of hours.”
Grae nodded. “Make it happen.”
“Can you give me a hint about the meeting?” Leo spread his hands. “You’ve already given your resignation, but you say you’re not back to work, so I guess you’re not here to make the announcement we all wish you would.”
“Just get everybody here and you’ll have your answers.”
Leo nodded, turning to leave the room.
“Leo?” Grae called. “Make sure Faro’s here for this.”
* * *
Leo was true to his word. After the brief discussion with Grae, he and his staff spent the next hour or so arranging the early-afternoon meeting. The rumble of mixed conversation settled to a dull roar when Graedon Clegg arrived. The room didn’t go totally silent until Faro walked in some five minutes after his brother. The man offered no greetings to anyone in the room and merely spread his hands toward Grae in a What now? gesture.
“Thanks to everybody for getting here on such short notice,” Grae said. “I know you’re all aware that I’ve given my resignation, which leaves us in the vulnerable position of being without leadership.” He looked to Faro and saw that the man’s eyes had taken on the hungry gleam they adopted when he smelled blood in the figurative sense.
“I know my half brother is interested in running the company and he’d have a very good case for doing so, as we all know. Ken Clegg’s will calls for a family member to be one of the chief executives. The duty of selecting the leadership is in the board’s hands if no suitable family member is available.”
Faro’s eyes virtually glowed then in anticipation of Grae urging the board to give him the power that was his birthright.
“To have Ken Clegg’s son, his real son, at the head of the business he grew is the best choice, and one that Ken would have supported wholeheartedly. Unfortunately, I’m not Ken Clegg’s real son. More unfortunately, his real son has made company moves that have gone against codes of conduct in the Clegg business plan as well as his father’s own will.”
The gleam in Faro’s eyes took on a venomous sheen, and he stepped forward to dispute.
“You tried to sell us out, Faro,” Grae said before the man could give voice to his argument. “You hated Dad for letting me run the company. You hated him for loving me. It made you so mad you were hell-bent on destroying everything he treasured. You made promises—verbal and written—to sell the company upon your assignment as CEO. The land deed would’ve helped secure that position once you’d ousted me. With that power, not to mention being a blood relative, you could’ve done it.”
“You—”
“It was fortunate that your intended buyer was one of integrity. They came to me, wanted to confirm you had the authority to make such an offer. Following a very interesting conversation that included the details of your written offer, I e-mailed the contents of it to everyone in this room.”
“Bastard.”
Grae smiled. “That may be, but our mother’s marriage to our father still makes me a Clegg. That, combined with my capacity as CEO, gives me the power to have you removed. It’d be in your best interest to drop any plans you have for legal action. The courts may not look too favorably on your actions—ones we may be able to prove as illegal in their own right.”
“Illegal?” Faro was stunned.
“Think about it, Faro. You can leave here and go home, or we can take it to court where your chances of going to jail could be a high possibility.” Grae raised his hands toward Faro. “Floor’s yours.”
Free to speak, Faro declined the offer. Instead, he shot the cuffs of his pristine black suit and left the room. Once silence held just shy of half a minute, faint origins of applause began until the room was alive with cheers.
Several rushed the front of the room to shake hands with Grae and slam hearty pats to his back and shoulders. Grae found he wasn’t immune to the good cheer filling the room, and soon he was grinning as broadly as everyone else.
Leo approached finally to offer his hand. “Thank you.”
Grae accepted the shake. “Just keeping my word to Dad. I promised to protect the company.”
Leo’s expression grew stern. “Ken was your father, Grae. In every way that mattered.”
Still clutching Leo’s hand, Grae nodded, squeezing the man’s forearm and pulling him into a hug. “I know that.”
“I think a lot of drinks are in order!” Leo was again his jovial self when he and Grae pulled apart. “Let’s meet in the exec lounge! Join us?” he asked Grae.
Grae nodded. “I can’t stay long. Another stop to make.”
* * *
Tielle was setting freshly folded napkins on the coffee table when the bell sounded. “I got it!” She sprinted for the foyer, opening the door to Grae. “How’d it go?” she asked.
Grae pulled Tielle close, just needing to be fortified by the nourishing powers of her hold before making any attempts at speech. The drive to his aunt’s home from Clegg had given him time to reflect on the meeting earlier that day. Those reflections were ones he hoped to soon tuck away in the far recesses of his memory.
“It didn’t go well—” he allowed a little space between himself and Tielle “—but the company’s secure.”
“And Faro? You think he’ll let it go at this?”
