“I just wanted to have the chance to speak to
your father,” I said sorrowfully. “I know that man from my childhood is in there somewhere, and if Nick started all this, I knew it could be undone. He only has one voice in his ear right now, and it’s not fair. It’s not fair to me, it’s not fair to you, and it’s definitely not fair to your father who is being manipulated by your brother for Nick’s own advantage. Your brother is a terrible person for doing that to your family.”
“Look,” he said, turning to me with a kind look. “I appreciate what you are trying to do, and I understand what you are saying, but my brother is right.”
“He’s what?” I picked up my head and looked straight into Nathan’s eyes, unsure of what he was trying to say.
“It’s his turn to run the business,” he said, sighing. “My father has made his decision without discussion or reason. So if that’s his decision, he will have to live with the repercussions of watching his business be run straight into the ground. I’m tired of trying to keep the business going with so many people with ulterior motives trying to take it down at every turn. My father has made his bed, and now he will have to lie in it.”
With that, Nathan put the car in drive and pulled away from the mansion we both spent our entire lives growing up in. I watched as the beautifully kept lawns and the staff working diligently faded away in the rearview mirror. Part of me was incredibly sad to see that part of my life go, and if I was going to be with Nathan, I didn’t know how I felt about him walking away from everyone and everything he had always known. All because of me. I had always been the voice of reason, the one that kept everyone together, and now, I was the one tearing it all apart. Nick was malicious and had been out for Nathan’s spot in the company for a very long time, but if I hadn’t come into the picture, he would have never had the opportunity to snatch it right out from under Nathan. Having my family all wiped away made it hard for me to accept Nathan just walking away from his, but at the same time, I understood how hurtful all of this was for him.
I looked over at Nathan as we drove along, and I could see how calm he looked on the outside. He had come to my rescue yet again, and I couldn’t stop for two seconds to see that even with the best intentions, I managed to push the situation into a worse place. At that moment, I just wanted to take it all back. I wanted to take back ever going out with Nick to that dinner, I wanted to take back ever falling in love with Nathan, no matter how much it hurt. If I could reverse time and remove myself from the equation, none of this would be happening.
Nick would still be gallivanting all over California, sleeping with random women, and trying to make bad business decisions that Nathan would quickly block. Sure Mr. Landers would still be miserable and alone, but he would at least not have to deal with his sons battling over the company. I didn’t know what happened to Mr. Landers after his wife died, but he went to a dark place, and Nick was there to make sure he stayed there. Mr. Landers was not only capable of trashing my name around town, but he was able to watch his son, who had done so much for him and his family, walk out of the door without another word. I loved Nathan so much, but I knew it wasn’t enough to take the sting of betrayal from his own family out of his heart. All I could do was sit and wait for him to make up his mind.
Chapter Seventeen
Nathan
I loved this girl sitting next to me in the car so much, and I was extremely touched by her desire to fix this for me. I knew how it felt to love someone and sit there watching their lives turn upside down, and not be able to fix it. It was a helpless feeling, but in this situation, there was nothing that she could do. Sadly, her presence at that house was not only dangerous now that my brother had turned to violence, but it was just going to continue to make things worse.
I wanted so badly to make her feel better, to let her understand that I was going to make the best choice I could, and that everything that I did in my life now, I considered her as part of it. I had fallen deeply in love with Ronni, and there was nothing I could do to change that, nor did I want to change that. She was the most amazing thing to ever happen to me, and she opened my eyes to life. Before her, I was stuck in the daily grind of the real estate empire, constantly trying to make my father proud of the accomplishments I had made. In the end, though, I realized that my father didn’t care what I did with the company as long as his paychecks kept coming in, and he could keep going to the golf course with his buddies. He really had no idea how idiotic Nick was and how he was going to take all of his and my hard work and flush it straight down the toilet.
We pulled up to the house, and I walked Ronni to the door, grabbing her arm and pulling her into me before we could walk inside. I hugged her tightly, trying to show her just how much I cared, and how appreciative I was to have someone that was willing to put it all on the line and stand up to a man like my father. She truly cared about me more than I ever realized, and I couldn’t even think about spending one more day, in the business or not, without her right there by my side. I looked down at her and pressed my lips against hers, softly at first, but then hard and passionate. She ran her fingers through my hair, leaning into my kiss and pulling back to look deep into my eyes.
