Too Bad... It's Complicated Read online

  “But speaking of biological, I haven’t seen Britney yet.” Harold looked around the thick crowd, trying to spot the pretty golden-haired daughter of Christopher Baldwin. He turned back to me. “Have you seen her, Patrick?”

  I shook my head. “No, sir. I just got here, actually.”

  “Oh, this reminds me. Pat, you better look for Britney. I have an announcement to make that’s going to involve the two of you.” Chris smiled at me and then kissed mom’s hand. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes and then watched him go up onto the stage.

  Mom turned to look at me. She hadn’t greeted me since I got here, at least, not in the same way that Chris had. Her body turned to face me and then she straightened my tie for me and brushed my dark hair out of my face. Her own blonde locks were elegantly pulled back in a low ponytail but Lara Baldwin, even at forty-five, still stood out from the crowd.

  "Go call Britney, love. Chris has been talking my ear off about this announcement for a while now," she said softly, and I could read the unspoken words in her eyes. She was as excited as she was worried about this announcement.

  I nodded and kissed her cheek and disappeared into the thick throng of the crowd to look for a certain blonde that was just as gorgeous and feisty as my mother. Had our parents never gotten together, I would’ve been with her. As a couple, we would’ve been amazing. Too bad we were family.

  “Lauren!” I called her best friend who was talking to my best friend. Sometimes I think that everyone around us could be together except us. It's not that I have feelings for Britney, but I would never deny that I’d always found her attractive.

  “You’re finally here!” Alex exclaimed, rounding the table and giving me a short hug. Lauren did the same thing. Alex nudged my shoulder. “Wait, you’re not looking for me, are you?”

  I shook my head and turned to his girlfriend. “Have you seen Britney?”

  “We arrived here together since we got ready at her penthouse but I haven’t seen her since we got here,” Lauren answered. Beside her, Alex wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer, making her squeal at the sudden gesture. “I was too preoccupied with this one.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I think it would be best if you two get a room.”

  Alex snorted. “You’re just jealous that you don’t have a date. Did Kath bail on you again?”

  Kath was my on again, off again, on-call date. I wasn't entirely sure what I should call her, but we were never official. She's usually the one I brought to these events simply because it was expected. She was the daughter of another politician, we danced around the same circle, and our relationship wasn’t something out of the blue. Except, there hadn’t really been a relationship to begin with.

  “She’s in Bali,” I replied with a shrug and then turned my attention to Lauren again. “You sure you have no idea where to find her? Did she tell you her date?”

  “I don’t think she needs to tell me her date, Pat since it’s obviously Morgan.”

  I pursed my lips in annoyance. Of course, where else would she be other than Morgan Steelman’s arms? The last time that we had brunch together, about two weeks ago, she was raving about how amazing Morgan was, telling mom about how great and sweet and thoughtful he was. She was just the same as every other girl Morgan had set his sights on, just as love-struck and stupid.

  “I think you know where to find them, Pat,” Alex said, winking at me. The stupid dickhead knew that Morgan made my blood boil and the fact that Britney was dating him of all people made me angrier.

  I made my way to the rooftop of the hotel that hosted this event. Morgan had made a name for himself by screwing girls in public places, mostly the rooftops of whatever venue we were all in. I cringed when I heard the moaning and the groans. It was hard to imagine that sweet little Britney was one of the participants.

  “I hope you brought a condom Morgan because I’m not entirely sure my sister uses the pill.”

  The gasp from Britney was enough to tell me that I would be getting an earful after this. She gathered up the dress she had been wearing and tried to cover herself, but I saw enough to make me have daydreams about her for a week, not like I didn’t already.

  Morgan narrowed his eyes at me but pulled up his pants and zipped them up. “Jealousy doesn’t suit you, Patrick.” He turned to Britney and then glanced at me for a moment. “I think your brother might have something to say to you for him to barge in and intrude like this. I’ll see you back at the party.”