“If he’s smart, he will. And we both know how smart he is, right?” Grae pulled Tielle into another squeeze, dropping a kiss to her ear in the process.
“Does she know I’m here?” He peered past Tielle’s shoulder.
“I’m pretty sure she does. She’s been cooking like crazy all day.” Tielle reached around Grae to close the front door of Desree’s home.
“Des?” Tielle gave Grae’s hand a few reassuring squeezes and tugged him from the foyer.
Desree waited in her living room. Obviously unnerved, she squeezed a white dishcloth in her hands.
“Look who’s here.” Tielle left Grae just inside the grand living room drenched in late afternoon sun. She went to check the casserole dishes that Des had placed on the long coffee table. “This looks fantastic!” she said of the macaroni and cheese casserole, greens, wild rice, fried chicken and egg custard pie Des had prepared for dessert.
The woman had toiled over the late supper since Tielle had called to tell her Grae would be stopping by after the meeting at Clegg. Tielle left off listing the meal when she saw Grae make the first move. He crossed to Des, taking the dishcloth from her hands and tossing it to an end table. He smothered her hands in his much larger ones and kissed her forehead. Then he pulled her into a crushing hug.
Desree’s muffled, happy cries filled the room as her arms shot around Grae. Her hands rushed up his back to clutch and squeeze him to her.
Tielle blinked, realizing tears were spiking her lashes when she heard the unexpected sounds of Grae’s sobbing.
* * *
“He was someone Grace picked up in a bar.” Desree grimaced. “It didn’t take much for her to step out—Ken not complimenting a new hairstyle or the way she looked in a dress were usually good reasons. She didn’t even know the man’s last name.”
“How could she be sure he was the one?” Grae asked slowly.
“She told me the day she found out she was pregnant. Ken had flowers and a new diamond choker on her bed pillow. It was her birthday. She thought he’d forget. The fact that he remembered... It shook her up good.”
Grae bowed his head and cursed.
“What she’d done, the result of it and then Ken’s sweet birthday gift—guess it all just drove everything home, and she needed to talk.” Des fiddled with the scalloped edge of the cloth napkin on her lap. “I honestly believe she never looked at another man besides your father after t
hat last...”
Des sighed. “Ken...after he got over the shock that his wife was pregnant by another man, he did what he thought was best. He got the adoption proceedings put in place for when you came. He didn’t want whoever the mystery father was to suddenly discover Grace had his child and was married to a multimillionaire besides.
“I wish they’d never told me any of it.” Des closed her eyes. “Grace was in bad shape, though, needed someone to confide in, and I...I was the only one she trusted. She had no other family, her parents were gone and she was an only child.
“My brother told me nothing till years later when he asked me to hold that deed. He trusted Leo and me the most. Since Leo was already helping him with the business...”
Desree seemed to shiver on her end of the sofa she shared with Grae during the meal. “It wasn’t until after Faro said he’d overheard that conversation that I wondered. Ken was a smart man. He had to pick up on Faro’s ways. I think the child only got worse after he heard. I think that’s why Kent gave me the deed. He knew I’d never let it go, never use it as a bargaining chip the way Faro...” She dissolved into tears. “I’m sorry. I never should’ve let him guilt me into doing what I knew I shouldn’t.” She turned tear-filled eyes to Grae.
He moved closer, kissed her cheek. “You did exactly what my father wanted—to protect the family. The way he protected me from any lowlife who may’ve come snooping around in hopes of any advantages being my biological father might grant him. You protected the family from any known or unknown threats later.”
“Ken told me you weren’t his when he came to me about the deed. Faro was the oldest, so it was logical that he’d be the one to lead, but Ken saw there was a chance Faro wasn’t meant to be the one.” Des used the corner of the napkin to dab at her eye.
“He wanted someone outside the company to be able to step in if that wasn’t the case.” She smiled over at Tielle, who sat across from them. “Ken knew I loved this little rug rat from the day he popped out.”
She inclined her head toward Grae. “He knew I loved him just like he did, and with a love like that, he knew I’d protect what could one day be his.”
“You did.”
Des smiled at Grae’s words. “Not very well.” She looked his way. “I never wanted you to know about any of this. Besides me and Leo, the only others who knew were Barry, Frank and Asia’s mother, Clara, who’s been dead many years. We all loved you like you were our own, and you made that very easy each day you continued to grow into such an incredible man.”
She looked toward her lap. “I’m sorry for not telling you. We denied you that right, and we’re sorry. We hoped Ken would tell you before he died, and when he didn’t we...we just didn’t think about how to handle it. We never meant to deceive you. We just didn’t know what to do.”