“I’ll be back soon,” I said, comforting any fear she might have.
“Where are you going?” She looked concerned, and that was the exact reason I needed to go finish this here and now. I couldn’t keep putting her and me through this never-ending stress.
“Don’t worry,” I said, leaning down and kissing her forehead. “I promise it will all be okay.”
With that, I turned and walked back to my car, jumping in and speeding off. As the warm California winds blew through my hair, I thought about the last decade that I had spent carving and molding the company into what it had become. Last year, we were listed as one of the most powerful real estate conglomerates in the world, and I knew it wasn’t because of stupid little investments like nightclubs and abandoned buildings. It was because I had put blood, sweat, and tears into every single merger, every single acquisition, and every single major sale that floated out of that office. I had developed an understanding of the industry that only someone that spent years in the company would fully appreciate. Nick had none of this. He had a college degree he didn’t earn, a bank account he didn’t earn, and a tired-ass attitude about himself that would surely be one of the things that brought him down later in life.
This was a time that I needed to fully put my, and Ronni’s, needs before anything else. I needed to finally start making decisions that were based on my own well-being. Every decision I had made to that point was for our family and the betterment of my father’s golden parachute, never taking the time to realize what my dreams and aspirations were. But earlier, sitting on the beach, breathing the salty air, I let all of that go. What Ronni didn’t realize was that I had already made my decision, even before I knew it myself. I had finally made a choice that I wanted to make, and the only thing left to do now was to explain that to my father and let the chips fall where they may.
I pulled up in front of the house and jogged inside, hoping not to have to face Nick again. Luckily, he wasn’t there anymore so I walked straight into my father’s office and stood in front of his desk. He looked up at me with no expression and waited for me to speak.
“I don’t care whether you like Ronni or not,” I said. “It’s not your right to make that decision. I love her with all of my heart, the way you loved our mother, and I won’t let you or some sniveling brat like Nick who wants to lie to you about her, change that. In the end, Nick doesn’t even compare to me in the business arena. He will get eaten alive, and these business ventures he drops on my desk weekly that are nothing more than broken down shops and old houses, are going to be what takes the company down. I have busted my ass day in and day out since Mother died to run a company you let fall to the wayside in your grief. I brought you back from the recession, I increased profits three-fold, and I turned our old company into one of innovation and future. If you think that idiot has any chance of continuing that le
gacy, then you are more senile than I thought.”
I stepped forward and shook my head. Sadness overcame me, looking at this man I no longer recognized. I didn’t see care or desire in his face. I saw deep and hollow grief, a never-ending sadness that just sucked the life out of him. He pitted my brother and me against each other all the time, but I wasn’t seeing that here. I was seeing a complete lack of caring.
“Look,” I said, lowering my voice. “I know it must be hard living every day without the woman that you love, the woman you shared your life with, but being angry at the world, bitter even, and taking it out on the people that are closest to you would not be the way that Mom would have wanted you to keep living life. She had a zest for life like no other, and she didn’t take that when she left. You let it slip away. I can’t help you get that back. I have done everything I could for this family. I have gone out of my way to make this family my own, sacrificing my life for your company. And how do you repay me? By listening to the lies and bullshit from your other son, who you know is incompetent and selfish. It’s really sad how all of this has come to head.”
“Give it a rest,” Nick said, strolling into the room. “You act all high and mighty, like you are so damn important. You are a control freak, and you got lucky with the business. You had all of it fall into your lap. It’s laughable that you think so highly of yourself or even feel you are able to point fingers. Now you’ve come to grovel for your position, knowing full well you don’t deserve it.”
“Relax, shit stain,” I said, wanting to punch my brother again. “I don’t want the job. You are more than welcome to have it.”
“Welcome,” he scoffed. “I earned it.”
“Yes, you earned it with your bad investments, drinking, and disrespect for women like throwing Ronni on the floor,” I responded, watching my father’s eyebrows raise, but then seeing the care slip back away as soon as it came.
“Well, if you would keep your women in line,” he said.
“Nick,” my father said impatiently. “Get out of my office.”
“Yes, Father,” he said, looking like a scolded puppy scurrying out of the room.