Acceptance (Club X Book 5)

by K. M. Scott

  I could imagine this brother doing something like that, but Kane? He was the steady rock among the three of us, and now he was going on stakeouts with Stefan? And why would either of them be part of a stakeout? What the hell was going on?

  As I opened the back door to the restaurant, I said, “I’m not sure I even want to ask what you mean, but I am curious why Kane of all people would be doing something like that, and with you, to boot.”

  Sounding like I’d hurt his feelings, Stefan asked, “Why be like that? Kane and I get along fine. We have for a while. We even do things together.”

  Now it was my turn to laugh. “Really? Since your girlfriend and his wife can’t be in the same place for more than a few seconds, exactly what are you doing together?”

  “So now that you finally caught up with the rest of us this is going to be part of every damn conversation with you? And unlike you, Cash, we can do things without our women tagging along. Seriously, dude, when did you become so whipped?”

  I dropped my keys onto my desk and shut the door to my office. “It’s not being whipped if you really love the person, Stef. So are you going to tell me what you and Kane did that you called me about this morning or are we just going to continue with the insults about my happiness?”

  Stefan sighed like he was six years old again and I’d just popped his balloon. “Jeez, everybody in this family is so fucking testy.”

  “It’s just that I have a busy day ahead of me and need to get going with work.”

  In truth, I had a sinking feeling the story he was about to tell me had to do with Sebastian and the possibility he was our brother, something I didn’t want to think about at that moment. Or any other moment in the foreseeable future. Kane and Stef may have been all jacked up about getting a new baby brother, but I didn’t want to be involved.

  “Fine. I’ll make it short then,” Stefan said in his hurt feelings voice. “We ended up meeting Sebastian Thorne last night and it was going pretty well until Abbi showed up and Kane thought she’d been with the guy. Well, I don’t know about well because he was pretty drunk, but he’s definitely a good time. We still don’t have any real proof that he’s one of us, but he damn sure looks like it. He’s the spitting image of Kane.”

  Whatever he said after Abbi being with the guy who might be our brother got lost in the recesses of my mind. Confused, I said, “Wait a second. Abbi and Sebastian Thorne know each other? Before or after she met Kane?”

  What the hell was I saying before or after? Abbi wasn’t the type of woman to cheat on anyone, and for God’s sake, she adored Kane. Maybe I’d heard Stefan wrong.

  “No, no. Abbi met him just a month or so ago. Odd coincidence, I guess. But that’s not the point of the story. Keep up, Cash. The point is we met him and got to talk to him face-to-face. I have to say I’m definitely hoping he’s one of us now.”

  “Why? Because he’s a good time?”

  The phone fell silent for a moment, and then Stefan said, “Well, yeah. It’s hard being the only person in our family who still knows how to have fun. Marriage has ruined you, and Kane has been a lost cause since the night he met Abbi. It’ll be nice to have someone around who isn’t all about work and home for a change.”

  Sometimes Stefan was still that twenty-one year old punk ass brother who refused to see that life was more than drinking too much and screwing women. I’d hoped Shay would help that, but even after all these years together, she and he seemed no closer to settling down. That only encouraged him to think he could still act like a kid.

  “Well, that’s nice for you, Stef. I’m a little busy today, so have fun,” I said as I opened my laptop to begin my day.

  “That’s it? You’re still not even the least bit interested in finding out anything about this guy who very well might be our brother? I mean, what the fuck, Cash?”

  “Stef, by the way you’ve made him sound, I can’t imagine having anything in common with this Sebastian person. I’m just a boring guy running a successful business and loving my family. I’ll leave you to find out about him, and if he’s in fact our brother, I’m sure I’ll meet him at some family get-together at some point.”

  I couldn’t imagine that ever really happening, in truth. While my mother had accepted Kane, I doubted she’d be inviting yet another of my father’s kids over for the next family barbeque. Then again, she did love Stefan and nothing made her happier than to encourage him on his flights of fancy, so maybe she would welcome another illegitimate son with open arms.

