Fortune's Perfect Valentine

Clearly amused by his brother’s sardonic jab, Ben walked over and rested the corner of his hip on Wes’s desk. Dressed in a dapper gray suit and burgundy patterned tie, Ben was every inch the business man and more like their father than Wes would ever want to be. Full of brass and swagger, Ben went after anything and everything he wanted with the ferocity of a stalking tiger.

For a while after their father, Gerald, had appointed Ben the new COO of Robinson Tech, Wes had felt worse than slighted. He’d been cut to the core. As vice president of the developmental team, Wes was adept at presiding over operations, generating revenue, analyzing financial reports and motivating staff, along with a jillion other responsibilities that went along with the job. He could’ve handled the COO position with his eyes closed.

But Gerald had chosen to hand it to his elder twin. And to Wes the reason had been blatantly obvious. Because Ben was their father’s favorite. Which wasn’t hard to understand, given the fact that Ben had the same aggressive business tactics as their father, while Wes considered hard work and integrity the best way to climb the corporate ladder.

Grinning, Ben said, “I’m glad to see you’re getting your wit back.”

“I wasn’t aware I’d ever lost it,” Wes quipped.

Ben thoughtfully picked up a paperweight and held it up to the florescent light. The hunk of gray glass was the shape of a dove, and Wes wondered if Ben was thinking the bird matched his younger twin. No doubt their father would say Wes was the peaceful dove of the two, while Ben was a fierce hawk. The idea stung far more than Wes wanted to admit.

“Hmm. Ever since I got the COO position, you’ve been about as warm as a polar bear. I thought you’d be over Dad’s decision by now.”

Wes inwardly bristled while trying to make sure his expression remained bland. No one could rankle him more than his twin, but he hardly wanted Ben to know that. The man was already smug enough.

“I was over it five minutes after Dad’s decision was announced,” Wes told him.

Ben’s expression said he found Wes’s statement laughable. Which came as no surprise. From the years when they were small boys until now, the two of them had been rivals in everything, including their parents’ love and admiration. And Wes supposed he’d spent most all of his thirty-three years trying to prove he was equal or better than his slightly older brother.

“If that’s the case, then why have you been giving me the cold shoulder?”

“That’s all in your mind,” Wes told him.

Placing the dove back on the desk, Ben rose to his feet and walked over to the wall of plate glass. Wes watched as his brother stood in a wide stance, his hands linked at his back as he stared out at the city skyline.

“If it’s not the COO position that’s bothering you, then you’re upset with me about my search for our Fortune heritage. I would’ve thought you’d want to know Keaton Whitfield is our half brother.”

Wesley heaved out a weary breath. Crashing Kate Fortune’s ninetieth birthday party and creating a scandalous scene had been bad enough. But Ben hadn’t stopped there. He’d set out on a wild search to dig up hidden branches of the family tree, and in doing so, he’d already unearthed one of their father’s illegitimate children.

“I don’t have any complaints about Keaton—not personally. It’s you and this dogged search you’re making. Just for once I wish you’d stop and consider Mother’s feelings in this matter. How do you think all of this makes her feel? Can you imagine the pain and humiliation she must feel to know that her husband cheated on her, not just once, but probably many times?”

“Damn it, Wes, I’m not on a quest to punish our mother. I want Dad’s rightful place in the Fortune family to be reestablished. I want the Fortunes, especially Kate, to have to acknowledge the truth publicly.”

Wes snorted. “The truth! Regarding our father, we don’t know what the hell the truth might be. Dad is hiding things about his past. Rachel already figured out that much when she found some of Dad’s old correspondence and the driver’s license with his name listed as Jerome Fortune. But as far as I’m concerned, Dad can keep his secrets. I’m perfectly content with the number of siblings I have now. And I sure don’t need the Fortune name tacked on to Robinson just to make me feel important.”

With a shake of his head, Ben walked back over to Wes’s desk, but this time he didn’t take a seat. Instead, he stood, his hands jammed in the pockets of his trousers as he gazed down at his brother.

“We see everything about this Fortune thing differently. Wouldn’t you like to know the truth about our father?”

Wes answered, “Not if the truth hurts.”

Ben grimaced. “Did you ever think that restoring the integrity of our father’s heritage might help mend some of the cracks in our family?”

Wes wanted to ask him how uncovering Gerald’s true parentage could possibly mend years of their father’s deceit, but he didn’t bother. Instead, he said, “I’m not the only one against this quest of yours. Most of our siblings side with me on this thing. The Robinson family doesn’t need the bad publicity that this expedition of yours might bring to our name and Dad’s legacy in the business world.” He leveled a challenging look at his twin. “In the end, Ben, what will we really gain?”

