Chaos (15 page)

“Shane! You don’t have to knock. Get in here.” Jordan yanked
his older brother into his new house and wrapped him in a hug.

“You’ve been married less than a month and home from your
honeymoon only a few days. I didn’t want to walk in on anything,” Shane teased,
thinking how happy his brother looked.

“Thanks for the thought, Shane,” Kiley blushed as she kissed
his cheek. “Jordan’s right, you never have to knock here. And if you do happen
to walk in on something then you’ll just have to turn around and walk right
back out. I’m sure it’ll happen eventually so I promise not to be embarrassed
if you’re not.”

“No wonder you love this girl, Jordan.” Shane grinned at the
two of them. “You’ll be more convincing, Kiley, when you can say that without
blushing.”

“I don’t know. She’s awfully beautiful when she blushes. I
hope she never outgrows that.” Jordan faced her, standing next to Shane.

“All right now, knock it off.” Kiley giggled as she moved
into Jordan’s arms and hid her face.

Jordan and Shane’s eyes met over her head, exchanging a look
that said all there was to be said. “We’re done now, sweet.” Jordan tipped her
face for a kiss. “Coffee, Shane? Brett should be back soon. He’s putting in a
bid on that house he looked at when you were here with him.”

They settled in to visit while they waited, talking
comfortably about everything and anything. Shane noticed the way both Jordan
and Kiley unconsciously touched each other when they were within reach. He
decided the two were unbelievably sweet together and obviously happy. When
Brett returned the conversation turned to Alyssa.

“You’re sure she got there without any trouble?” Kiley
frowned.

“She said everything was fine last time I talked to her,”
Shane told them all about her staying with Murray.

“Sounds kind of like her sticking with the Kid,” Brett
observed.

“Not exactly,” Shane countered. “The Kid was with her to
make sure she didn’t do anything they didn’t want her to. Staying with Murray
will protect both of them.”

“Who’s the Kid?” Kiley asked.

“Just a kid the gang made her stay with when she was taking
those pictures. You know the one with the dyed hair and really pale skin? The
one whose eyes seemed to see right through you in that book of hers?” Brett
wished he hadn’t brought him up.

“Oh. Yeah.” Kiley thought she knew who he was talking about
as Shane’s face went carefully blank. “Does she know how long she’ll be there
yet?”

“It’s only been a few days, Kiley.” Shane shrugged. “They
haven’t even had any rain yet, let alone a tornado. I’m sure she’ll be back as
soon as she has what she needs.”

“I still can’t believe she’s leaving her studio all these
weeks. She’s probably frantic that someone will break in while she’s gone.”
Kiley was thinking out loud.

“I’m checking on it for her,” Shane mentioned as he pulled
out the album that Alyssa had asked him to bring to them. “She gave me this
because she wasn’t comfortable leaving it there. The original photo card is in
this envelope and the only other copies were already delivered to the people in
them. You should have heard Mr. Samuels when he saw that picture of his wife.
He was truly pleased.”

“You went with her?” Jordan raised an eyebrow at his
brother.

“You didn’t think I would?” Shane returned his gaze
steadily.

“I’m surprised she let you.” He shrugged.

“Like she had a choice once she told us what she was up to.”
Brett chuckled. “Jesse thought he was going to have to tail her. It was so much
easier when you explained why it would be better for you to go with her,
Shane.”

Jordan and Kiley were busy looking through the album but
Jordan saw the look that Shane flashed Brett anyway. “This is great,” he
declared. “I hate to think that we have to destroy it.”

“Are you sure, Jordan?” Kiley asked softly. “I understand
why we should but I wish we didn’t.”

“You’re out of the city now.” Shane offered.

“I know. Why don’t we lock it in the safe for a few days and
think about it?” Jordan wanted his wife to smile again and was quickly rewarded
as Kiley went to put the album away. “God, I love that woman!”

“Really? I never would have guessed that, would you, Brett?”
Shane teased.

