Finally, before the man waiting behind him could steal his place for good, he pulled in a deep breath and looked her square in those beady little eyes.
“I’m one of her sons,” he said quietly. “I didn’t know I had a brother.”
For the first time since he’d laid eyes on her, Belinda’s ferocious mask softened. Just a hair. But it was a hair more than he’d thought possible. It was also enough to do the trick.
With a long-suffering sigh, she clicked a few more buttons and rammed a new stack of paper into the printer. “So...you want to learn all about your dead mom, huh?”
“No, I don’t,” he replied quickly, his eyes glittering with anticipation as they locked on the screen. “And don’t bother printing out the file—I just want a name. My brother’s name.”
She leaned back with a hint of surprise, then shrugged as if it couldn’t matter less either way and scrolled down on the page. A moment later, she stopped. Looked up at him. Then glanced back at the computer with a smug sort of smile. The kind that came from knowing something that someone else didn’t. Being the first to find out the scoop.
“Not just your brother...your twin brother.”
Logan froze where he stood, staring at her in disbelief. His first instinct was to shove the insufferable woman out of the way and check it for himself. Surely such a foul creature couldn’t be trusted to relay such sensitive information. His next instinct was to reject the notion outright.
A twin?! He had a fucking twin?! Were they identical?!
“I don’t...uh...” He floundered and stammered, trying very hard to string together a complete sentence. “...are you sure?”
That smug grin got even wider, stretching across her whole face.
“Don’t ask me—ask Dylan Stone.”
Logan stared back at her in a daze, hardly taking in a word she was saying.
“Who’s that?”
Her teeth flashed as she leaned back in the chair, twisting from side to side. “That’s your twin brother. Dylan Stone. Current resident of Cleveland, Ohio. Or at least he was. Once the adoption is finalized, there’s really knowing where these kids end up—”
“Thank you.” He was off the next second, putting the entire experience behind him as he paced swiftly to the door. “That should be more than enough.”
She stared after him for a moment—mouth hanging open in surprise. Like a kid whose toy was taken away too soon. A second later, her face darkened back to its usual angry hue.
“NEXT!”
Chapter 3
It was a short flight from Detroit to Miami. An even shorter flight when you owned your own private plane. Logan stared out the window as they ascended through the grey clouds, then touched back down again in clear Florida skies. Skies that were bursting with the burnt reds and vibrant oranges of a glorious ocean sunset.
He hardly even noticed. Truth be told, he never noticed. He owned the tallest skyscraper, on the ritziest street, with the best ocean view in all of Miami. Even so, he rarely had time to stop and enjoy the sunset. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d even tried.
“Back to the office, sir?”
He and Jerry were in a new limo, now. One that looked identical to the first, except for the Florida license plates. The windows came down, and he glanced through the partition. It was coming up on nine in the evening, but even so, it was a customary question. There was rarely a day when Logan would leave the office before midnight, and rarely a morning when he wouldn’t get there before seven. He opened his mouth to give the customary reply, then suddenly stopped himself—staring down at the name scribbled on his hand.
“No. Home please, Jerry. Quick as you can.”
His company could wait. He had a twin brother to track down.
Jerry gave him a theatrical salute, and a second later, the limo was rolling away from the airstrip, out onto the main thoroughfare. The lights of the city flashed before their eyes, as one by one, the nightclubs and deluxe bars of Miami came to life. Girls sauntered past the window in their bikinis—walking in what looked like slow motion by the light of the setting sun. Crowds of friends laughed and drank and screamed as they wandered from one street to the next. Moving at a leisurely slow pace. Taking in everything the night possibly had to offer.
Not that Logan was paying attention. He had long ago given up such things to build his colossus in the sky. A megalith company that soon took on a life of its own and refused to release him from its inescapable grasp. He’d traded in the swim trunks and sandals for three-piece Italian suits. Traded in the social life for an international reputation. Exchanged friends for business associates, and filled up any gap left in between with ungodly amounts of money.
Even now, with the sounds of the city screaming in his ear, he barely glanced out of the car. His eyes were focused only on the name he’d excitedly wrote down.
Dylan Stone.
He leaned back with a glazed expression, closing his eyes as he rested his head against the leather chair. Once the shock of the news had subsided, he found himself facing a sudden slew of questions. Ones that circled in a continuous loop through his brain.