Page 48 of How to Undo the Proud Billionaire

“You’re shouting. And you are pacing.”

Radd threw his hands up in frustration at Digby’s observation. There was no one around, no guests to be disturbed, so what was his problem?

Digby chuckled at his question, and Radd’s hands curled into tight fists.No hitting your younger brother, even if he deserves it.“What the hell is so damn funny?”

“You! Look at you, all pissed off and pacing. I haven’t seen you this worked up in…well, forever. You are the most impassive, nonreactive person I know, yet here you are, all tied up in a knot over a woman.”

Radd wanted to argue but couldn’t because, from the first moment he’d met her, Brin had the ability to shove her hand into his soul and pull all his dormant emotions to the surface. Radd scrubbed his hands over his face, his anger fading. He sent Digby a rueful look. “She drives me nuts.”

“And that’s a very good thing,” Digby replied.

“Not from my perspective,” Radd grumbled.

Digby smiled, picked up his drink and swirled it around before speaking again. “Since Jack’s death, you have tended to be a little…”

“A little what?” Radd prompted him when Digby hesitated.

“Robotic.” Digby shrugged. “Look, when Jack died, we had to grow up, and we did, fast. We had to deal with the parents, the gossip around them and the loss of our legacy. In our drive to regain what was lost, we also, to an extent, lost ourselves.”

“Explain,” Radd commanded, his throat dry. This conversation wouldn’t be easy, but it was long overdue. The path they were on, which had seemed so clear a week or so ago, was now shrouded in fog.

“We both changed after Jack died, in fundamental ways. We worshipped Jack, he was our hero, our anchor point. And the parent’s betrayal knocked us sideways, and them returning to their hedonistic lifestyle so soon after his death was another blow.”

“Maybe that was the way they coped with his death,” Radd suggested, shocked by this new insight.

“Maybe. Or maybe you are giving them too much credit,” Digby said, his eyes stormy. “Anyway, as I was saying, Jack’s death changed everything. You became an adult overnight and I became a rebel. God, it was a miracle I managed to finish school without being kicked out.”

Only because he’d gone to the headmaster and begged him to let Digby stay in school. But Radd didn’t tell Dig that, he didn’t need to know.

“I acted out, looking for a way to ease the pain, but you internalized everything and cultivated this nothing-can-hurt-me persona.” Digby jammed his hands into the pockets of his suit pants, his eyes sober. “I, mostly, grew out of my rebellious stage, but you kept your hard-as-nails facade. I’m not going to lie, it worries me. That’s why I am so damn happy that you’ve found someone to make you feel.”

Brin did. Make him feel, that is. He still didn’t like it.

But he couldn’t deny it. Around Brin, he felt both relaxed and energized, calm and excited. He felt normal…

“Brin seems to think that I’m using the PR campaign to make me feel better about myself,” Radd admitted. Digby was the only person he could discuss this with, he’d walked this path with him. And until he figured out whether she was right or wrong, or a mixture of both, he was paralyzed.

He wanted to move on. How and where to, he had no idea, but he wasn’t the type to stand still and do nothing.

Digby stared at a point past Radd’s shoulder, and Radd knew he was looking at the superb view of Table Mountain. Digby’s opinion on Brin’s accusation was important, and he was very willing to wait.

Dig’s eyes eventually met his. “She’s right, Radd, you and I both know it. I don’t blame us for trying to restore the company to what it was, it gave two very messed-up kids a goal, a direction we so badly needed. But I’m not, as I’ve mentioned, a fan of the PR campaign, I feel we’d be beating a dead horse. People will think what they think and we know the truth. And maybe we should move forward without thinking about how the world perceives us.”

Digby didn’t, and never had, cared what people thought about him. He marched to the beat of his own drum and people could either like it or lump it.

Radd felt like the world was shifting below his feet. Everything that seemed so stable a week ago was now shaky, everything he firmly believed in felt less substantial.

All because a silver-eyed siren flipped his life upside down and inside out.

“Noted.” Radd made himself ask the question. “Should we still go ahead with acquiring the mine?”

“Absolutely.” Digby nodded. “You survived the pre-wedding week at Kagiso and by now the bride and groom should be hitched and stitched, so why not? Get Vincent to sign the sale agreement and let’s get it done. Once the mine is in our hands, we can decide on the PR campaign and where we want to take the company without any pressure from the past. Though I think you should be working out how to get Brin back in your life. It’s obvious that you are head-over-ass in love with her.”

No, he wasn’t! Radd sent Digby a hot look and noticed Dig’s eyebrows rising, as if daring him to disagree. He wanted to… He should.

He liked Brin, and adored her body. Sex with her was magical and he loved spending time with her, but that didn’t mean he loved her…

Digby flashed him an evil grin. “If you aren’t in love with her, then I might track her down and ask her out.”

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