  Britney nodded and fixed her dress, covering herself again as Morgan left us. I remained where I stood, giving her privacy until she stood up to face me. “What the hell, Pat? Didn’t we agree not to intrude in each other’s love affairs?”

  I pulled on a thinking face and then shook my head. “We never did, sis. And mom and Chris have been looking for you. Your father has a big announcement to make.”

  She smoothed down her dress and took a few more steps closer to me. “He’s probably gonna announce his retirement.”

  Her statement made me pause. “What do you mean?”

  Britney looked at me with her gorgeous golden eyes. Liquid gold, the kind you get lost in. Her eyes always got to me. Britney exhaled loudly and flipped her golden hair. Gold and gold, if she were a painting, that would be the only color the painter would ever use.

  “Daddy promised mommy that he’d retire when he turned fifty-five. I never really thought he’d honor it. But when I was younger, he used to tell me that he wants to make sure I was ready to take over when he’s at that age.” Britney walked past me and then stopped when she was near the exit. “What are you doing still standing there, big brother? Come alone, our parents are waiting.”

  She reached for my hand when I was near, and I ignored the burst of electricity that shocked us both, almost forcing me to let go of her hand harshly. It was always like that every time we touched. But Britney didn’t seem fazed by it one bit. Maybe I was imagining it.

  The two of us reached the party just as Chris got up on the makeshift stage to make a toast. Britney and I made our way to where mom was standing, and Chris glanced at us briefly, nodded his head and winked and then began to say, “Everyone, ladies and gentlemen, I thank you all for gracing me with your presence. It warms my heart to know that all of you want to welcome me back home. It’s been a while since I’ve been here. Washington demanded so much of my time.”

  Chris lowered his champagne glass and looked at everyone with the kind smile that I thought had been engraved on his face since he was a kid. “I have a very big announcement to make. I’ve discussed this with my lovely wife, Lara, and I know it’s my duty to share it with everyone as well. See, when my late wife Catherine was still alive, I made a promise to her when Britney was still five years old.”

  He looked at Britney and gave her a wide smile, the kind that would let the world know how much he loved his daughter. “I promised Cathy that I would retire before sixty, that I would let Britney handle things on her own. But Brit’s just been accepted into Harvard for her Master’s.”

  The crowd erupted into wild applause, and Chris had to raise his hand to settle them down. "In other news though, I do have a son, and I can't just step out of being a humble public servant just like that. I have to finish my term which will give Britney enough time to finish her Master’s. As for Patrick, he's already all set to run his own so why not run mine, son? Patrick's always been like a son to me, and he is an outstanding young man. Blood does not determine brilliance, and I know he will lead Baldwin Stocks as well as I have."

  I stared at Christopher in shock as he looked at me in the way I’d always wished my father had. “Britney will be there with you along the way too, Patrick. You two will continue my legacy in the business. To Patrick and Britney, long live the Baldwin legacy!”

  Chapter 2

  Britney

  Daddy’s announcement became such a huge deal that for the rest of the event I was being whisked away and asked questions by almost every single adult
person in the room. What annoyed me the most was that I couldn’t be with Morgan. I wasn't sure who he was with, but I hoped that Lauren and Alex didn't leave him all alone. I knew that they weren't all that supportive of my relationship with Morgan - as unsupportive as Patrick was - but they weren't as cruel as my step-brother and wouldn’t leave him to fend for himself.

  Most people were already leaving when I finally found Lauren again. “Laur! Have you seen Morgan?”

  Lauren downed her drink and shook her head. “Nope. He was with Alex and I earlier during the announcement, and then after that, he said there was someone he knew, and he was just gonna say hi. I haven’t seen him since.”

  My eyebrows furrowed. It wasn’t that Morgan was a stranger to this kind of crowd. He grew up in the same world as I had so he obviously wasn’t. But I knew of Morgan’s reputation during these kinds of things, knew how he would drink a little too much and end up in a girl’s bed. Beside me, Lauren must’ve sensed my apprehension because she placed a hand on my shoulder.

