Sterling My parents’ estate was buzzing with activity by the time we arrived. It wasn’t chaos exactly, but it never was around here. Everyone was simply at panic stations—just in a much more organized fashion than I supposed most families would manage. All the lights were blazing as we came up the drive. Through the windows, I could see staff hurrying one way and another inside. There was always a particular kind of energy that sw ept through the place when the family gathered for a crisis, and today, it was running hot. The orange glow of dusk fell across our laps as we parked and I reached for Laney’s hand to squeeze it, already knowing we were about to be apart again for at least the next couple of hours. “We’re going to get through this, baby. I promise. We’re going to take care of it.” She swallowed and inhaled a de ep breath through her nostrils as she glanced up at the house. “I really didn’t want to make this your family’s problem.” “The second someone took a hit at a Westwood, that person made my family their problem,” I countered. “None of this is your fault and besides, you’re one of us now and the first rule of being a Westwood is presenting a united front.” Her gaze lifted the review. “But my dad n —” “Is family too,” I concluded before she could worry too much more about it. “He’s as welcome here as I am and as you are. United front, remember? I asked him if he wanted to come along and he agreed. He wants to be here. Right now, that’s what matters. Not whatever else is going on between all of us.” My mother appeared at Laney’s window and opened the door. Her blonde hair was pulled up into an elegant do that I knew to be one of her so- called “power looks.” She’d wanted to be ready to face the world if it came knocking at our door. “Oh, my poor girl,” she crooned immediately, hazel eyes locked on Laney as she opened her arms. “God, I hate the stinking internet, but you’re safe now. Come on. Let’s go get a drink and kick your feet up. It must’ve been such an awful day.” Laney managed a weak smile but nodded, climbing out of the car before sinking into my mother’s hug. “It’s been terrible, but a drink sounds good.” “Excellent. Consider this your safe haven, darling. Whatever you need, you just let me know.” She held Laney for a few breaths, then seemed to notice Vincent’s car behind us. Glancing at me, she took Laney’s arm but didn’t lead her away just yet. “Who’s this?” “My dad,” Laney said quietly. “I hope it’s okay that he came.” “Of course,” Mom said happily, genuine warmth infusing her voice. “I’ve heard so many stories about Vinny over the years, but I don’t believe we’ve ever met. It will be good to have some time to get to know him.” I got out of the car while she was speaking, hearing Vincent’s door slam shut behind us. Gravel crunched under his feet as he approached. I turned to see him glancing warily at the house and then my mother before he cleared his throat.
“Mrs. Westwood,” he said gruffly when he reached us, stiffly sticking out his hand. “Thank you for inviting my daughter to come stay with you.” For a moment, Mom’s eyebrows twitched and I thought she was going to remind him that Laney was her daughter now too, but ever the graceful host, she simply inclined her chin and waved him toward the door. “Of course,” she said. “We’re happy to have all of you. Please come in.” She looped her arm around Laney’s again and turned to lead her into the house, silhouetted with the sun setting behind it. As they reached the st eps, she turned her head to speak to us over her shoulder. “Gentlemen, I’m going to insist that you give us girls some time alone together. Stay out of it for a while. You’ll only make it worse.” I had to bite my tongue as my mom whisked my wife away from me— again—but the automatic surge of irritation was nothing in comparison to what Laney was going through today. As much as it physically pained me to let her out of my sight, I knew better than to argue with my mother when de ep down I knew she was right to take Laney away from everything that was happening. Vincent gave me a sideways glance when they disappeared into the house, but didn’t say anything about it, just following me up the stairs and into the foyer. It turned out Dad was already waiting for us there, drink in hand as if he was welcoming someone to dinner. “Vincent Rhodes,” he said slowly, his voice edged with something dry and sharp. “I wish it was under better circumstances, but welcome to the family.” Beside me, my father-in-law stopped walking. His gaze clashed with my dad’s and his features arranged into a hard scowl. “Harlan Westwood. I thought for sure that the next time I saw you, it would be because I was arresting you again.” Aggravation rolled through me. I didn’t need this. Not right now. St epping between the two men, I looked at my dad first, narrowing my eyes in warning before I turned to look at Vincent in turn. “Knock it off,” I directed at both of them. “Whatever bad blood is between you, this isn’t about that. It’s about Laney and you’re fucking grownups. Act like it.” Dad’s brow inched up, but only for a second before he chuckled and gestured toward the bar. “Drink?” Vincent didn’t respond, but when Dad started walking, he followed him with the kind of measured footst eps that told me he was cataloging everything he saw. He was watching me too, even as I left them and headed toward the back patio where I knew my brothers would be. Whenever there was a problem and the family closed ranks like this, the patio was where we gathered. Mom tended to flit around the house, commandeering the troops either within the house or outside by speaking rapid fire into her phone, but she couldn’t sit still. That would be different this time, now that she had Laney to take care of. Dad preferred his study. It was his version of his very own war room, and with Vincent here, I was sure they had some talking to do that they wouldn’t want us listening to.
