Summer Love_ A Steamy Small Town Romance Anthology - Piper Rayne Page 0,134

go back to work,” Dad responds, annoyed. “I need you to come and help us. He needs you in Luna Harbor.”

Are they insane?

I do more than enough for the family. I can’t just pack my stuff and leave New York indefinitely because…I close my eyes, massaging my forehead. I sound like a selfish prick. They need me, don’t they?

Family is more important than the empire I run or all the money in the world.

What if I say no?

The day my abuelo dies, I’m going to regret not giving him at least the peace of mind he needs to go through treatment.

I do have one card up my sleeve. “No offense, but don’t you have four other children?”

“Yes. Of course I’m counting on you, your brothers, and Myka to help me. That’s the second thing you have to do. Herd them all back to Luna Harbor,” he says, and I feel slightly better about the situation.

If I make sure that my three brothers and my sister are there, I won’t have to move. If I were twelve, I’d love to spend my summer at Luna Harbor. I’m thirty-four and not in the mood to deal with insects, a brewery, and God knows what else they want me to do there.

“You got it, Pa. I’ll have them shipped to Luna Harbor by next week,” I assure him.

“Listen, Iskander, I know you think that you have a lot of things to do that are more important. This is the family business. You can run your business and mine from anywhere in the world. Wicked Luna needs your attention, and the attention of the Cantú family,” he states. “You are the only one who has a sense of business. The other three need direction.”

“Myka knows how to run a business.” I try to keep my voice calm. “She might get upset if you tell her that I’m better than her.”

“She doesn’t need your direction. Your sister knows what she’s doing. I will not ask her to babysit your brothers. You’re in charge of them.” Someone speaks in the background. I can’t hear what is being said, but Dad comes back on to tell me, “I need to go. Make this happen now, Iskander.”

It’s my childhood all over again. He can’t handle my siblings, and I have to step up. Well, my brothers. Myka might be five years younger than me, but she’s pretty mature for her age. She likes to mother us, and my brothers sometimes take advantage of that. Well, not Manelik, her twin.

“Fine,” I say. “I’ll give you a month.”

“I’ll let your grandfather know that he has a month to get better,” he says in a serious, almost angry voice.

“And here I thought you weren’t going to guilt-trip me,” I mumble, squishing the stress ball Myka sent me last week.

She sent it to me with a note that read: Stop being so fucking stressed. Take a chill pill and get laid.

Nothing says you’re my favorite brother better than this. I’m not her favorite, though. That’ll be Mane.

“It’s not about guilt, Iskander. It is your duty.”

I hate that he is right. It is. Grandpa and his business partner helped me establish my company. They loaned me the money. I can’t just let their legacy go under because I don’t want to leave my comfortable office or my apartment in Brooklyn.

It’s okay to hate what I’m about to do, right? “I’ll be there soon.”

“Don’t forget your siblings,” he reminds me.

Even if I wanted to, you always remind me that I’m in charge of them.

If there’s something I’ve learned in my life it’s to never avoid the inevitable.

I cancel my appointments for the day and drive to my place. While I pack my things, my assistant rents me a charter, secures me a car that I can use while I’m in Luna Harbor, and even finds me a room at the inn for the night.

The service car picks me up. While we’re heading toward the airport, I call Manelik. He can lay the groundwork to let Myka know that we’re moving to Luna Harbor. Plus, he might help me convince the other two while I'm in the air.

“Why do I have the feeling that you’re about to sour my day?” he answers right away.

“What are you doing?” Probably sleeping since he doesn’t have to do anything.

He retired at twenty-nine. Who does that? Manelik Cantú.

“Eating breakfast? I don’t know. What would you like me to be doing?” he says in such a fucking condescending tone I