Caleb Walker sat at the small round table in the corner of a downtown Wichita, Kansas, hotel bar, staring at the two men seated across from him. Not even the blond waitress giving him an interested smile and the fact that he hadnât had sex in a month of Sundays diverted his attention from the matter at hand.
All of his life, heâd been a man without siblings and with no idea who his father was. But not more than an hour ago, in a plush executive office at the corporate headquarters of Emerald, Inc., all that had changed. Caleb had learned that his father was none other than globe-trotting playboy and heir apparent to the Emer-ald, Inc. empire, Owen Larson. The late Owen Larson. Now Caleb was having to come to terms with the fact not only that he knew who his father was, but that the man had gone and gotten himself killed in a boating accident off the coast of France before Caleb had had the chance to confront him for making Calebâs mother pregnant and leaving her without so much as a byyour-leave. Heâd also learned that his grandmother was the indomitable Emerald Larson and that the two men sitting across from him were his half brothers.
âI canât believe weâve been under that old batâs surveillance all of our lives.â A muscle jerked along Hunter OâBanyonâs tanned jaw. âShe knew everything there was to know about us and didnât do a damned thing to fill us in on the big mystery until now.â
âThat âold batâ is our grandmother. And Iâd say sheâs done plenty.â Nick Daniels took a swig from the longnecked bottle in his hand, then set it on the table with a thump. âHiring P.I.s to report our every move from the time we were out of diapers while keeping us in the dark about it takes balls.â
âThe size of watermelons,â Caleb added. His gut still churned with anger that Emerald Larson, founder and CEO of one of the nationâs most successful femaleowned and operated conglomerates, had denied them all the right to know who they were for so long. âIâm having a problem with her blackmailing our mothers with the threat of cutting us out of inheriting any part of Emerald, Inc. just to keep them silent about her worth-less son being the jerk who got them pregnant.â He shook his head in disbelief. âIâll give her this much, the old galâs a master at manipulation.â
Nick nodded. âI can understand why our moms went along with her. They were hoping to ensure a better life for us. But they paid a hell of a price for it.â
âI donât give a damn about inheriting any part of Emerald Larsonâs little self-made empire.â Hunter shook his head. âHell will freeze over before I dance to her tune.â
âSo youâre going to turn down her offer?â Caleb asked.
If they accepted Emeraldâs conditions, theyâd each be given one of her companies. Sheâd assured them there were no strings attached and she wouldnât interfere with the way they ran the businesses. But Caleb wasnât fool enough to believe it. It looked like his brothers werenât either.
âI havenât flown a chopper in the past five years.â Hunterâs mouth thinned to a menacing line. âWhat business would I have trying to run an air medevac service?â
âWell, it makes more sense than sending a desk jockey to run a cattle ranch in Wyoming.â Nickâs scowl deepened. âIâve lived in a condo in St. Louis for the past twelve years. The closest I get to any kind of livestock these days is the Clydesdales when they pull a beer wagon down Market Street during a parade.â