Page 66 of My Heart Still Beats
But even those aren’t the darkest secrets I harbor.
I have demons not even my brother knows about.
But tonight is not the night to think about those.
Tonight is the night to celebrate the end of my brother’s life as a bachelor. I’ve never seen him happier than he is with Skye. My brother isn’t the happy sort. He’s carried a load on his shoulders for far too long, and Skye has helped him bear the burden.
He’s finally forgiven himself—I hope—for his part in our mother’s burn scarring and eventual death.
I’ve forgiven him, too.
Because God knows I’ve done way worse when I knew way better.
Braden was just a child.
I was not.
But again…
I erase the thought from my mind. I can’t have those memories tainting this party for Braden. My father and I both owe him a lot. It was his genius that created the product that made us millions. We gained our billions through outside investments, and Dad and I both had a huge part to do with that. But we wouldn’t have been able to do that without Braden first creating the company that put us on the map.
I take another sip of my Wild Turkey. “Get up and dance, brother. This is your sendoff.”
He chuckles. “I’ll leave that to Dad. And you. Why aren’t you dancing?”
Yeah, I should be, actually. I haven’t been able to get Tessa Logan out of my mind, but I also need to remember that tonight is about Braden and not me. I should participate in the fun.
I rise, head toward Dad, who’s twirling one of the dancers around. I grab the first one I see. She has tanned skin and light brown hair.
“What’s your name?” I ask.
“Teresa,” she says with a Jamaican accent.
Teresa.
Tessa’s given name.
So much for getting her off my mind.
I twirl Teresa, let her go, and turn to another—this one with fair skin and blond hair—and grab her. “What’s your name?”
She smiles. “Amy.”
Amy.
Good enough.
I take her into my arms.
Normally, holding a nearly naked woman like this would get me hard.
But not tonight.
Not a problem. These women aren’t going to sleep with any of us anyway, no matter how much my father would enjoy having all four of them in his bed. The resort planner made that very clear when I booked them to perform.
“I’m Ben,” I say to Amy. “I’m the best man.”
“The best man for what?” she whispers in my ear, her voice seductive.
