All of Your Business by F. E. Greene

Author:F. E. Greene
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Valentine romance, sweet romance England, millionaire romance, London romance, heartwarming romance
Publisher: F. E. Greene
Published: 2022-02-27T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

As he waited for Kip to answer his call, Ben massaged his tired eyes. It was two in the morning – late even for him – but the stress of what he was about to do demolished any chance of rest. He’d already reset the alarm on his mobile. Swimming laps could wait until Friday.

When his younger brother’s boisterous hello replaced Skype’s equally chipper ringtone, Ben refocused on his tablet’s screen.

There Kip was grinning, freshly shaved and well-rested. He was seated on the hotel bed. His sandy blonde hair was cut shorter than normal, and it aged him by several years. Kip’s dress shirt hinted at dinner plans. He looked as relaxed as Ben didn’t feel.

Ben envied his brother’s easygoing demeanor. Kip loved hotels, posh or not, and he jumped at the chance to travel anywhere on the company’s behalf. Now he and his new bride were living like royalty at the Hotel Monteleone.

What was it like to do something other than work? It had been too long since Ben tried to find out.

Even while he was in New Orleans for the wedding, he spent his free time tending to business. He’d turned his suite’s outer lounge into a temporary office. He ordered room service at least twice a day and explored the French Quarter only when Kip dragged him from the hotel.

“Everything all right?” Kip asked.

“Right as rain,” Ben fibbed. “Are you and Lou doing well?”

“Pure dead brilliant!” Kip gnawed on something resembling a straw. The wedding band on his left hand seemed out of place. “Lou’s downstairs having a cocktail. I’ll join her when we’ve finished talking.”

“I’m sorry to bother, but I have something to tell you.”

Kip responded as if he hadn’t heard. “How was Farts & Knickers? Did you miss me?”

Ben rolled his eyes at his brother’s infantile nickname for the company’s most celebrated event. “I was forced to give the speech.”

“Your Dickens line didn’t work on Mother?”

“Does it ever?” Ben cleared his throat. “Look, Kip. That’s not why I’ve rung you.”

“Are you ringing about Didi Velasquez?”

Ben squinted suspiciously at the screen. “How do you know about her?”

Kip lifted his mobile into view. After a few taps, he turned the phone toward the laptop’s camera.

It showed Ben dancing with Didi. Her petite form was pressed against his, her ivory gown a vibrant contrast to his tuxedo. The nearness of their faces alluded to more than polite conversation. The photographer had captured the evening’s best moment. After Didi’s arrival. Before Catrella cut in.

Ben studied the angle of the photo. Its perspective topped the heads of most other guests. “Yannick sent you that,” he guessed aloud.

“I’ve never seen you dance at the gala,” Kip teased. “Yannick says she works for DEI with that horrid Thomm Montgomery. Is he there as well?”

“He’s the proverbial bad penny. See what you’ve been missing?”

Kip lowered the phone. “Why’s your date wearing white?”

Ben held up a finger. “She was not my date. And she’s wearing white because Mother didn’t tell her to wear red.

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