“Hi,” she greeted them, hoping she wasn’t being too rude by interrupting.
“Hi,” they both replied.
“I’m Genevieve, the newbie.” She let out a nervous laugh.
“Bonnie,” one said. “We met the other day.”
“That’s right,” Genevieve replied. She’d met a lot of people on her tour of the building.
“I’m Tesha,” the other said. “You’re in the big office, right?”
Genevieve nodded. “I’m the new event coordinator for the Foundation.”
“I don’t think we’ve ever had anyone from the Foundation on our floor before.” Tesha’s tone seemed a little snarky.
“Oh, I don’t know. That’s just where they put me.”
She was about to say more when the ladies went back to their previous conversation. She tried not to take offense or to pay too much attention to what they were saying, but it was hard not to.
“I heard he beat up the guy,” Bonnie said. “And then Sebastian had to practically carry him out of the place.”
Genevieve perked up at the mention of their boss, but kept chewing her sandwich.
“I heard it was the police who dragged him out,” Tesha stated.
“I don’t think we’ll be seeing Gus around the office anymore.”
Tesha pouted. “Such a shame. He’s so easy on the eyes.”
Bonnie laughed. “Darn right.”
“Gus is the brother, right?” Genevieve asked, remembering at their work lunch that Sebastian had said their brother, Augustus, was the black sheep of the family.
“Yeah. He’s always been the party boy. Been a while since he’s done anything tabloid worthy, though.”
Genevieve shook her head. Tabloids were ridiculous. She couldn’t imagine having paparazzi tailing after you, following your every move, and reporting every little thing you did, including any mistakes you might make. That sounded like a miserable life.
When she’d been sitting across the fancy restaurant table from Sebastian, it had crossed her mind for a moment or two what it might be like to be with a man with unlimited amounts of money, to be able to do whatever she wanted, go wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted. But the downside to wealth and fame seemed to weigh heavier on the scale than the benefits ever would. She’d rather be with someone like Kurtis—a simple, hardworking man—than someone filthy rich who had no privacy.
“Sebastian must be so upset,” Genevieve interjected.
“How would anyone be able to tell?” Bonnie said. “The guy walks around with a straight face all the time, absolutely no emotion.”
“Yeah, at least Gus knows how to feel, even if it does get him into trouble.”
Genevieve was confused. “Are we talking about the same person?” she asked. “Because I’ve met Sebastian, and he was very friendly. Charming and funny even.”
Tesha raised her eyebrows. “Maybe it’s because you’re cute.”
“Excuse me?” Her brow furrowed.
“Although, I kinda thought he was celibate,” Tesha continued. “I haven’t seen him with a woman in the three years I’ve been here.”
“Wanda down in accounting saw him leaving the building with a woman just yesterday,” Bonnie said.
“Someone who works here?” Tesha’s eyes widened.
Genevieve was annoyed, but the ladies didn’t seem to notice and continued to gossip about the Schultz brothers. At first, she was worried they might be talking about her leaving with Sebastian for lunch, but that was two days ago, not yesterday. She hated the idea that she could be gossiped about, though. She’d have to steer clear of these two.
After eating her lunch quicker than usual so she could get out of there, she headed back to her office to organize the list of people she needed to contact for the regatta.
Something about the lunch conversation stuck with her all afternoon, though. Sebastian was nothing like they described. That’s what had surprised her so much in their meeting. She was completely prepared to meet the unapproachable man she’d been warned about. But he wasn’t that guy at all.
She’d never been one for gossip, and listening to those ladies bad mouth the president of the company didn’t sit right with her. But as the new girl, she didn’t want to stir up trouble, which is why she’d kept her mouth shut.
And right now, staring at her to-do list, she had more important things to worry about.
THIRTEEN
After a day of babysitting Augustus while he slept, Sebastian was antsy to get back to the office. Work always excited him, but now he had another reason to look forward to it. A reason with long lashes surrounding pretty brown eyes. Eyes that belonged to a woman who looked at him like she’d known him for years rather than days.
He loved his brother and would do anything for him, and he wanted to help him find some direction in his life, but it had to be on Gus’s terms. He had to decide to make the change. It couldn’t be forced, as much as Sebastian wished it could.
As he finished putting away the blankets and pillow he’d used to sleep on Gus’s sofa last night, he wondered what had set Gus off at the bar. What was it Milton Hanley had said about Skylar?
Milton was a creep. Someone Skylar had dated shortly after graduating from college, who was after more than just her money. A despicable man, who wasn’t very good at taking no for an answer. There was a collective feeling of “good riddance” when Skylar gave him the boot.
As proud as he was that Gus had stood up for their little sister, he was still disappointed in him for choosing the route of the belligerent drunk.
The tabloids had run a picture of Gus all up in Milton’s face and another of him on the sidewalk outside the bar after stumbling and falling to his knees. Darn paparazzi.
As bad as it would look for the family, a little twinge of worry came over him that Genevieve might see it and notice the caption read “Augustus Schultz,” not Sebastian.
