Montana Seduction

There was no time to waste. He needed to discuss things with his younger brother. If that meant disrupting his morning slumber and irritating his bedmates, so be it.

Dane set his coffee mug on the large raw-edged wood island between the kitchen and the dining area as he dialed. He waited for Ethan to pick up, but voice mail kicked in and Dane muttered a curse before clearing his throat and leaving a message.

They were closing in on Robert and Dane was chomping at the proverbial bit to serve a healthy dose of vengeance to his stepfather. Dane wanted to know where Ethan stood and what intel he’d uncovered since they spoke last.

Each day that went by was another day closer to the anniversary of their mother’s death and another day that bastard was able to live his life as a free man. Those days were coming to an end and a new chapter in the Michaels brothers’ story would begin. Maybe regaining their legacy would bring them back together, closer, like they used to be.

Dane pocketed his phone and headed toward the en suite to shower. While waiting to hear from his brother and plan their takedown, Dane had a lady to charm. And judging from her reaction last night, he wasn’t too far from accomplishing all of his goals.

* * *

The vibration on the nightstand irritated the hell out of Ethan. Couldn’t a guy get a good morning’s sleep? If that damn thing kept going off, he’d throw it out the open patio door, not caring if it landed in the ocean.

He turned his face into the soft, warm pillow and blinked against the sunlight streaming in. He purposely kept that patio door open so he could hear the ocean crashing to the shore. Security wasn’t an issue—unless a thief who could defy gravity decided to scale the high-rise penthouse. Ethan had confidence he was safe.

Besides, he thrived here. The beach, the ocean, the endless water views from his bed. He’d grown up in Montana and the mountains were fine for his brother, but the second Ethan had set foot on a beach, he knew exactly where he belonged. Everything about this atmosphere called to him and he couldn’t imagine spending his life in the mountains like Dane.

The cell buzzed again and Ethan rolled over and smacked the damn thing before pulling it toward him. The screen lit up with a few texts from numbers he didn’t recognize and a voice mail alert from Dane.

The texts could wait. Even though they were likely from the ladies he’d met last night and Ethan rarely kept a woman waiting—in bed or out—this business with Dane had to take top priority. They both had their own individual goals, but their joint goal had Ethan sitting up in bed, the sheet pooling around his waist as he dialed his brother.

“Did I interrupt anything?”

Dane’s answer in lieu of hello had Ethan grunting and glancing to the other side of his king-size bed. The four-legged, furry feline hadn’t stirred since crawling over his face to get to her spot in the middle of the night.

Not many people knew about the fur ball that he’d rescued. But damn it he’d seen the poor lethargic thing out in a storm and he simply couldn’t leave it there. Ethan had had every intention of finding a new home for it.

Two years later, they were still together.

“I’m sandwiched between two redheads,” Ethan replied, instead of mentioning the real pussy in his bed. “This better be good.”

“I’m at Mirage in Gold Valley.”

Ethan felt a swell of pride and anticipation, quickly followed by a dose of jealousy and longing. Dane had already pushed through to the next phase of their mission to gain back what belonged to them, but timing was everything and Ethan wasn’t quite ready to make his presence known at Mirage in Sunset Cove.

“I’ve already gotten close with the manager—who also happens to be the owner’s daughter—and it’s just a matter of time before I can get the angle I need to get this location back in our family.”

Our family. They hadn’t been a true family since their mother died. When that happened, Dane had closed in on himself, their stepfather had shown his true, greedy self and Ethan...well, he’d turned to anyone who could make him forget, even if that was for just a night.

“You’re moving fast.” Ethan threw off the sheet and swung his legs over the side of the bed, taking a moment to enjoy the breathtaking view. “And here I thought I was the charming, irresistible brother.”

“You’re cocky. There’s a difference,” Dane retorted. “What have you found out about Robert?”

Ethan raked a hand over his bare chest as he came to his feet. “Right now he’s comfortable in Hawaii. We’re so damn close. I want to lure him in. I need him at Mirage in Sunset Cove.”

“You’re confident you can get him there?” Dane asked.

“He’s never been able to turn down the idea of making millions.” Ethan had formulated a rock-solid plan, but he needed his brother’s help. “If he thinks he can get this resort back and flip it again to make money on it twice, he’ll break records getting there.”

“Don’t make a move until you tell me,” Dane stated. “I want to be there when you approach him. We’re a team on this deal.”

Right. A team. Ethan had hinged his entire life on that...or at least the first eighteen years. But losing their mother had torn a hole through both of them, and they just hadn’t been able to reach each other across the empty space. They’d stuck together until they’d both finished high school but then, motherless and penniless, they’d both joined the military and gone their separate ways.

They stayed in touch, calling and texting, randomly getting together, but nothing was the same. Ethan couldn’t even blame their polar-opposite personalities. When they’d been growing up, they’d simply balanced each other.

While Dane was more studious, Ethan had been a jock. They could put down an extra-large pizza—covered with sausage of course—and one ate all the edges, the other ate the entire middle. Everything they’d done just seemed to jive.

As adults, well, they were more acquaintances than anything. Their main goal of taking back the resorts and annihilating Robert had always kept them bonded...but Ethan wanted more. He wanted his brother back. In the years since they’d split apart, no one had filled that void. He was always surrounded by people, but he was lonely for family.