“Shh...” Grae shook his head and brushed a rolling tear from Desree’s cheek. “There’s only one thing to do, you know?”
Desree blinked, waiting.
“We forget it.” Grae gave his aunt a wink that encouraged her to smile.
Not only did Desree smile, she laughed and cried in unison, throwing herself against Grae and clutching him in a suffocating embrace.
From her chair opposite the sofa, Tielle laughed and cried as well.
Vancouver—One Week Later...
“You’re about to surpass me as Brunch and Memories’s best customer, you know? What’d you have to buy to secure a private dining room?”
Grae demolished the last morsel of apple cobbler from his dessert bowl. “I told them we had a special occasion to celebrate.”
Tielle sipped her wine. “So how long are we gonna milk this celebration thing?”
Following the late supper with Des, which had ended on a delightful note, the Cleggs had launched into a weeklong joyfest. Grae had dined out, barbecued and cocktailed with virtually every member of his family. Everyone wanted the chance to make amends for the awful events of recent weeks.
“We can still milk it a little longer. Still got some things to celebrate.”
Tielle laughed, but she stopped when Grae set a tiny white saucer in the middle of the small candlelit table they shared in the dim, elegant room. In the center of the saucer was a brilliant silver hand that supported a blinding square-cut diamond.
Her jaw dropped, and, after what seemed an eternity, her eyes lifted to his face.
Grae propped his fingers to his brow and studied her knowingly. “I hoped the retreat would give me the chance to prove I wasn’t the same man who forced you to change who you are or lose me. I know that who you are is who I fell in love with, and she means everything to me.”
He tapped his fingers on the saucer’s edge. “I know we have a long way to go, but unless you tell me it’s hopeless, I don’t plan on letting up until my ring’s on your finger and my last name is behind your first again. If you’d like to give me your answer, I wouldn’t mind.”
“Wow,” Tielle could only manage.
His easy expression clouded. “Please tell me it’s not too late.”
“Are you for real?” Her eyes sparkled with moisture. “It’s never been too late. I stayed with Des a week after the divorce was final, hoping you’d come to say you’d made a mistake and that you wanted me again.”
“Tel.” Grae sighed, leaving his chair to come round and lean on the edge of the table. He pulled her up against him. “I always wanted you. Somehow I was dense enough not to realize how much until I lost you. I love you, Tielle.”
“I love you.” She smoothed her hands across his shoulders, powerful and sturdy beneath an oak-colored suit coat. “And I’d like to try something you suggested to Des a week ago.”
He watched her curiously.
“Unless you’re devoted to dissecting, analyzing and apologizing for every awful part of the last year, how about we just forget it? I don’t know about you, but I can think of a lot better memories we can make.”
Grae toyed with the lengthy sleeve of her crimson toga dress. “Does that mean you’re ready to give me an answer?”
“The answer is yes, Graedon Clegg. The only question is when.” Tielle spoke her question against her fiancé’s mouth.
“You need to be sure, Tel. Remember, I’m unemployed at the momentÁ.”
“I wouldn’t call consulting with Leo about Clegg unemployed. Do you think you can hold off going back to the office till after the honeymoon?”
“No need.” He gathered her closer. “The great thing about consulting is you can do it anywhere. So if you think I’d leave you in Vancouver even for a day to go sit up in an office, you’re out of your mind.”
“Do you mean...?” Her gaze narrowed. “You’d really consider staying?”
“Done more than consider it, Tel. I’ve decided. As CEO, it was my right to name my successor. Leo’s more than capable, and when he’s had enough, we’ll put someone in charge who’s equally capable.”
“Sounds too good to be true.” She shook her head even as she smiled.
“There’s a catch.” He outlined her plump mouth beneath his thumb. “As much as I love Turner Estates, I have enough memories of the place to last a lifetime. How ’bout we find our own estate?”
Her smile brightened. “To fill with our own better memories.”
He kissed the tip of her nose. “For the rest of our lives, Tielle. For the rest of our lives.”
* * * * *
We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Kimani Romance.
You dream in vibrant hues! Harlequin Kimani Romance stories feature sophisticated, soulful and sensual African-American and multicultural heroes and heroines who develop fulfilling relationships as they lead lives full of drama, glamour and passion.
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ISBN-13: 9781460338896
INDULGE ME TONIGHT
Copyright © 2014 by AlTonya Washington
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You dream in vibrant hues! Harlequin Kimani Romance stories feature sophisticated, soulful and sensual African-American and multicultural heroes and heroines who develop fulfilling relationships as they lead lives full of drama, glamour and passion.
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