He quickly pushed that thought aside. If she saw the pictures, so be it. It was ridiculous to think he could keep such a thing from her in the social media age anyway. And he needed to focus on helping his brother at the moment and not worry about his nonexistent love life.
The bigger question in all this was why Gus had gone to the bar in the middle of the day in the first place.
Gus chose that moment to grumble from the place on the floor where he’d passed out. He twisted and sat up, groaning and gripping his head. “Why did you let me drink?” he asked.
“If I’d been there, could I really have stopped you?”
“Probably not.” Gus sat up and whimpered.
“Here.” Sebastian had a glass of water and ibuprofen at the ready.
Gus swallowed down the pills. “How much trouble am I in?”
“Well, you didn’t actually beat Milton up, but you were pretty drunk and disorderly.”
“Is this on my record now?”
“If I said yes, would it make a difference? Would it change your future choices?” Sebastian wished it was that simple.
Gus stared into the glass of water he was still holding.
“Oliver took care of it.” Sebastian saw Gus visibly relax, his shoulders releasing some of the stress and anxiety over the situation. “You’re a grown man, Gus, and I’m not going to tell you what to do. Besides, it’s all been said before.”
Gus nodded, knowingly. “I’m sorry I’m such a disappointment.
“I love you, brother, and I want the best for you. And this is not it.”
“I know.” Gus struggled to get up onto the sofa. “Does the family know?”
Sebastian opened his phone to the tabloid photos and showed Gus the screen.
His face screwed up. “Not my best look.”
“If they don’t know by now, they will. PR’s probably going nuts with this today.”
Gus’s shoulders drooped and his head was down, and Sebastian could see how regretful he was over it all.
“What was it Milton said?” Sebastian asked.
Sebastian could picture Milton saying it, and if he’d been there with Gus, he might have decked him for it.
“We don’t tell Skylar about this,” Sebastian said. “She’s had enough trouble from that guy to last a lifetime.”
“Agreed.”
A text came across Sebastian’s phone then, and a smile spread across his face at Genevieve’s name and the simple message asking if he was okay.
“It’s from her, isn’t it?” Gus asked.
Sebastian looked over to find his brother wearing an amused grin. “Maybe.”
“You dog.” Gus’s face suddenly fell. “Oh man, this is going to mess up everything for you, isn’t it? She’s gonna find out who I really am when she sees those pictures.”
“Probably. Don’t worry about it.”
“Gah. The first girl you like in years and I mess it up. I really am good for nothing.”
“Hey.” Sebastian gave Gus a pointed look. “Don’t you believe that for a second. You have so much to give in life, in our family, and in the company. You are important to us. To me. More important than this ridiculous predicament I’ve gotten myself into.”
Gus’s mouth tilted to one side in contemplation, as if he didn’t quite believe it.
“You hear me?” Sebastian stared at him, trying to will Gus to see how serious he was.
Gus nodded. “I hear you.”
He held up his phone. “She just asked if I was okay, because I was with her yesterday when I got the call, but I didn’t tell her what it was about.”
“I’m sorry, Bash.”
Sebastian wasn’t sure, but it looked like tears in his brother’s eyes. It could have been from sleepiness and the hangover, though.
“I know you are.” He watched Gus rub at his eyes. “What were you doing at the bar, Gus?”
“Does there have to be a reason?”
“With you, I think there’s always a reason.”
“I’m a born loser, incapable of change. Just like him.”
Sebastian’s brow furrowed. “Like who?”
“It was something Genevieve said.”
“Genevieve? When?”
“At a club the other night.”
“Why were you at a club with Genevieve?” The green-eyed monster reared its ugly head.
“She was there celebrating her sister’s divorce from this awful man, and I realized what she said about him applies to me too. No matter what I do to try to change, it’s never enough. I’m a giant failure.”
“That’s not true.”
Gus narrowed his eyes at Sebastian. “You know it is. I’m not driven like you and Sky. I’ve never succeeded at anything in my life.”
“You’re smarter and more talented than you give yourself credit for. And you haven’t succeeded because you’ve bought into your own lies. You’ve used them as excuses not to take life seriously. But the time for excuses is over, and I think you know it.”
“When did you get to be so wise?” Gus mumbled.
“I have my moments.” He held up his phone. “This was definitely not one of them.”
Gus snorted out a laugh, then got a little smile on his face. “She’s really great, Bash.”
“So you like her?” He wished he’d been the one spending time with her at that club, not Gus. What had they talked about? There was so much he wanted to know about her, and he hated that Gus might know more than he did.
“I do, but I wouldn’t do that to you, brother.” He pointed at Sebastian’s phone. “Don’t keep the lady waiting.”
Sebastian promptly focused on the message and began typing as Gus headed for the bathroom.
I’m okay. Family situation. All taken care of. How was work? Sorry to desert our dessert plans yesterday. ;)
He waited to see if any little dots bounced on his screen. They didn’t, but a text message came through a few moments later.
Rain check?
He could picture the way her eyes lit up when she smiled and that adorable dimple in her cheek. His fingers moved over the screen.
