Forbidden Kiss: Carson Cove Scandals Read online

  “I don’t even know anymore.” He shrugged and a long sigh passed across his lips. “We originally agreed to use the same attorney and make things amicable. Yesterday, she mentioned that she didn’t know if our assets could be split fairly unless I sold Alcott Inc.—that caused a huge fight, as you can probably imagine. She packed a bag and left—two hours later, I got a call from my attorney—Mary fired him and hired Drake Barnes.”

  “Fuck man, he’s a damn snake.” I gritted my teeth. “He’s unethical as hell—he almost got disbarred a few years ago.”

  “That’s what worries me.” Jon took another drink of his whiskey. “I can’t help but wonder if Mary had already talked to him before we had our fight—she’s never been involved in the company at all. The package that our attorney was putting together was very fair in my opinion with alimony that would hurt every month, but I was willing to pay it. Drake Barnes sent something to my attorney earlier today officially withdrawing from that agreement—on the grounds that the future earnings of Alcott Inc. weren’t properly estimated. It’s bullshit.”

  “Yes, it is.” I nodded in agreement. “There won’t be any future earning if you have to sell Alcott Inc.”

  “That’s his point.” Jon shook his head angrily. “I could tank the company and screw Mary out of what she’s owed—selling it now avoids that.”

  “It sounds like you may have to go to trial just sort out the bullshit.” I sighed and leaned forward. “Now, I need a drink.”

  “You were lucky, Bryant. Your divorce was smooth—I thought mine would be too.” Jon downed the rest of his whiskey and held out his glass for more.

  I never considered myself lucky when I watched the love of my life walk out of it—but at least I kept Benson Enterprises.

  “We may need to reschedule this meeting.” I filled his glass and poured a drink for myself. “I based everything on the old agreement you sent me—this will change things.”

  “Yeah, I know.” He nodded. “I just needed someone to talk to.”

  “Then maybe we should find somewhere to drink with a better atmosphere than an office building…” I put my drink down on the edge of my desk.

  “Chateau Prime?” Jon raised an eyebrow. “Good memories at that place—I could use a few.”

  “Sure,” I chuckled under my breath. “I’ll drive.”

  Chateau Prime was an upscale den for gentlemanly debauchery. It was the kind of place fathers took their sons when they were old enough to be considered men—and not just because of their age—it was a rite of passage that was as old as Carson Cove itself. I never got that experience with my own father—he promised to take me the day that I became an officer in the company, but I had to skip that stage of my career entirely when I was forced to take over as CEO. Instead, I went with Jon—because if losing my father didn’t make me a man, nothing else ever would.

  Truthfully, I didn’t have any fond memories of Chateau Prime. It was generally just a place for the happily married to congregate at the behest of their wives who scolded them when they got home with cigar smoke on their clothes and liquor on their breath—or any combination of the two. The waitresses always paraded around in skimpy little upscale dresses that were enough to draw a few eyes while maintaining a slight semblance of class. There were rumors that some real debauchery went on behind the scenes if you were willing to pay, but I sure as hell didn’t want any of that—even when I was at my lowest point.

  “Are you still dodging Alexis like the plague?” Jon looked over at me once we were seated in my car.

  “Absolutely.” I nodded quickly.

  “I guess I would be too—if I had a hot new girlfriend. You going to tell me about her?” He narrowed his eyes.

  “You saw that, huh?” I chuckled under my breath.

  “I saw her send Alexis running for the door—Mary actually cracked a smile at that—probably the last one I’ll ever see,” he sighed. “So, what’s her name—and does she have a sister?”

  “Her name is Taylor and she’s not my girlfriend—just a friend.” I shook my head back and forth. “I believe her sister would be a little too young for you.”

  “Damn…” He shrugged. “Oh well, I guess I should wait until I actually sign my divorce papers before I start planning my next one.”

  “You’ve still got a few more to go before you’re in Alexis Devereaux territory. Maybe you’ll find the right woman next time.” I nodded—and realized I was actually giving him advice I never took myself—until Taylor unexpectedly walked into my life.

