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“Neither. I kept him outside in the cold.” He shrugged. “You’ll need your coat.”
I pulled one from the hallway closet and rode the elevator downstairs. Through the windows, a man in a brown wool coat paced the entryway.
The badge on his front pocket read, “New York Commercial Insurance.”
Jerry sent me down here for a sales pitch?
“I have insurance on all my properties already,” I said, joining the man in the cold. “I’m hosting a business fair at the Barclays Center next month, though.”
The man stopped pacing and stared at me.
“Since you’ve been so determined to talk to me, I’ll give you a couple of discounted tickets.” I pulled a business card from my pocket. “This is my business partner, Denise. Call her tomorrow and tell her what I said.”
He didn’t move to take the card.
He remained frozen, not even blinking.
I looked over my shoulder to make sure security was within reach. I spotted two guards eyeing us from a town car and another watching from the corner.
“Okay, well…” I tucked the card into his pocket for him. “Best of luck to you, sir.”
“I’m really proud of you, son,” he said. “I’ve always wanted you to know that.”
“Have a good night as well, sir. I hope you—” my sentence dissolved amidst the snowfall.
“What did you just call me?” I asked.
“I’m your father,” he said.
“I’ve never had one of those.”
“I can prove it.” He slid a hand into his breast pocket, pulling out an envelope.
It was my turn to leave him hanging.
The streetlamp above us flickered a bright white, illuminating his face. The resemblance was undeniable.
He was me in twenty years.
Well, except I had much better hair…and style.
“I know it’s been a long time…”
“It’s beenforty-five fucking years.”
“I came here for your last birthday, but your people refused to let me see you.”
“Thank God for that,” I said. “You’re a very good lookalike, so go play this game with someone else.”
He frowned. “I’m not playing a game. It’s the truth.”
“What’s myrealmiddle name?” I asked. “The one on my birth certificate that you signed before abandoning me?”
“I didn’t get the chance to sign it,” he said. “But I know it’s Brooks, even though all your public bios claim its Benjamin.”
I said nothing.
There was no way that the stories I’d believed and repeated for years were lies all this time. My chest was aching and reeling, and it was only going to get worse.
