“It’s because Rachel never cared one way or another about those guys. And”—he kept his eye on the desk, where Charles was giving Ryan a hard time—“I’m not her boyfriend; I’m her fiancé.”
“Does she know you aren’t pretending?”
Harvard cocked an eyebrow. “Do I look like an idiot? Stealth is the only way to deal with your sister. You sneak in under her radar and slowly occupy her territory. Then one day, she looks around, and she’s married and wondering how it happened.”
“I almost feel sorry for you.” Jonathan chuckled. “You have no idea what you’re up against.”
Harvard motioned to security. “Looks like Ryan needs rescuing.”
“Typical. It’s always bloody Uncle Charles. The sooner that man retires and gives us all peace, the better.”
As they approached the desk, Preston and his brother, Marcus, arrived for the day. They nodded politely at Harvard before turning their attention to where Charles was arguing with Ryan.
“I will not hand over my phone,” Charles snapped. “You’re new here and obviously ignorant about our policy. Phones and personal devices are, and always have been, allowed within this building. Call your supervisor. I want to speak to Terrance immediately.”
“Charles,” Jonathan said as they reached the desk, “what’s the problem?”
“The problem is that this guard here wants me to give him my phone. Where’s Terrance? He needs to deal with this.” He looked around as if expecting the man to manifest. Which was highly unlikely, given that he was still locked up in Benson Security’s basement.
“I’m afraid Terrance has taken ill,” Jonathan said, struggling to hide his distaste. “Since that left us rather in the lurch, I’ve asked Harvard to step in until we find a replacement.”
“Harvard?” For a second, it looked like Charles’ head was about to explode.
“Yes. Being former intelligence and currently employed by one of the most respected security companies in the world, he seemed the best man for the job. The fact that he’s practically family is an added bonus.”
Harvard smiled politely as Charles and Preston frowned at him. Marcus just looked confused.
“This is highly irregular,” Preston said. “Important positions within TayFor are only filled after a lengthy interview process and approval by the board.”
“I haven’t given him a position,” Jonathan said. “I’ve merely asked him to help out until Terrance feels better.”
“This is outrageous,” Charles snapped, spittle flying. “Do we even know anything about this man? In a very short time, he’s not only managed to worm his way into our company but also Rachel’s heart. I can’t be the only one who’s concerned about this. How do we know he isn’t a conman?”
“Bloody hell, Charles,” Preston said. “He’s standing right there.”
“I’m happy for you to check out my background and references,” Harvard said with a relaxed smile. “But you can do it after you hand over your phone to Ryan. There’s been a security breach. It will take a couple of hours to fix. In the meantime, the building’s vulnerable to hackers using cellular devices to access our systems. You’ll get your phone back as soon as we’ve secured the facility.” He inclined his head. “As an owner of the company, I’m sure you’re more than happy to ensure its continued security.”
“Is that all this is?” Marcus reached into his pocket. “Here, take my phone. I’m going to grab a coffee before the board meeting starts.” As he walked past Charles, he said, “Stop being a prick and hand over your phone.” And then he pushed through the doors to the offices behind them.
“Well, I never,” Charles snapped. “Has everyone around here lost all sense of decorum?”
Preston put his phone on the desk. “Just give the man your phone.” He gave Harvard a sympathetic smile before following his brother.
Charles slammed his phone onto the table and glared at them. “I will investigate you. Don’t think for one second that I won’t.” Then he stormed into the building.
“Whoa,” Ryan said. “That dude does not like you. What did you do to him?”
“I was born black,” Harvard said. “You got everybody’s phone now?”
“Yep.” Ryan grinned and rubbed his palms together. “Let the games begin.” He took the tray of cell phones and headed down to security, where Elle and Harry would hack each one.
“With any luck, we’ll have your thief within the hour,” Harvard said.
Jonathan’s eyes turned dark. “Good. I could do with a target for venting my anger.”
Couldn’t they all?
The board room was bursting with family members. Every single one who had shares in the company had turned up—which wasn’t usually the case. Even Rachel’s grandmother and her Uncle Harold were there.
“I’ve come to see what trouble you cause,” her grandmother had told Rachel after she sailed into the room, looking like Katharine Hepburn at a press junket for one of her movies, and took the chair beside her.
“Why on earth would you assume I’d cause trouble?”
“It’s in your genes, darling.” Her grandmother patted her hand. “Don’t worry, you came by it honestly. I caused quite the stir in my day too. Be a dear and fetch me a cup of tea. I need to take my medicine.” With a wicked gleam in her eyes, she held up an elaborately enameled flask.
“Really? You’re going to spike your tea?”
“If you’d been to as many of these board meetings as I have, you wouldn’t need to ask that.” Her eyebrows shot up. “What on earth? Does Theo think he’s playing tennis?”
Rachel followed her gran’s gaze, and sure enough, Uncle Theo had arrived, decked out in white tennis garb, complete with shorts and a jaunty ribbed jersey draped around his shoulders.
“Sorry about the getup,” he said. “Got a match straight after this and no time to change.”
“That explains the clothes, but what about the aftershave?” her grandmother muttered to her. “Please open a window while you fetch me my tea.”
With a resigned sigh, Rachel went to do her grandmother’s bidding.
They’d set up the refreshments table on the wall nearest the door, which meant Rachel was easy access for anyone arriving who wanted to chat. Yay for her.
“Rach!” Her cousin Rupert pulled her into an unwanted hug. “Did you know it’s possible to 3D print small batches of drugs? If we were to make our own specialized 3D printers and rent them out to hospitals, they’d have a steady supply, and we’d cut the cost and risks associated with large-scale manufacture. Not to mention, if we cut down the need for hospitals to buy and stockpile our drugs, we could look into building our own smaller, more efficient manufacturing plant in the UK, instead of outsourcing to larger, established plants that will only commit to a minimum order.”
Rachel was impressed. “I’m sorry, who are you? And what have you done with my cousin?”
He gave her an enthusiastic smile. “I never knew how interesting the family business was. The more I research, the more ideas I have. I didn’t know it was possible to be this engaged and excited about something that wasn’t a hand of poker. Look”—he pointed at himself—“I even bought a new suit so I’d look more professional and people might take my ideas seriously.” He sobered. “I have a lot of ideas, Rach. I really think there are ways we could streamline production. Not only to save us money but also to make distribution more user friendly.”