Fraud: A Stepbrother Romance Read online

  *****

  My father worked in the military as a mechanic on tanks. He was deployed all over the world, and saw action in Iraq and Afghanistan.

  A piece of shrapnel ended his military career, but he fell into a business opportunity soon after. He became part-owner of a company that manufactured one of the components of a special kind of tank armor. The company got an exclusive contract, and Dad found himself fairly wealthy in a rather sudden way.

  While in the service, he’d never been married. When he got out, he’d started the business, and for a while that was all he had.

  But, then he met my mother.

  She’d been a country western backup vocalist with Merle Haggard and even did some work with Tim McGraw.

  Then, I came along, and Dad and Mom were all wrapped up in helping me grow into a little girl who liked ponies, and doll tea-parties, and all the girly things I really loved. I went to a private school, and took piano lessons and all that.

  My favorite kitty was named “Mr. Boots”, and I would try to dress him up with bonnets or sweaters that my Mom would knit for me.

  It was a picture perfect childhood.

  Mom was a very sweet woman, and she would sing songs to me, while Dad was out playing golf or doing whatever to drum up more contracts.

  I remember how happy we were, as Dad’s business grew, and my mother and I spent hour upon hour doing all the things most people only dream about doing with their mom.

  It was a wonderful time, and seemed magical.

  I’d never been happier.

  Then, when I was just fourteen, Mom got sick.

  She had cancer, and Dad spent a lot of money trying to help her fight it.

  She lost.

  *****

  Dad was at loose ends for a while, then one day he showed up with Margaret.

  “Just call me Peg,” she said to me.

  Peg had two sons, one who was my age and the other one a lot older. Derek and Blaise were their names.

  Derek and I soon became fast friends, but Blaise was a mean, spiteful little shit.

  If Blaise had been a girl, then he’d have been Cinderella’s meanest stepsister.

  I was relieved when he finally went off to college.

  But, a few years later, when Derek joined the Navy, I was crushed.

  I thought that he’d at least ask me to move out with him, or run away to some foreign country. I’d daydream that we were in Paris, living the Bohemian life, and making sweet love in the evenings.

  My imagination fueled many of my teenaged orgasmic dreams, but then one day Derek was simply not there anymore. He’d gone off to join the Navy.

  And that meant I had to deal with Peg directly.

  Until then, she had been content to let Blaise handle all her dirty work for her.

  Before he left, Derek had acted as a minor but effective barrier between us.

  Shortly after they’d been married, Peg would hide her manipulative scheming behind Blaise, and blame him whenever I’d go crying to Dad.

  At first, Dad would believe me and was even-handed in his discipline, but I guess old Peg would swallow, or take it up the ass, or something, because Dad became more and more on her side in these arguments.

  Blaise became a more adept liar, and Dad finally just let Peg handle the disciplinary duties of the family.

  He must have still had a lot of the mindset of men from his generation, not wanting to be bothered with the raising of the children, as that was ‘women’s work’. Which didn’t necessarily make him an asshole, but it certainly didn’t help me at the time.

  Peg would interfere constantly whenever I showed any sign of interest in boys, and in Derek in particular.

  Once, she even smacked me in the face with a coat-hanger.

  When I told Dad, he just rolled his eyes and told me I’d have to do better, as Peg was very clear in her instructions.

  He took away my privileges for two weeks! When I cried and protested, he just shook his head and walked away.

  I looked at him leaving with disbelief, and ran to my room, crying. I’d never been so humiliated, and felt totally alone.

  Peg’s smirk of triumph made it all the worse.

  “You stay in there until you can behave like a young lady,” I heard her say through the door.

  I did hear them yelling at each other later that night, but by next morning, Dad was back under her spell.

  “Now you know who wears the pants in this family, and it surely isn’t that ball-less cretin,” she said acidly.

  “Try me again, you little bitch, and you’ll be so sorry you’ll never know what hit you!” she screamed.

  I was stunned.

  Two weeks went by, and I swore I’d never be held under her claws ever again. I bided my time, avoiding her like the plague.

  On those times when we’d have to interact, I was strictly obedient to the letter, but only just.

  She could sense my hatred of her, and tried like hell to burn me, but I was getting very good at playing this stupid game.

  Finally, I’d had enough.

  My last year in high school, I studied my ass off, graduated with honors, got a scholarship, and moved out.

  Peg was seething, but there was nothing to be done about it.

  I was just eighteen, and that made me an adult in the eyes of the law.

  My Dad was sorry to see me go, but he knew I needed to go out on my own and get away from Peg’s toxicity.

  He quietly helped me pack up and move. He never said anything negative about Peg, but I could sense his relief at not being in the middle between us.

  It made me feel sad that he’d given his life to this harpy. But, I also realized that it was his choice.

  “I love you, Daddy! Thank you for helping me get organized here at college,” I told him.

  We hugged, and then he kissed my cheek and looked me in the eyes.

  “Don’t judge me too harshly, Megan,” he said.

  I could sense he was almost on the verge of tears.

