Mr. Harvey didn't answer right away. He glanced from me to my mother, then back to Preston. For a moment, I was sure he knew about us, about what we had done. Just as the knot in my stomach grew too heavy to hold down anymore, he spoke.

"I heard about the Verger deal."

I let out a long breath into my gla.s.s as I drank, swallowing both the red wine and the bile that had risen into my throat. I had to stop being so on edge. There was absolutely no way either of our parents could know what had happened, or might what continuing happening between Preston and I.

Was I really considering this? Was I really giving serious thought to continuing my affair with my soon-to-be stepbrother?

The mention of the Verger deal made me question myself even more. That was the client Preston had been on the phone with last night, the one who wanted to tear down a homeless shelter to put in a luxury condo development. It was infuriating. It was absurd. It was unethical. And yet Preston's father seemed almost proud of him for it. I wondered how proud he would be when Preston called the whole thing off.

"I take it you want this to happen?" Preston said. He tried to play it cool, but I could hear the note of antic.i.p.ation in his voice clear as a bell.

Mr. Harvey nodded, leaning back in his chair. "I'll be honest, Preston: I wasn't sure you'd have it in you to make a bold move like that, especially without Jane around to give you a little shove in the right direction. I thought maybe you'd gone soft on me. Not everyone in your position would have the stones." He chuckled softly. "They'd be too afraid of going to h.e.l.l."

I couldn't help but scowl. It twisted across my face before I could stop it.

"Rightfully so," I muttered, knowing well the magnitude of the argument I was about to start. "It's disgusting. You're talking about taking the one safe haven these homeless people have and replacing it with a glorified apartment building for the wealthy. You ought to be ashamed."

Mr. Harvey seemed taken aback at my little outburst, as if he wanted to reach across the table and smack me for speaking out of turn and beyond my station, but before he could say a word, my mother stepped in.

"Oh, Madison," she sighed, amused by what she might call my "misguided pluck." I watched her nine-carat engagement ring glitter under the prismatic spray of the chandelier above our heads. "You can't possibly think we're responsible for their misfortune. It's not our fault they're homeless."

I met her gaze first, then Preston's. "It is now," I said.

Though I doubted it would make any difference, for once, n.o.body argued with me. The elder Harvey just smirked as he chewed on a bite of his disgustingly beautiful food while holding a silver fork that was probably worth more money than one of those poor homeless people would come by all year...

Stepbrother Fixation

There was something about Maddy's disapproval that made mincemeat of my heart, especially as she dressed down my father.

I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but as she glanced over at me like that with such a righteous fire in her eyes, I felt incredibly small. No one ever made me feel that way, not even my father. He had made me feel a lot of things in my lifetime, very few of them good, but I could always tell myself that he did it as some kind of perverse power play, and that would make me feel better again.

I couldn't do that with Maddy, and I didn't know why. Maybe it was because, deep down, I knew she was right. But what was I supposed to do? Mr. Verger was one of the biggest clients we had. It was definitely going to upset Maddy, but I couldn't just tell him "no." The kind of s.h.i.t storm that would bring down on my father's head would be unreal. I might have done it just for that reason, if not for the fact that s.h.i.t rolls downhill.

No one said much else during dinner, though I could tell from Maddy's mother's sighs that she considered the evening ruined. I still didn't fully understand what we were doing here. Was this some kind of "atta boy" for handling the Verger problem? Or perhaps some misguided reinforcement to ensure I didn't chicken out on the whole sordid matter? If so, it seemed very unlike my father.

When we'd all finished our meals, he stood up from his place at the head of the table. "Vivian," he said, "why don't you take Madison into the parlor for some after-dinner drinks. Preston, you go ahead and take a few minutes to finish up here, and when you're done, we will finish this discussion in the study."

Now it made sense. There was more to it than met the eye, but not something my father wanted to discuss in front of Maddy and her mother. Madison looked absolutely terrified at the prospect of spending alone time with Vivian, and I couldn't blame her. As my father retired to the opulently decorated library at the far side of the house, I very quickly decided I wasn't hungry anymore. I took a moment to intercept Maddy just outside the parlor door.

"I'm sorry," I told her. "I'll try to make this quick."

