Page 10 of One Wealthy Wedding

“Sure.” He shrugs. “When I stop to think too long. What does more look like?”

“Well, I have enough money.” I flash him a smile, and he rolls his eyes. “Respect, I guess. Being equal to Miles and Jonah. A legacy. Being known for something other than building the world’s third-longest beer bong.”

Cole makes a face. Beer bongs have never been his thing. A real personality defect, if you ask me. “Wasn’t that part of the point of the European trip? You said something to me about coming back the conquering hero one night.”

“I was probably drunk.”

Cole winces, and I push off the boards. I need to keep moving, and I don’t really want to look my brother in the face right now.

“Honestly, man, I don’t know. With Mom getting sick, I just couldn’t get my head in the game. I’d be in meetings, and I’d be thinking about the latest results from the doctor or whether she was getting enough help with both of us traveling. I may have started strong, but after a few months, everything sort of…fizzled.”

My brother’s face twists in sympathy at my words. Mom’s doing okay now, but the COPD diagnosis hit both of us hard.

“I know,” I add, before he can give me some platitude about how we’re doing our best. “I know you’ve got it under control, but I just feel so fucking helpless.” I smack the puck into the net. With no goalie there to challenge me, it’s hollow satisfaction. “Miles and Jonah are so fucking driven. Sometimes it feels like I can’t keep up. They don’t need me. Maybe I should leave Kings Lane.” My business partners are titans, and they’ve never really needed me at Kings Lane, the company they started fresh out of business school.

“No way. You really think that?” Cole passes me the puck, and I pass it smoothly back. I might not be a hockey prodigy, but I’m athletic enough.

“I don’t know. They started the business without me. They brought me on later, but my responsibilities have never been as important as theirs.”

“Courting investors seems pretty important to me,” Cole says.

I shake my head. My brother doesn’t know shit about the business world.

“Okay, so show them you can do what they do.” He skates to a stop and pulls off his helmet.

“Coach would fucking kill you for doing that.”

He ignores me, of course. “Listen. You want to be respected? You need to prove you’re worthy of respect. You want to show them you’ve cleaned up your act? Then you walk into that office next week and you go about your business like you’ve always been the best.”

“I’m trying,” I say shortly.

“Are you?” He raises his brows. I want to hit him like we’re teenagers again, scrapping in the dirt, but I have to admit he’s also probably right. Fuck.

“Our PR firm thinks a girlfriend would help make me look good. Or a wife. Actually, she said secret wife. Christine has a vibrant imagination.”

“It’s not a bad idea,” he says slowly.

“You don’t think that’s crazy? Because it sounds completely far-fetched to me.”

He leans against the boards. “It’s not. Date someone respectable, boring even.”

“You applying for the job?” I taunt.

He rolls his eyes. “If you don’t want my help, don’t ask.”

“I didn’t ask,” I mutter.

“Think about it.” My brother’s green eyes are bright. He’s a fucking fanatic when it comes to telling me how to live my life, but for once, I want to hear him out. “You told me these investors you’ve been courting are older, family oriented. I think the word you used was boring. What better way to show them you’ve changed than by being with a woman? Bring her to some events, some business trips. Dote on her. Have her schmooze with their partners.”

I sigh and lean against the boards next to him. “Honestly, it’s a good idea. Be respectable. Show these investors I’ve changed.”

“Better, show them you fit in.”

I scoff. “No, these people are old money. That’s why they don’t like me.”

Cole raises his brows.

“What, you think I should find an heiress or something? They don’t exactly grow on trees.”

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