Secrets & Chance (The Sterlings Book 1)

by Lynn Hastings

  Finally, his tongue and lips abandoned hers. “I have to go. Keep your distance,” he said in a husky voice. And without waiting for her response, Chance opened the door and rushed out of the library.

  He left her weak in the knees and trembling uncontrollably. Oh, the lust. She needed to sit. Rosalie’s gaze circled the room. The chaise lounge was less than four steps away, but she felt as if it were a mile across the room. So she closed her eyes and took one deep breath after another until the wooziness passed.

  “Holy shit,” she said with a sigh.

  Were she and Chance Sterling now ready and willing to go all the way?

  THIRTEEN

  CHANCE STERLING

  It was a shit show. Chance stood quietly behind his father and William as they spoke to Baylor on speakerphone. Experience had taught him to make himself as scarce as possible and watch everything while the siblings were in crisis-management mode.

  “She hadn’t what?” Baylor asked.

  Chance stewed in anger. Baylor and Carlton were on the phone. They were on their way to the San Francisco office, while Chance’s father and William were in the main den at the manor. Doug, Chance’s father, had insisted that Chance stay close while they conferenced with Daniel Steiner, their newly appointed general counsel.

  “Legally, Mrs. Sterling is still chair of the company and the official CEO. The separation isn’t final.”

  “I’m the CEO,” Baylor barked.

  “Legally, you’re the appointed CEO.”

  “But she’s missing, so I’m in charge.”

  It was always the same with Baylor. He couldn’t be easy unless everyone acknowledged that he was the boss. In the past, Chance’s father had let some horror stories slip about growing up with Baylor as an older brother. Baylor was a bully and their father’s favorite, which made him extra hard to live with.

  “Listen, no one’s in charge yet,” Doug said with a quick glance across the room at his son.

  Five minutes ago, William, Carlton, and Baylor had wanted Chance to leave the room, but Doug had insisted that his son stay. The brothers snapped at each other in resistance, but Doug won the dogfight by strongly asserting he was not going to keep his son out of this, especially when Pete was on the way to join them. That had been when Chance realized that his father wanted him around because he needed an ally.

  “I have my people looking into it,” Daniel said.

  “Into what?” Doug barked.

  The doors flew open, and everyone turned toward Pete, who had just entered. Manny, who was tasked with making sure no one came in without permission, closed the door behind him. Pete stomped across the room and stood next to his father. It was as if Pete’s presence made Carlton grow a superman’s cape on his back. He widened his stance and folded his arms, looking as if he was ready to do battle against his brothers for the grand prize.

  Chance had a suspicion that his father wanted him to do the same thing that Pete did. A part of him wanted to stand by Doug’s side and show Pete and Carlton that he and his father were a stronger duo. But Chance’s head spun as the war inside of him ensued—be a good son or a principled man. He had chosen the latter until Doug waved him over.

  Chance felt a mass of regret form in the pit of his stomach as he walked over to do what he was told. Pete, who had watched him the entire time, snorted and reinforced his stance once Chance made it to his father’s side.

  “Listen, I just got a message from my office,” Daniel said. “We can legally argue that your mother has abandoned her post.”

  Chance felt as if he had been hit with a ton of bricks. “Desertion?”

  All the players in the room looked at him as if he had crossed an illegal line.

  “That’s it,” Dan said. “But I need to know who to name in her place.”

  “Me,” Baylor said.

  Carlton threw his hands up. “I don’t know about that.”

  “Carlton, is that you?” Baylor barked.

  “Yeah, it’s me, and you don’t get to appoint yourself as Mother’s successor.”

  “I agree,” Doug said.

  “So do I,” Pete added.

  Doug, William, and Carlton scolded Pete in the same way they had just cautioned Chance for speaking out of turn. It was clear that the four sons were the only generals in this battle. Chance and Pete were merely foot soldiers.

  “Well, if we’re going to take a vote, we can’t do it over the phone,” Dan said. “We have to do it in person. I’m also going to need you to sign some documents. How about we meet in the San Francisco office in an hour?”