  “I’ll help you look for him,” she said to me and then turned to Alex who’d just arrived beside her. “Baby, I’m gonna help Brit look for Morgan, okay? I’ll meet you in the car.”

  Alex nodded his head, kissed her and told her that he's going to say goodbye to Patrick first. I used to find it so weird for Lauren to be dating my step-brother's best friend, but then again, nothing was weirder than my father marrying my crush's mother. Because I used to have the biggest crush on Patrick back in our growing years. We always crossed each other's paths growing up, and he was always so charismatic and had girls revolving around him like he was the sun, even when he was young. Actually, the crush never disappeared. It had remained forcefully dormant in the back of my heart.

  Too bad we’re family now.

  Lauren and I went out of the venue and searched the hallways of the hotel. It was when I passed by a linen closet that I heard the unmistakably familiar groan. My heart stopped. Lauren had walked past me because I had stopped. It took her a minute to realize I wasn’t walking beside her anymore.

  “Brit? What’s wrong?” Lauren asked. I stared blankly at the door in front of me as she approached the door. Slowly, I watched as my best friend reached for the knob and turned it open.

  I wished I had been wrong.

  “What the fuck, Morgan?” Lauren yelled; the shock so clear in her voice that I could feel the anger bubbling inside of her with what she had just seen.

  Morgan’s eyes went wide. He was naked this time, not clothed with his pants pulled down like how Patrick had seen us earlier. He hastily put on his clothes while the girl did the same thing. “Lauren, fuck! Don’t tell-,”

  “Tell me about it?” I asked, my voice sounding odd as I took a step forward to reveal presence. “What the fuck, Morgan? How could you do this to me? I thought…”

  I expected him to defend himself, to tell me that it was the alcohol that had made him do it or some other lame excuse that boys come up with when they’re caught cheating. But he did the exact opposite of that. Morgan scoffed and ran a hand through his tousled brown hair. “You thought I loved you. You honestly believed all the lies that came out of my mouth. You should’ve listened to your brother, you know?”

  Suddenly, I was too dumb to comprehend. “What do you mean?”

  Morgan huffed and had the audacity to wrap his arms around the girl he had just been screwing. “I only dated you because of your inheritance, Britney. Your family is at the top of the food chain in New York. Being with you made people believe that I would eventually marry you and, to be honest, I don’t mind marrying myself into a family loaded with more cash than my father.”

  “But you’re not the only one inheriting Baldwin Stocks, Britney. You have to share it with the fucking prick Patrick, and I don't like sharing." He turned to me with steely gray eyes. “You were never a good lay either. No thrill when it came to you. Might as well end this whole charade now that I know I won’t be getting what I want from it.”

  I wanted to slap him, but Lauren did the honors for me because I was too shocked to do so. Morgan didn’t retaliate, just dragged his cheating ass out of the room and dragged the girl along with him too. I slowly sank to the ground as I stared at the now open space in front of me, the shock slowly registering in my body.

  “Britney?”

  I could feel my body slowly shutting down like it had when my mother died and like it did every time something broke me. Lauren sat down beside me and then pulled me close to her. I could feel the tears start to fall as my best friend quietly soothed me.

  Hastily, I stood up. “I need a drink.”

  “Brit, I think it’d be better if you headed home.”

  I shook my head, feeling dazed. “I need a drink, Laur.”

  She didn't have much of a choice but to follow me down to the bar. She still tried to talk sense into me, but my mind was a whirlwind of thoughts. They warned me about Morgan, that he never dated without an agenda, but I had refused to listen. There was a reason for Patrick's obvious vehemence towards him.

  I waved at the bartender and ordered myself an entire bottle of whiskey. Lauren was trying to talk me out of drinking, but I’d already downed one glass. I turned to look at my best friend. "Did it ever occur to you that he might've been dating me because I'm Chris Baldwin's daughter?"