Anytime.
That evening, Sebastian and Gus were summoned to the house by their father. Whenever there was trouble within the family, especially anything that would affect them and their company that was public knowledge, they had a family meeting to talk things through.
Sebastian drove the two of them to the house, and Gus was quiet the entire way. He wasn’t normal, fun-loving Gus. He was so withdrawn, it was unsettling.
“You okay?” Sebastian asked before they pulled into the driveway.
“Not really.”
Sebastian gripped Gus’s shoulder and squeezed. “It will all work out. Trust me.”
“I wish I had your faith.”
“Last time I checked, we believed in the same God. He’s still there, Gus. He’ll never abandon you. And neither will we.”
Gus didn’t reply to that and quickly climbed out when Sebastian parked the car.
Gerard opened the door before they even reached it. “Good evening, sirs.”
“Good evening, Gerard.”
“Hey, Gerard.” Gus greeted him with a fist bump.
Harriet came swooping into the foyer, hugging and kissing on her boys.
Sebastian gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Didn’t think I’d be back so soon, did you?”
“If I could see my children every day of the week, I’d be a happy mother.” Her eyes fell on Gus, and she opened her arms to him.
He fell into them like a little child in need of motherly love, and that’s exactly what she gave him. She whispered words Sebastian could not hear. He caught an “I love you” and “You’re going to be all right” as he left them alone and headed to the kitchen.
The mood was much different than Monday evening when they’d made the truffles. Although, Skylar did have some truffles out and was munching on them. She often did that when worried about something.
Dad was seated at the table in the breakfast nook, staring out the window at the hedges. When Mom and Gus joined them, he seemed to notice and stood from his place to come closer to his family.
“We have a bit of a situation to deal with after yesterday afternoon’s events,” Dad announced.
“What kind of situation?” Sebastian asked.
Mom stepped closer to Dad and circled her arms around his waist as his arm rested over her shoulders.
“Milton Hanley has decided to sue Augustus for assault and battery.”
Skylar dropped the truffle she’d been holding.
“What?” Gus’s mouth fell open. “I didn’t even hit the guy.”
“He says you pushed him and threatened to end him.”
Gus rolled his eyes. “Oh my gosh. That was just the alcohol talking. I wouldn’t have actually hurt him. Although, I wanted to.”
“Did you touch him?” Dad asked.
“I might have pushed him, but he had it coming.”
“Even so, when someone wrongs us, we don’t strike back. We turn the other cheek.”
Gus’s shoulders slumped and his head bowed sadly at their father’s words.
“Our lawyers will be speaking to his, but if they can’t talk him out of it, this will go on your record, Augustus. And I know Oliver was trying to be a friend and help our family as he has in the past, but I fear he may lose his job over this.”
Sebastian saw Gus’s chin begin to quiver, and he stepped closer and lay his hand on his brother’s shoulder to give it a squeeze. But instead of accepting the support, Gus pulled away and moved out of reach.
“These are the consequences of your actions, son,” Dad declared.
“I know, okay!” Gus cried. “I’m a grown man. Stop treating me like a little kid.”
Dad walked across the kitchen and lay his hands on Gus’s shoulders, tilting his head to try to get Gus to look at him.
Gus’s eyes veered down and
away.
“We love you, Augustus.” Dad took hold of his face and turned it up toward him, and Gus’s eyes finally met his. “We love you.”
Tears filled Gus’s eyes then, and it broke Sebastian’s heart to see his brother this way.
“I’m sorry, Dad.” Gus leaned forward, and Dad wrapped him tightly in his arms. “I know I messed up again. I know I’ve disgraced our family and you’re ashamed to have a son like me.”
Dad pulled back and took his face again, looking him in the eyes. “I may be disappointed by your choices, but I will never be ashamed that you are my son.”
A weak smile crossed Gus’s face then.
“This will all work itself out.” Dad patted Gus on the shoulder and returned to Mom’s side. “But as far as the company goes … I don’t want you there right now.”
“At all?” Gus replied, looking shocked.
“For the time being, no.”
“But I’ve been putting in more time there, trying to be more involved. Bash will tell you. I’ve tried to show you that I’m serious about the future of our company, and I want to be a part.”
“Until you can prove to us that you no longer prefer bars to boardrooms, I can’t have you there.”
“This is so unfair.”
Dad shook his head and shrugged. “Life’s not fair, son. I built this company from the floundering company my father started to the household name Schultz Chocolate has become. I worked very hard to get us here, and I know what this company needs to succeed.”
“And it doesn’t need me,” Gus stated matter-of-factly.
“That’s not what I’m saying. I’m saying for now. Until we see a bigger change.”
“I have changed. If you can’t see that then I don’t know what else I can do.”
“If you’d actually changed, you wouldn’t have been falling over drunk outside a bar after threatening a man. I’m not saying we haven’t seen positive changes over this past year. But after yesterday, well, it’s not enough, son. You’re not there yet.”
Not The Billionaire Page 8