“The truth. Justice. Vindication. Take your pick. Although I doubt any of those reasons are enough to satisfy you.”

Knowing he was wasting his time and effort on the Fortune family matter, Wes decided to move their conversation elsewhere. “I was about to go to lunch. Was there some reason you stopped by my office this morning? Other than to discuss Dad’s hidden past?”

“Actually, I stopped by to ask you about the new app you’re promoting for Valentine’s Day. I hear you’re getting television coverage.”

“That’s right. Tomorrow, in fact. A colleague and I will be doing a live remote for Hey, USA from here in my office.”

“A national morning show? Impressive,” Ben said, then grinned slyly. “I’m surprised you managed to garner their attention. You must be doing something right, little brother.”

Even though physical wrestling matches with his twin had ended in their high school days, there were times Wes still got the playful urge to box his brother’s jaw.

“Thanks, but in case you haven’t noticed, we do have an excellent marketing department at Robinson Tech,” Wes told him. “And given the fact that dating and love and all that sort of nonsense usually garner lots of attention, it wasn’t hard for them to snare a segment on Hey, USA.”

Ben shot his brother a patient smile. “Nonsense? Sorry, brother, but you have a lot to learn. Finding the right girl to love is what life is all about. When you meet finally meet her, you’ll understand completely.”

Wes couldn’t imagine any woman making him want to step into the role of husband and father. Not with the example Gerald had set for his sons.

“There is no right girl,” Wes told him. “Not for me. But that doesn’t mean I’m not happy for you. How are the wedding plans coming along?”

“Everything is on track, I think.”

“I’m assuming the wedding is going to be a big affair,” Wes stated the obvious. He’d already overheard his brother discussing an orchestra and enough bottles of expensive champagne to float a battleship.

“Ella deserves the very best. I’ve told her she can have anything she wants and I’m going to make sure she gets it.” His features grew soft. “When you really love a woman, Wes, you want to give her the world. When the time comes, you’ll understand that part of it, too.”

Wes could understand his brother wanting to give his fiancée the best of everything. From what he understood, Ella was raised by a single mom in a household with very little money. To make matters worse, her younger brother had cerebral palsy and needed extra care. What did surprise Wes was the amount of love and affection he saw on Ben’s face each time he spoke of his fiancée. Wes had never imagined his brother capable of such tender feelings. But somehow Ella had managed to bring out the gentle side of the tiger.

“I’m glad you want to make Ella happy. She does deserve it. But as for me, I’m content to let you be the married twin. I’m staying single.”

“Never say never, brother,” Ben warned. “When you stand up at the wedding as my best man, the love bug just might bite you.”

“I’ll be sure and wear plenty of bug spray underneath my tux,” Wes replied.

Chuckling, Ben started toward the door. “I’m off to lunch. Good luck on tomorrow’s remote. If I’m not in a meeting at that hour, I’ll try to drop by and watch you in action.”

“I’ll do my best not to let the company down.”

With his hand on the doorknob, Ben paused long enough to glance over his shoulder. “That’s one thing I never worry about.”

Wes might have lost the COO position to his twin, but he could never blame Ben for Gerald’s decision. No matter the rivalry between the two of them, he and Ben had the special bond of love that most twins shared. As far as Wes was concerned, their bond might get a bit frazzled at times, but it would never be broken.

“Thanks, Ben.”

Once his brother disappeared through the door, Wes left his desk and grabbed a heavy jacket from a small closet. Outside his office, he paused at his secretary’s desk. At eighty years old, Adelle should have been gray and prune-faced. Instead, her red, perfectly coifed hair was merely threaded with gray and her smooth skin could have been a poster for the Fortune Youth Serum. Wes figured most women Adelle’s age had given up working long ago. But Adelle showed very little sign of slowing down, much less heading for a rocking chair. Each day after work, she walked a mile, then stopped at her favorite bar for a gin and tonic.

At the moment, she was peering at him over the top of pink-framed reading glasses.

“I’m going down the street for lunch,” he informed her. “Is there anything on my agenda before one thirty?”

She glanced at a spiral-bound notepad lying on the left side of the desk, and Wes inwardly shook his head. The woman worked for one of the most technically advanced computer companies in the world, but she chose to use paper and pencil. Wes overlooked Adelle’s archaic work preferences, mainly because he liked her and couldn’t imagine his life without her in it. And as a secretary, she was priceless. As far as he was concerned, he didn’t care if she used a chisel and stone. All that mattered to him was that she always kept his office running smoothly.

“No. Nothing until two,” she declared. “And that meeting is with Mort. I’ve cut you thirty minutes for him. Is that enough time?”