Derek exchanged a look with Shawn.
Shawn shook his head slightly and smiled at Miles. “Of course you don’t have to explain anything to us. I’m sorry if we gave you that impression. You’re our friend, Miles. We care about you. We… We actually feel guilty for dragging you into this.”
Miles gave him a confused look. “Guilty? What for?”
Shawn winced slightly. “I think Caldwell might have found out about your… connection to us, and that’s why he—he seduced you—”
A laugh, harsh but full of amusement, left Miles’s mouth. “Trust me, it definitely wasn’t that,” he said. “I know him. What happened between us was just between him and me. It had nothing to do with the weirdly strained relationship between you and Ian.” He gave Derek a steady look. “Are you going to tell me what it really is about?”
Derek eyed him, frowning. “You’ve known the man for a month. Don’t delude yourself into thinking that you know the real him, Miles.”
Miles scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest. “Right. Why don’t you enlighten me then who the real him is?”
Derek was disturbed. He could sense the kid’s defensiveness rising—over Caldwell, of all people.
“I think we should tell him, Derek,” Shawn said quietly.
Derek sighed, knowing that Shawn was right. He hadn’t really wanted to talk about it with Miles. He seemed like a good kid, but the subject was… deeply personal, after all.
“You probably heard that my father, Joseph Rutledge, was something of a tyrant.” When Miles nodded, Derek continued reluctantly. “My father never accepted my sexuality and constantly pushed women at me. Toward his death, he wasn’t exactly in his right mind, and decided that it was a good idea to just announce in front of all of society and media that I had gotten engaged to his old friend’s daughter. Nathan Brooks’s daughter. The politician’s?”
There was no hint of recognition or understanding on Miles’s face. Derek almost snorted. It seemed unbelievable that someone of his acquaintance could be completely in the dark about that scandal. But then again, the boy was British. Of course he hadn’t heard about it.
“Obviously I didn’t take it well when I found out about the old man’s schemes,” Derek said. “My father and I argued over it, he had a heart attack and died. After his death, I announced that the engagement wasn’t real and went back to Shawn.” He grimaced. “I didn’t consider the third party in all of this: the girl I was supposedly engaged to.”
A hint of understanding finally appeared in Miles’s eyes. “Oh. She must have been humiliated.”
Derek’s lips thinned. “She was. Apparently, she became a laughingstock.” He frowned. “People in those circles are little better than vultures, and she was just a girl, not even nineteen. She ended up having a mental breakdown and slicing her wrists.”
“She lived,” Derek said when he saw Miles’s expression. “But it caused even a bigger scandal. Eventually, the girl’s family had to take her away. She lives in another state now, as far as I know.”
“What does that have to do with Ian?” Miles said.
Derek met his gaze. “Ian Caldwell is her older brother.”
Miles blinked. “What? He has a sister?”
“A half-sister,” Shawn said. “They share a mother. Caldwell’s mother married Nathan Brooks after his father’s death and gave birth to a daughter, Amanda.”
Miles was frowning deeply. “So you think… You think Ian is out for revenge?”
Derek smiled humorlessly. “Oh, we’re quite sure of it. Caldwell isn’t known for letting go of old grudges.”
There was a furrow between Miles’s brows. “Why did you agree to the partnership deal, then? Why did you make him the CEO of your company?”
Derek’s jaw clenched. “It was a mistake. A careless mistake. I didn’t know he was related to Amanda Brooks. They don’t share a surname. It slipped my mind that his mother married a Brooks.” Derek pinched the bridge of his nose. “I left my family and these social circles decades ago, Miles. I was the black sheep of my family. Until recently, I had no reason to associate with them. I don’t exactly have friends in those circles anymore. I found out about Caldwell’s relation to Amanda Brooks too late.”
He felt Shawn’s hand on his shoulder. “It’s not your fault, Derek,” he said softly. “You couldn’t know.”
Derek grimaced. His ignorance didn’t excuse him. He’d been too irresponsible, glad to be rid of the responsibility for his father’s company, Joseph’s pride and joy. Derek had heard enough about Ian Caldwell to know that he was an excellent, highly successful CEO, so he hadn’t bothered to do personal background checks. It had been stupid of him. Careless.
Derek looked at Miles. “Now you know why we don’t trust Caldwell.”
Miles seemed thoughtful. “You should have told me this from the beginning.”
“What would that have changed?”
Miles looked at him as though he were crazy. “I would have asked him about it.”