One Step Closer: A stepbrother, stand-alone novel.

by Kahlen Aymes

Jonathan sighed heavily. Caleb’s emotions had always simmered right beneath the surface; especially when it came to Wren. “You’ve got a lot to deal with. I thought you’d want to see her.”

  Caleb’s scowl lessened and his brows lifted slightly, his eyes widening. Wren was a sore subject and he was pissed that his father’s lawyer seemed to think he was an expert on how he felt. He didn’t lean on anyone. He didn’t allow himself to wallow in self-pity and he’d been strong out of necessity. Wren was his Achilles’ heel, but no one knew it, not even Wren.

  “I survive. That’s what I do.”

  Jonathan sighed again. “I know, Caleb. I guess, I thought—”

  “You thought what?” Caleb almost growled, his impatience, mixed with emotions he didn’t want to deal with made him harsher than he should have been.

  “Nothing. Wren may not believe she’s needed. When was the last time you two spoke?” Jonathan continued, always so formal in his speech that Caleb sometimes wondered what his upbringing was like.

  “I don’t know.” But, he did know. It was Christmas, and then a brief conversation after that, on her birthday. What a cluster fuck that was. “Months, I guess.”

  It had been apparent after his one night of weakness that the two of them were better with minimal contact, but Caleb wasn’t ready to take that demon on just yet.

  “What choice are you speaking of, Jonathan? How has my father screwed me over this time?”

  “Caleb, consider that your father really did love you and had your best interest at heart. I know the two of you struggled after your mother died, and I understand your resentment. However, I ask you to understand that your father was watching the woman he loved lose her vibrancy and life. That type of pain makes a man do things he might not do in other circumstances. That had to be unbearable.”

  Sure, Caleb had considered that before; but when you’ve just lost your mother, and then your father disappears around the same time, any understanding you might have flies out the window; especially when you’re twelve and puberty is messing with your emotions.

  “You mean he took the pussy route when he abandoned my mother, leaving her to die alone? Is that the struggle you’re referring to?” Caleb returned sarcastically, his face and chest began to burn, his heart starting to pound as he relived the pain of the past. “How he married that gold-digging bitch soon after? That resentment?” Caleb snarled.

  “It was four years later, Caleb. Remember?”

  “Yeah, whatever. Time flies when you’re having fun,” he said bitterly. He got up to pace around the room, sucking in his breath. He couldn’t help but notice Jonathan’s calmness in the face of his rage. He ran a hand through his thick dark hair, again. “I’m sorry. I have no right to rant at you like this. It’s not your fault my father was the way he was.”

  “I understand, son.”

  Son. When it came right down to it, Jonathan had been there for Caleb far more than his father ever had, and suddenly he felt guilty for his temper.

  After the call from Jonathan delivering the news of Edison’s death the previous day, Caleb had numbly packed a bag and gotten on a plane without much thought. He had no idea what difference his presence would make either way; when you’re dead, you’re dead. Does it really matter who shows up to plant you?

  “What’s the supposed choice I have to make, Jonathan?” Caleb asked wearily. “What suit or tie to send to the coffin slinger?”

  “No.” Jonathan’s face twisted in consternation at Caleb’s bitterness, before reaching into his briefcase and lifting up two envelopes. “Mrs. Jones is handling that. It’s in here.” He tapped the edge of the envelopes on his hand and Caleb watched him, perplexed. “Your father left two versions of his will. He wanted you to decide which version to have read. Whichever you choose will go on record and the other is to be destroyed without anyone but the two of us knowing about it.”

  “What? Why?” Caleb’s brow furrowed in confusion and his lips pressed together in anger. He’d spoken to his father maybe ten times in as many years, and only seen him once or twice.

  Jonathan contemplated Caleb for a moment. The young man was still so full of fury and pain. He could tell that Edison’s death hit him harder than he wanted to let on, and that regret and grief would probably hit like a tidal wave in a few days.

  “One version all of it comes to you—”

  Caleb’s face mottled as if he wanted to explode, but he kept a tight reign on his emotions. “I don’t want his fucking money.”

