He himself was an expert at getting his way, so the fact his baby brother was trying to play him, only pissed Ren off more. He cleared his throat, hoping Fernando would get the hint and end the phone conversation, if you could call it that, with whatever woman he was trying to impress.
Finally, he heard a loud squeal come through the phone, one that would’ve completely blown a normal person’s ear drums, but, obviously, Fernando wasn’t normal. Oh no, the little prick had his feet crossed on top of Lorenzo’s three thousand dollar handmade desk, like he owned the place.
When he realized subtlety wasn’t working, he strode into the office. “Ando, get the fuck off my phone and get your ass out of my chair.” His deep voice reverberated throughout the spacious office.
Watching his younger brother jerk his hand to cover the mouthpiece, while struggling to explain what was going on to an obviously dumb-ass woman would’ve been comical, had Lorenzo not been standing like a fool himself for the last ten minutes.
He reached across the desk to push Fernando’s feet off the polished wood and grabbed the phone. A quick press of the off button, had the obnoxious voice on the other end cut off mid-screech.
“Dang, Ren, you couldn’t let me finish my convo?” Fernando sputtered.
“Your convo is over. Now get your ass up,” Lorenzo snarled.
Fernando got to his feet, staggering a little. “Dude, why are your panties in a wad?”
“Mom should’ve drowned you when you were born.” Lorenzo shook his head. “Really, you ask why my panties are in a wad? How old are you, two?” Would you go to jail if you accidentally threw your sibling out a window?
Lorenzo walked around the desk and claimed his seat, beyond pissed his brother seemed drunk or high.
“You’re just jealous cause I’m Mom’s favorite,” Fernando teased, black eyes glassy.
The familiar taunt almost made Lorenzo smile. “Sure you are, right after Gia, and then Angel, you know Mamá claims her as her own, too. But I’m still the oldest, which means I’m her pride and joy. However, that is not the issue.”
His brother placed his hands on his too-thin hips. “So what’s your prob, Bro?”
“My problem,” he enunciated each word, “is that you booked the largest VIP room at Club Inferno without clearing it with me, and you didn’t tip the waitresses. That’s my problem, that and the fact you comped not one or two, but three bottles of Dom to some other table. Man, in one fucking night, you not only spent a shit ton of cash, and charged it to the club, but you had no respect for our business.”
“Come on, Ren, you know I’ll make it right with the girls. I just got a little drunk.” Ando’s tone became hesitant.
“You just get ‘a little drunk’ four nights out of seven, every week. And, let’s be honest here, shall we? Those are the days you work here.” He drummed his fingers on his desk. “The other three nights, I’m sure you’re getting your drink on somewhere else. We are not running a charity here. Your total last night hit the five figure mark, and that’s a lot, even for you. You owe Lacy and Jain, who worked their asses off for you and your friends, only to be treated like crap, and, from what I hear, you hit on them while your piece of the week was right beside you.” He intentionally left out the fact the ladies had actually gotten tips from several of his brother’s friends. The point wasn’t that they hadn’t gotten paid, but that they hadn’t been taken care of by their employer, and that pissed him off.
“Fine, I’ll pay them tonight.” His brother growled, face red from embarrassment.
Lorenzo shook his head. “No, you won’t. I already had it transferred from your account. You’re officially on hiatus.”
“Ren, man, you can’t do that. I’m a partner here.” Ando leaned over the desk, the smell of whiskey permeating the air.
Pushing back to put a couple feet between he and his brother, Lorenzo tried to keep his voice down, knowing it was a losing battle. “Bullshit. Partners work the same amount of time and put the same amount of dedication into a business in equal measures. I put down more than half to buy Mom and Dad out, and work six days a week here. You still owe me for most of your half. My new club is opening in less than two months, and I have to rely on my business partner to carry more of the load there. Why? Because my brother doesn’t carry his weight here, that’s why.”
Fernando’s face turned an even brighter shade of red. “Screw you, man.”
The conversation wasn’t going the way Lorenzo had planned. He’d expected anger, but the image of defeat staring back at him from his brother, almost made him relent, until Ando stood up and paced to the wall, slamming his fist into the wall. “There you go. How old are you now, twenty-seven going on seven? You need to reassess your life. If you don’t want in here, then I will find someone to share the load because I refuse to be your money train.”