  Regardless, I wanted nothing to do with the whole damn matter. Our father’s sexual peccadillos and the results of them weren’t anything I had room for in my world. If Stefan and Kane cared, so be it.

  It didn’t change how I felt.

  “So you still don’t want to find out about him?”

  “Nope. You and Kane can have at it.”

  Stefan grunted. “So is Kane in yet? I’m curious to know how he’s doing this morning.”

  “No. If you want to talk to him, you’ll have to find him at home, I’m guessing. You know, where his wife and kids are, the people he lives for.”

  More grunting came through the phone. “Whatever. Nice talking to you, Cash.”

  “Same here, Stef. Talk to you later.”

  I tossed my phone onto the pile of papers on the corner of my desk and tried to push the thought of brothers entirely out of my mind. I knew Stefan wouldn’t let up on this whole Sebastian issue, though. It had become like a cause to him, and when my younger brother found something to focus on, there was no changing his mind.

  That was fine, but I didn’t want to think about it anymore. I’d heard whispers about my father’s other kids all my life, and I was sick of it. Maybe that was selfish of me because I’d had the luck of being his firstborn and namesake, but I didn’t care.

  I’d done everything my father had ever asked of me without question. I’d lived my life so he could be proud. To the day he died, I looked up to him.

  But now that I was a husband and father myself, I could see the chinks in his armor. The man I’d idolized all those years hadn’t been good to my mother or his children by her. Stefan still bore the emotional scars of being overlooked his entire life by the one man he wanted to notice him.

  And me? I’d thought being like my father was something to be proud of until I met Olivia. That my father had never come to that revelation for my mother ate at me every time I thought about him out fucking other women and producing kids all over town.

  I loved Kane as much as I loved Stefan, but now that I had a wife and son of my own, I didn’t want to have to keep welcoming my father’s sins into my life anymore. This Sebastian person might very well be a great guy. He might be, but there was no room in the world I’d created for him and the baggage he undoubtedly would bring with him.

  A knock on my office door tore me out of my thoughts, and I called out for whoever it was to come in. Kane appeared in my doorway dressed in his usual suit pants, dress shirt, and tie but looking unusually happy, especially considering what Stefan had told me about the events of the night before.

  “You’re in early this morning. It’s not even eleven yet. What’s up?”

  His smile faded just a bit, and he said, “Wanted to make sure I took care of that issue with the produce people, so I got here early to talk to the owner. I’m tired of us getting only half of what we order and then having to listen to excuses. Plus, I needed to have a talk with Gabriel about the problems we had on Saturday.”

  “I’m glad it was you who met with him. I have to say I didn’t want to be the one to do it,” I admitted. “For a chef, he’s way too emotional. I thought he was going to lose his mind the other day.”

  Kane folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the doorframe. “Well, I smoothed things over, so hopefully he’s happier now. We can’t afford to lose him, Cash. He’s one of the reasons people come to this place.”

  “I know. I don’t deny how good he is. I just don’t like a
ll the bullshit he brings into my work life.”

  Smiling, Kane nodded. “You’re all about keeping the bullshit out it seems these days. Everything okay?”

  I knew where he was going with this. “Yeah. I just prefer an uncluttered life filled only with this place and my family.”

  “And if Sebastian Thorne turns out to be our brother, will that include him?”

  Usually I preferred Kane’s way of being straightforward. Today I would have liked him to be less frank, though, so I could pretend to not understand his meaning and escape more discussion of this damn Sebastian person.

  I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, hoping if I chose my words correctly that I could avoid this discussion again in the future. “You and Stefan seem to have a one-track mind when it comes to that topic. I’m sorry, Kane, but I don’t feel the same way you two do, so whatever happens with him, I’m not sure I’m ever going to be interested in being a part of it.”

  Wincing, Kane nodded again, and a look of acceptance came over his face. “I get it. I just wanted to see if anything had changed in your mind. I won’t ask again.”

