The Millionaire's Secret Wish by Leanne Banks

More money? Intro into the country club?”
    Dylan smiled. His half brother had clearly underestimated him. “No, I want your support to start a bioengineering research division of Remington Pharmaceuticals.”
    Grant did a double take. “That’s pretty damn expensive.”
    “Yep. I’ve got start-up funding for the first year.”
    “From who?”
    “A private charitable organization,” Dylan said.
    “That’s a lot of money,” Grant said doubtfully. “I don’t know many people who want to part with that much for charity’s sake.”
    Dylan grinned again and lifted his glass. “Then maybe you’ve been hanging around the wrong crowd. Do we have a deal or not?”
    “You’ll support me as CEO if I support the bioengineering research project,” Grant clarified. “You’ll need more than my votes.”
    Dylan nodded. “I have more than your votes.”
    Dylan watched a glint of surprise cross Grant’s face. “How?”
    “Favors,” he said. “I’ve collected a few.”
    Grant studied. “You’re smarter than I thought. I underestimated you.”
    “Don’t worry about it. You’re not the first. In fact, you might say it’s one of those things that has served me well my entire life,” Dylan said.
    “So how do I know you’re not going to try to stage a takeover against me?”
    “Because I don’t want to take over anything,” Dylan said. “I just want one little piece of Remington to grow on my own. You were born and bred to the job, and that’s okay with me. But by some little crazy twist of fate, I ended up with a seat on the board, and it’s not enough for me to just sit.”
    Grant gave him a long, measuring glance, then seemed to make up his mind. He extended his hand.“Deal,” he said. “Next time we’ll have dinner at my house.”
    Dylan felt a rush of triumph and surprise as he shook his half brother’s hand. He could almost believe Grant meant every word, but Dylan wouldn’t hold his breath. The most important thing was, he had what he wanted in sight.

Seven
    F rom the staircase Alisa tentatively watched Dylan as he stared at the front door Grant had just closed behind him. This could be good or bad, she thought, and gave in to her curiosity. “How did it go?”
    He turned around and grinned widely. “Great!” Rushing toward her, he grabbed her in his arms and swung her around. “Thanks to you.”
    Delighted but confused Alisa clung to him for dear life. “What do you mean thanks to me? It was your idea to invite Grant and the others to dinner.”
    He stopped, allowing her to slowly slide down the front of his body to stand on her feet. His chest was hard, his scent made her dizzy, and the look in his eyes dissolved her knees.
    “But you gave me the idea by saying it might be to my benefit to spend some time with them in a different setting.” He lowered his head and kissed her. “Thanks.”
    Alisa’s heart hammered in her chest. His arms held her loosely against him, but she was all too aware of his closeness. All too aware of his vitality and masculinity. “You’re welcome,” she managed. “Does this mean you’ve had some kind of meeting of the minds?”
    Dylan nodded slowly as if he still didn’t quite believe it himself. “Yeah. He even said something about inviting me to dinner sometime, but I won’t hold my breath. What’s important is he has agreed to support my proposal for a research project for Remington Pharmaceutical.”
    Dinner. Alisa’s heart and mind hung on the word. Maybe Grant was a little closer to accepting Dylan. “I’m so pleased,” she said. “I wish the others had come, but—”
    Dylan waved aside her concern. “I don’t need the others. All I needed was Grant’s support to give me a little extra weight. Turns out he wants my support so he can be CEO. I don’t need the others.”
    Her heart tightened at his words. She couldn’t help wondering if Dylan truly needed anyone. It seemed as if he’d built a world for himself where he was nearly