Alex sat in the back of the luxury limo and waited for his brother to climb in the other side before tapping the glass to let their driver know they were ready. It would be a long drive through the morning traffic.
They rode wordless for some time before Alex broke the silence.
"So what are we going to say to Dad?" He said.
"What are 'we' going to say?" He said sarcastically. You're the one who came up with this crazy 'let's share her' plan and you're the one Larry caught in the act with a Drummond employee."
Alex ground his jaws together. "The plan is not to share her. Why do you keep saying that?"
Sebastian didn't answer, but a sardonic smile played around his lips.
"Jesus Christ," Alex whispered, "is that it? Is that what you actually want?"
"Are you kidding? That's the last thing I want. Melanie, when I finally get her, will be all mine and don't you forget it."
"When you finally get her?"
Sebastian grinned as the cold truth began to dawn on his brother.
"Okay, I think I'm getting it now. For the moment at least, this is it." Alex said. "You get the money and I get the girl, right?"
"Didn't you want it that way?"
"You know that's not what I wanted. It's not what we discussed and not what we agreed on."
"Oh yes, I remember now. You wanted to sacrifice everything for her, give her to me along with your share of the Drummond Empire. You're such a sport big bro, such a good egg."
"That really was it Sebastian. You know that if I said it, then I meant it."
"Except you knew that would never happen and you just couldn't stop yourself. The one thing that belonged to me, the only thing I was ever good at, and you have to beat me at that too. Thanks big bro, now I know for sure that I'm just the weaker, slower, inferior version of you, and we have Melanie here to prove it."
The bitterness and spite were painful to Alex's ears. He loved his little brother to death and would never have done anything to upset him. Now he could hear all the years of resentment coming out. It was like his brother was a different person.
"You never felt anything for her at all, did you? She's just another skirt to you, another pretty face you had to score before I did. This has never been about Melanie, it's always been about getting to me, getting even, getting ahead somehow."
"You give yourself too much importance, big brother. And you credit me with too little intelligence and way too little heart and soul. I love Melanie, alright. I loved her the moment I set eyes on her, which was before you."