  We arrived at Chateau Prime, and the atmosphere was the same as I remembered—but that was better than drinking at my office, and I had a feeling that Jon needed to tie one on. We found a corner booth, and I let him rant while I provided a friendly ear—he finished three drinks before I was halfway through my first, so it was clear that he was going to be blackout drunk before we left. I had a few of those nights when I got divorced, so I understood—thankfully, I had so many responsibilities that I didn’t get to linger in the bottle for long. I had no idea what I would have done if I lost Benson Enterprises when my wife decided to leave me—that would have turned the darkest point in my life into a literal nightmare.

  “I just don’t get it man,” he sighed. “Alcott Inc. isn’t going under. The company is in great shape. It’s a cash-out-now option that just hurts everyone—god, what if Sawyer King tries to buy the company? What the fuck would I do then? How would I look all of my employees in the eye and tell them they’re on the short route to an early retirement—without financial security.”

  “Yeah, it’s a shitty situation.” I nodded. “The only good thing is that Sawyer King seems to have left Carson Cove—so maybe someone will buy it that has the company’s best interest in mind…”

  “I sure as fuck hope so.” He lifted his glass and took a drink—then finished it.

  Jon’s words got slurred, but he kept drinking—and before long he was talking about our high school years. He seemed to remember them with rose-colored glasses, but that was probably because they seemed better than what was dealing with at the moment. We definitely had fun in high school, but we were just dumb kids doing stupid things. I was curious to know where Jon’s kids were—if they left with Mary or if their grandparents were watching them. I was afraid to bring anything up that he didn’t want to discuss—it was risky since he was wound up about everything already.

  “Bryant Benson, holy shit.” A voice laced with a Cajun accent echoed from across the room, and I looked over to see a man approaching.

  Fuck me, it’s Danny Fontenot. What is this, a high school reunion? I thought he moved back to Louisiana.

  “Danny?” Jon narrowed his eyes and then hopped to his feet. “Danny!”

  Apparently, he’s happier to see that bastard than I am—or maybe he’s just so drunk he forgot what an asshole he is.

  “Hey Danny.” I gave him a nod while Jon decided to just go for a fucking hug.

  “What are you two doin’ at Chateau Prime? Hell, ain’t seen either one of ya in years.” Danny hugged Jon and then decided to sit down at our table without asking for an invitation.

  “Us?” I raised an eyebrow. “I thought you left Carson Cove after college…”

  “Naw, I been back a few years.” He nodded. “My boys—got twins—they’re tearing up the field at our old stompin’ ground. Hell, that quarterback they got comin’ up is supposed to have a cannon—might go to state—might break all our old records.”

  “Damn, they haven’t been broken yet?” I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

  “Naw man, we was legends—still are.” He laughed and raised his beer to motion for the waitress to bring him another.

  “Hell yeah, man.” Jon leaned over and gave Danny a nudge. “Danny Fontenot! I can’t believe it. What are you doing with yourself these days?”

  Danny told us his life story—I tuned out and just stared at my drink, but I was forced to still hear most of it. Jon was having a good time and wa
sn’t wallowing in his despair, so that was an improvement. Danny wasn’t one of the so-called privileged in Carson Cove when I knew him. He was just a kid from the suburbs that could sniff out a quarterback’s next play before they even figured it out themselves. He got a scholarship to LSU, which was where his family was from—knocked heads for another four years before he finally hung up his cleats. His financial situation had apparently changed for the better—but he didn’t elaborate on it.

  “Oh, ya two will never guess who I ran into the other day.” He leaned forward and grinned. “Hot-ass Alexis.”

  “Yeah, never would have guessed you’d run into her in Carson Cove.” I couldn’t even hide the sarcasm in my voice.

  “I don’t want to sound like a playboy or anythin’—cause I love my wife—but I think she was hittin’ on me.” He grinned from ear-to-ear.

