Page 56 of Ireland

“Thank you.”

They all stood. Raúl gathered up the notes and slid them into a file. Then, they moved in unison toward the door. Ireland watched them through the glass, admiring how the four men carried themselves. Deadly predators, all of them. Casual attire couldn’t disguise Angus McLeod’s lethality. And Chase Kwon’sboyishly youthful features and flashing smile weren’t enough to distract from the trained economy with which he moved.

They filed out of her brother’s office, each giving her a fond smile.

She stopped Angus before he walked away. “I was going to call you later,” she murmured. “There’s someone I’d like to know everything about. No detail is too small.”

“Of course. Who is it?”

“I’ll text you.” She glanced at where her brother waited, holding open the glass door for her. “Please keep this between us. And thank you!”

“Havnae done anything yet, lass.” He winked before continuing on, and she thought, not for the first time, that he was undeniably sexy for a man in his mid-sixties.

Taking a deep breath, Ireland approached her brother with a sunny smile. “Thanks for fitting me into your day—or evening, as the case may be.”

“I’m always available to you.” He let the door swing shut behind them and gestured toward the sitting area. “What do you need?”

Ireland studied her brother as he settled into the sofa across from her. His suit jacket hung on a coatrack behind his desk. His waistcoat hugged his lean torso like a second skin, while platinum cufflinks, matching tie clip, and the fob of his pocket watch caught the light at random intervals. Unlike Ronan, Gideon was thoroughly comfortable in his urbanity. She couldn’t ever remember seeing her brother with his sleeves rolled up or his tie loosened.

She was like Ronan in that way. Her style was a little edgy and unorthodox—except when she was shopping with her family in mind. And while Gideon’s confidence was dynamic and aggressive, Ronan’s was smoothly nonchalant. It was a polished facade that hid a man whose morals were as gray as his eyes.

“I feel like an idiot asking this,” she began, “but I don’t know the extent of my assets. I know I own a bit of Cross Industries shares—thank you very much for gifting me some on my birthdays—and I have a ten percent share of Vidal, but I don’t know how much that’s all worth.”

“I’m happy to tell you.” He moved to stand.

“Wait. I just want to know if I’ve got what I need to buy Mom’s fifteen percent stake in Vidal.”

Gideon resettled into the sofa. “You want to take a controlling interest in Vidal?”

She nodded, having decided before she arrived that she wouldn’t say anything about McCaffrey Holdings, which would also hold a twenty-five-percent stake in the company if the loan defaulted and they exercised their lien on her father’s shares.

“The shareholder agreement gives your father right of first refusal,” he noted. “So, he declined to buy them. That surprises me.”

Ireland hadn’t known that, but her father must have. But he hadn’t brought it up or used it to get in her way. “He’s ready to focus on the creative side exclusively,” she lied. “And Mom wants me to have her shares. She won’t sell to Christopher.”

Her brother winced. “Ouch.”

“Tell me about it,” she muttered, digging into her purse. Her phone screen was lit up with another incoming call from Ronan and the sight of his face twisted her into knots. She’d had to silence her notifications earlier because of his efforts to reach her. “I’m not looking forward to explaining what I’ve done, but I’ll handle it as soon as everything’s finalized. I’m hoping the sale can be done quickly because I won’t be able to keep it under wraps long.”

“Sales of private shares can be done at any time, barring any conflict with the shareholder agreement.”

“Great.” Reaching across the table, she held a folded piece of paper out to him. “This is the amount I’d need to buy Mom out. Do I have it?”

Accepting the paper, he sat back and opened it. “I’d have to run the numbers to confirm?—”

“I’m not asking you to verify the amount. Just tell me if I can afford it.”

His brows shot up. “Well.”

“Don’t take it like that. I’m just saying I didn’t graduate summa cum laude because of my good looks. I know how to run a debit-to-equity ratio calculation.” Of course, she’d fudged the numbers because Vidal was so upside down, and she wanted to pay her mother fairly, more so because McCaffrey Holdings’ most recent offer had been so generous.

“I am going to need your help,” she went on. “You’re a mastermind and I’d be stupid not to tap your experience even if I do really hate adding to your workload. So let me handle the stuff I can. There will be plenty for you to do when the time comes.”

His mouth quirked in a half smile. “Okay. Yes, you can afford it. You have many times that amount in your cash reserves. You won’t have to sell off anything. You can assume control as soon as the wire transfer is completed and you have a signed shareholder agreement.”

Her sigh of relief deflated most of the tension in her body. “So, first thing in the morning. Great. Could I conceivably have enough to pay off Vidal’s debt?”

His amusement sharpened into calculation. “Not knowing how much we’re talking about, I can’t say. But why would you want to do that?”

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