"It's fine," she snapped. I could tell she was still upset about the thing with the shelter. "I can handle myself against my mother. I'm sure you have other things to worry about."

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "You just don't understand, Maddy. This is the way of the world. If I don't do this, somebody else will, and then..."

"And then you'll all have just a little less money," she finished for me, her fiery eyes leaping up to meet my own. "Gee, when you put it like that, Preston, I can almost wrap my tiny plebian brain around it."

"I didn't mean..." I began, but Maddy was already pulling away from me and heading into the parlor with her mom. It spoke volumes that she'd rather subject herself to Vivian's unique brand of torture than remain in my company one more minute. Was she really going to put me through the ringer over this?

The whole thing was unsettling for a variety of reasons, the least of which involved memories of my mother and father's relationship before she'd finally divorced him and moved out.

She had been a lot like Maddy. She had morals and principles, and she never backed down when someone like my father challenged them. He always regarded her with a condescending kind of amus.e.m.e.nt, as though someone like her couldn't possibly understand the nuances of running a multi-billion dollar business. I realized with no small sense of shame that I had been treating Maddy similarly, and as I turned to walk into my father's office, I wondered if it was worth it.

My father had hardly ever bestowed a kind word on me before. Even when I was doing his bidding. But the way he'd looked at me over dinner this evening, I could tell that he was proud in some sick and twisted way. He wanted me to be cutthroat, and knocking down a building was just one in a long line of tasks he'd forced on me that ate away at my moral pillars.

And the twisted thing was, I wanted this.

It was what I'd always wanted from my father. I could afford all the diamonds and gold in the world, and yet I'd never been able to afford his approval. It was always just out of my price range, so to speak, and I'd spent my whole life coveting it.

Perhaps if my father hadn't demanded full custody of me, I'd have had my mother there to put things in perspective. But he and his team of lawyers had seen to it that my mother wasn't granted even the barest of visitation rights. Money could buy a lot of things, including a family court judge.

What changed? I wondered as I slowly pushed open the office door. What kind of game is he playing tonight?

I waited patiently just beyond the threshold of the study. Clearly he'd expected to have a few more minutes before I arrived. My father was on the phone.

"No, of course not," he was saying, his back to me as he stared out the window at the garden beyond. I realized he probably had no idea I was even there. I was just about to clear my throat when he continued: "Just because I'm going through with the marriage doesn't mean I don't love you."

I stood stock still as I let those words sink in. Who the h.e.l.l was my father talking to? It sure as h.e.l.l wasn't Vivian. My stomach churned. Was he cheating on Maddy's mother?

The answer was obvious, but that didn't mean I wanted to believe it. Of all the things I'd imagined my father was over the years, a philanderer wasn't one of them.

But now it all made so much sense. I'd always wondered what made my mother ask for a divorce. Philosophical differences were one thing. My mother was a tolerant person, and to a degree, she could have looked past those. But infidelity-adultery? That was something my mother wouldn't have been able to ignore.

Very quietly, I sat down on the opposite side of his desk and listened to the remainder of his conversation.

"No, darling. It isn't like that at all," he continued. I'd heard that tone before, the one he used when trying to keep irate board members nice and calm. He was working this woman over, and if I knew my father's powers of persuasion, then she was buying it hook, line, and sinker. "She's no more special than you are. In fact, I have it on very good authority that mistresses have more fun. You benefit from my attention and my money without being tied down to a family. Isn't that what a young girl like yourself wants?"

I shook my head. It was pathetic, really. He probably had some twenty-something waiting for him in the wings, hanging on his every word while he reaped the benefits of her youth. I didn't want my father's approval anymore. I didn't want anything to do with a man who would put everyone around him at risk just because he wanted to have his cake and eat it too.

As the conversation devolved further, I'd finally had enough. I cleared my throat loudly and watched my father spin around, his eyes widening.

"Darling, I have to go," he said and hung up his phone.

I stared him down, waiting to hear him concoct some excuse for his behavior. But all he said to me was, "How much did you hear?"

I laughed bitterly, shaking my head. "Enough to know you're cheating on Madison's mother," I said.