  Chance paid close attention to how his father and William looked at each other. They were allies. Carlton turned to Pete, which meant he didn’t have enough votes to be named to Grandmother’s seat. Chance had already known that Baylor was on his own. He was hoping he was wrong, but something told him his father would be the next Edna Sterling of Sterling Enterprises.

  CHANCE WAS TORN about what to do next. He didn’t want to take the ride to San Francisco. His grandmother was out there somewhere, and the longer she was missing, the lower the odds were of finding her alive.

  His father had already slapped him on the back. “You drive.”

  They were walking toward the carport. William was riding with them, which confirmed Chance’s suspicions about Doug and William forming an alliance. The fact that two brothers had banded together to fight the other two was an anomaly. Each one of them was always out for himself because their father had raised them to be natural enemies. Chance was convinced that his father’s natural tendency to be equally prideful and jealous was the reason he was an only child. The Sterling men were more apt to conceive males than females. His father had divorced his mother once they were both well over forty. His second wife was also over forty and wasn’t interested in starting her own family. She was perfect for Doug, who didn’t want any more children, especially another son to compete with or expect success and loyalty from.

  Each step toward the carport felt heavier than the last. There was no way to get out of it. It would’ve been nice to let Rosalie know he was leaving. For some reason, he felt as if she was the only one who could truly save him from the moment. Nothing felt right. His heart was actually hurting. Perhaps it was because Grandmother was missing and the boys she had birthed and raised were using it as an opportunity to take everything from her. By the looks of it, they were on the precipice of succeeding.

  Pete, who was driving his father, Carlton, had already sped off.

  “Hurry up. Get in,” Doug said as he jumped into the front seat of Chance’s SUV.

  It was too late to turn back. Chance stewed as he pressed the gas pedal, accelerating at a dangerous speed out of the carport. How in the hell did he always get caught in his father’s trap?

  “We’d be facing losing everything with Baylor in control,” his father said as they turned onto the main road.

  “Gambling, pussy, you name it, he’s got an issue with it,” William said.

  “Dad would roll over in his fucking grave.”

  Chance shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Yeah, but what about Grandmother?”

  Doug gave him a look that could melt concrete. “We’ll deal with your grandmother in time.”

  “She’s your mother, Dad.”

  “I know who the fuck she is.”

  Chance felt emboldened by his father’s tone. “Yeah, well, she’s missing, and I don’t see any of you giving a fuck about it. I wonder why.” He almost regretted adding that last comment. But he couldn’t deny that deep down, he knew that if his grandmother was dead, the investigation didn’t have to go any further than her offspring.

  “I don’t know what you’re insinuating, but cut it out,” Doug said in a strong voice.

  Chance clenched his back teeth. He didn’t want to keep quiet. He wanted to hold his father’s feet to the fire. “You two are pretty chummy.”

  “You and that bitch Halo are pretty chummy,” William said.

 
; “That bitch? You’re calling your niece a bitch?” Chance looked out the window. He wanted to stop the car and order William to get out.

  “You’re taking it too far, Bill,” Doug said. “She didn’t know.”

  Chance glanced at his father with a look of shock. He was surprised to hear Doug standing up for Halo.

  “She didn’t know what?” Chance asked.

  Doug sighed. “Bill was working with us on the economy brand, and Mother brought Halo in to undercut him.”

  Suddenly, William behaving like a bitter two-year-old at lunch yesterday made sense. Chance wondered if Halo actually knew that her suggestions regarding the economy brand had directly defied William’s. Knowing Halo, she probably did, which was why she had been so passive about his severe reaction to her.

  Chance shook his head. Truthfully, he didn’t know who was telling him the full truth when it came to his family. Everyone was suspect to a certain degree, even Halo.

