Chapter 3
1910 Words
3
I walk through the doors to Venture Bank and wait for the receptionist to stop typing and actually look at me. Eventually, she takes the pen out of her mouth, her fingers stop moving and she fixates on me. Her gaze roams me up and down.
Yeah, I know I’m hot, but I’m over my lesbian phase so she can look but she can’t touch.
“How can I help you?” She uses her pen to scratch her scalp under her pile of auburn hair.
“I’m here to see Jacob Hart.”
She eyes my t-shirt with disdain and I roll my eyes. She’s probably some stuck-up, snobby woman who’s never been f****d properly in her life.
“And you are?” She picks up her phone, her fingers poised to dial Jacob.
“Lennon Hart,” I say and her back straightens, a smile replacing the scowl. “His sister.”
“Oh, let me ring him.”
“Thank you.”
I take a seat in the small waiting area with four chairs and an array of magazines. I’ve never been to my brother’s office before, but it’s a nice place. He’s vice-president and about as opposite of me as you can get. Everyone’s always thought twins must be alike, but Jacob and I couldn’t be on farther ends of the spectrum.
Just as I expect, he comes out himself to greet me.
“Thank you, Mrs. Mendez,” he says with a smile and then sets his eyes on me. “Lennon.” He nods his head, turns on his heels and walks back to his office.
“Thank you, Mrs. Mendez,” I say sweetly and she gives me the polite smile, placing the pen back in her mouth and typing away.
Jacob waves and speaks pleasantries as we weave our way through the desks until he reaches his office. He opens his door and waits for me to go in first.
“No hug?” I ask, plopping down on a chair in front of his desk.
He shuts the door and rounds his desk to sit in his enormous chair. Overcompensating much?
“Is the big chair to make up for other inadequacies?” I ask and his eyes bore into mine with no reflection of the humor I was going for.
Debbie Downer.
“I’ve told you never to come to my office.” He clasps both his hands together in front of him.
“Oh, come on, bro, you know you love me.” I cross my legs and shrug my shoulders as if telling him, This is me and you need to accept it.
“I do love you, Len.” He looks out his glass window. “But this is my place of business and I worked my ass off to get where I am. The people here don’t really understand people like you.”
“People like me?” I’m starting to be offended between my brother and that jackass Slade.
“Look at you.” His hand floats down my body. “Your skin is a damn art show. Your jeans are ripped. Your toes have skulls painted on them. And the shirt. What the hell is that? A rooster with a unicorn horn.” He shakes his head with the same look he used to have when our mom forced him eat oatmeal.
“First of all, my tattoos are an expression of my personality. Ripped jeans are in, Mr. Brooks Brothers. As for my shirt, it’s a unicorn c**k. You wouldn’t understand, you’re a guy.” I uncross my legs and bring them up to the seat so I’m cross-legged.
“Unicorn c**k? Is that the name of one of your new s*x toys?”
Actually, that’s not a bad idea.
Jacob’s phone rings and he picks it up. “Please hold all calls, Mrs. Mendez.” He listens for a second. “Tell Jasper I’ll call him in five minutes. Thank you.” He hangs up.
“Jasper Banks?” I ask with an innocent bat of my eyes.
“No,” he deadpans and I can’t help but be hurt that my brother is trying to lie to me. Isn’t that some sort of twin no-no?
“Mom taught us not to lie, Jacob,” I remind him and he rolls his eyes. Jasper isn’t a common name like Mike, so I know it’s got to be the guy who mentored my brother out of college.
“Len, you are not getting Jasper Banks’ phone number,” he says with annoyance. Jacob let it slip once that Jasper had moved on from conventional loans and he’s a partner at a venture capital firm now. I may have bothered him for an introduction a few times. The difference this time is that I’m sober and not rambling on about how my family doesn’t understand my vision.
“Then why don’t you invest in my business?” I ask him, for the millionth time. There was one week I messaged him ten times a day. Needless to say, he blocked my number after five days. Then I told my mom and the next day she made him unblock me in case I had an emergency and couldn’t reach him. I know how to work my family.
“I’ve told you before, I can’t have my name associated with something like that. It’s a bunch of dildos and vibrators. Use your head.” He taps his temple to drive the point home.
“Now you’re getting mean.” I act upset, although I’m used to Jacob—this is him. He’s strait-laced and above board while I’m crazy town soaked in a vat of gasoline.
His shoulders sag, the need to never see me upset setting in. It’s been that way since we were eight and he pushed me off a swing and I broke my arm. He’ll forever feel guilt for that. Not that I don’t use that guilt to my advantage every now and then, like right now.
“Listen, I know you want to start this company, but I don’t understand. The tattoo shop does great. And if you remember, I gave you the first loan for that place.”
