What is Your View

By the time they had gotten ready to leave the bar, Julius had tried to convince his older brother to come home with him for the night. Zane was quick to reject this offer however.

Going back home meant having to deal with his father. He was in no shape to be doing that after all the alcohol that he had to drink. He was more than ready to tell the older man off about the plan he had been putting together behind his back in regard to his romantic life.

If he tried to do it now though, he was certain that it would turn into a fight which was the last thing that needed to go on with how late it was already. Instead, Zane was going to go back to his own place. The penthouse that he had bought in the city was exactly for these types of nights.

Being an adult meant that he didn't have to go home and deal with his father unless he wanted to. The percentage of times that he actually truly wanted to be with his father couldn't have even been rounded to a whole number hence why he had gotten the penthouse in the first place.

"You can just tell father I am too busy with something else tonight and he can look forward to seeing me the next time we get together for a family dinner. Just make sure to let him know that if he tries to bring another woman along to this one, I will definitely not be showing up." He hugged Julius and patted him on the back as he told the other this.

"I will certainly let him know that. I don't think he's going to be thrilled though. Considering you don't just avoid going home but you also rarely answer his calls or try to talk with him. You two need to work on figuring out at some point." Zane let out a derisive laugh in response to this remark.

"The only time that my father and I will be able to work out whatever is going on between us will be when he's buried fifty feet in the ground and I can talk to him all I want without him trying to justify his needless existence and the terrible things that he did."

"I can see that even a little bit of alcohol can't change your feelings about him. Remind me to not let you drink the next time that you're in the same space." His brother joked.

"Why do you think I rarely even touch wine when we are together. That and the fact that I don't want to get stuck with any kind of cleaning bill should wine somehow find itself flying through the air and over to the side of the table." To emphasize what he was saying, Zane motioned the act of the wine flying through the air with his hands.

"And honestly, rather than trying to get us to work things out all the time, you should really think about moving out of that place yourself." Zane commented as he took on a more serious tone.

"You know that if my father can ever get this marriage thing settled with me that the next person he's going to try and do the same with is going to be you." Julius grinned at this comment.

"I don't think that there is anything for me to be worried about in that regard. Considering I don't think that father is ever going to be able to convince you to marry someone he approves of, I think that I will be safe for a few decades to come." He teased before giving his brother another.

"Seriously though. If anything does happen, I will think about it. Right now though we both should be getting back with how late it is already. Let me know if you get ahold of any other information and I will keep you informed if I find out anything else about what father is planning."

Zane confirmed that he would before they both shook hands and parted ways.

"Thank you for being willing to wait for so long Clive."

"It's not a problem sir. Even I know that there are some things discussed that are better with fewer people around. Are you planning on heading back home tonight?" He asked as he shifted the car into drive.

"My penthouse, yes but not to where my father is. There is too much on my mind tonight and I would like to take some time to clear." Clive glanced back at the young mafioso through the rearview mirror but didn't say anything as he pulled out and began to head in the direction of the penthouse.

"I do want your view on something that I think you would be able to give me a good perspective on."

"Hypothetical or a real situation currently ongoing, sir?" Clive clarified as he shifted into traffic.

"Hypothetical but it could become real depending on some other pieces move around it."

"I see. Tell me what it is and I will see if I can come up with an acceptable answer that would be able to help you make up your mind." Clive replied as he prepared himself to listen to whatever the other was going to bring to him.

"Say you know that someone was going to set you up for marriage and it was going to be harder to get out of than usual. The setup of the situation." Zane told the driver who had a ghost of a smile on his face but didn't say anything as he continued to listen to the other.

"You're not thrilled about the situation and you don't have to get out of it because it would look bad on a number of different levels unlike other times." Zane continued as he looked out the window while speaking.

"Say you think of a plan to fake an engagement with someone else. A woman who you don't know that well and lives in a completely different world from you. Probably doesn't much like you as well but holds the kind of influence that would be able to help you out, would you take the chance?"

"I think that would depend on a number of things. Are any of these other women people you could put up with you? Could you do a temporary thing and break it off later? Would this other woman agree if she dislikes you? Could it cause problems later on down the road? Is there some kind of agreement that you two could come to?" Clive answered the question with a number of his own. None that Zane could object to or a waste to ask.

"I think that it is a situation that needs to be looked at as a whole picture rather than unrelated pieces." Zane made a noise of agreement in response to what the other said.

"I think that you have a good point there. Maybe some planning is in order before something like that could even take place." The young mafioso had an idea of where exactly the planning should start from.