“No. I mean, if you ignore the way they look at each other
and touch each other all the time, those constant kisses wouldn’t give away a
thing.” Brett laughed with them. “Not that I can blame you, Jordan. That is
quite a wife you picked out.”

“I know. I must be the luckiest guy in the world.”

“Lucky how?” Kiley asked as she came back, draping her arms
over her husband’s shoulders from her spot behind his chair.

“Lucky because the most spectacular woman in the universe
loves me.” Jordan leaned his head back against her.

“Then I must be just as lucky,” she decided as she bestowed
a kiss on his forehead.

Jordan surprised her as he pulled her onto his lap and kissed
her thoroughly. When he heard Brett complaining to Shane that they’d been like
that since he got there the night before, Jordan waved them out of the room
without releasing Kiley.

In the gatehouse, Brett asked more about Shane’s
conversations with Alyssa. After Shane answered, he asked, “So how bad is the
inquisition going to be?”

Brett laughed. “I don’t think there is going to be one for
now. As you suspect, Jordan knows there’s something going on. We went to the
station yesterday for a meeting and had a chance to talk privately along the
way. He saw you, ah, dancing with Alyssa at their reception. I may as well tell
you that he picked right up on the fact that you were both here last weekend.
He asked then if he should be worried and which one of you he should worry
about.”

“What did you tell him?” Shane couldn’t remember Brett
mentioning either one of them but, at the time, he was paying more attention to
Alyssa.

“Not much, really. Just that we all hung out together with
Jesse while they were away.” At Shane’s look of disbelief, Brett amended his
answer. “Okay, I might have added that the two of you seem to be getting along
fairly well at the moment. I told him that you were actually talking instead of
yelling most of the time and that I hadn’t had to intervene since before the
wedding.”

“I dread this. I don’t want to lie to them but I’m not at
all sure how Campini feels about me. I don’t think she hates me anymore but I
really can’t tell beyond that. She gets so angry over absolutely nothing. I
just don’t know what she’s thinking most of the time.”

“Shane, I hate to have to say this to you again but you are
such a clueless ass!”

“Gee thanks, Brett. And here I thought confiding in someone
who I’ve known forever and considered closer than a friend would make me feel
better.”

“Don’t get touchy. I’m saying this as your other little
brother. I thought that, as someone who you know loves you, I could be
completely honest and blunt when needed. You can’t seriously doubt that Alyssa
loves you, can you? Sure, she’s scared but so are you. You’re both fighting it
for your own reasons but I’m positive you’ll work through it. You and Jordan
are a lot alike, Shane. If you decide she’s your future, then you’ll make it
happen.”

“I wish I shared your confidence,” Shane sighed miserably.

“When has Shane, the invincible superhero, ever lacked in
confidence?”

Shane managed to laugh. “Often but I guess I used to hide it
better. I think I’m making progress with the Kid.” He told Brett of their
recent exchange.

“Are you serious, you’d really take him and leave if he
asked you to?” Brett was stunned.

“In a heartbeat.” Shane didn’t hesitate. “I know this
started because Campini told him to call me but it’s not about her anymore.
Somewhere along the line, I realized that he was getting to me more than I was
getting to him. In some ways, he is so independent and aloof. In others, he’s
an obnoxious kid, just like you and Jordan were. He’s very smart too. I’m sure
he hasn’t been to school in a year or more but there’s nothing lacking in his
mind. He’s clever enough to fit in with the others but he hasn’t lost himself
yet. I was afraid I’d chased him off by pushing too hard but he called back so
maybe there’s still a chance.”

“Give him some time. From what Alyssa said, his life was
pretty bleak and going from bad to worse. She shows up out of nowhere and gives
him real friendship with no strings attached and leads him to you. If my guess
is correct, you talk to him like a person, without judging him. You offer him
hope. You dangle the kind of life I bet he’s only dreamed about and say you’re
willing to change your whole existence to include him. He’s got to be waiting
for the bottom to fall out, for the catch. He’ll realize that you’re not a
phony, out to screw him even worse than he already has been.”