My feet drop to the floor and he stands, making his way around his desk and sitting down next to me. “Len, I believe in you, but you have to understand I can’t exactly approve your loan here when I was just promoted to VP. How would that look? Give me some time and I’ll see if I can figure something out.”
I look up to technically my younger brother by six minutes, who constantly acts like my older brother. “Why won’t you just give me Jasper’s number? He might be interested.”
He shakes his head and releases a sigh.
A knock on the door interrupts us.
“Come in,” my brother says and in walks a woman close to my age. Her wrap dress is flowery and flows nicely over her petite frame. I notice that she has a matching pair of flats on. I also notice that she’s looking at my brother in a way that isn’t entirely professional. She’s cute and I decide right there that I like her.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” she says, her gaze tipping down when she spots me. “I didn’t know you were with someone.” Her eyes meet mine and she’s appraising me, but I see no judgment there. I snap my head in the direction of Jacob, whose gaze hasn’t left her since she opened the door.
“It’s okay, Megan, this is Lennon, my sister.”
The despair in her eyes fades and she walks over to me with a bounce in her step, her hand in front of my face within seconds.
“I’m Megan Channing,” she says.
I shake her hand. “Lennon.”
“It’s so great to meet you. Jacob doesn’t say much about his family, but you guys have the same nose.” She looks from me to Jacob and back.
I take a quick glance at Jacob’s desk and spot his cell phone sitting there and an idea begins to form. I lean back in my chair. “What do you do here, Megan?” I ask, knowing just how to get under Jacob’s skin.
“I’m a teller.”
“A teller? So Jacob is your boss?” I ask and her lips dip. For a second, I feel bad for putting her in the middle of my sibling fuckery.
“Yeah.” She nods, appearing a little unsure.
I look at Jacob and raise my eyebrows. “Interesting,” I say and he huffs.
“Give me a second, okay?” he says to me and waves Megan over to the door.
His phone chirps on the desk and I lean forward, seeing Jasper Banks’ name light up on the screen.
Seriously, this is going to be easier than getting Professor Hendred to change my grade freshman year of college. Don’t judge.
“Don’t,” Jacob warns when I reach for the phone.
Damn it. My brother knows me well.
“Megan, just give me a few minutes,” he whispers.
I stand, pretending like I’m getting ready to go. I look from the two secret lovers to the phone. Jacob has his back to me now, his hands on her arms. Seems there’s trouble in paradise.
I press the home button on the phone and the phone lights up, displaying a few texts he’s gotten this morning. Boy, Megan sure has been busy on her phone this morning. Jasper is the text at the top and I slide the phone closer to me to catch the words Richmond’s at eight tonight. Well, that was easy.
Jacob swipes the phone and tucks it into his pocket. “You’re not getting his phone number,” he says, his blue eyes that match my own piercing into mine.
I roll my eyes. “Just making sure you didn’t miss any important phone calls.” I turn my head to find Megan’s no longer here. “Screwing the help, Jacob?” I shake my head. “I had higher expectations of you.”
“Don’t you have a dildo to sell?” he says and I pick up my purse.
“I think I’ll go hit Megan up. See if she’s in the market.” My footsteps move away from his desk and he follows me, probably making sure I actually leave.
“Don’t you worry about her, she’s more than satisfied.” He smiles and I’m surprised he didn’t grab his junk in his hands.
“From what I remember…” I don’t actually say anything but scrunch up my nose and shake my head while I raise just my pinkie finger.
“We were five the last time you saw my d**k,” he says, reaching past me to open the door. “Bye, sis.”
“Let’s get together tonight. I can get to know Megan better?” I ask.
His unamused eyes linger on mine again. Seriously, Megan needs to do her job better because it’s obvious that my brother needs to get his rocks off. He’s way too uptight.
“I’m taking Megan out for her birthday. Just the two of us.”
“Where?” I ask, acting the part of the caring sister. I push aside the guilt I feel at knowing I just want to be able to pinpoint his whereabouts this evening.
“It’s private. Listen, I’m bringing her to Dad’s retirement party. Run interference, will you?” He changes the direction of conversation, but I know my brother wouldn’t take a girl he’s interested in to a bar, which means I can accidentally meet Jasper tonight without worrying about running into him.
“Sure thing, little brother.” I squeeze his cheek and he groans. “See you.”
He shuts the door and I start walking. My phone dings before I’m even through the doors of the bank.
Jacob: Love you. I’ll look into another option.
I smile.
Me: Love you. No problem, I think I might have a lead.
A cynical laugh escapes from my throat and my phone dings again.
Jacob: In the last minute?
Me: See you next week.
Jacob: Lennon.
I laugh again because he knows me too well. Climbing into my unicorn van, I turn up Eminem and pull away from the curb.
Tonight, I’ll finally meet one Mr. Jasper Banks and he’s going to be the one to solve all my problems.
- Writer
