AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“My dad.” I hiccup. “Logan… I never knew… I was awful to him… How can he stand to look at me?”
Chapter 27
Logan
“Ican’tmarryawoman I’m not in love with.”
And there’s someone else. Someone who she says she hates me. But if she feels anything for me, then I can’t give up.
I take a deep breath before raising my head.
Mum smiles, her eyes shining, while Dad wipes a hand over his forehead, a grave expression on his face. His skin is still gray. He looked like stress was making him ill before Italy. But now he looks ravaged by it.
“I know this is our family business, Dad.” I wait for him to meet my eyes, but he doesn’t, so I continue, “But this is mylife. I’ll build the company back up from scratch, the way you did.”
Mum makes a hopeful sound and reaches to pat Dad’s hand on top of the breakfast bar in their kitchen.
“You know I can do it. I’ll work with Spencer like he wants. I can partner with him on Vex. I’ll talk to him. Make him see that Gabrielle and the business can still be secure without us marrying. She wants to continue her work as a doctor, it’s what she loves. And I’ll make sure she can.”
“That’s a lot of work, son.”
“It is. But you know I’m capable.”
Understanding shines back as he sees how serious I am. But his expression clouds over almost immediately, giving way to hopelessness once again.
“It’s everything. We owe billions. The company will fold before you’re even close to getting a return from Vex.” He sighs and rubs his eyes. “The only way it can be saved is if Spencer helps us.”
“And I’ll speak to him.”
“It won’t make a difference. He’s a stubborn bastard. The fact he’s even offering to help in the first place is incredibly generous of him. But he’s a businessman. He knows what he wants, and he’s stated his terms.”
“A loveless marriage for his daughter?” I snort, falling back in my chair.
“A secure partnership for her with a good man who will respect her and give him grandchildren as soon as possible,” Dad replies.
Mum rips her hand from his to wipe her eyes with a handkerchief. “This is our son’s future, Len. Not one of your business deals.”
She looks at me. “There’s someone else, isn’t there? I can see it in your eyes. Do you love her?”
“I—”
Dad grumbles. “Half of the marriages formed with love as the driving factor fail, Viv.”
“Over thirty years and we’re not doing so bad,” she snaps at him.
I meet her eyes, and she presses her lips together and gives me a tight nod. “This is your life, Logan. Whatever choice you make is yours alone. You’re the one who’ll have to live with it. Think about that.” She rises from the table, looking sadly at Dad before she leaves the room.
“She’s right.” Dad sighs. “We all must live with our choices. Even the ones we desperately wish we could change.”
I stand, swallowing the lump in my throat as I clasp his shoulder and squeeze. He places his hand over mine.
“Especiallythe ones we wish we could change.” He pats my hand. “The ones that hurt the people we love. The ones where we lose.”
I falter, considering sitting back down. But I know Dad. He’ll not want a shoulder to cry on as he thinks about the mistakes he’s made. About how his actions led to him being on the cusp of losing all he’s worked for. He’ll want to beat himself up in private.
“Go on, son. I’ll see you later.”
“Yeah.” I squeeze his shoulder one more time as he drops his hand from mine. “Okay.”
