AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Sure,” I mutter, barely taking my eyes off my laptop where I’m busy paying supplier invoices that are due this week.
Darius grabs another fistful of tissues and growls in frustration. “Remind me again why I’m wasting my time if you aren’t serious about getting a new car.”
He’s been seated here in my office for the past hour or so, infecting every flat surface as he goes on and on about vehicle specifications, monologues about financing options and debates with himself over gas versus electric versus hybrid.
And at this point, the entire discussion is making me antsy.
I’m no fool. I know that Darius’s time is valuable. My brother’s billion-dollar empire is made up of at least a dozen different business ventures that require his attention.
For the past decade, he’s split the majority of his time between his business offices in New York and San Francisco. But lately, he’s been spending a lot of time here in Starlight Falls for some reason he’s never explained. And the fact that he’s sitting in this stuffy office at the back of my bar today means that he truly wants to help me with this car stuff.
“I am serious,” I say defensively. “I just…I want to shop around a bit before pulling the trigger. I’m exploring my options. It’s called being smart.”
The truth is, I’ve already seen the model I like. The Tucson. Top-notch safety features. Spacious cabin. The option for all-wheel drive. The perfect shade of blue. But I’m not sure I feel comfortable with the price.
“It’s called pinching pennies,” Darius huffs.
“Why do you care so much?” I snarl.
“Because I’m half-scared that if I don’t intervene, I might come over one day and find you building your own car with soup cans and empty soda bottles in your front yard.”
I crack up with laughter. “If I find a good tutorial on YouTube, I just might give it a try.”
Darius resentfully chuckles, too. Then he grows serious. “What’s really holding you back, Noles?”
I drag a palm down my face. “Whatever I buy, I need to make sure that it makes sense finance-wise. I can’t just go carelessly throwing money around. I have to plan for Stella’s future.”
“Stella’s future?”
“Yeah. College. University. Whatever comes beyond that.” I feel my frustration rising.
My brother has more money than he knows what to do with. Plus, he doesn’t have a kid who’s depending on him. I don’t expect him to understand where I’m coming from.
But instead of having some humility, the guy is sitting there, looking at me like I’m the dumb one.
“You do know that Stella is well on her way to becoming a little millionaire, right?”
I hike an eyebrow and chuff. “What are you even talking about?”
Darius lifts his chin, looking all high and mighty. “My niece has a highly-diversified investment portfolio in her name. I opened up her first account when she was six months old. She’ll have access to it once she turns eighteen. Plus, I recently made her the beneficiary on one of my life insurance policies. So the minute Uncle Darius croaks”—he snaps his neck to the side, rolls his eyes back into his skull and lets his tongue wag out of his mouth—“Bam! Stella’s set for life.”
My eyes bat rapidly as confusion washes through me. “You set this up since she was…” I wheeze. “Since she was…six months old?” My brain is struggling to understand this information. “You’re gonna need to break this down for me, man.”
“I could see that you had a lot on your plate. Especially with Lilian floating in and out of the picture. I figured that if I had some money set aside for Stella, it would be one less thing for you to worry about in the future,” Darius explains. Then a weird shadow crosses his face. “I’ve, uh…, amped up my contributions over the past few months.”
None of this is making sense. “You’ve opened up bank accounts for my daughter…?” I repeat again. “You’ve put her on your life insurance policies…?” I feel myself getting choked up. I can hear it in my own voice.
“Well, yes,” my brother says in that arrogant way of his. “I’m a billionaire. Of course my niece has a trust fund. And I’m just waiting for our other siblings to pop out some babies so they can get trust funds, too.”
“And why did you ‘amp up your contributions’ recently, whatever that means?”
He gets that weird look again. “Jeez-us. All these fucking questions.” He coughs forcefully and I have the urge to duck under my desk for cover. “How about a fucking ‘thank you’?”
“Thank you,” I mumble, still in disbelief. “I’ve been sitting here worry about Stella’s future for years. You seriously didn’t think to freaking tell me any of this?” I grab the tissue box and chuck it at him.
He catches the box right before it hits him in the face. “All this is between Stella and me. It’s none of your fucking business.” He chuckles and I growl at him again. “In all seriousness, the reason I didn’t tell you is because you never want to accept help from anyone.”
“That’s not true,” I lie.
