Chapter Fifteen
Sebastian painstakingly made his way back to the makeshift site he and his brother had agreed to share. His brother was waiting for him when he arrived.
"Was she worth it?" Alex asked.
Sebastian was shocked into silence. His brother stared at him.
"Don’t bother trying to deny it. I was there. I saw it."
"What did you see?" Sebastian shook with fear.
"Enough."
Oh really? He thought, maybe he hadn’t been completely exposed. Maybe Alex was upset by what he thought he saw, but not what had actually happened.
"Is that what you're reduced to now? Watching other people fuck? Hiding in the bushes like a peeping tom?"
"I didn't go there to peep. I went there to stop you from taking advantage of Melanie."
"Is that what you call it? Well I hope you enjoyed your little peep show, big brother. Did you get off on what you saw?"
"Of course not. Like I said, I went there because I thought you were going to keep up this crazy charade of pretending to be me. When I got there, it was too late to do anything. You and Melanie were…” He broke off in disgust, trying to master his emotions. “Look, if she wants you, then she can have you. I’m not like you; I won’t do anything just to sleep with her."
Sebastian waited before he replied.
"You've got it all backwards, big brother. It's you she wants."
"Enough with the mind games already. I'm done."
"I'm telling the truth. Why do you think I was pretending to be you? Didn't you see how she looked at you from the very beginning? I'm just the creepy twin brother, the one she was hoping wouldn't be on the flight. I may not be as clever as you, or as strong as you, but I'm no fool and I do know women. Maybe it's the only thing I do better than you. I knew I didn't have a hope with her from the moment I laid eyes on her. I can always tell the difference between the ones that will drop everything for the Drummond family fortune, including their panties. Hell, that's the first thing to drop first with most of 'em. But then you have these crazy, cute, smart girls like Melanie. I can spot them a mile off. They drive me wild. They take a whole lot more work."
"But she's a Drummond employee, for God's sake. Is she worth a billion dollars?"
Sebastian stared at his older brother. He knew what his temper was like when it came to Melanie. He was counting on it.
"Well?" Alex repeated.
"Goddamn right she is." He said in a low, determined voice.
Alex shook his head and sat down on the sand. He was on fire and his emotions were everywhere. He had never heard his brother talk like this about anyone. The fortune; being rich was all he had ever seemed to care about. That and banging as many babes as humanly possible in every spare moment he could find. Was he just trying to torture him?
"Just for that one time?" He whispered.
Sebastian nodded.
"Are you kidding me? It's the difference between doing it with a blow up doll and having a real live woman. No other girl has ever made me feel that way, emotionally or physically. My whole body was on fire. I just wanted to make love to her forever and hear her scream my name over and over and over again."
"Shut up, shut up, just shut up!" Alex was on his feet and shouting. Sebastian backed away.
"Jesus Alex, simmer down. What is she to you anyway?"
"Goddamn it, you know what she is to me. She's The One."
"The one? What one exactly are you talking about? You mean the next one?"
Alex advanced towards his brother.
"There's no Melanie around now to save your short, skinny little ass this time, kid brother."
Sebastian stood his ground.
"You think I won't fight for her? Just because you think you can kick my ass every time you feel like it? Trust me, if you’d had what I've just had then you'd fight, no matter what the odds. I'm not giving her up. Ever. Not this time, not any time."
Alex came closer.
"But you said it yourself; it's me she wants, not you."
"You think I can't convince her to take me? After all, what's the difference really? A birthmark on an ass cheek? That can be easily arranged. Did you hear her beg me to fuck her back there? She may be upset now but trust me, no woman can experience that kind of desire and then not come back for more. She may think it's you she wants but it's never going to get any better than what she just had."
Alex lunged at his brother and the two began to wrestle in the sand. It was perfect. Alex pounded his brother in the jaw and brought him down. They had often wrestled and sparred, and both were accomplished martial artists, but this was a blow that meant business. The gloves were well, truly and literally off.
Sebastian recovered quickly and sent his knee into his brother's rib cage, but Alex blocked the blow and pounded his brother in the solar plexus instead, doubling him over. Then he pounded his back as he went down. Within seconds, he had Sebastian face down in the sand, straddling him, his right arm twisted painfully behind his back.
"I can always kick your ass little brother. Anytime, anywhere. I've always held back on you, but not this time. This is one whipping you are never going to forget!" He raised his powerful right fist high in the air, ready to strike a punishing blow to his brother's head.
