Page 67 of Follow Me Down

“How do you mean?”

“I just mean Titus has always been an all or nothing kind of person. If he wants something, it’s full steam ahead. Though I must admit, I’ve never seen him quite so smitten with a girl before. He seems to really care about you.”

“I really care about him.”

“Yeah, I can see that.”

“It’s strange though, feeling like I’m falling for someone that I barely know anything about.”

“What do you want to know?” Ellen offers, finishing off the remainder of her Mimosa before asking for two more. I take that as my cue to finish off the rest of mine as well.

“Everything.” I smile. “What he was like as a child. Where he comes from. His family. I want to know everything.”

“Well everything is a lot to cover in one afternoon. Let’s start with something specific.”

“Tell me about your family.”

“Now there’s a complicated topic.” She turns her attention to the middle-aged woman who reappears with two fresh Mimosas. She takes both, keeping one for herself before extending the other to me. “Anything you want to know specifically.”

“I don’t know. I already know some of the basics. Father owns Driscoll Atlantic. Grew up in Atlanta. You are his only sibling. And I know he left shortly after your grandfather died, leaving him the cabin.”

“So you know the bullet points.” She grins, sipping her drink.

“Pretty much.”

“Titus has always been a little... complicated. Where I grew up feeling like I could rule the world, he resented our upbringing. Then again, I was daddy’s princess and I could do no wrong. Titus on the other hand, he didn’t have it quite so easy. From a very early age my father started priming him to take over the company. Every move he made, every grade, every decision was under constant scrutiny.”

“I know that feeling,” I mutter under my breath.

“I would assume the daughter of a well-known Governor would.” She catches my shocked expression and quickly continues, “Don’t be mad at Titus for telling me. It’s just... Well, I worried maybe you were with him in hopes of cashing in on some of the family money. He reassured me that was not the case. And I can see now that he was right. And don’t worry, I won’t say a word to anyone.”

“It’s not like it’s some big secret. My father knows where I am now.” I shrug.

“Yeah, I heard about him showing up. That couldn’t have been easy.” She pauses. “I can see why you and Titus are so drawn to each other. You’re a lot alike.”

“I guess we are,” I admit. “Though I didn’t come from billions.”

“No, but you come from a wealthy family in your own right. And we both know that power is more valuable than money when it comes to business and politics.”

“That it most certainly is,” I agree. “Tell me about your mom. Titus hasn’t really mentioned anything about her.”

“Probably because she’s a stranger. At least in all the ways that count. Our mother is... How should I put this? A slutty, self-serving bitch.”

I nearly choke on my drink.

“Too harsh?” She smiles, sipping her own drink. “Sad, but true. She was never around when Titus and I were growing up. She was always off at some resort or spa. Taking a two-month long girls’ trip to Bali or sailing the Caribbean in our father’s yacht. She was worthless. The only thing she had to do was be a mom and she couldn’t even pull that off. I never understood why my father put up with her. That is, until a few years ago when I learned the reason we had a new nanny every six months was because he couldn’t keep it in his pants. Guess they really are a match made in heaven.”

“That’s awful. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Truth be told, my parents’ relationship never bothered me. And honestly I liked the house better when my mom wasn’t around. So really, it all worked out. But Titus never felt that way. Maybe because he was older and he sheltered me from a lot of the bad stuff. Or maybe it was because my father was so hard on him. He hated it all. The money. The business. Our parents. He wanted no part of any of it.”

“And you did?”

“I did. I couldn’t graduate business school fast enough. All I ever wanted was to join my father at Driscoll Atlantic. And now that I have, I love it. I was made for this life but Titus wasn’t. I think deep down I always knew that one day he would walk away.”

“Do your parents ever talk about him?”

“No.” She shakes her head. “Our mother is too wrapped up in herself to care and our father, well, I think he’s still in denial. Deep down I know it bothers him.”

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