  “Thanks. Now if you could convince Stefan to do the same.”

  Kane’s smile returned, brightening his face. Chuckling, he said, “I don’t see that happening. He loves the idea of having a younger brother who’s more like him than we are.”

  I rolled my eyes, remembering my conversation with him. “I heard all about it. It sounds like he’s found a potential partner in crime for his nights out. Shay’s going to love that.”

  Knocking his knuckles off the door, Kane smiled. “Maybe. Well, I’ll see you later. I’ve got a few errands to run before we open. Call me if you need me.”

  With that, he was gone. This was why we got along so well. If it was Stefan standing in my doorway, I’d be talking myself to death about this Sebastian thing until the restaurant opened.

  And somehow I was supposed to want another brother just like him?

  I opened the door to our condo as silently as possible, knowing that Olivia had likely just gotten Cassian to sleep. A tired mother wanted nothing less than to have some idiot loping into the house at nearly midnight and waking up the child she’d spent hours finally getting into bed.

  Even if that idiot was the man who loved her.

  She sat curled up on the couch, her eyes closed as the TV played some movie we’d said we wanted to see over a year ago. We’d never gotten to the theater for that one or half a dozen others that had seemed interesting.

  I leaned over and kissed her gently on the lips, waking her. She sat up with a start and shook the sleep from her head.

  “Hey, did you just get home?” she whispered.

  “Yeah. It was a late one tonight. How was your day?” I asked as I sat down next to her.

  “Busy. Your son got into the flour and dumped the bag all over him. He looked like a little pasty ghost, and you should have seen the tub after I got him all clean. It looked like there had been a disaster in there. That took up about two hours of my day.”

  I pressed a kiss onto her forehead and held her tired body to mine. “I’ll trade you. I’ll take care of Cassian and you can deal with my brothers and this Sebastian nonsense.”

  Olivia squeezed me to her and whispered, “You still don’t want anything to do with that? I know they want you to get on board.”

  Shaking my head, I closed my eyes and savored the feel of my wife next to me for the first time in over twelve hours. “No. All I want is right here and in his bedroom dreaming of the next disaster he has in store for us.”

  She didn’t say anything else and with a heavy sigh drifted off to sleep in my arms. I didn’t need another brother. I already had all I needed.

  Chapter Nine

  Kane

  John sat in the same position where I’d left him two days before behind his old desk staring at his laptop. Wondering if he’d even left to get a bite to eat, I joked, “If all this job entails is sitting and surfing through porn, I think I found a new career.”

  He looked up at me as I leaned against the doorframe and sneered. “You wish. Take a seat.”

  I considered mentioning how I’d staked out Sebastian’s workplace the other night, but I had the feeling John wasn’t in the mood for jokes this afternoon.

  “So what’s so urgent that I needed to get down here ASAP?” I asked as I sat down in front of him. “Those were your exact words, weren’t they?”

  My question earned me another sneer. “You know, sometimes you’re too much like that younger brother of yours, and that’s not a compliment.”

  Never a big fan of Stefan’s, John had more than once butted heads with him on jobs for Club X. My brother’s lack of respect for the job of PI and his bragging that anyone with an internet connection and the ability to use Google could do what John did pissed him off. Not that I blamed him. Stefan’s bragging had brought me to the brink of giving him a good beating more than once.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to step on your toes with my joking. I’m just in a good mood today,” I said, genuinely hoping to smooth over his hurt feelings. A good PI like John was worth his weight in gold. I didn’t want to lose him because I felt like busting ass.

  His angry expression softened a bit, and he seemed to study my face for a moment before asking, “Oh yeah? That’s not like you, Kane, so what’s up?”

  “Nothing. Just happy at home and happy at work. What more could a man ask for?”

  John looked around his dingy office and forced a smile. “I know just what you mean. Living the dream.”

