Chad wasn’t one of their kids, but being best friends with Mark made him a prime target. He could practically feel the arrow aimed straight towards his chest.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, boy, but a good woman to warm your bed at night isn’t the worst thing,” Joseph said.
“I have plenty of women to warm my bed. I don’t need to put a ring on any of them,” Chad answered back. Joseph shook his head and went back to talking to his brother. The boys all laughed, happy with their small victory. Chad could hold his own any day of the week.
While everyone was occupied, Chad stepped out on the balcony, needing a few moments alone. He’d been bluffing Joseph. He certainly wasn’t a monk, but he barely had time for himself, let alone finding myriads of women. He just wasn’t interested in tying himself down in a relationship. There were too many complications.
He looked out over the large back yard and sighed. It had been a long time since he’d been able to relax and smell the flowers. He wasn’t sure if retirement was a good or bad thing. At least with his own land, he could work night and day if he desired. He wouldn’t have to answer to another person, and more importantly, he wouldn’t be responsible for other people’s lives.
“Time for dinner,” Katherine called. Chad took a calming breath, then stepped through the door. He kissed Katherine on the cheek as he passed by. She was like a mother to him. He didn’t know how his life would’ve turned out if it hadn’t been for Joseph and Katherine. They were the kind of parents every kid dreamed of having. He’d bend over backwards for them – all they had to do was ask.
***
She was sick of it. While she loved each one of her brothers, she was tired of their overbearing, overprotective, he-man tactics. She had to get away for a while, take time for herself and prove she wasn’t some delicate flower needing twenty-four hour supervision.
Brianne Lynn Anderson, or as everyone called her, Bree, was the youngest of four children. Her siblings were all strong, stubborn, alpha males who treated her like she was still ten years old, even though she was twenty-eight and a college graduate.
She hadn’t managed to keep a boyfriend for longer than a few weeks because once they met her brothers they went scampering for the hills. She was so disgusted with the cowards for running that she wasn’t even upset when they left. Still, she’d like to actually find out what it was like to be treated like a woman. She was probably the oldest living virgin in the United States. Her brothers would like for her to die an old maid.
She jumped in her car and quickly hit the gas pedal. Her father had summoned her to Joseph’s mansion for a welcome home party for some friend of Mark’s, but she figured it was the perfect time to escape from her overprotective family. She jumped on the freeway and started driving south - the farther she pulled away, the bigger her smile became. Freedom flashed over and over in her mind. Even though it was overcast and cold she flipped open her sunroof and stuck her hand in the open air. She laughed with pure joy at what she was doing.
Maybe by the time she returned, her family would realize she wasn’t a little girl anymore and they could let her live her own life. She loved them – but she could only take so much pampering.
***
Chad sat on the couch holding a glass of deep amber whiskey, smiling as he enjoyed the warmth from both the liquor and the flames in front of him.
The Macallan sixty-year-old Single Malt Whiskey was like butter on his tongue. He laughed at the idea that anyone would spend sixty thousand dollars on a single bottle of alcohol, even one that tasted as good as what he was sipping. Chad was incredibly wealthy by anyone’s standards, but sixty thousand...
Over the past twenty years, Chad hadn’t had to spend anything of what he made. Every dime he received went right into investments. Luckily, those gambles had paid off well, leaving him with millions. He’d paid cash for his ranch and it hadn’t even made a dent in his account. He’d been so frugal his entire life, changing his ways wouldn’t be easy. As his commander had said many times, he needed to live a little, whatever the hell that meant.
The Anderson’s made him seem like a pauper, though. He figured when the US government needed to be bailed out in a crisis situation, Joseph Anderson was who they called. He may be exaggerating a bit, but still, the family was America’s Royalty.
Chad didn’t know why he’d been summoned back to Joseph’s place. He’d just been there the previous week for dinner and he needed to get his ranch settled. However, when Mark called and asked for a favor, he would always drop everything and be there for him – just like he knew the same was true of Mark. If Chad needed him, he’d be there – and with back-up.
As Chad looked around the room, the Anderson men began entering. Mark had left him sitting on the couch while he hunted down his father. He was being tight lipped and Chad’s suspicions rose when he saw Mark’s cousins’ step into the room. They eyed him warily and he didn’t back down. He stared them straight in the eye, wondering why he felt like he was in enemy territory all of a sudden.
He’d brought back a lot of battle wounds from his years of service, not just mentally, but physically, too. He unconsciously rubbed his rib where a bullet had struck. One more inch to the left and he’d have been dead. All that remained was a minor scar but it was something he looked at often to remind himself to be careful who he trusted. That bullet had come from someone who was supposed to be on the same side as him.
“Sorry to keep you waiting so long, Chad,” Joseph said as he entered the room followed by Mark. If Chad had been nodding off, Joseph’s booming voice would’ve certainly woken him. The man had a way of making people stand at attention better than Chad’s old commander.
“It hasn’t been a problem. I’ve been enjoying your whiskey,” Chad responded as he swallowed down the last of the amber liquid.
“You have excellent taste, my boy. George got me that bottle for my last birthday. It’s almost out so I’ll have to hunt down some more. It’s hard to find truly exceptional products these days,” Joseph answered, not even blinking at the five-thousand dollars’ worth of whiskey Chad had drank without tasting.
“What was the big emergency?” Chad asked. He didn’t want to be rude but he had a lot to take care of and didn’t want to stand around discussing liquor.