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“Sight-seeing?” I suggested.
Quinn rolled his eyes. “Not sure that’s going to fly. Cincinnati is hardly somewhere the three of us are going to choose for a weekend getaway. Vegas, maybe, or LA, but Cincinnati?”
“I might have a reason we can go,” Brax said from the kitchen. He was perched on one of the stools, a glass of tequila in his hand. Ever since he and Stella had returned from the running trail, he’d been on edge.
It was obvious her belief she’d been followed had freaked him out. At least he’d been there. I was trying not to picture the outcome if he hadn’t been around. It was sheer luck he was.
He didn’t normally go for a run after a gym workout. Most of the time, he hit the shower and went for food. Thank fuck he’d decided to change up his routine today.
“Oh yeah?” Quinn looked across the room with interest.
“My grandmother is hosting an art exhibit opening at a gallery there. Our family is a benefactor, so me being there won’t raise any eyebrows. And if I’m there, it wouldn’t look odd if you guys are there too. We could say we’re attending a Bengal’s game while we’re there. They’re playing the Giants next weekend.”
“Sounds like a plan,” I agreed. “I wouldn’t mind catching the game. It should be a good one.”
“I’ll get us tickets and organize flights and a hotel. We can leave Friday evening and come back Sunday.” Quinn grabbed his laptop and pulled up a ticketing site.
“And I’ll let my grandmother know we’re in Cincinnati for the weekend and to expect us at the opening night. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled.”
I caught Brax’s tight expression. He’d been more closed off than usual lately, especially after his last visit home, and I had a feeling there was a lot he wasn’t saying.
With his father dying, no doubt there was a lot of pressure on him to step up, but it felt like more than that. Not that he would ever confide in us without Quinn forcing the issue.
“Cool, then we have a plan.”
“A plan?” Stella appeared from my bedroom, her hair wet from the shower.
“Yeah, we’re off for a dirty weekend in Cincinnati.” I grinned at her.
“You’re joking, right?”
“No, he’s not,” Quinn said. “We need a reason to visit Cincinnati so you can access this safe deposit box your dad bought. So we’re attending a gallery opening hosted by Brax’s grandmother and catching the Bengal’s game at the same time.”
“Oh my god, I have to meet your family?” Her eyes widened as she looked at Brax. “But they’ll lynch me!”
Chapter 84
Brax
Taking Stella to the gallery opening where my grandmother would be courting all her cronies was probably a fucking terrible idea, but something had crystallized in me tonight. I was done fighting my attraction to Stella. Yes, her father was responsible for Dad’s death, indirectly at least. But Stella was innocent, and if my grandmother wanted to cut me off from my family because of my relationship with her, well she could go fuck herself.
All my life I’d been told our family came first. What I wanted was irrelevant. It was my job as my father’s son to take the reins of the family empire as soon as I was old enough.
Grandma had been grooming me for years. It should have been Dad, but she’d realized early on my father wasn’t right for the role. He was too impulsive. He made decisions without considering the consequences. He was also weak.
When I was 15, Grandma had taken me to one side and told me I was to be her successor. At the time, I was both terrified and elated. Knowing that one day, I would have control of all that power and money was a heady feeling. But as time passed and any freedom I had was slowly eroded, I soon came to realize that I was living in a cage. A pretty, gilded one, but a cage, nonetheless.
This was not the life I wanted, and Lily was about to find out the hard way that I was nothing like my father. Showing up with Estella Cancello was my way of sticking it to my grandmother. I was looking forward to seeing what her next move would be.
I was also looking forward to spending some quality time with Stella.
“My grandmother won’t say a word,” I promised Stella. “She’s far too well bred to make a scene in public.”
“But what about in private?” She looked worried.
I grimaced. “I’m sure she’ll have plenty to say in private, but I no longer give a flying fuck. She’s already holding my education and the welfare of my sisters over my head.”
“What are you talking about?” Quinn asked.
