Page 1 of Kyle
Chapter 1
The apartment was what could be referred to as 'shabby chic.' She should know. It was one of theirs, or rather one of hers. She had picked out the designs personally. The antique stuffed homely yellow and red sofa settled comfortably in one corner of the room with the rosy, pink and white stucco walls.
Board floors, of the highest quality, shone beneath the chandeliers, also an antique and more like sconces that looked like candles glowing from tapered gold sticks. There was a functional fireplace, large, taking up an entire section of the wall. It was what could be called a townhouse and was a standalone one.
The man lounging next to the hearth had one hand draped casually over the translucent blue green tiles and looked anything but relaxed. Matthew Ryder looked haunted and sad and had a scruff that looked as if it had been there for several days. Despite that, it did not take away from the finely honed beauty of his face. It only made him more appealing.
His sister doubted very much if that was something he wanted to hear.
Shoving her hands into the pockets of her chic power red tailored jacket, she pinned a smile on her lips as she put aside her leather Romano's briefcase and walked over to embracehim. He was two years older, and they were close, the reason she had ended her appointment when she received the call. Without hesitation. Matthew called and she dropped everything and came running. She loved him, ached for him and would do anything for him.
He returned the embrace one-handed. He smelled of his favorite cologne, 'Simply Man,' a Romano's original and suited him perfectly.
"Thanks for coming." His smile was stilted and strained.
Easing back, she examined his handsome face and lifted a hand to smooth the crease of his brow.
"Was there any doubt I would?" She held on for a minute before letting go. They were not very demonstrative when it came to physical touch, but that was the way it was between them.
"I hope I didn't pull you from anything important."
Taking a seat, she kicked off her Italian leather pumps and watched him. "Oh, just a major deal that I have been angling after for months." Her smile came and had dimples peeping.
He looked horrified as he stared at her. "Just kidding. Got you there."
He cast her a dirty look. "You're such a bitch."
"Now, is that any way to speak to your favorite sister?"
"My only sister." He grumbled.
Walking over, he sat across from her, studying the round face with the flawless caramel complexion. The complicated twist and coils of her locks were tamed and wrapped into a thick coil on top of her head. "And a pain in the ass. She called me."
He leaned back and shoved his long legs out. His usual attire of denims and plaid shirt were wrinkled as if they had been slept in. Detective Michael Ryder was a decorated cop and all about the job. He had often told his sister that he had nothing else, which made him excellent at his job.
"I know." She felt her heart aching. She had received the call as well. A family meeting.
Her mouth twisted bitterly at the term. They were barely a family. Their parents had been divorced twice, and that wasbefore creating a complete havoc in their children's lives. It was no wonder they were such screw ups. Michael was gay and settled in the closet with no plans of coming out, and she, well, she had had three relationships gone belly up.
Her brother's golden-brown eyes met hers in empathy. "I'm not going."
"You have to."
His thick brows lifted. "Or what? I end up risking my inheritance?" He threw one hand to encompass the living room. "Or this place? I can live with that. What he wants from me is not possible. I'm bloody gay. I like men, that's the bottom line."
"Nothing they did, not the endless rounds of therapy or holy water the priest poured on my forehead with the idea of exorcising 'demons,' did any damn good. I will never marry. I cannot be with a woman. My dick never cooperated when I tried to be with a female, and it never will."
His mouth twisted harshly, marring the beauty of his face. "Do you think I want to be this way? No. I've tried to change and nothing works. So." He shrugged philosophically and made Ingrid's eyes burn with furious tears. "I'm not going."
"You don't know what the meeting is all about." She pointed out in what she thought was a reasonable voice. "Grandfather is, can be a hard ass, but he's mostly fair."
A snort was his response. What she had said wasn't exactly true. William Ivan Ryder was a hard ass, and as the patriarch of the family and one who held the purse strings, he spoke the loudest. Her brother had 'two strikes' against him. He was not in the family business, and he was not 'normal.'
Michael had committed the cardinal sin. He had deviated in more ways than one. At the age of thirty, he was supposed to be married with a couple of kids on the way and working at the company, making his contribution. Instead, he had gone his own way.
"You should have been the son." He pointed out bitterly, roaming his eyes over her expensive suit. She was a size twenty but wore it so well, it suited her perfectly. Their mother had picked on her constantly about 'her excess weight' and the fact that she was tall, five foot seven and a half.
In his mind, Matthew thought of her as the bravest and strongest female he had ever met. She was a power source, and with her contribution, she was making a difference at McCreary/Ryder Enterprise.