Us boys—as Garvey insisted on calling us even to this day—we got together on the patio, in our own space where we could brainstorm, bitch, and be honest without any interruptions. As I walked out of the double doors that led to the patio, I wasn’t surprised to find Callum and Jameson already there. Callum was perched on the arm of a chair, looking like he’d been born with a cocktail in his hand while Jameson paced like a caged lion just begging to be released so he could tear the world a new one. They both looked over at me. Callum’s blue eyes and Jameson’s hazel ones immediately found mine. “Is she okay?” Callum asked. “I just got here, but I saw everything online. Figured we’d all be meeting to hammer it out. First things first though, how’s she doing?” “Not well.” I shook my head and went to the drinks cart they’d wheeled out to pour myself a stiff bourbon. “She’s not even close to okay. This isn’t just her business we’re talking about, it’s her livelihood. Her family’s legacy. Her name. Fuck, it’s her face in those memes.” I brought the glass to my lips and tossed almost half the contents down my throat. Jameson stopped pacing to stare at me with his head cocked, his hands finding his hips and curiosity flaring to life in his eyes. “You’re burning up about this. Like, really burning up.” He paused before he added, “I never thought I’d see the day anything got you all riled up.” I drained the rest of the bourbon and poured myself another before I walked to the table. Pulling out a chair with a slight scrape against the tiles, I sat down and nodded. It was time. It had been many, many years since I’d last done this, but as I looked between them, I finally let the walls drop. All of them. Rage tore through me first, followed by remorse, guilt, and exasperation, and I allowed them to see it all. When I finally found my voice, it was hoarse and ragged, and frankly, I felt like all the air had been knocked out of my lungs. “I can’t fucking stand this. The woman I married, a woman I actually really fucking like, is being put through hell. Because of me.” My head started shaking, a strange pressure filling my chest. “Just this morning, we were happy.” I blew out a harsh breath. “We were talking about our future together. Like it was actually going to fucking happen. Like some kind of goddamn fairy tale and I was excited for it.” The words burned in my throat. I didn’t get happy. I didn’t get excited, but I really had been. Admitting it was like drinking acid now that it was all gone, though. I sighed and scratched the side of my neck. “Then this shit storm hit us and here we are. The worst part of it is that I had no idea it was coming, so I couldn’t even protect her to soften the blow. I can’t do that now, either.” My brothers stared at me, neither of them moving a muscle for the longest time, but it was like I could feel something change in the air between us. It was subtle, but I saw the way they were both suddenly looking at me like they were finally seeing me. The real me, not just the guy who showed up to fix whatever was wrong and walk away before feelings got in volved. I wasn’t sure I liked it, but it was too late now to take it back, and besides, I hadn’t walked away and feelings had gotten in volved. More feelings than I’d felt before, but shit. It didn’t feel right to deny them.
“I’ve got people on it,” Callum said once he’d recovered. He took a sip of whatever cocktail he’d mixed up this time and swallowed it, then glanced at the liquid, winced, and looked back at me. “Our PR people are doing triage. They’ve already managed to slow the bleeding. There are plenty of people out there who know her and who know you, who are pushing back. Baby Blossom clients have been speaking up for the place, as has the community. There’s power in that. We’ve got our best people spending all their time on this and they’re doing everything they can. For now, there’s not much more we can do.” Jameson slowly arched an eyebrow before he smirked at me. “Which begs the question. Why are you here with us instead of being with her?” Because I don’t know what the hell else to do. I didn’t say that, though. Instead, I shrugged and took another sip of my drink. “Mom’s got her. I can’t just sit back and wait for someone else to clean up this mess, no matter how badly I’d rather be with her.” “Why not?” Jameson finally sat down too, looking right into my eyes with a challenge flickering in his. “Clearly, you’ve fallen in love with your wife. That’s not a bad thing. It’s weird, but it’s not bad. So go save her from Mom and let the PR people do their jobs in peace.” “But I’m the fixer,” I hissed between clenched teeth, jabbing a thumb at my chest. “I’m our family’s weapon and you know it. No one just calls me when there’s trouble. They unleash me. I don’t sit on the sidelines and wait for shit to happen. I’m the one who makes it happen.” “I hate to be the one to tell you this, bro,” Callum said with amusement on his features. “But this isn’t a hostile takeover, or a corporate scandal, or a boardroom full of assholes trying to stop you from getting what you want. It’s your wife. She doesn’t need the Westwood bulldog. She just needs you.” “Sterling, the man.” Jameson smirked again. “Not Sterling Westwood, the name that strikes fear into the hearts of his enemies.” “Fuck you.” I scoffed, but I was trying to hold back a snort of laughter. “What do you think this is, Braveheart?” Their words hit me harder than I was willing to admit, though. All because everything they’d said rang true and the realization was more terrifying than anything I’d ever faced—no matter how many titans of industry I’d gone up against in my career. Callum stood from his perch on the armrest and drained his undoubtedly strong-as-jet-fuel cocktail. “I’m going to check in with our team. You and I both know that they’ll call if they need your help, but we have to let them handle their end right now. Once we know more, we can decide how to move forward.” “Go be with your wife, William Wallace,” Jameson chimed in with a shit-eating grin. “We’ll call you when it’s time to suit up for battle, but for now, just go make sweet, sweet love to n —” “Shut up,” I cut him off and pushed back my chair, laughing despite myself before I tossed back the rest of my drink. “I’ll go save her from Mom. You two can go fuck yourselves for thinking this is funny.” “I just might take you up on that,” Jameson joked—or maybe not. I really didn’t want to know. “Say hi for us.”