  He didn’t go into it, but I had a feeling his life was anything but a dream since his wife left. Quickly, I changed the subject. “So what’s going on? Did you find out something about Sebastian Thorne?”

  Nodding, he said, “I did, and I hate to ruin your good day, but I don’t think you’re going to like what I have to tell you.”

  I thought back to the hour or so I’d spent with Sebastian and had to admit I wasn’t sure I’d be that unhappy at hearing the news that he wasn’t another of my father’s sons. I imagined Stefan would be disappointed, though.

  “Did you find out he’s not related to me?”

  John shook his head. “No, he is. I mean, you couldn’t tell that just by looking at him? By the way, I have to say whatever you and Stefan thought you were doing was the textbook definition of not slick, my friend. I was sitting in my car watching the whole thing. It had a real meta feeling to it, you know?”

  I hung my head to hide my embarrassment. “I hadn’t planned on approaching him, but you saw how fucked up he was. I couldn’t let him just drive away like that. He might have killed someone.”

  “You used to be part owner of a bar, weren’t you? How did you do that job and drive home all the drunks every night?” he asked, busting my balls now.

  “Funny. If you remember, I didn’t deal with the bar part. I dealt with the fantasy and sex part. No need to drive guys home because they didn’t get off.”

  A smile crept onto John’s face. “Oh, the good old days. Not that I don’t love your swordfish at CK, but I think I miss the perks of working for you when you owned Club X.”

  My PI had enjoyed the offerings on my floor of the club a number of times and always left a happy man. Of course, that might have been a contributing factor in why his wife left him for another guy.

  “Well, we had to grow up someday. That life skirting the law could only last so long. We all knew Club X had an expiration date.”

  John’s eyes grew wide. “About that. Seems it might be in the March family DNA to want to walk that fine line with the cops. Your newest sibling’s hands are a bit dirty.”

  This was why I had kept everything about Sebastian away from Abbi and the kids and why I suspected Cash wanted nothing to do with finding some long lost brother of ours. Neither of us cared how hypocritical it seemed for the two former owners of a fantasy club to have no interest in getting into anything that had even the hint of leg
al problems.

  Having a wife and kids you adored did that to a man.

  A sick feeling settled into my stomach. I didn’t want to discard Sebastian because he was my brother, and there was dirty and then there was really dirty. I hoped he wasn’t the latter.

  “So what are we talking about here, John? A DUI or he likes to get high sometimes? Or something else?”

  With a look that made it seem like he shared my sick feeling, John grimaced. “Something else. Stupid twenty-something tricks or smoking a little weed wouldn’t make my face look like it does. No, he’s got himself involved in something a little worse. I don’t know all the details, but from what I can see, he and his friends are thieves. I’m guessing that’s how he affords to rent a house on a cook’s income.”

  “Thieves? Like knocking over gas station kind of thieves?” I asked, already hating how this was sounding.

  John chuckled. “No, he’s a little higher class than that. He and buddies stick to houses. A little B and E here and there can pay for a lot of stuff. I watched him and two friends hit one two nights ago.”

  “Fuck. I had hoped the fall-down drunk act was the worst of him.”

  “I’m guessing one of them poses as a pool guy or something so he can find a way in, and then when the coast is clear, he lets his friends in and they grab whatever they can before disappearing. The people who own the house come home to find they’ve been burgled and then later realize they don’t have a pool boy or a gardener or whatever anymore. It’s just clever enough to work for a few months, but he’s going to get caught and soon. If I can watch them pull a job, it won’t be long before the cops are onto them.”

  I hated to admit it, but Cash had been right all along. I didn’t want to give up on Sebastian, though. I knew what his life had been, no matter what the circumstances of it were. Growing up not knowing your father or knowing you had brothers wasn’t something he should have gone through. I lived it and it sucked. Maybe if we’d been around, he wouldn’t have gotten into stealing from people.

  Or maybe he was just a rotten fucker, even though he came from the same father the three of us did.