Free Chandler: A Standalone Contemporary Romance by Laurelin Paige

is…well, I don’t know what it is. It’s just uncool. I’m just as much of an owner of this company as you are.”
    He raises a brow because he actually holds more stock in the business than I do.
    I correct myself. “Not just as much in terms of percentages owned, but just as much as…you know what I mean. Stop being a dickwad and give me some answers, will you?”
    I prop my legs up on his desk and cross my ankles just so I can be rewarded with another typical Hudson scowl—and I am. God, this could be a drinking game. What fun.
    “You’re in charge of our Midwest holdings, and this is a subsidiary holding.” Standing, he reaches over and knocks my feet to the ground. “But I suppose there’s no reason to keep it a secret now.”
    “But there once was?”
    “There was.” He loosens his tie as he crosses the room to his liquor cabinet. “I purchased the shares through another company that we own so that it wouldn’t be easily connected back to me. I wanted Warren Werner to believe he still had the majority shares.”
    I swivel in my chair to look at him. “Why would you want that?”
    “So I could blackmail his daughter.”
    Well, damn. Definitely didn’t predict that. “I think I’m going to need a drink.”
    “Already ahead of you.” He holds a tumbler of scotch out in my direction. I move to retrieve it and take a solid swallow before plopping down on his couch.
    Hudson pours another glass for himself and sips it in a much more gentlemanly fashion. “I’m sure you remember that Celia Werner and I used to be close.”
    “Right.” There’s eleven years between Hudson and me, so I’m a bit in the dark to what happened with him in his college days, but I know the highlights. “You were practically engaged. She was pregnant with your baby, wasn’t she?” I ask the question before I realize that bringing up her miscarriage might not be the nicest thing.
    But I’m immediately glad I did when Hudson says, “I claimed it was mine. It wasn’t.”
    This is news. “Whose was it then?”
    He shakes his head. “Now that is not my secret to divulge. Nor has it any bearing on this story except to illustrate that Celia and I have had a very layered relationship. A lot of water that’s passed under the bridge. A lot of betrayals. There were reasons I did what I did and reasons she did what she did, but ultimately, I was to blame for a great deal of…of the issues that existed between us. Nevertheless, she took it too far when I started seeing Alayna. She harassed us. Threatened us. Bullied Alayna.”
    Though he hasn’t divulged specifics, his speech is uncharacteristically revealing. I’d suspected Hudson was at the center of the rift between our families, but I’d never expected him to outright claim responsibility.
    I’m intrigued.
    But I know my brother well enough to know he’ll only tell me what he wants to, no matter how much I poke. So I tread carefully, asking the question I think he’s most likely to answer. “She bullied your wife? Like, what did she do, exactly?”
    He moves to sit in the armchair across from me. “The details are irrelevant now. All that matters is that Celia got out of control, and I became convinced that the only way I could ensure she wouldn’t continue to wreak havoc in our lives was to have something over her head. So I purchased majority shares in Werner Media, but allowed Warren to remain the figurehead—”
    “And told Celia you’d take away his control if she acted up again,” I finish for him. “That’s actually pretty slick.”
    “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
    He should, because I’m impressed. But as I keep thinking about it, I see the current dilemma. “Except now Warren’s retiring and you don’t have anything to hold over Celia’s head, do you?”
    “No. I don’t.” He raises his glass toward his lips and takes a sip. “But that is most definitely a personal concern and not a business concern.”
    I beg to differ. “What