For just a moment, my father looked like he didn't know what to do. For once in his life, it was like he had no clue what to say or how to talk his way out of it. For a minute there, he resembled something close to human. But then he just snorted and sat down across from me, leaning back in his leather chair as he said: "Don't be nave, Preston. Do you really think Vivian's marrying me for love?"

I thought back to all the things Madison had told me about her mother. I couldn't deny my father's allegation, but that didn't make him right. I hardly knew what the two of them did in private together, but I was betting that whatever it was, Vivian had come to have a reasonable expectation of fidelity from the man she was about to marry.

As always, my father thought that money excused everything. I shook my head in disgust.

"How long has this been going on?" I asked him. And then, "I don't just mean this one, either. Was this what made Mom leave?"

That he chose not to answer. Instead he waved his hand dismissively and muttered something about his private life before getting to the task at hand.

"You might still have a lot to learn about the nature of the world, Preston, but your performance with Harold Verger speaks for itself."

"Speaking of which, I thought we might talk about the Verger deal..." I began, but my father cut me off, continuing as if I hadn't said a word.

"You've proven that I can rely on you, son, and that's no small feat. I think you're ready to start taking on more responsibility for the company. I think you're ready to move up in the ranks."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "And what does that mean?"

My father laughed. "It means that my time at Harvey Enterprises is coming to an end. Maybe not this year or even the next-but soon. You are my heir, and it's time that I treated you like one."

He paused, as if expecting me to say something in return. When I didn't, he said, "You're going to get more involved in the day-to-day operations of Harvey Enterprises, which means more money for you and a bigger office. You'll come work for me in the Harvey Tower downtown. No more telecommuting from that little hole in the wall."

That 'hole in the wall' was my oasis, my sanctuary. It kept a firm boundary between me and my father, and I wasn't so sure I wanted to demolish it for any amount of money.

"What about Maddy?" I said. "Are you going to hire her, too?"

My father shrugged. "Sure. We can find something for her. Those part-time mail clerk positions have high turnover. No reason I can't stick her there."

"What, for eight dollars an hour?" I asked, raising my brows. "She's making a h.e.l.l of a lot more than that now, and she deserves it. I know you've seen my productivity this month."

"Yes, yes, you've been busy, but with the exception of the Verger deal, I must admit much of what you've accomplished hasn't been to the level of profitability that I expect. Profits are down nearly eight percent, and if I didn't know any better, I'd say you went soft right about the time you hired on your sweet little stepsister."

I tried to keep my cool, avoiding his attempt at putting me on the defensive. "Profits are down, but employee morale is higher than it has been in years. Sure, I've made a few hard choices that will negatively effect this quarter, but I did the right thing, and people respect me for it. If you really want me to take over this company some day, I'm going to need the chain of command to know that I'm a man worth respecting."

My father slammed his hand down on a table, my body instinctively wincing against its impact. "Respect is far easier attained through fear. Do you think I reached my station in life being nice? Did you think I wouldn't notice that you pushed dozens of part time workers into enough hours that they qualify for benefits? That includes Maddy. There isn't a personal a.s.sistant on the planet worth the kind of money you're paying her."

"I'm not going to argue with you about this. Maddy deserves..." I began, but he cut me off again, his voice raising to an octave I'd only heard when he was truly angry.

"It's not about what people deserve, son," my dad said, his body visibly working to keep his rage contained as he pulled a cigar box out of one of his desk drawers. "It's about giving them just enough to keep them from revolting. I thought I taught you better than that."

I shook my head, standing up. "I don't think this is going to work out," I said. "Not unless Maddy gets a fair shake in all this. I mean, if I'm going to take on more responsibilities, I'm going to need a personal a.s.sistant. Why demote her and hire someone else when we could just transfer her position to the tower? You want to pay her less, fine. I can cover the difference out of my own salary. I'm not cutting her pay, and that's not up for negotiation."

My father waved his hand as he lit the end of his imported cigar. "We're not having a negotiation. Perhaps you've forgotten which name is on the building? I already took care of everything. Maddy is out, and your personal a.s.sistant position has been filled."

I blinked, unable to form a better response than two simple words that escaped my lips. "By who?"