  “You don’t know what my life’s been like since your Mother passed on,” he said.

  He seemed to want to add something else, but then he just hugged me once more, and got into the moving truck, and drove off, waving.

  The leaves whispered in the trees as he left, and I felt very sad for him.

  He was going back to where I had just escaped.

  And, he was doing it for me.

  I was sure of it.

  *****

  About a year later, Dad had a stroke.

  I went to see him in the hospital, and Peg left the room while I was there.

  He was really messed up, and even shed a couple of tears when I told him how well I was doing in school.

  He smiled feebly at me when I took his hand and told him how much I loved him.

  I asked if he were proud of me, and he barely nodded.

  But, I knew he was.

  I couldn’t give him a big hug, so I just kissed his hand, near where the IV tubes were inserted. He winced slightly, and so I just patted his arm, and then walked out.

  I made it to my car before I broke down completely.

  I cried a long time, then drove my rental car back to the airport.

  *****

  It was almost a year later when he died.

  He never got to see me get my Juris Doctor, but I know he would have been proud.

  I attended his funeral, went to the reading of his will.

  Derek was deployed somewhere, and he didn’t show.

  But, of course, Peg did.

  I only spoke to Peg for as long as I needed to get the necessary legal matters settled, and then left to live my own life.

  Peg was there with George Tanner.

  I didn’t know who that bastard was, then, and I just noted he seemed put together okay - ruggedly handsome, kind of sinister looking in a nondescript way.

  I don’t know why he was even there.

  Peg certainly didn’t need him for sex.
r />   After all, Peg can fuck herself.

  *****

  Peg cheated on Dad with at least three men that I know.

  The first was Sam Parker, who was Dad’s close friend and partner.

  Peg and he had a brief affair, and Sam divorced his wife, but Peg stayed married to Dad. I don’t think Dad suspected anything.

  Sam was a successful black Officer from the Marines, who had the political contacts they needed to get into the armor business.

  Sam was very loyal to Dad, at first, but then when Mom got sick, he kept pestering Dad about the amount of time he was spending taking care of her. Dad and Sam had some harsh words, but Sam needed Dad more than Dad needed Sam.

  Peg’s next lover was the air conditioner guy. I called him that, because I never knew his name, and it seemed to me that the A/C was always fucked up. I didn’t put it together until one day I saw Peg stick a hairpin into the thermostat on the third floor of our house.

  Next thing you know, here comes the A/C Guy.

  He was nothing special, but he was pretty swarthy and muscular.

  I heard them screwing in my Dad’s room, and was going to say something to him about it.

  But, I lost my nerve when Peg told me she’d tell Dad about me and Derek.

  The last guy was someone I only recognized when I was reviewing the King case files.

  He was an associate of Robert King, named George Tanner.

  I knew the face, but only discovered that Peg knew him when she showed up at the funeral.

  I suspected that George Tanner had something to do with Sam’s death.

  At least, he was the last person seen with Sam, before Sam’s burned out wreck was discovered at the bottom of a ravine in Racine, Wisconsin.

  There was some possibility of foul play, but nothing could be proven. The body had been burned beyond recognition.

  Sam and George had been both seen in Las Vegas, and then Reno. There was a definite business connection between them.

  And, the fact that both had been fucking Peg was interesting, in some morbid way.

  Despite my suspicions, I had not been able to uncover anything during the trial.

  I remembered seeing a photo of George and Bobby King on that fishing boat in Key Largo that was in Dad’s affects while reviewing the contents of his safety deposit box.

  The boat was named the “Punta Gordo II”.

  That means “Fat Tip”, in Spanish.

  No doubt a reference to how much of a dick the owner was supposed to have…or be.

  But, the letter “n” was almost invisible, so it really read “Puta Gordo II”, which I found odd and funny.

  It’s Spanish for “Fat Whore”.

  That photo dug at my memory for a long time, because I knew that boat.

  Back when I was a kid, it had been parked on the dock outside of our house for almost two years, coming and going at odd intervals.

  I always wanted to ride on it, but Dad never even let me on board.

  He told me he was keeping it for Sam, and that he promised to look after it. But Sam was funny about kids being on the boat, and didn’t want me on board, so that I wouldn’t get into trouble.

  I tried sneaking onto it one time, but all I got was grounded for a week, so after that I just ignored it.

  *****

  What were King and Tanner doing on Sam’s boat?

  Chapter 2

  MEGAN

  After Dad died, Peg got the mansion on the water, and most of Dad’s money.

  Oh, I got a nice trust fund, and wasn’t hurting by any means.

  Dad had made sure I had college covered, and the fund allowed me to travel around for a while.

  I missed him, and it took a couple years to finally realize he wasn’t going to pick up the phone ever again when I called late at night.

  I’d long ago decided Peg could fuck herself, so I rarely went back to Florida.

  She could just fuck off and die, and I wouldn’t even care much.

  She’d totally screwed me over, and ruined anything I could possibly ever have had with Derek.

  Her and her asshole son, Blaise.