  He didn’t want the cosmetic business that bore the Luxon name either. That company was his mother’s vision, and Caleb felt his father had tainted that, too; when he brought that money-hungry bitch, Veronica, into it. It sickened Caleb and at the time, he’d vowed to wash his hands of his father and Lux Pharmaceuticals, as well. “I don’t want anything from him. Give it all to charity.”

  Jonathan’s watery light blue eyes were sad as he looked at Caleb. He knew he had to be full of sorrow, if not for the loss of the actual man, then the loss of the father he should have had, and didn’t. No matter how strained their relationship, Edison was the only parent Caleb had for more than half of his life, and his unexpected death was bound to leave behind some damage.

  “Unfortunately, that’s not one of the choices. He asked me to have you read this letter and the two wills, and then you’re to tell me which version I should read after the funeral. He knew you felt this way, but he has considered Wren, as well.”

  Caleb sucked in a deep breath. Of course, he thought. The few times he’d seen any softness in his father it was something to do with Wren. He shrugged. “Okay. Give everything to her, then.”

  “Caleb,” Jonathan began, “that isn’t one of the options, either. If you want her to have anything at all… you have to split the estate equally.”

  Both of Caleb’s hands rose to tangle in both sides of his thick head of hair and his chest expanded to bursting as he sucked in a deep breath. The company was publically traded, but his father retained controlling interest with sixty-five percent of the shares.

  “I’ll take it all, then sign it over to her.”

  “There are huge tax ramifications of doing that. Your dad made sure that couldn’t happen. It isn’t an option.”

  Caleb sighed. “Of course, not. Why would he make it easy on me? He fucked up my relationship with Wren years ago, and now he wants to throw us together?” When Jonathan didn’t answer, Caleb made his way back to the sofa and sat down again. “Have you read it?”

  “Yes. Just calm down and listen, Caleb.”

  “Can I just sell her my half for five dollars?”

  Jonathan cleared his throat and smiled. He admired Caleb’s protectiveness of Wren. “Not right away. You each have the option to buy each other out, if you both agree, but not for five years from the time of Edison’s death. After that time has passed you can sell it to her, but not below the current market value. It’s publically traded and doing so would devalue the stock for the rest of the shareholders. You can gift it to her at that time, though, she’ll have to pay huge capital gains tax.”

  “What the hell?” Anger rose up inside him and made Caleb’s chest feel like it was going to explode as heat rushed under the skin of his face like liquid fire. He tried to suck in a breath big enough to fill his lungs but they resisted. “Goddamn him!”

  “If you want her to have anything going forward, you’ll have to assume control of Lux and operate it together, at a profit. Even if you both agree, you can’t give it to charity, outright, either. At least for the time being.”

  “Five years, being that time?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then just let the board of directors run everything, until I can figure it out.”

  “They’ll be involved, of course. They have a responsibility to the shareholders, but the shares you control puts you at the helm.”

  “Fine. I’ll do a shitty job and they’ll have me removed. The end.”

  “Then Wren gets no
thing, Caleb. The shares will be stripped from both of you. Your mother would roll over in her grave if the company she and Edison built didn’t benefit you in some way. And your history with Wren is telling, Caleb. Edison knew you’d do this, solely to take care of her.”

  The air left Caleb’s lungs and he shook his head in absent denial. Wren had a successful career and maybe she wouldn’t want to be straddled with the company and her estranged stepbrother for the next five years. Also, what about his own life? He had plans of his own.

  “That bastard really hates me.” His heart started beating so fast he felt it would fly from his chest and Caleb rose to pace the room. He flushed, realizing he should have said it in the past tense. He hadn’t felt like that since his mother died, or since Wren left him the last time.

  “No, he loved you, Caleb. Edison realized his mistakes and had many regrets; which he voiced to me on multiple occasions. Not the least of which was his decision to send you so far away for college. He knew he should have supported your desire to go to Colorado School of Mines so you could stay close to Wren. This is his attempt to give you a chance at the life you should have had with her. To make things right.”

  He shook his head. “How? It’s too late , Jonathan! Even if it was all wrapped up in a nice little bow, she has a life of her own, and so do I. Don’t you get it? He’s still trying to control everything I do. He took my decisions about Wren away when he made me go to Boston and he can’t fix it all by dropping dead.”

