No one had been able to catch Charlotte in the act. The family was concerned, as she had already proven herself to be a force to be reckoned with. Now that she had been excommunicated from the family, she’d made it clear she had no compunction about wreaking havoc on anyone related to the Fortunes, even if it meant hurting people in the process.
“Maybe not, Daddy,” said Belle, her pretty brow furrowed. “This is an important day for Gerald. He’s marrying the love of his life. He has more money than he knows what to do with. Since this day is so important to him and Deborah, don’t you think he will invest in the best security?”
“I’ll bet it will be on par with the Secret Service,” said Draper.
“I know,” said Belle. “Call me crazy, but I want to go.”
Miles looked furious as he sipped his red wine. “She burned down her own house, injuring her own son. A sociopath like that won’t rest until she seeks the ultimate revenge.”
Miles shook his head. Georgia, who was seated to his left, reached out and took her father’s hand. He squeezed hers in return, but the anger was still apparent in his eyes.
“I’m trying hard to embrace my new extended family.” Miles used his fingers to make air quotes around the word family. “I know you think it’s nice to think that we have found this wonderful, big family and that they are welcoming us with open arms. But don’t forget, I’ve lived all but the last six months of my life without them. You—” Miles spread his arms wide and gestured to his wife and grown children gathered around the table and then pounded his fist on his heart “—all of you, and Savannah and Nolan are my family. And you’re all the family I need. If anything happened to any of you because of them, I couldn’t forgive myself. I say we send Gerald and Deborah a nice gift and our best wishes for a happy life together, but we’re staying away.”
Miles was still trying to come to terms with the extended family. Not only was he a self-made man, he was also incredibly self-reliant. His birth father, the philandering millionaire Julius Fortune, had denied Miles at birth. Mile’s mother, Marjorie Melton, had raised him on her own. When Miles, who had shared his mother’s last name, turned twenty-one, Marjorie revealed his father’s identity. That’s when Miles took on the Fortune surname. He’d done it to prove a point. He didn’t want his father’s money. In fact, he set his sights on doing well in spite of his heartless father and the Fortunes.
Not only was he driven to achieve financial success, but he wanted a large family to hold close and shower with the love his own father had denied him. It was a subtle way of showing old man Fortune and the myriad others, I don’t need you. You didn’t love me, but I’m going to show you how love is done. In the end, you’ll be the lonely, broken one on the outside looking in. It was a silent and dignified middle finger.
Then a strange thing happened; Miles learned that he wasn’t Julius’s only dirty little secret. There were others. Much like Miles, they, too, had created their own large families and successful lives. Finally, Schuyler Fortunado Mendoza, daughter of Kenneth Fortunado, decided it was time to end all the secrecy and hurt. It was time for all the Fortune family branches to come together. She arranged a family reunion for the “bastard Fortunes,” inviting them all to come to the Mendoza Winery in Austin.
Her intentions were pure. She thought she was doing a good thing by bringing everyone together. However, calling the illegitimate Fortunes together actually ended up putting them in danger, which was why Miles and Sarah were having so much trepidation about attending the wedding.
“If we don’t go,” Belle said, “they might think we’re snubbing them. Family relations are a bit tenuous right now since everything is so new. In addition to being there to support Gerald and Deborah, I think this is an important opportunity to claim our rightful place in the Fortune family.”
Miles glared at his daughter. “Enough!” he bellowed. “I am the head of this family. I have decided we are not going. End of discussion.” His voice was low and simmering as he bit off each word one by one in a way that had everyone holding their collective breath. Once Miles Fortune made up his mind, he didn’t tolerate people challenging him like Belle was doing. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll say good night.”
Scowling, Miles scooted his chair back from the table and left the room. Austin knew now was not the time to broach the subject of creating a new position for Felicity. Miles was not in the mood and it might undermine the promotion. Austin would approach him after he got back from Atlanta.
* * *
Felicity had been waiting all day to ask Austin if he’d had a chance to talk to his father about a new position for her. After the talk with Maia, Felicity had a chance to mull it over a bit and the more she thought about it, the more it made sense to stay at Fortune Investments. If she could get promoted within the company she could keep her benefits and they were always so generous with compensation. It would be less like starting over and more like making a strategic career move up the ladder. Plus, she would still be around Austin, just not as close. Maybe if she wasn’t always “right there,” Austin might feel her absence enough to realize he missed her.
As counterintuitive as that might sound, it made sense. It was like taking the same route to work every day. You got in such a habit that you went about the drive with blinders on, missing the most important sights along the way. One day, you’d notice a house or shop or a tree that you’d driven by hundreds of times and realize it was the first time you’d really seen it.
Felicity propped her elbows on her desk and rested her chin on her fist. She wanted to be Austin’s tree. She chuckled to herself. She wanted him to look up and suddenly notice her.
Notice me, Austin. See me.
She heard his voice coming from the other side of the corridor. That snapped her out of her daydreaming, and she busied herself on the computer, pretending to type away, adding notes to her to-do list for the Fortune Investments gala. She was way ahead of schedule, but she never wanted to give Austin the impression she was slacking off on the job. If she let down her guard, that would be the time he’d notice her.
Come to think of it, she would be doing herself a favor when she went in to talk to him if she told him she really was enthusiastic about the opportunity to stay on with Fortune Investments. The other day when Austin had mentioned the possibility of creating a position for her, she had been so flustered about giving him her notice that she hadn’t even acted very excited about the prospect. She smiled at him as he came closer, cell phone pressed to his ear.
“Mackenzie, seriously?” His laugh was infused with a sexy flirtation that made Felicity’s heart drop.
Who was Mackenzie? It certainly didn’t sound like a business call. In fact, it didn’t sound like any type of call she’d ever heard Austin take out in the open like this. Most of the time his calls were business. The small percentage that weren’t were family.
He laughed again.
Oh, Mackenzie, you funny girl, you. Felicity stared at her computer screen, so he wouldn’t know she was listening.
“Okay. Okay. If you insist. Macks, it is.” Then he slipped into his office, closing the door behind him.
Max? Or Macks?
As in short for Mackenzie?
Either way, it proved they were on personal terms.
Through the glass wall that divided their workspaces, she watched Austin sit down at his desk and continue the conversation. She couldn’t hear what he was saying now, but he was animated. More than she’d ever witnessed before.
His