  After George Tanner, Peg ended up dating a series of wealthy men; doctors, businessmen, but no attorneys.

  I guess she had some issue with them since I had gone off to study the law.

  *****

  Derek had fallen of the face of the earth, now completely inside the Navy.

  I was sure he was doing dangerous work, and he would be killed! The thought of him doing brave things made me proud of him, while at the same time my heart sank!

  I silently prayed he would be safe, and secretly wished he’d come back and we could be together.

  *****

  When I was a teenager, I thought Derek and I were meant to be together, and that it was just a matter of time until it happened.

  That he was my stepbrother made it awkward, but I was too young to understand all that.

  When I ended up in college, I finally understood that it would be impossible for us to be united in ‘that way’.

  I became depressed, and suddenly everything was difficult.

  I struggled with my classes, and took to eating too much.

  I rarely went out, and my sorority sisters thought I was a big stick in the mud.

  “Come party with us!” they’d say.

  But I demurred, and begged it off as needing to study.

  Which I really did, but then I’d lock myself in my room with a pint of ice cream, and a box of tissues, and mourn my failed romance with Derek.

  Which, of course, Derek never even seemed to acknowledge…I mean, it’s not like he knew my real feelings, right?

  He’d sent some letters and emails to me when he could, but I knew he had no interest in pursuing the life I wanted for us both.

  He was always off on some great adventure, saving America from all the evil terrorists and other villains out there.

  My own boring life paled in comparison with such excitement.

  What could I possibly offer a man of action like Derek had become?

  *****

  At that point, I hated my education and life so much I just wanted to die.

  One day, while walking around between classes I was dodging anyway, I thought about jumping in front of a train or bus, but decided it was too messy.

  I thought maybe I’d just swallow a handful of pills and drift off to oblivion, but that seemed cowardly.

  Since I didn’t own a gun, that was out.

  Maybe I could hang myself? Or jump off a bridge?

  Sheesh!

  What a train wreck!

  What a drama queen, I thought.

  The world would be better off if I were gone, I thought.

  I was walking down the street, heartbroken and sad, when I came upon the unlikely solution to my woes - Alfred.

  Alfred was this funny little dog, that was huddled under a bush.

  He looked scared and hungry, and shrank away from me when I held out my hand to him.

  I really don’t know what breed he was, but he looked a bit like a beagle mixed with a Chihuahua. Maybe some dachshund in there, too.

  I coaxed him out of the weeds, and he cuddled in my cupped hands.

  He whined a little, then licked my fingers. He nibbled my forefinger, and I took him back to my apartment.

  I gave him some milk and half and half, while I drank a coffee and did a quick search for pet stores near me.

  An hour later, Alfred was bathed and fed, and had an appointment with a vet to get his shots.

  His cute brown puppy eyes looked at me and he licked my face.

  I rubbed his tiny head, and he yawned and soon fell asleep.

  I felt the glimmer of hope, and a feeling of happiness I hadn’t in a while.

  I silently thanked the Lord for sending him to me.

  A month later, we were inseparable.

  He wasn’t Derek, but at least I had come back to life.

  *****

 
After I graduated Magna Cum Laude with my undergrad degree, I applied for Law School at Harvard.

  When I was accepted, Peg sent me a single text message: “Good luck on your husband hunt. You will need it! ‘Love’, ‘Mom’.”

  Just like that, with the quotes around ‘love’ and ‘Mom’.

  The poison dripping from her fangs was palpable.

  God, I hated her!

  After graduation, I was too busy with my career to care anything much about her.

  Oh, I sent an obligatory card for a holiday or birthday, but I was wasting my time trying to have any kind of normal relationship with her.

  And then, Derek was back in my life for a few blessed months.

  *****

  He had been working on some kind of classified program, and the startup that had won the contract lost some funding, so he was between gigs, and he needed a place to crash for a while.

  He never spoke much about his work, since he’d been indoctrinated into that kind of life.

  Dad had been much the same.

  He’d always be doing interesting stuff, but none of it was able to be discussed outside of the community. All that top-secret mumbo jumbo got pretty dull after a while for the rest of the family, since he couldn’t confirm nor deny anything.

  One time, we saw him smiling at a news report about some state-of-the-art laser weapon that had been in the news.

  “Old news,” was all he said when we asked him about it.

  Years later, after he’d died, I’d found out from a fellow attorney who specialized in the JAG cases that Dad had apparently been the head of that project. He’d been in charge of it for like fifteen years, and never said a word about it to any of us.

  Derek had that same reticent behavior when it came to his work. He would merely change the subject.

  When he called me and said he’d be in town for a few weeks, my heart skipped a beat.

  He asked if I could stay with me, and I replied that, of course, he could bunk with me!

  I had a comfortable apartment at the time, and a spare sofa bed.

  When I hung up the phone, my nipples were erect, and my loins ached for him.

  I’d gladly let him stay with me, hoping we could finally address the elephant in the room - how we really felt about each other.

  But, my case load was pretty heavy, and Derek was always trying to lasso his next gig, or so it seemed.

  So, we never really got into anything serious.