“I know it has to be damn near impossible for him to trust
anyone, let alone a cop but I have the feeling that he’s running out of time.
He isn’t going to stay the Kid forever. Some new boy is going to come along and
push him out of his spot as the youngest and he’s going to be forced to prove
his worth. He has to ask for my help before then. If not, he’ll have to choose
between killing or being killed and then there won’t be anything I can do.”

“Have you said exactly that to him?”

“More than once and that’s when he usually hangs up on me.”

“But he’s heard you so you have him thinking about it. Have
you told Alyssa that you offered him a home?”

“No. I don’t want to get her hopes up. And I’m not sure that
both of them aren’t going to think that I’m using one to get the other.”

“You told him how you feel about her?” This was getting very
interesting.

“He asked and I’m not going to lie to him.”

“Damn, Shane, I’m impressed. I bet no one has given him that
much respect, ever. No wonder he’s suspicious of you.”

“Yeah, well, he has a long way to go on the respect front.
You should have heard the things he asked about me and Campini. I had to give
him a little lecture about how not to refer to a lady.”

“I wish I could have heard that one! I bet you haven’t
changed it all that much since you gave it to Jordan and me. I bet we were
about the same age as he is when we spied on you making out on the porch.”

“You’re right. No wonder the Kid reminds me of you two.”
Shane shook his head. “He was much cruder than you were.”

“Jordan and I never lived on the streets.”

“Thank God. I’m sure you would have taken over if you had.”
They both laughed. “Tell me about the station. How’s the staff taking the
transition?”

“As well as we could have hoped for. So far, only one person
has left and she wasn’t really doing anything other than sleeping with the
former owner. A few others are taking a wait-and-see attitude. There are some
that we won’t discourage when they say they want to leave. The rest seem
gung-ho in a reserved sort of way. You know Jordan. Once he gets talking,
there’s no stopping him. He has a way of making everyone believe what he’s
saying.”

“As do you,” Shane reminded him.

“Not like Jordan does. Hey, I know I’m good. I can sell
anything, myself included but I know I’m doing it. Jordan just talks and it
happens. Kiley was there Thursday, when we held our big meeting with everyone
because Jordan wanted to present us as a unified group. He was stressing how we
intended to operate with an open-door policy and brought her into the statement
by explaining that she may not be actively involved in the day-to-day operation
of the station but she would be thoroughly in tune with everything that was
going on. She assured everyone that she was just as approachable as either of
us was in case someone would feel more comfortable speaking with a woman. I’m
not sure which one of them was prouder but they were both beaming. They’re just
as overwhelming in public as they are at home. I looked around and I bet
everyone in the room could feel the emotions swirling around them. That’s when
the former owner’s girl left, by the way. She took one look at me and when I
shook my head no to her she stomped out. Jordan went on to tell them how we
planned on being more than fair with them but also expected a fair amount of
work in exchange. All in all, I’d say it was a good start.”

“I never doubted that it would be. When does he do his first
broadcast? I already checked and I can pick up the station at home. I want to
make sure I listen to his debut.” Imagine, his kid brother, a financial wizard,
giving up all the power that came with the money to host an overnight radio
talk show. It would be the most popular thing around in no time, especially
with Brett promoting it.

“Next Wednesday. We’ve already started airing the spots
introducing him. You’ll have to be sure to catch them.”

“Good?”

“Great, I must admit, even if I did write them myself.”
Brett looked so pleased.

“That would mean absolutely incredible and perfectly on the
mark for what you want them to say. Come on, Brett. You’re talking to me,
remember? I already know how talented you are so there’s no need for modesty.
Have I said how proud you guys make me?”

“Yes but let’s wait and see how our ratings are doing in a
few months when the newness wears off. We still have plenty of opportunity to
blow this in ways none of us has begun to imagine.”

“But you won’t. As I’ve said before, all you two have to do
is come up with a plan and you’ll find a way to make it work. Why would this be
any different? Especially since you’re in it together this time. You both put
extensive work into this and are more than prepared.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Shane. It still affects
me when you get all big brotherly on me.”

“Hey, I’m only speaking the truth. Tell me about your
house?”