room was Lianne’s special spot. She loved the high ceiling and breathtaking view. When she was pregnant with you, she and Senior hung out in here. They read books to each other and plotted the future.”
The throb of emotion in his dad’s voice brought Arnie to the brink of tears.
“The reason this room stays blank is because of her. It’s my father’s tribute to the daughter-in-law he adored.” He paused to take a deep breath. “You and I weren’t the only ones who lost someone they loved.”
Well, shit. Arnie put a hand over his heart and struggled to contain the emotions threatening to put him on the floor.
“Your grandfather would rather shit grapefruits than let anyone but you get their hands on this property.”
He didn’t know how to react or what to say. Talking about his mom wasn’t something they did.
His eyes scanned the room, and he imagined a long, comfortable sofa set against the back wall. A large, overstuffed chair, something you’d find in a Spencer Tracy movie, would fit perfectly in the far corner. Maybe there’d be a dog curled up nearby. He bet his sunshine girl would love the light-infused room. With that thought, he heard the soft whimper of a crying baby in his head and careened at a dangerous speed back to the present.
What the holy fuck was that?
Shaking off his confusing reaction, Arnie felt his father’s eyes studying him and wondered what the man was thinking.
“We better get back before my father sends a search party. Senior looked about ready to bitch slap Aunt Vi earlier. She knows which of his buttons to push.”
Arnie witnessed the building confrontation between the octogenarian siblings. “The woman is eighty-three and is not here for the last will and testament shuffleboard game this family plays. She made a valid point earlier about the entitlement issues the youngers display.” Arnie huffed. “I’m all for a tiered system with points earned for going to school and earning a degree. Getting a job. Community service.”
This progressive concept of redistributing the family’s share of riches was a long time coming and something he welcomed. Having literal buckets of money plus unimaginable privilege and access to power players around the globe produced generations of weaklings with no initiative or drive and an inflated sense of importance. His cousins, most of them, were astonishingly vapid. Arnie stood out like a toaster pastry at a cupcake party. Wealth and name value meant squat when it came time for him to decide who he was as a person and what he stood for. Government service was not what people expected from him.
He nudged his dad and sniggered. “I got shot in the balls. How many points do I get?”
“You did not get shot in the balls, although it does make for a great conversation starter.”
“Shot, shrapnel, same concept.”
“Where were you when this shrapnel event happened?”
Arnie chuckled. He enjoyed this back and forth game with his dad. “Can’t say,” he replied.
“Who were you with?”
“Can’t say that either.”
“How do we know you aren’t making it up?”
“My go-to response is usually a suggestion that you suck my balls and tell me.”
“I raised you well,” his dad guffawed and thumped him on the back.
They left the sunroom and ambled through the massive house back to the formal living room for an evening of forced family togetherness. Along the way, they exchanged guy talk and commented on the frigid January weather.
The moment they stepped back into the big room full of people, Arnie sensed something in the air. It wasn’t obvious, and nobody seemed to be acting strange, but he felt it nonetheless.
Vaguely paying attention when his father murmured something before wandering off to join a huddle at the hors d’oeuvres table, Arnie scanned the room for energy patterns. He didn’t sense anything obvious.
And then from the corner of his eye, he saw Stan, and Arnie’s body went on high alert.
Outwardly, his brother gave off nothing worth a second glance. He was staring into the flames as he leaned against a wall next to the fireplace with his hand braced on the molding of a decorative wood mantel.
But Arnie saw something more. Stan’s unique wavelength was unsettled. Something was most definitely wrong.
Striding casually, he let the strength of Stan’s energy draw him in and was impressed by his brother’s control. Whatever had him riled up was intense, but he wasn’t giving anything away.
Swiping two drinks off a conveniently placed tray, he made it to Stan’s side without being waylaid. Handing the