“For the record, I’d just like to point out that I didn’t make fun of you,” Callum said. “All I did was offer sage advice.” “Noted. I’m stunned that it’s actually true, but you’re not wrong.” I set my glass down with a thud and pointed at Jameson. “I’ll remember this when your turn comes.” He sighed, but something strange flashed behind his eyes. Something that told me all his bravado tonight had been to hide something else. Dad had mentioned he’d been moody and now this. If I had time to deal with it right then, I would have, but Laney needed me more tonight. After giving them both a wave, I turned toward the hallway where I’d last seen her, already missing her after spending so much time apart today. Being the family fixer could wait. For once in my life, I was putting myself—and my wife—first. The sound of Mom’s voice drifted out of the breakfast room and I followed it until I found them tucked into the nook off our kitchen with Mom talking Laney’s ear off. She was just listening, her knees pulled up to her chest and her chin resting on her arms around them. She looked numb. Beat in a way that made all sorts of instincts surge through me to take her back to Napa and ke ep her there with me forever— away from all this bullshit. My mother glanced at me when I walked in, smiling cautiously as if she wasn’t sure if I was just checking in or if I’d come bearing more bad news. “Sterling?” “Why don’t you go make sure that Dad and Vincent don’t get in a fist fight?” I suggested gently. “It’s been a day and I’m taking my wife to bed now. We could all use some rest.” “That’s a great idea, honey.” Mom’s smile morphed into something warm and approving, and she nodded as she rose gracefully from her seat. “Don’t you two worry about those old men now. They won’t start swinging.” “You didn’t see the way they looked at each other when we came in,” I said, but she was already waving me off. “Oh, it’s nothing. Ancient history,” she said breezily as she strode over to brush a kiss to Laney’s cheek. “Harlan used to have a big old crush on Bella way back in the day. Before I was in the picture, of course, but it was Vincent who won her heart. I didn’t put all the pieces together until a few days ago, but nothing untoward ever happened. They’re just old frenemies who need to learn how to let go of the past.” With that, she brushed a kiss to my cheek too, patting me on the shoulder before she pulled away to look up at me. “I’m pleasantly surprised, darling. I didn’t think I’d be seeing you again until after midnight, but you’re doing the right thing.” She sw ept out of the room as if she hadn’t just dropped a massive bomb on us. Laney and I both just stared after her for a long minute. Stunned by what she’d said about our dads and Laney’s mom, I only snapped out of it when Laney started giggling. “I just can’t process that today,” she said as she stood up and came over to me. “You said something about taking me to bed?” “Y ep.” I slid my fingers around hers like it was the most natural thing in the world. In response, she wrapped her free hand around my elbow, leaning into me. We walked out into the hall together.
Finally feeling like I could breathe for the first time since I’d found her reading those messages this morning, I led her out into the garden and across the lawn. “We’re in the lake house tonight. I asked them to get it ready for us before we came.” “The lake house?” She glanced up at me, her eyes watery and red- rimmed but not as devastated as they had been earlier. “Just how many houses are on this property?” “A few,” I said vaguely. “I’ll give you a tour sometime. Maybe tomorrow. Let’s see how it goes.” “That’ll be nice.” She sighed and glanced up at the stars, melting into my side. We walked along the garden path to the guest house on the second lake. Nestled between carefully trimmed hedges that created a natural barrier, the lake house was little more than a cottage built right on the shore of the water. I would show Laney around tomorrow, though. For now, the only thing that was important was that it was nice, fully furnished, and clean. Finally alone again, I locked the door behind us and pulled her into my arms, holding her against me and closing my eyes against the onslaught of emotions that surged through me. Now that she’d started tearing down my walls and I’d willingly let them fall again for my brothers earlier, it felt like they were crumbled on the ground and I couldn’t seem to figure out if I even wanted them to come back up again. “We’re going to be fine, Laney. I don’t know how yet, but everyone we’ve got is working on this. I’m still not convinced I shouldn’t be with them, but I needed to be with you for a while first.” She lifted her head away from my chest and looked up at me, bringing a hand to my cheek and touching her fingers to it gently, like I was something precious to her. She shook her head. “Don’t go. Let them deal with it for tonight. There’s nothing we can do that’s not already being done.” I wasn’t convinced that was true either, but I nodded and brought my lips to hers, kissing her de eply and with more meaning than I’d ever kissed anyone before. If Jameson had been right and she needed me to be here with her instead of out there fixing this, then here was exactly where I was going to be.