  When he was younger, Caleb had done just enough to make his father miserable, but not enough to fuck up his own life. He knew his father would always get him out of petty larceny charges or bail his ass out when he boosted cars. Even if Edison had to pay out the ass to do it, he did it; and that had suited Caleb’s agenda just fine. He’d made an art out of causing trouble with the confidence his father’s intervention would mean he wouldn’t be convicted or even have a record. Maybe it was arrogant, sure, but it was just the way it was. Amazing what, and who, money could buy, Caleb thought; disgusted.

  “You’re not a delinquent with a ruined future. Your dad did that, Caleb. Yes you lost your mother, yes your father was not the parent you deserved, but you did your part to make things worse. For God’s sake, take some responsibility for something! The man is dead.” Jonathan’s voice became thicker, and he cleared his throat.

  Caleb’s face burned. It wasn’t like Jonathan to throw around criticisms or use that kind of tone when speaking to him, and maybe he was right, to a degree; but he’d be damned if he’d give credit for his success to his father’s manipulation.

  “I did. I studied and graduated with honors. That was me taking responsibility so that bastard wouldn’t be able to control me for the rest of my life!” Caleb’s own voice rose and broke on a bitter laugh. “But look? He’s still yanking my chain.”

  Caleb had always been interested in how things worked, and from the time he met Dex; and learned how to take shit apart and put it back together again; he’d wanted to be a mechanical engineer. He was fascinated by how things worked and he had dreams of designing custom motorcycles or cars.

  Despite his teenage desire to make his father squirm, he’d been smart enough to realize that he’d never be free of Edison without a high school diploma, good grades, and decent test scores. College was his ticket out and away. He’d signed up for the SAT prep-classes, and applied to colleges with Jonesy’s help. It was working out great until his father intercepted an acceptance letter to one of the schools he’d applied to. A school that would let him follow his dreams, and stay close to Wren so he could continue to take care of her.

  Caleb’s mind flashed to a long ago conversation when his father had insisted he attend MIT in Boston. It didn’t matter what Caleb had wanted or that he’d taken any initiative on his own, Edison thought he knew what was in his son’s best interest, but at the time he resented the hell out of it because he knew how his leaving would affect Wren.

  Caleb could admit that his father may have had pure intentions now, but when he was eighteen his emotions ruled his thinking. He hated Edison for sending him away when Wren was so vulnerable and at that bitch, Veronica’s mercy. It felt like blackmail, and Wren didn’t understand, and he couldn’t tell her. She was only sixteen when he left and all she knew was that Caleb was the only person in the world who gave a damn about her.

  Edison was planning to divorce Veronica, and Caleb couldn’t let that happen... he was terrified for her. At the time, he was smart enough to know Edison’s reasons for sending him away, but it hurt so damn bad; rationalizing everything offered little comfort. Caleb had only cried a couple of times in his life; when his mother had died, and then when he had to tell Wren he was leaving her behind. He couldn’t tell her he was doing it to protect her and ensure her safety; he couldn’t let her know that he was being blackmailed because of her.

  His mind flashed to the conversation with his father. He remembered it all so clearly.

  “You can’t divorce Veronica, Dad! What about Wren? You know what will happen to her!”

  Edison was sitting on the front edge of his heavy mahogany desk, contemplating his son. He knew Caleb and Wren had gotten close, but he hadn’t expected this bombastic reaction from his son.

  “You hate Veronica. I thought you’d be overjoyed at the prospect of my divorcing her.”

  Caleb began pacing back and forth in front of his father; feeling like his world was about to implode again. Wren was the only person he cared about, and Veronica would hurt her. “I do. But Wren will be at her mercy. You know what happened before!”

  Edison had remained calm, his eyes calculating. “Wren’s older now. She can take care of herself.”

  But Caleb knew that wasn’t true, and he couldn’t bear the thought of Wren turning back into that introverted, frightened shell of a girl she was when they met.

  Caleb stopped and turned to his father, his tone pleading. “Dad. Please. Not until she’s eighteen. Please, I’m begging you.” It was a bitter pill to swallow after Edison’s apparent disinterest in his life.