  Lauren rubbed my arm and smiled apologetically. “That’s what Alex and I always tried to tell to you, Brit. But you were so entranced by him that you weren’t listening.”

  “God, I’m so stupid,” I muttered, pouring myself another glass and downing it in one go, wincing at the heat in my throat. "I should've just listened, but no, I'm too hard-headed for my own good."

  Lauren tried her best to console me while I continued to be bitter and hysterical. I wasn’t sure how many glasses I’d had when Alex came. “Whoa, I didn’t think it’d be this bad.”

  I turned to look at him. “Could you beat him up for me?”

  Alex smirked and then lifted his fist. It was red and raw. “Patrick’s disposing of him in a taxi to send him home. Morgan won’t be making any appearances for a while.”

  I downed another glass just as Patrick arrived. “I thought you were making sure she wasn’t getting herself too drunk.”

  I turned to face Patrick. He looked completely disheveled, and the anger was clear in his bright green eyes. "Are you here to tell me ‘I told you so'? Because if you are then go ahead and gloat, Pat. Indulge yourself in the truth that you’re right.”

  Patrick sighed and ignored me. “Lauren and Alex can go. I’ll take you home.”

  “I don’t want to go home.”

  Patrick replaced Lauren on the seat, and my best friend bid me goodbye and walked out of the bar with Alex. Patrick moved the whiskey out of my reach but left me with the glass that was half-full with the alcohol. “I’m sorry that Morgan broke your heart, Britney. But moping around in a bar and drinking yourself to oblivion won’t make the pain go away.”

  I tried to reach for the bottle, but he swatted my hand away. "You can’t stop me from drinking my sorrow away, Pat.”

  “But I can drag your ass out of here and to your penthouse. Now, if you don’t want a scene to unfold and be caught by the media and stain your father’s name, I think it’s better that you just come along with me without complaint.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him, but Patrick wasn't fazed by my glare. I remained in my seat still, finishing the drink left in my glass as he waited for me patiently to stand up. When he realized that I wasn’t going to leave anytime soon, he seized my wrist and pulled me close. Too close.

  Our faces were inches apart, and if one of us moved even just an inch, our lips would have touched.

  I wondered what it would feel like.

  “I’m taking you home, Britney,” Patrick whispered, his green eyes bright and intense. He stood up, my wrist still in his hand as he dragged me out of the bar. At least he knew not to make it too forceful so we didn’t receive unwanted a
ttention. I didn’t even bother fighting back. The electricity that sparked between us was enough to numb the betrayal I felt. That, and I was drunk enough not to be able to walk properly.

  Patrick managed to get me into his car and drive me to my penthouse. Neither of us lived with our parents anymore, not since we’d started college. Patrick had been the first one to move out, and in all honesty, we only lived together for two years. His place was a bachelor pad and was given to him as a gift from his biological dad.

  Patrick parked his car right beside mine and then helped me out of the car, carrying me. My arms wrapped around his neck and I snuggled closer to him, inhaling his scent. “What’s your passcode?”

  I peeked at him and realized we were already at my floor. I must’ve been drunk enough not to take note of my surroundings. I placed a finger on Patrick’s jaw, tracing the stubble slowly. “I’m afraid if I give it to you, you’ll come as you please.”

  He shivered under my touch. “This isn’t the time to play games with me, Brit.”

  I giggled and then allowed him to put me back down on the ground. My back was still pressed against him for support as I pressed down the digits that would open the door of my place. Patrick helped me inside and placed me on the couch. I reached for the whiskey that I had on the table, something I’d kept there for Morgan when we had been together. I poured two glasses and pushed one to Patrick. He was still standing in front of me.

  Patrick exhaled loudly. “I’m not gonna stay and listen to you cry about Morgan Steelman, Brit. He’s not worth your tears. He was never worth your time.”

  I took a sip of my drink. “You’ve told me that a million times since I began dating him two months ago. I know you weren’t thrilled, Pat. I know why too.”

  “And why didn’t you listen?”