"Melanie is going to love this," Sebastian spat out through a mouthful of sand. Alex raised his fist higher up again, "because she just loves violence. When she sees what you did to me, I'm sure she'll come running straight into your arms, and then you can give up your share of the Drummond fortune as well. The old man can leave it all to Joshua or give it to one of his precious charities."
Alex grimaced. He clenched his fist and watched as his brother winced in the dirt. Then he slammed his fist down as hard as he could into the soft sand next to his brother's nose. Sebastian hissed a sigh of relief as Alex released him and then collapsed to the ground beside. Sebastian rolled over and massaged his twisted arm and wrist. Blood was oozing from the blow to his head. He smiled. It would be enough.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" He said. "You never gave a damn about your girlfriends before. For Christ's sake, Melanie isn't even one of them. She just flirted with you a bit before your flight. How come you're going so totally ape shit about her now?"
"Me? Ape shit? You're the one who just threw away a fortune for one quick roll in the sand."
The two lay in silence for a moment, looking up into the panorama of stars in the clear tropical sky.
"I've got to have her." Sebastian said.
"Me too." His brother answered.
"What are we going to do then?"
Alex sat up. "I think I have an idea."
"Great. What are we going to do? Share her?"
"I don't know, maybe I'll just pretend to be you, pretending to be me, huh? Like that's a great idea."
Sebastian shook his head. He had ideas all his own but he sure as hell wasn’t going to share them with Alex.
"So what's the idea? Shoot -- I'm all ears."
"You say you love Melanie--"
"And I mean it, goddamn it. How hard is that for you to understand?"
“Okay, I get it little bro, I believe you. So if you love her, then you would want her to share a happy life with someone she loves."
"A happy life with me."
"But what if it’s me she really loves, the way you say it is?"
"I don’t care. I can make her happy. Just as happy as you ever could, I know I can."
"I’m sure you could little bro, I don’t doubt it."
"Stop being so damn patronizing and get to the big idea will you? So I can tell you where to shove it."
Alex sighed. His little brother; seven minutes younger than him but it might as well have been seven years, or even seventeen.
“Okay, so we give her the choice--"
"And she takes me."
"Whatever. Yes, she takes you."
"I knew it." He grinned.
"Good for you. You got her, now listen to this. I’ll make sure that you guys are taken care of and when the old man finally, you know, gives up control of the corporation, I’ll make sure that you are back in again, equal partner to the Drummond Corporation."
Sebastian looked at his brother, mystified. He waited for the rest of his great idea.
"I don’t get it." He said. "What’s in it for you?"
"I get to see Melanie be happy and I don’t lose my crazy little brother."
Sebastian waited a moment and then exploded into laughter.
"Oh shit, Alex, my totally crazy big brother. Just stop right there. You’re telling me that you will give her to me--"
"If she wants you."
"--which you already know she does, and you won’t even freeze me out of Drummond because you love her so… so goddamn perfectly?"
"That’s it."
"No, it isn’t. Not at all. You know if the old man figures it out then you’ll be cut out too, right?"
"You know how good I am with financials. He’ll never know."
Sebastian mulled it over a moment. Maybe things could work out after all. He could have Melanie, he had already taken her first anyway, and he could keep all his Drummond Corporation perks and be back at the helm once his father relinquished control. It sounded too good to be true. However, he trusted is big brother. If any man in the world was true to his word, it was Alex Drummond, Junior; he could absolutely be counted upon.
"You know you could never see her again. Never speak to her again, not until the old man was out of the way anyway. Right?"
Alex looked pained. He took a deep breath and then sighed.
"I know." He said.
"And you would do that for me?"
"I’d do it for her. And for you, too. Even though I hate you right now and will make you pay for what you did one day."
Sebastian laughed again. Maybe his brother had really gone crazy.
“Okay, big brother," he said, "for the record, I think this is crazy. She’s going to pick me anyway -- I can guarantee that. Even if she thinks she wants you now, you know the one and only thing I’ve always been able to beat you at is this."
"I know."
"So we’ll tell her. Let her think about it. But for the record--"
"I know. It’s crazy. But this is the only way we get to… " He struggled for words, "to share her--"
"I'm telling you right now that I'm not going to share her. It's you or I and she will just have to decide."
Alex sighed. His little brother was right. They had never shared anything in their lives but for most things, the solution was to just buy another one exactly the same so both brothers could enjoy equally. But no amount of money could buy another perfect girl like Melanie. Money doesn't buy soul mates and he knew that better than anyone after the hundreds of thousands of dollars he had wasted on high-end dating services.
"Let's go back and speak to her right now."
Sebastian nodded his assent and the two brothers rose and started back into the forest.
"And you can give me back my damn shoes now." Alex muttered.