He sucked in a long draw before he answered, blowing a smoke ring as he said the word I somehow knew would bring me yet another dose of pain.

"Jane."

I couldn't believe my ears. "Jane?" I echoed. "You're trying to get rid of the best a.s.sistant I've ever had, and now you tell me you hired Jane on as my new PA after I personally fired her? What the h.e.l.l, Dad?"

"She does good work," he said with a shrug. "And she keeps you on track. You've softened up since you hired on Madison, and I know d.a.m.n well Jane can fix that."

"You're insane," I hissed, clenching my hands into fists at my sides. "Maddy was on my staff when I fixed that deal with Harold Verger. I haven't gone soft at all."

"Oh is that so? You'd blow that deal to smithereens in an instant, if it meant pleasing sweet precious Maddy. I saw the way you looked at her over dinner as the little b.i.t.c.h dressed me down in my own house," my father said, his piercing gaze meeting mine. "Wouldn't you, Preston? I'd bet you're already considering it. I can see the wheels turning in that head of yours. You're angry, aren't you? That's good. I want you angry. That's the fire you need burning if you're going to carry this company into the future, son."

I stared. I wasn't sure how to answer him, but he didn't give me time.

"And besides, you can't keep f.u.c.king your stepsister, Preston."

I watched as his lips curled into a crooked smile, my breath catching as my heart skipped a beat. "Maybe she's not family yet, but she will be, and then this little dalliance will have to stop. And when it does, it'll all go bad, Preston. Believe me, I've seen what Madison's mother is like. She'll go after you and your money faster than you can pull out of her tight little c.u.n.t. Maybe she'll say you raped her, or that you threatened her job if she didn't go along with your twisted little f.u.c.king games. Now, maybe accusations like that don't hold a h.e.l.l of a lot of weight between men like us, but f.u.c.king your stepsister? Now that's just plain unacceptable."

He stood up, his bones creaking as he made his way to my side. He blew a puff of smoke in my face as he said, "You'll be a pariah, Preston. And so will I. They'll be wagging this story up and down the news stations and dragging our stock value through the mud. Is that what you want?"

My vision was tunneling. I could feel heat p.r.i.c.kling my face. How the h.e.l.l did he know about Maddy and me? How the h.e.l.l could he know?

"You're sick," I said, a feeble attempt to refute his claims, however true they were. My words sounded weak even to my ears. "Jesus, Dad. That's..."

"You're going to get rid of her," he said. "The sooner, the better. Because one day, you're going to need an heir just like I did, and it's d.a.m.n sure not going to be something you can do with Maddy. You're going to need someone cutthroat to help balance out whatever weakness your mother managed to impart in you. Jane should do quite nicely."

I knew my father had always approved of Jane, but I'd never considered it had anything to do with breeding. I felt sick. I felt like my world was tilting, and I was doing my best to keep holding on as my thoughts careened through my head.

"No," I said, my lips feeling numb. "I don't take orders from you. Not from a man who cheated on my mom, and not from a man who..." I trailed off. What had he done, exactly-had he put cameras in my bedroom? I settled for, "...accuses me of sleeping with my own stepsister."

"We all make sacrifices," my father said. The heat of his stare was almost hotter than the blood pooling in my cheeks. "All of us, Preston. This will be yours. But the rewards are so much greater."

"I don't want to be like you," I said, backing away from him and turning into the hall. "I don't want to be anything like you!"

When I stormed into the parlor to get Maddy, she couldn't have looked more relieved to see me. But that relief soon turned to confusion, and then to concern as I took her by the arm and pulled her from her seat.

"Come on," I said. "We're leaving."

I held her hand on the way out the door, and there was no shame.

Stepbrother Fixation

"There's something I need to tell you," Preston said once we were back in the car.

Despite his anger, he was taking his time getting us back to the office. In fact, I didn't recognize any of the roads were traveling down. Whatever he wanted to talk about, it was obviously going to be a lengthy conversation.

"Is this about the shelter?" I asked. "Because if it's some rambling justification about survival of the fittest straight out of your father's mouth, then I don't want to hear it."

"It's not," he answered. The moonlight made his sun-kissed face look ashen. "It's about my father, and what's next for us."