When Richard Storm turned around with an indulgent smile on his face as if he were about to appease a couple of batty old men, it didn't take long for his jaw to slacken as he stared at the two strangers.
"Hello Richard. This is my brother, George, and I'm Joseph. We believe we have a lot to talk about," said Joseph as he approached the man he had no doubt was his brother.
After a moment's pause, Richard pulled himself together and held out a hand. "Have we met before?"
"No. Trust me, we'd all remember," George cut in as he took the man's hand next. "We believe we're related, though." There was no need to beat around the bush. They'd already lost sixty-plus years.
"I can see why you'd think so. How do you know about me? I have been careful over the years to stay out of the media. Who are you?" As if he were unable to stand anymore, he moved to a seating area in the corner of his spacious office and sank down into a chair.
The Anderson brothers joined Richard. "Let me explain … " George said.
Joseph pulled out the documents they'd brought and George told Richard what they'd put together that afternoon, with Joseph filling in any gaps. Richard said nothing at all. After half an hour, the three men sat there just staring at each other.
"This can't be. My parents … they were good people," Richard finally choked out as he looked at the compelling evidence before him.
"We can always get blood tests," Joseph said, firmly but gently. "I think that would be a good idea, but it's like looking in a mirror to be staring at you. You can see the picture of our father here. We take most after him."
"My father was Thomas Storm no matter what a blood test says," Richard said automatically.
"Yes, he raised you and obviously loved you, but I believe you are our brother. I believe our mother and father never knew you existed." Joseph said the words in the kindest way he could, but Richard had to know the truth. They couldn't possibly lose any more time.
"I just don't understand. If this is true, maybe your parents didn't want three children. Maybe they'd made a deal with my parents … " The man was reaching for straws, not wanting to believe his parent would be capable of kidnapping.
"That is something we will never know, Richard, and it's something we don't have to know. Your parents obviously loved you, as ours loved us. We just want you to be a part of our lives if you're our brother. Family is very important to us," George said as he leaned forward.
"I don't know what to say. I need some time. I will send for blood tests right away, though. I have never been a man to hide from the truth, and if you are my brothers, I would very much like to know about you and your families."
"That goes the same for us, Brother. I don't know what made you decide to move back to Seattle, but we are grateful it happened," George said with a big smile.
The men chatted for a few minutes more before Joseph and George left.
They took the blood tests the next day and, with the help of their wealth and influence, had their answer by that afternoon. Richard Storm was indeed their brother, with identical DNA. That didn't answer the question of how he'd been separated from them at birth, whether Richard's adoptive parents had taken him, or whether their biological parents had given him up, but Joseph and George knew their parents - knew they would never part with one of their own.
They didn't need to repeat that to Richard, however. The past couldn't be changed, and all they could do from this moment on was to get to know one another, become the family they should have been all along. It might be a long journey, but family bonds were hard to break, and determination was in the Anderson blood.
The hearts of all three men raced as they considered the prospect of learning about each other and their thriving families.
Chapter Nine
Crew sat back and finished his cigar while he waited for his body to return to normal. Haley Sutherland might have thought she needed training on how to become the perfect seductress, but if the way she'd kissed was any indication, she was miles ahead of any woman he could think of off the top of his head.
Damn, his body was on fire, and he didn't see it returning to a functioning state any time soon. She'd set his world spinning, and he suspected it wasn't going to stop until he taught her a few horizontal lessons.
The smile spreading across his lips caused faint crow's-feet to crinkle at the corners of his eyes. He would bet his resort that she was fire beneath the sheets. All of that repressed energy would explode as he sank deep within her heat.
He groaned. Those thoughts hadn't helped at all - his erection was now pulsing painfully in his pants. He desperately needed something, anything as a distraction.