  “Getting back to your last comment, Chance, Bill and I decided to work together as brothers before your grandmother went missing,” Doug said. “And let me tell you this”—his father shook his finger at Chance—“I am concerned about your grandmother’s whereabouts. Now, I’m going to find her. We’re going to find her. We just want to make sure everything she worked for isn’t put in jeopardy.”

  Chance glared at the road ahead. He could feel his father’s eyes on him, searching to see if Chance was buying the bullshit he’d just spewed. It was no time to make the moment into a father-son showdown. He certainly wanted to call his father a liar, put him out of the car, then go back and pick up Rosalie so she could help him fight his uncles and father in a legal showdown of epic proportions. But he had to keep a lid on his emotions. This was the real world, and he had to play it smart.

  “I understand,” he lied.

  FORTY-THREE MINUTES LATER, they were walking into the offices of Sterling Enterprises on the twenty-fifth floor of the Archer Building in downtown San Francisco. Nothing had changed since the last the time Chance had visited the building. The floors were laid with the same dark wood Grandmother had insisted on putting down even against Baylor’s wishes. Baylor had wanted checkered gray carpet and red and black furniture, which he said would have given the offices a contemporary feel.

  The receptionist desk had the same white marble top and dark-brown leather armchairs behind the station, and bulky furniture made of the same dark leather were scattered throughout the reception area. Framed images of Sterling Vineyards from around the country and premium products were showcased nicely on the wall. He gave the environment a final look and took in the atmosphere one last time. The ambiance felt like his grandmother. Chance was sure that as soon as Doug and William took control, it would all change.

  They walked quickly down the hallways. Some of the offices were empty except for a desk, chair, and vacant shelves. The deeper they journeyed down the corridors, the more gutted the environment felt, proving the validity of the video Kathy had given him.

  When they arrived at the conference room, Baylor, Carlton, and Pete were already there. However, there were four other guys who looked familiar to Chance, but he wasn’t quite sure why.

  Doug laughed bitterly as he studied the extra people. “That’s desperate.”

  “A democracy should include as much of the applicable population as necessary,” Baylor said, wearing a smug grin.

  Doug scoffed. “They’re applicable?”

  Baylor shrugged, as if he knew something Doug didn’t, and sat back in his seat as though he owned the world.

  Chance felt trapped in a nightmare he had woken up from a long time ago. It was not too late for him to walk out and leave the insanity to them. He could look at them as a necessary barrier on the path to discovering what had happened to his grandmother and why. The penetrating feeling that one of them had something to do with Grandmother’s disappearance and Christine Valdez’s death hadn’t abandoned him. He knew there was a murderer in the room. He felt like going eeny meeny miny moe and catching a murderous asshole by the toe. But first, he had to find the wherewithal to stop doing his father’s bidding.

  Daniel stood at the head of the table, wearing casual pants and a preppy shirt. He looked as if his golfing day had been interrupted.

  “Seats, everybody,” he said.

  His assistant, a thin, pretty woman in tight stretch pants and a black hoodie, yawned as she set a stack of documents in front of Baylor, then Doug, next Carlton, and finally William.

  “We need to get this done as soon as possible,” Daniel said. “Kate is passing out copies of the order for your viewing. I have the original order here, which has to be signed by each pertinent individual.” Daniel held up a stack of documents. “As soon as it’s signed, I have the people in place to get it filed and initiated, and you’ll have a new chairman and principal CEO.”

  “Chance Sterling?” Kate called.

  “Here I am,” he said, a little too eager. For some reason, he felt that getting his name called validated him.

  “Peter Conrad Sterling?” she asked next.

  Peter’s hand flew up. “That’s me.”

  There were no more documents in her hand.

  Daniel looked at Baylor’s offspring. “I’m sorry, but the rest of you are not eligible for the vote.”

  Baylor threw up his hands in protest. “You didn’t tell me that earlier!”

  Doug scoffed. “If you had, Baylor wouldn’t have rounded up his gang of slaves.”

  “Hey, fuck you, guy,” one of the boys said.

