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I was sitting at my desk, reviewing reports, when my uncle entered my office.
“I just got off the phone with Theodore Vale.”
“And?” I looked up at him.
“It’s between our firm and Anderson Holdings.”
“Anderson Holdings is shit, and he knows it.”
“True. But Anderson Holdings also holds family values to the highest extent, which appeals to Vale.”
“I can talk to him, Uncle Kroy.”
“No. I already tried to talk to him and told him those photos of you were taken out of context, and he still doesn’t believe me. But, the one thing I could tell while talking to him was his hesitancy about Anderson Holdings. I do believe we can still do damage control. Maybe I’ll set up a dinner for us, and you bring Rebecca. We can play it off somehow. Introduce her as your long-time girlfriend and tell him you plan to propose to her.”
“I broke up with her, Uncle Kroy.”
“Goddamnit, Damien.” He slammed his hand on my desk. “She was a nice woman.”
“I was bored.” My brow arched.
He glared at me with such evil that I thought I would burst into flames.
“Bored? You were bored? Are you fucking kidding me, Damien?”
I’d had enough. “You listen to me.” I leaned across my desk and pointed at him. “Who I see is nobody’s business. My father wasn’t in a relationship when Vale first approached us.”
“You’re right. But your father was a very respected man in this city. He was the face of Blackwood Holdings, and you were the son he adored and was close with. That was all the family values Vale needed at that time. Now, all he sees is a spoiled brat who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, partying like it’s the last days of his life. Fuck my brother for leaving this company to you.” He stormed out of my office.
“Whoa. What the hell was that about?” Charlie walked in.
“Just him being his usual asshole self.”
“Well, I’ve got great news.”
“What is it?” I asked.
“We’re going to Vegas this weekend with John. He called me earlier and is heading to Vegas for a little R&R and asked if we would like to join him. I told him yes after I cleared it with Donna.”
“She’s actually letting you go to Vegas?” My brow arched.
“Yes.” His brows furrowed. “She doesn’t control my life, man.”
“Uh-huh,” I said.
“Shut the fuck up. Anyway, I told her John invited us to discuss a possible business deal.”
“So, you lied to your wife?”
“It’s just a little white lie. You need this trip, Damien. You haven’t really had a chance to get away from it all since your dad died. It’ll do you some good. We’ll leave on Thursday and come back on Sunday. It’ll be just us guys shooting the shit, drinking, eating all the great food Vegas has to offer, and we’ll do some serious gambling.”
I loved Vegas and everything it had to offer, especially the women. I could unleash all of my stress without anyone watching me.
“Fine. I’ll go.” I smiled.
“That’s my man.” He pointed at me with a grin.
ChapterFour