16

Will could sense a storm approaching—and an enormous opportunity as well, if it was managed properly. And now Drew had done something he’d never done before in all the time he’d served the Worthington family. As soon as Sean’s plane had landed at JFK, Drew had maneuvered each of the three siblings into a family dinner before the three of them went their separate ways back into the firestorm of the Arctic situation.

To anyone who didn’t know the Worthington family, a dinner with three siblings might seem like an easy thing to accomplish. Just set a date and people show up.

But each of the Worthington siblings had more scheduled in a day than most people would schedule in a month. And because of their roles, few of the scheduled meetings could be bumped.

Will kissed Laura before he headed out the door. “Something’s up. You know I have a sixth sense about these things. Just sorry you and the kids won’t be there.”

She looked him straight in the eyes. “We’re happy to be home and landed for a while. I’d already promised the kids Chinese takeout and a movie night, and I can’t go back on my word now, even as much as the kids love Drew’s family. Besides, I get the feeling it needs to be only you, Sean, and Sarah this time.” She grinned. “Maybe I’ve got a sixth sense of my own.”

“Or maybe,” he teased back, “Jean called you separately and let you in on the news.”

She gave him a little push out the door. “Well, you never know . . .”

So there is an ulterior motive, and she knows what it is. He wasn’t surprised. Laura and Jean, Drew’s wife, were tight. Both strong-minded women, they were also moms with kids still in the home, and they shared a die-hard view of family first, just like Will’s mother. But how that played out looked different in each home. Laura had decided to stay home with the kids until Davy was at least in high school. Jean had continued working full-time. A few years younger than Drew, she was a force of nature in her own right and had carved out a career for herself, first on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange and now in one of the most prominent brokerages on Wall Street.

The dinner invitation had been spontaneous, even last-minute—completely unlike the meticulous Drew—and Will wondered how Jean was dealing with that. Usually family dinners were held at Will’s posh place overlooking Central Park or the Worthington summer home in Chautauqua. If he’d told Laura that he’d invited his siblings over for dinner at the last minute, she would be a trooper, plunging in, getting the job done, and being a gracious host to their guests. But he’d hear about it later. Of that he was sure.

Maybe Drew had taken into account the fact that Laura had been gone for two months and just returned, so he didn’t want to dump the dinner on her. Or perhaps their wise financial advisor was trying to get them all on neutral ground. But why?

A picture of Jean filtered in, and he grinned. Jean was probably ready to string Drew up right about now for inviting the Worthingtons to their place in the village. But she, like Laura, was a trooper and was used to the Worthington craziness.

He knew they’d have a great dinner, even if she ordered food from FreshDirect and had it delivered.

One thing he could guarantee. It would be served on her best china.

“Seriously? Tonight?” Sean had sputtered when Drew invited—no, more like commanded—him to come to the family dinner. “You know I’m just getting home now, and I’m in the midst of securing the ship. I have to pack up to—”

“Even more reason to be there,” Drew said in a mysterious tone.

Finally, after a debate Sean knew he wouldn’t win, he agreed. Only because it was Drew. He understood Sean more than any other person—even his mother. If he could count on any person to hold a confidence, it would be Drew. Squashed between two older sisters and a younger brother in a home where both of his parents worked, Drew had been the frequent mediator, especially between his warring sisters. Sean had teased him that it was good preparation for launching his career with the strong-minded Worthingtons.

Sean understood what being stuck in the middle felt like, and it wasn’t easy. The mantle of leadership in the Worthingtons had been handed to Will seemingly without a second thought. And their social butterfly sister had been financially irresponsible for years, with no repercussions. Neither were positions Sean was allowed to have. His was best summarized by the family photo album, which had hundreds of baby pictures of Will but a whole lot less of Sean, and he was almost always paired with his brother. When baby Sarah, the only girl, came along, pictures abounded. Still there were hardly any of Sean, except when he was squeezed in between his brother and sister.

It wasn’t easy being a middle kid in a family, especially one like the Worthingtons. Everyone across the nation knew about the Worthingtons and made lots of assumptions about them. There were plenty of whispers about their comings and goings in the press and constant rumors in the tabloids. Will tortured himself by reading all the articles. More than once, Sean had overheard Sarah telling Will to lighten up. “Why are you even trying to set the record straight? It won’t do any good. It’ll only fuel the gossip fires more.”

Sean publicly ignored the hoopla. He stayed unruffled most of the time until the pressure built up too much. Then he’d have a moment like he did when he tossed that whole stack of tabloids in the trash. Usually, though, he was good at acting like what the media said didn’t touch him. But underneath it all, what they said hurt—especially when they compared the two brothers.

He’d already done that himself for years and always came up lacking.

Now Sean started kicking himself. Drew knew Sean flew by the seat of his pants. Why didn’t he put his friend on hold for a minute, make a quick phone call, and arrange a dinner date? Then he’d have had a good excuse not to go.

But underneath all the arguing he did with himself, he realized one fundamental truth: because Drew had asked, Sean would go.

Sarah was on the fly between meetings when Drew called. “Sure, I’ll come. Count on it.”

She’d have to talk her way faster through the meeting scheduled right before the dinner, but that shouldn’t be a problem. Spontaneous is my middle name, she told herself and laughed.

Still, it was strange. Drew had sounded far more solemn than usual.

But she couldn’t ponder that thought anymore now. Her next meeting was in less than a minute.

When the text did finally arrive, he knew right where the bar was. He’d been there often when he crashed at the Madison Avenue church. The bar was rather nice, right around the corner near 20th and Madison. Plenty of high rollers stopped there after work.

When he got there, he took a seat at the bar, as the text had explained. At one point, the bartender leaned over and asked if he wouldn’t mind moving down a few seats to make room for a new group of customers. He moved without a word and took the seat the bartender indicated, next to some guy who was nursing a drink and had been there a while.

Sean still hated the thought of the family dinner. They were never his favorite affairs. But after finally agreeing to go, Sean had said he had to take care of a business commitment first and would be late.

An executive from one of the start-up companies Sean had invested in on behalf of Worthington Shares had had his secretary call. She said her boss had some important questions and wanted Sean to meet him in a bar near 20th and Madison.

So Sean went in, sat at the bar, and nursed a drink for nearly an hour. The guy never showed. But while Sean waited, he chatted up all the usual suspects who kill time at local establishments after work in the city. One guy, sitting on the stool next to him, was talkative but seemed a bit off his meds, or maybe slightly drunk.

At least it had been a pleasant wait.

Then Sean got a second call from the secretary. The executive wouldn’t be able to make it after all.

Disgusted, Sean got up and made his way out of the bar to hightail it over to Drew’s.

He knew he’d catch an earful about his late arrival. He always did.