  Daniel threw his hands up. “Hey, we have to keep it moving.” He turned to Baylor. “Sorry, but they’re not named as beneficiaries of Sterling Enterprises or the Sterling fortune.”

  Baylor’s face turned burnt red. Chance imagined he was yelling “fuck” on the inside.

  “I’ll give you a moment to look over the documents,” Daniel said.

  “No. Let’s vote and get this over with,” Doug said. Now he was the one with the smug smile.

  Chance was feeling the pressure even more. At first, he’d felt good about being validated as a bona fide Sterling, but now the pressure was killing him. He thought about voting for himself, but he would’ve been laughed out of the room.

  Baylor threw a hand up. “No. I want to read it.”

  Doug and William looked at each other, shaking their heads.

  “Then we’ll wait,” Daniel said.

  With every passing minute, Baylor’s face turned redder, and Chance felt it harder to steady his breaths. He knew he shouldn’t take part in the farce. His father didn’t deserve his grandmother’s seat. If anybody deserved it, it was Bernard Kent, the executive vice president of operations, who was appointed by his grandmother. However, Chance was pretty sure Bernard had been let go along with Kathy and many others. But Bernard knew the wine business inside out and had spent a lot of time resolving his uncles’ and father’s fuck-ups.

  Baylor reached the last page and slammed the document on the table. “Bill, don’t fucking do this. I’m the one who kept your fucking bread buttered for all those years. If it were up to Doug, you wouldn’t get a red cent.”

  “Not true,” Doug said. “That year you were cut off? That was Baylor’s doing.”

  “Look, we have to vote now,” Daniel said. “All in favor of Baylor Andrew Sterling being named as active chairman and principal CEO say aye.”

  “Aye,” Baylor and a few of his sons said.

  “That’s one vote for Baylor.”

  Baylor glared at William as though he wanted to rip his brother’s head off.

  “All in favor of Carlton Cyprus Sterling being named as active chairman and principal CEO say aye.”

  “Aye,” Carlton and Pete said as they raised their hands.

  “I’ll record two votes for the record,” Daniel said.

  “You have nothing to do with this, Chance,” Carlton said. “You left this company. Do the right thing. Stay out of it.”

 
; Chance felt his entire face collapse into a bitter frown as Daniel read off the legal verbiage then said, “Douglas Benjamin Sterling.”

  Chance’s hand shot up. “Aye,” he said in unison with his father and William.

  “Please record three for the vote,” Daniel said. “All in favor of William Stuart Sterling being named as active chairman and principal CEO say aye.”

  “Aye,” Carlton said. “According to rule 119.1, I officially cast my vote, and it is final.”

  “Aye,” Pete said. “According to rule 119.1, I officially cast my vote, and it is final.”

  Baylor sneered at Doug and arrogantly said, “Aye. According to rule 119.1, I officially cast my vote, and it is final.”

  Doug snorted as if he both respected and reviled the move they were making. “Is this how we’re playing it now?”

  Baylor smirked and winked at Doug. “Yes.”

  William’s eyes widened. It was clear he was caught off guard by Carlton and Baylor’s backup plan, which made a lot of sense to Chance. William was so starved for love and acceptance by his brothers that he would be the perfect figurehead that they could control.

  “It’s three against three,” Doug said.

  “Aye,” William said, staring at the table. “According to rule 119.1, I officially cast my vote, and it is final.”

  Carlton’s and Baylor’s shit-eating grins were as big as a cesspool. They had won, and they knew it.

  FOURTEEN

  ROSALIE STETSON

  Rosalie sat on a chaise lounge, torn about what to do next. From the window of the library, she could see the delivery guys dismantling the tarps and picking up the flooring. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Edna’s birthday celebration had been cancelled. The longer Rosalie sat there, the more her stomach growled. She was starving, yet she couldn’t move until something began to make sense. The fact that Edna’s things were found in a dead woman’s house had made the thrill of kissing Chance Sterling short-lived. It also made Rosalie’s anxiety return with a vengeance.