Page 11 of Graciously His

“Fucking off,” I confirm, toggling the call.

I switch the dumbbell to my left hand for another set, my fingers gripping the roughened metal. Expecting to hear a voice just like my own, I answer the second call the way I always do: “What, bro?”

It isn’t Nick on the other end.

It’s a cop.

Car accident.

Died instantly.

Widow asking for you.

My stomach ties itself up even as I realise I’ll never answer a call from Nick again. Shakily, I set aside the weight and stare into the mirror, seeing myself clearly. The worse twin. Alone now.

The voice continues in my ear, snagging my attention.

“Repeat that,” I say, my voice and hands steady once more. My reflection is the same cool-eyed man I’ve always been.

“There’s been some… unpleasantness between your brother’s widow and her mother. My partner is with the widow now, and—”

“Is Grace all right?”

“She’s been asking for you. The mother has been trying to persuade me to let her see her daughter again, and I’m having a hell of a time containing her. Is there something we should know about the situation? Both my partner and I noted some tension between the two of them.”

Tension…

I consider what someone like the Munchausen bitch might do in a situation like this, when her enabler has been removed and Grace is hurting. Then I do some quick math and take the biggest risk of my life.

“Here’s what you need to know: Constance Reid has a history of abusing her daughter. Grace cannot be left alone with her, especially now that my brother is dead and she’s vulnerable. I’ll be on a flight from Auckland within two hours, but you need to keep Constance away from Grace until then. Do you understand me?”

The cop stutters an answer. I demand his name, badge number, and those of his partner. I write them down.

“I’m trusting you to handle that woman,” I say, increasing the pressure. “I’ll catch a flight as soon as we’re done here.”

“Yes, sir. And my condolences for—”

I hang up and call my charter firm. They schedule my take-off for two hours from now, charging me a premium for short notice. I get Dare back on the phone, my mind already laying out everything I need to get done before I fly out. I’ve got moving pieces across multiple plans, none of which were meant to move forward until Grace graduated. Nick’s death means everything has to happen today.

It’s fucking go time.

“Emergency in Dunedin,” I tell Dare without preamble. “I’ll be out for at least the rest of the day, maybe the week. You’re CEO, CTO, and…” I pause, my brain working around what I’m about to admit, “and CFO from now until I tell you otherwise. Today’s profits are yours if the app doesn’t crash.”

I tilt my head, waiting for him to answer. If he can’t do this, there’s no one else. The launch will fail and we’ll all be out more money than I want to think about. I know it and, judging by his silence, he knows it, too.

“Condolences, boss,” is all he says.

“Accepted. Now fuck off.”

“Fucking off.” He hangs up.

My next call is to my lawyer, who answers midway through the first ring.

“Watson.”

“Dig my brother’s will out,” I tell him. “And I’ll need the marriage documents we discussed last month—for today.”

A beat, and I can almost feel the man’s misgivings through the phone. My steps falter as I head towards the bathroom. I don’t have time to unravel the twist in his undies.