  What the fuck is going on with her? Is she really that fucking desperate?

  Jon decided that he needed to tell his own story about Alexis to match the one that Danny told, so I got to relive the events of the art show from Jon’s perspective—which included a mention of Taylor. That, of course, meant Danny had to ask about my ex-wife—and Jon’s soon to be ex—which soured Jon’s temporary moment of joviality reliving our high school days. It seemed like the air got sucked out of the room after that, and it didn’t take Danny long to look for an excuse to leave. I was glad to see him go—and it was about time for me to get Jon home before I literally had to carry him out of Chateau Prime.

  “Are you about ready for me to drive you home?” I finished the drink I had been nursing most of the night and put the empty glass down.

  “Yeah.” Jon nodded and sighed. “I wanted to drink and forget all this shit—now I’m thinking about it all over again.”

  “Sorry…” I stood and motioned for him to follow me.

  The drive to Jon’s neighborhood was a somber one. He knew he was going home to an empty house, and I fully understood how miserable that could be. The alcohol helped his mood while he was happy, but as soon as he got a vicious reminder of Mary, he was worse than he was before he took his first drink. I decided not to just drop him off—I followed him into the house and kept him company until he finally passed out. It was late, and my plan to go to bed early was definitely shot, but I knew I would sleep hard when I got there. I drove to my house, changed into a pair of shorts, and decided to check in with Taylor before I crashed. It might have been late for me, but I doubted she was in bed—not if she kept the kind of hours I did when I was in college—granted, I was usually up to no good instead of hitting the books.

  Bryant: I missed you today…

  Taylor: Hey! I was hoping I would hear from you before I went to sleep. I missed you too.

  Bryant: I really have to wait until Saturday to see you?

  Taylor: If you wait until Saturday, I can spend the whole day with you. Otherwise, I’ll have to go home early to work on my school stuff.

  Bryant: Okay, I guess that does sound better. I wish you could spend all night with me too…

  Taylor: I probably could, but then I’d have to tell my mom why I’m not coming home. I’d like to avoid that conversation for now.

  Bryant: Does that mean you plan to have it with her at some point?

  Taylor: I don’t like hiding it, but…

  Bryant: I know. It’s complicated.

  Taylor: Can we just take it one day at a time for now?

  Bryant: Of course.

  Taylor: Thank you.

  Bryant: I’m about to go to bed. I’m a little worn out…

  Taylor: I wonder why—maybe the same reason I couldn’t walk straight this morning?

  Bryant: I wish I could have seen that.

  Taylor: It wasn’t flattering!

  Bryant: I would have laughed.

  Taylor: I would have thrown something at you!

  Bryant: So violent…

  Taylor: Goodnight :)

  Bryant: Goodnight…

  I couldn’t help but smile as I climbed into bed—mainly because Taylor was going to be there beside me in a couple of days. As soon as I tried to go to sleep, my mind flashed back to what Danny said to us at Chateau Prime—which made me think of Alexis—the last person I wanted to be thinking about while I was lying in bed. There was definitely something going on with her that wasn’t totally transparent. I wanted to just forget about her and accept that it wasn’t my problem, but I felt like there was a reason she set her sights on me—I had trouble believing it was totally driven by greed. I wasn’t entirely convinced that she was hitting on Danny—he was happily married and there was no way that fit into her game plan if what Taylor overhead was true.

  There has to be something I’m missing… Fuck it. I’ve wasted enough time trying to figure her out—there’s not a damn thing she can do to me right now because I sure as hell have no intentions of marrying her.

  Chapter Eleven

  Taylor

  The next day

  I woke up feeling rather refreshed. My muscles didn’t ache when I got out of bed, which was a huge improvement over the previous day, and I got enough sleep not to feel like the staggering dead. I even got up early enough to beat Anna to the shower, and I was downstairs with a cup of coffee in my hand when I heard the shower start again. Our mother was always the first one up, but it took her longer to get ready. I sat down at the kitchen table and flipped through the assignments I had been working on—I always liked to proofread them in the morning after I had some time to let the information settle in my head a little bit. I didn’t see any glaring errors, so I was rather relieved. My mother came charging down the stairs with a purpose, but she came to an abrupt stop when she got to the kitchen.

