Without another word, the two of them piled into the limo. The windows rolled up, the air-conditioning blasted on, and a bottle of Dom Perignon was chilling in the corner. Logan poured himself a glass, rubbing his finger in a slow circle across the rim as the engine revved up and they pulled slowly away from the curb.
“Back to the airstrip, sir?”
Logan started nodding, then stopped himself all at once. Without his permission, his eyes flickered back to the cemetery. He could just see the top of the casket from where he sat. The gleam of the varnished wood as his only biological parent was lowered into the ground.
“You know what...not quite yet.” He finished the champagne in just three gulps, setting his eyes on the horizon. “We have one more stop to make.”
Chapter 2
Logan called his cousin, Nicholas Hunter, for advice.
“Yes, I think you should find your brother. And I’m so sorry about your mother.”
“We can’t control what life throws at us. I’m just glad she’s at peace. They said she lived a hard life.”
“Man, I’m so sorry. Give me a day, and I’ll meet you. You don’t have to do this alone. You know I’m there for you. Always.”
“It’s okay, Nick. I know it’s Abby’s birthday, and I know you’re flying her and that darling daughter of yours to Hawaii. Don’t worry about me.”
“I can call James.”
“No. Please. It’s okay.”
“Okay, but I’m only a phone call away, cous. And remember. Don’t let the press get a whiff. Or they’ll be all over you. It’s the curse of our famous family.”
“There only after you because you, James, and Charlie all settled down. And the others are married. I’m all that’s left.”
“We’re boring news now.”
“But I was never the crazy playboy, like you guys.”
“Doesn’t matter. You’re my cousin. You have the movie star good looks. You’re the youngest self-made billionaire, and just happen to be number one on America’s list of most eligible bachelors. You took my spot, you son of a bitch.”
They both laughed.
They talked a little while before they finally hung up.
THE WAYNE COUNTY ADOPTION agency was a depressing place. Filled with cheap carpeting, faded wall art, and enough listless people to effectively cast a Zoloft commercial. Logan paused in the doorway, his eyes flickering from the row of people in line at the broken water cooler, to the even longer line waiting in front of the reception counter.
“Shall I pull the fire alarm?” This time, Jerry had come along. When he wasn’t driving, he functioned as an unofficial bodyguard, and despite his employer’s insistence that he would be just fine, the man obviously had a deep-seeded mistrust of the working class. “It would clear away that line pretty damn fast.”
“Along with the people working behind the counter,” Logan reasoned, trying his best to blend in with the crowd. “Get the hell out of here, Jerry. You look like you wandered off the set of the Matrix. You’re blowing my cover.”
It was true. Despite living on the beaches of Florida, Jerry took his job of ‘billionaire enforcer’ very seriously. Black trench coat. Black clothes. Black shoes. Black shades. All designer. All the time. Regardless of the scorching Miami weather.
“One might argue your cover was blown when you walked in looking like you wandered off the pages of GQ,” Jerry countered calmly.
Logan rolled his eyes and took his place at the back of the line, resigned to wait. If he was being perfectly honest, a part of him was rather tickled with the notion. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been forced to wait for anything. Then there was the fact that no one in the dilapidated building seemed to recognize him. Which never, never happened.
“As the man who signs your paychecks, I’m commanding you to go back to the car.” He straightened up to his full height, a not insignificant six foot one. “I’ll be fine.”
His driver shot him a look, muttered something that sounded suspiciously like ‘not in a million fucking years,’ then proceeded to take a seat on one of the faded sofas in the corner. One with a clear view of the window, so he could watch out for people trying to break into the limo.
His employer might have been one of the most powerful men in the western hemisphere, but over the years, the two had developed a rather unique dynamic. One in which Logan could threaten, and rant, and rave all he wanted—but Jerry was still going to do anything he deemed necessary to keep the man safe. Termination notices be damned.
With nothing left to do, Logan proceeded to wait. And wait. And wait.
If only my friends could see me here, he thought with a dry smile. What would they think?