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Mom conspicuously chose the head of the table where Dad usually sat. “Thank you all for coming. Unfortunately, we are one short, but she can be filled in later.” Mom directed her gaze to me.
Everyone was here. Even Vincent and Ashley had been summoned from Boston.
“Who’s missing?” Brittney asked.
“Nicole,” Mom answered.
It seemed like all their eyes moved instantly to me for confirmation.
Serena knee-bumped me under the table.
Mom looked at me and tapped the table. “And that is, in a way, the reason for this meeting.”
“I don’t think she’s the problem,” Dad offered.
Mom shut him down instantly. “That’s right, Lloyd. You are.”
The room hushed.
“You and each of our children. Today it happens to be Joshua,” she continued.
I was in for it if Mom was using my full name.
My shoulders slumped as I felt the heat of everyone’s gazes.
“You two are tearing this family apart with your refusal to compromise,” Mom added.
“I don’t understand,” Zack said.
Mom turned to Dad. “Yes, Lloyd, why don’t we start with you explaining your position to everyone.”
Dad brightened. He seemed to have been waiting for his opportunity to tell everyone how insubordinate I was. “Benson Corp. wouldn’t be the same without a Benson at the helm, and Josh is slated to replace me after he finishes his advancement plan, which involves several years running the London office.”
The group seemed to be going to sleep listening to this.
Dad lifted his coffee cup in my direction. “However, Josh has decided to renege on his written promise to me, and won’t go to London.”
Zack’s eyes widened. He understood the line I’d crossed.
I sat up. “Nicole can’t go, and I’m not leaving her. It’s as simple as that.” That was my stake in the ground.
Dennis spoke up. “Dad, just have him skip the London assignment.”
“It’s not that simple,” Dad replied as he stared at me. “Logan has developed… a medical condition, and I need somebody I can trust to replace him. It has to be a family member. Anybody else would be too risky at this point.”
Logan Benson was Dad’s only cousin. As a family member, he was the only one Dad trusted to run such a large part of the company without direct supervision.
Dennis had a smug look as he leaned toward me and whispered, “You could fly back and forth.”
“What was that?” Mom asked.
Dennis shook his head. “Nothing.”
Mom wasn’t settling for that. “You forget, young man, that all you boys share responsibility in this. And you too, Lloyd.”
Dad looked offended.
“Not me,” Zack complained.
