Page 6 of Defending Love
Ella reached for my elbow, pulling me back to present. “Sit down, Dani,” she whispered.
Nodding, I took my seat, aware of the presence of the last man I’d had feelings for and the warmth of his stare on the back of my head.
Chapter
Three
Dani
* * *
As Darius stood, the man in the dark suit approached. Darius lifted his hands and turned toward the rest of us who were also standing. “I didn’t have anything to do with what happened to Dad and Marsha.”
Damien’s jaw clenched. “The police and our security are investigating every possible lead.”
Darius turned to me. “Dani, talk some sense into him. He’s wasting time when the real threat is still out there.” He scoffed. “He could be right there.” Darius jutted his chin toward Damien.
“Stop with the accusations.” I took a step back. “Stay safe, Darius. If this person’s motive has anything to do with Sinclair Pharmaceuticals, you could be on their radar.”
He smirked and jutted his chin toward Damien. “He’s done all he can do to alienate me from Sinclair. Now, with Dad gone, I’m sure he’ll do what he can to take over my stock. Maybe I should take his offer. Getting away from this company could save my life.” He reached for my arm and lowered his voice. “Damien’s an asshole but listen to him about security. You could also be on the assailant’s radar.”
“Escort our brother off the premises,” Damien said. He gazed around as mourners made their way to their cars. “Where’s Dylan?”
“Mom took him to the car to stay warm,” Ella replied. She reached for my hand. “Are you all right? Earlier, you looked pale.”
“Tired,” I said with a sigh. “I want to go to bed for the next month, but I really should head down to Florida and check on Mom.”
“We need to call a board meeting,” Damien said. “We should let the members know the status of business affairs regarding Dad’s passing.”
The three of us walked away from the casket as workers prepared to lower it into the vault. Due to Indiana’s rainfall, all caskets were sealed in concrete vaults to avoid them springing to the surface during highwater.
“Grace Haas is out of the country,” I replied. “Without Dad and Mom, there won’t be a quorum.”
“If Mom gives you proxy, we can address filling Dad’s spot.”
Closing my eyes, I exhaled. “Can it wait until next Monday? Surely, no one expects us to meet following the funeral.”
“It’s been two weeks,” Ella reminded us. “We don’t have any problem members of the board, not since Gloria Wilmott resigned.”
That was a story for another day, a day when I had more energy. In a nutshell, Gloria attempted to blackmail Damien into marrying her daughter Amber. Thankfully, the two Wilmotts had slipped away, hopefully, under some rock.
Our conversation ended as Art Hatfield and Rachel Stokes came closer. Art was the treasurer of the Sinclair Pharmaceuticals executive board and Rachel was the secretary. “Our condolences,” Rachel said with sympathy in her gaze. “Derek was…” She inhaled. “He’ll be missed.”
“Thank you,” I replied. “Rachel, do you think it would be out of line to wait to convene the executive board until next week. I want to get down to Mom for a few days.”
Rachel reached for my hand. “Marsha should come first. I’ll call the other members of the board.” She turned to Damien. “I’m assuming as CEO, you agree with this schedule.”
Damien nodded as Stephen Elliott, a friend of Dad’s and the head of Sinclair legal, joined us.
“I can’t believe he’s gone,” Stephen said.
It was a sentiment we’d heard over and over.
Stephen lowered his voice. “I know now isn’t the time, but I wanted to remind you that Preston Ayers would be a perfect addition to the executive board.”
I shook my head, unwilling to give mind space to Dad’s replacement.
Damien stood taller. “As in the Preston Ayers who was the dean of research at Indianapolis University?”
