Page 4 of In the Heir (Westerly Billionaire 1)
“Let’s hop on the treadmill after yoga. You can tell me all about last night. Spencer didn’t want to talk about it.”
I don’t blame him. I’m not going to say too much about it, either. “Sounds perfect. See you at the gym.”
“Great. See you there.”
A few minutes later Alisha pulled into the driveway of the two-bedroom home she’d bought for herself. From the flowers she’d planted along the path, to the shutters she’d bought at a yard sale and refinished, she loved every inch of it. It was hers. She could have moved to Boston as many people did after college, but she’d chosen to stay in the suburbs. Why load herself up with more debt just to be living in Boston? And it wasn’t in her heart. She’d always been impressed with the simplicity of Stephanie and Mark’s life and knew she wanted something similar for herself. Her home was simple and beautiful. She liked to think it represented the life she’d made for herself.
Alisha changed into yoga pants and a fitted black tank top. The thinner she got, the more colorful her gym outfits became, but for now she was still in her winter-weight dark attire. She made a salad and ate while reading over the journals of the children who hadn’t met with her that day, then quickly wrote notes on each and added smiley stickers to those who had completed work.
After stuffing her rolled-up mat, a towel, and water into a bag, she raced out the door and came to a skidding stop when she saw Brett leaning against a silver sports car parked behind her Honda Civic.
With his charcoal suit and dark glasses, he looked out of place in the driveway. Alisha’s breath caught in her throat as he pushed off the car and straightened. She didn’t appreciate the way her body warmed as he approached her. “If you’re looking for Spencer, he’s not here.”
“I know.”
Alisha almost took a step back, but she forced herself to stand her ground. He came to a stop a foot from her. Close enough to set Alisha’s heart beating wildly in her chest with an odd mix of nerves and excitement. He was really better-looking than any man had the right to be. “I’m not sure what you think we have to say to each other.”
He removed his glasses. There they were, those blue eyes she found impossible to look away from. She told herself she was imagining it, but she could have sworn there was sadness in them. Did his gruff exterior protect a man who’d experienced pain? In terms of worldly possessions and all things sought after, he had everything. But something had torn through him.
As one long moment dragged into two, she became sure he’d come to apologize and was having difficulty choosing his words. He probably felt horrible about the first impression he’d given her. She nodded at him in encouragement.
“How much would it take for you to not marry my brother? Fifty thousand? A hundred thousand? Name your price.”
Alisha gasped as his words sank in. I did not see that coming. “You should go.”
He leaned into her space. “Two hundred.”
You’re getting less attractive the more you speak. “Sorry to disappoint you, but not everyone can be bought. There isn’t an amount you could offer that would be enough.”
“I don’t believe you,” he said matter-of-factly.
“It doesn’t matter if you believe me. It’s the truth.”
“Everyone has a price.”
“Then you know the wrong people.”
He seemed to weigh her claim for a moment before saying, “You don’t love Spencer.”
“Wrong again.” She did, even if it wasn’t in a romantic way. He was the little brother she’d never been fortunate to actually have.
Brett straightened and frowned. “You were dating someone else until two weeks ago.”
As far as Alisha knew, Brett didn’t talk to Rachelle often, and she couldn’t imagine that her dating life was a topic of discussion when they did speak. “How do you know that?” Alisha decided it didn’t matter. Instead of waiting for an answer, she waved a hand at him and demanded, “Why are you so determined to sabotage your brother?”
His head snapped back. “I’m not.”
“He needs the money for his company.”
“My father would give him a loan. I’ve offered to invest in his company. He doesn’t have to marry you—” Brett was smart enough to stop there.
Had Alisha actually been dreaming of living happily ever after with Spencer, she would have been hurt by Brett’s stance. She took a deep, calming breath. Regardless of what a jackass he was, this was Rachelle’s brother. She remembered what Spencer had said about always hoping things would go better. She owed so much of the happiness she’d found to the Westerlys’ welcome. They taught me what a healthy family life could be like. Is this my chance to pay it forward? She called upon her kindergarten-teacher patience and said, “Coming here was wrong. Offering me money to leave Spencer is insulting and hurtful. If you love your brother at all, don’t do this. Leave now. I’ll pretend none of this happened, and you should try to support your brother in a way that leaves him with his pride intact.”
Brett’s face tightened with emotion. Alisha braced herself for what was likely going to be an even more offensive comeback, and considering he’d already implied her loyalty could be bought, that was saying something. He brought a hand up and instinctively Alisha flinched before she realized he was merely replacing his sunglasses. He paused and his eyes snapped to hers. No longer angry with her, he appeared to be angry for her.
How can that be possible? He doesn’t know about my past. No one knows all of it. She pushed back a twinge of shame and tensed defensively.
When he finally spoke, it was in a deep, gravelly voice. “I would never hurt you.”
Alisha didn’t have a ready answer for that. She didn’t want to think the past had any hold over her anymore. She looked away and adjusted her bag on her shoulder. “Please just go. I’m already late to meet Rachelle at the gym.”
He nodded, replaced his sunglasses, and without saying another word climbed back into his sports car and drove off. When he was out of sight, Alisha finally got into her own car and started it. She then seemed to lose momentum and simply sat there.
What was that?
Did he honestly think I’d take the money?
She remembered how he’d looked as he stood over her, still very much the arrogant man she’d met the day before, but with an underlying sadness that made her wish she knew how to help him connect with Spencer.
I don’t understand you, Mr. Angry Westerly.
She backed out of the driveway and pulled into traffic, unable to dislodge him from her thoughts. She had driven several blocks before she realized she was headed in the opposite direction from the gym. She used a side road to turn around and sighed. But if it’s any consolation, I understand myself even less.
Brett returned to his office and worked through the night. When the morning light fell across his desk, he stood and stretched.
I shouldn’t have gone to Alisha’s house. She was right about that.
But I had to know if money was her motivation.
Brett pushed out of his chair, moving to look out his office window as his mind filled with images of Alisha. My brother’s fiancée. He grimaced. That’s what she is.
Vetting her integrity didn’t change that.
Things would have been a hell of a lot easier if she’d taken his money. He would have instantly lost all respect for her. Instead, he found himself in the rare position of envying his youngest brother. No one had ever stood in defense of Brett, had her loyalty tested and then passed that test, or even claimed to love him.
Not the way Alisha had stood up for Spencer.
The women in Brett’s life were realistic. They understood that relationships, regardless of how heated they became in the bedroom, were nothing more than mutually beneficial associations with a healthy side of sex. Friends with benefits was too generous a description for his last several lovers. They’d been beautiful and passionate, but loyal? He doubted many of the men he knew were married to women who would
stay with them if their finances took a dip.
That’s how women were. They put their own needs first. A man could only be hurt by them if he forgot that. And I never will.
It was difficult to reconcile his views on women with his impression of Alisha. She wasn’t materialistic. Both her home and vehicle were well cared for but not pretentious. She was protective of Spencer even when it put her in what could have been volatile situations. He frowned as he remembered her flinch. It confirmed what Child Protective Services had suspected but had been unable to prove—her father had extended his abuse of her mother to her. The idea of hurting a woman was so foreign to Brett that he could hardly wrap his head around it. His parents’ divorce had been emotional for all involved, but even during the worst of it his father had never raised a hand to his wife or children.
That Alisha had survived such a childhood and had remained strong was remarkable.
Brett put a sticky note on Gina’s computer keyboard, instructing her to locate Alisha’s father. If he was still alive, Brett would make sure he never hurt Alisha again. How Brett achieved that would depend on the willingness of the other man to disappear.
