hesitated then nodded curtly. “Sure thing, Rebekkah.” Leveling one last disgusted look at his stepbrother, Michael turned and left.
“Looks like he’s as happy as ever,” André murmured as he started down the long carpeted hall toward his father’s office.
“He’s just gotten used to working full-time here, André. He’s settled in,” Rebekkah said quietly. They passed the tall mirrors and portraits of others who had once worked in the office, as well as doors that led to secretaries and legal assistants. Though they were a small firm by many standards, they were the largest firm outside the Fort Worth firms. Cherry-wood tables with floral arrangements dotted the hall as they approached Drydan’s office. “I imagine Michael worries that you’ll come waltzing back into the firm, and he’ll no longer be the number one son.”
André sighed. “I don’t think of Michael like that. True, I didn’t know him most of my life until his father died and he moved in with us, but I’ve always accepted him.”
Rebekkah strolled along beside André, her worry over André’s desire to confront his father shifting to André’s situation with his brother. “I know you have. I think it’s something Michael will have to work through. Be patient.” With a nod they passed the private secretary’s desk.
“Trying to comfort me?” André asked mildly, pausing outside Drydan’s office door.
Rebekkah bristled. Turning to meet his gaze, she replied, “No way. You have too many women around here that would love to do that. I’m simply pointing out the Christian thing to do.”
André chuckled. “The Christian thing. Something you aren’t going to let me forget, are you, Rebekkah, love?”
She reached for the handle of one of the double doors then smiled sweetly—too sweetly. “Not a chance. It gives me great pleasure to remind you daily about forgiveness.” Turning, she pushed the door open, a smile on her dark face. “Drydan, your son is here to see you.”
Chapter Three
“André what brings you here?” Drydan studied his son carefully, the wariness showing plainly on his face.
André noted Rebekkah come into the office with him, closing the door after she was in. He knew his father didn’t need moral support, but he had to hand it to Rebekkah. She was loyal.
“Hello, Father. We need to talk.”
“If you’ve come to argue, son—” Drydan began.
“Not at all,” André said, and crossed the carpeted floor to drop into a plush maroon brocaded chair in front of his father’s desk. André had grown up in these offices. From the time his father had been an associate until he’d bought out the major shares and run the entire law firm, André had played in these halls. His only desire had been to one day be at his father’s side, cleaning up the world for good people to live. As he’d grown up here, he’d learned all about the business. They had lawyers that specialized in all kinds of things. André had decided early on he wanted to work with civil law. And he had seen that dream come true. He had enjoyed it…most of the time. Except when his father started to insist things be done a certain way, that they could only take high-profile cases and on and on. In actuality, leaving had given him freedom he hadn’t had at Watson and Watson.
“André said he had a proposal to discuss with you,” Rebekkah prompted as she moved beside André and seated herself in the other chair.
She really was a pretty young woman, her black hair hanging straight and curling slightly under on the ends. She was tall, willowy and slender, and her dark brown eyes and smooth complexion reminded him of a pampered socialite instead of a lawyer. Rebekkah was very careful of her appearance. Reluctantly, he returned his attention to his father. Though he was here and planned to bring up something that he hoped would eventually force his father’s hand, he couldn’t help the feelings deep within that reminded him this was his father, the man who had raised him.
His life hadn’t been bad like it had for some of his clients, who often told him their stories. His father simply insisted on complete control. This was unacceptable in many ways. A small part of him, the part that had grown up loving his father, warned him that if he hurt his father in retaliation for all his father had done, he would hurt himself, as well.
But he had to do it. It had to be done. His dad had to admit this time he’d gone too far. If he could do that without that eternal hurt then fine, otherwise… Pushing that from his mind André shifted and said, “I do, Dad. Remember the Kittering Lumber suit several years back that this firm handled?”
“The Alaska case,” Drydan said. Sitting back in the tall leather chair, he crossed his gray-clad legs. The charcoal gray suit was tailored to his tall figure, and he looked daunting in it, the way he sat just so as if in deep thought. It was a pose André knew well, one his father had grown accustomed to taking when discussing a case. “A group of townspeople was trying to prove the lumber plant was causing cases of cancer.”
“A lumber plant causing cancer?” Rebekkah asked, curiosity rife in her voice.
André allowed his gaze to touch Rebekkah’s. “They treat the wood there. Chemicals were involved. I handled a lot of the work on that case.” André forced his gaze away from Rebekkah and back to his father. André noted he enjoyed looking at her. In church, whenever he went, he’d thought it was simply because she sat nearly directly across from him. However, here she wasn’t sitting across from him. Here she was sitting next to him, showing interest in a case he’d once worked on. Most women wouldn’t care what the case was about, but she did. He saw it in her gaze as it went from his father to him and back. He found that interest challenged him to explain more. However, his father jumped in.
“So what does that have to do with us now?” Drydan asked impatiently. “We proved the group was wrong and our clients had not poisoned the lake in that area. Things ended great, and we still have them as our clients today, bringing in quite a bit of money for us, because of that win.”
André turned to his father. “Word has reached me that someone doctored information. And it seems that there are people out there getting ready to reopen the case.”
Drydan harrumphed. “Nonsense.”
“My sources are fairly certain of this. They warned me that this company and all involved in it are a possible target for suit in a cover-up.”
Drydan paused. The gray-haired man wearing the custom-tailored suit, the man who usually chewed up the competition and spit them out, paused and studied his son. “It’s a ridiculous charge,” he argued, but there was hesitation in his voice.
“You know that and I know that, Dad, but you’re the one who taught me that reputation is important. A high-profile case like this reopening could cause irreparable damage to the company.”
“So why come to me about this? I would think you’d love to see this company go under.”
André stiffened. Here it came. He and his dad couldn’t sit down without it turning into an argument. His dad wouldn’t accept him since he’d left the business. He had to poke at André to provoke him until they ended up arguing. “You know that’s not true, Dad. I only want you to admit you were wrong about firing Sarah.”
“She lied to you.”
André’s lips tightened as the old feelings