  Edison was annoyed. “That’s almost three years from now, Caleb. I can’t put up with Veronica’s schemes for three more years. I can’t afford it. Not if you expect to inherit anything.” His tone was sarcastically amused, but lost on his son.

  Caleb wasn’t worried about the money, but he knew his father’s company was sound. “Dad! Please.”

  “Well,” Edison said slowly. “I might be persuaded; if you go to college. I don’t need a fuck-up for a son. Though, God knows, you’ve tried hard enough to earn that title.”

  Caleb felt like he’d been kicked in the gut, even though he’d heard the same thing numerous times. It didn’t matter. He’d gotten accepted to Colorado School of Mines a few days earlier. His last name alone would have ensured acceptance, his father’s Denver-based company was well known worldwide, but his grades were solid, too. “Yeah, I’m such a fuck-up, I got into CSOM,” he shot back.

  “I know.”

  Caleb was stunned at his father’s easy answer. How in the hell did he know? He hadn’t said anything. “You do? How?”

  “Come on, Caleb. I know everyone in Denver. My golfing buddy’s brother is the president of the school.”

  “Fuuuuck,” Caleb huffed under his breath, pissed he hadn’t thought of that. Couldn’t he do anything without his father’s influence hovering over him? “In that case, I’m not going.”

  Edison folded his arms over his chest arrogantly eyeing his son. “Don’t be stupid, Caleb. Of course, you’re going to college. You’re always insisting you don’t want my help, so make something of yourself on your own.”

  “I’m trying, but you keep fucking it up! Why can’t you stay out of my goddamned life?” Venom dripped from Caleb’s words.

  Edison’s demeanor was stone cold. “I’ll stay out of it after you graduate, but you’re going to MIT, not the School of Mines.”

  “You can’t force me to go to Boston! I didn’t
even apply there!” He’d felt smug, thinking the conversation was over.

  His father had simply huffed and turned away, going to the bar in his study to pour a stiff drink. “Oh, yes, I think I can, son. You obviously have initiative, and I admit, I’m pleasantly surprised, but if you want me to suffer that bitch for three more years, you’ll do as I ask. It’ll be MIT because it’s more widely known and will offer you more opportunities, later.”

  “I don’t need your permission. I have a scholarship for part of it, and I’ve saved up some of my own money.”

  “Stop it, Caleb. It’s MIT, or nothing. I can get that scholarship at CSOM yanked. You’ll do what I tell you and you’ll be happy about it. You’re lucky I’ll let you study engineering. I’d hoped you’d pursue a biochem degree. It would be more beneficial to Lux.”

  Caleb had been furious, his blood rushing in his ears. “You are such an unbelievable bastard. Do you think I planned this to make you look good or help you out? I have plans of my own!”

  “Caleb!” Edison shouted, finally losing control. Dressed in a black designer suit, he calmed himself then walked back to his desk. “It’s settled. All I have to do is make a call or two.”

  “I hate you,” Caleb had seethed. “What about Wren? What happens to her while I’m gone?”

  “She graduates. She continues dance classes.” At Caleb’s surprise, Edison continued. “Oh yes, I know you’ve been taking her and paying for them with your blood money.”

  Anger exploded inside Caleb and he saw red and his fists clenched. It was all he could do not to beat the shit out of his own father. His teeth ground together. “You’re such a controlling prick. Can’t you let me have anything without invading it? Do you have me followed, or what? I fucking hate you!”

  Edison was cool and collected; calmly smoothing his tie down the front of his shirt. “Clearly, but it’s beside the point. I’ll help Wren get into Juilliard, if that’s what she wants; and I’ll pay for it. I’ll rein Veronica in, as well.”

  His father had played his trump card. Juilliard was Wren’s dream and she was an amazing dancer. Caleb was always stunned watching her. They’d kept dancing a secret from Veronica so she couldn’t sabotage it, and had to turn down more than one opportunity to dance in productions around Denver. Caleb paid for her lessons out of his fight earnings. They’d both worked so hard to make it happen without telling either of their parents, so how did Edison know?