  “You’re up—and you made coffee.” She looked at me and smiled. “Thank you.”

  “No problem.” I nodded. “I wanted to look over my assignments before school.”

  “I thought you would be sleeping as long as you could—especially with the late hour you got in a couple nights ago.” She poured a cup of coffee and eyed me suspiciously.

  “Mom…” I looked down and sighed.

  “I know, you’re twenty-three now. You don’t have to give me the song and dance. I’m not judging.” She sat down across from me. “So, what’s his name?”

  Straight to the point—I should be used to that by now.

  “It’s really nothing.” I shook my head back and forth. “It’s all school-related.”

  There goes a lie—but I don’t know how to tell the truth about Bryant. It’s way too complicated for the kitchen table—or anywhere.

  “Okay…” She nodded, but the suspicious stare didn’t fade. “Well if you need to talk, I was twenty-three once too—and if you are dating, maybe we can compare notes, because…”

  “Mom!” My head snapped back in surprise.

  “I should get to work.” She looked at her watch. “Have a good day. Please make sure your sister gets out the door on time.”

  “Will do, I love you, Mom.” I sipped my coffee and smiled.

  “Love you too.” She made a quick dash for the door.

  I hated lying to my mother but telling her the truth about Bryant seemed more devastating than a little white lie. I definitely didn’t want to compare notes about our love life and hear about Dave or Steve, or whoever she was dating. I assumed it wasn’t that serious since she hadn’t introduced him to us yet. I did miss the closeness we used to have before my father left—just like I missed the connection I used to have with my little sister. My world revolved around art—and my mother’s love of it faded after the divorce—my sister never cared about it to begin with. I felt guilty trying to talk about the stuff I was studying in school—I didn’t even mention the art show to my mother. I knew that would make her think about my father, and all of the family vacations we used to plan around art exhibits.

  “Good morning.” Anna walked into the kitchen and immediately started making a bowl of cereal. “Mom is already gone?”
r />   “Yeah, she just left.” I sipped my coffee and nodded.

  “Cool.” She sat down across from me. “Why are you up so early? You usually don’t make it downstairs before we leave.”

  “I just woke up a little earlier this morning.” I shrugged.

  “That’s probably because you weren’t sneaking in the house after midnight.” She grinned and winked at me.

  “Yeah, but it sounds like I might not be the only one…” I narrowed my eyes.

  “I’ve only missed curfew a couple of times.” She looked down, and I saw her blush—I hadn’t seen her blush in years.

  She definitely has a boyfriend—or someone that she’s spending time with.

  “Well, if you want to talk about it…” I let my words trail off as soon as I realized I was about to give her the same speech I avoided having with my mother.

  “Nope.” Anna shook her head back and forth. “Okay, I need to go to school.”

  “You haven’t even finished your cereal.” I raised an eyebrow.

  “No time—see you tonight.” She grabbed her books and waved as she walked to the door.

  All three of us are dating someone right now, and nobody wants to talk about it—maybe Mom does, but Anna and I aren’t really up for that discussion…

  * * *

  Later that day

  “Hey, Taylor!” One of my friends at school, Melanie, waved at me as I was walking to my next class.

  “Hey there, Mel.” I acknowledged her and smiled as she approached. “It feels like I haven’t seen you in weeks…”

  “That does tend to happen when you switch majors.” She laughed under her breath.

  “How are things going in the Business Management world?” I raised an eyebrow.

  “A little more promising than they were in the Art world.” She shrugged. “I already have a couple of job offers—Alcott Inc. is hiring.”

  “Oh wow, I’ve heard good things about them.” I nodded.

  Being an art major doesn’t exactly bring the job offers to you—maybe I should start looking so that I don’t spend months trying to find something after graduation.