Well…damn. Points to Lyle for throwing the first punch, but...
“How dare you,” my father snarls, standing abruptly. “I am her father…”
“Exactly,” Lyle says, standing as well. “Which is why I don’t understand why you are so against her making her own choices. So what if she wants to date me? Why the hell do you have a problem with it?”
My father’s face is going red with anger. It isn’t a good sign at all. His mouth is opening and closing as he struggles to find the words he wants to speak, too furious to form them properly. But Lyle seizes the opening and dives in.
“It’s because I’m David Thompson’s son,” Lyle continues sharply. “Because I’m your direct competitor and, in your eyes, Amanda is sleeping with your enemy. Well, newsflash; people don’t think like that anymore!”
Holy crap, Lyle is not holding back. I stare at him with wide eyes. I can’t believe that he’s saying all this. It’s amazing.
It’s wonderful.
“The choices that Amanda and I make are none of your business,” my father snaps. “We’re leaving. Let’s go, Amanda.”
What? No, he wasn’t supposed to leave. I glance at Lyle. He’s calm, but his eyes are on me, asking me something.
Asking me to make a choice, I suddenly realize. Only one thing will stop my father walking out that door before we come to an agreement on this.
“No.”
I almost don’t recognize my own voice. My father’s steps falter, and he swings back to face me, stunned. A smile is starting to tug at Lyle’s lips.
Some weeks ago, I sat across from Lyle in a bar and told him that my first priority was my work. Now, as I sit beside him and face down my father, I know I’ve made myself a liar. Somewhere along the way, Lyle became more important. The deal, the company, my father… All of it can fuck off. I want Lyle in my life. Even if everything goes to shit right now, then, somehow, I’ll just start anew and work at my life from a different angle.
With Lyle by my side.
“Are you really doing this, Amanda?” my father asks in a low voice.
“Yes,” I say calmly. “I want to be with Lyle. I’m carrying his baby. We’ve been in a relationship for weeks, and we’re compatible. You have no right to tell me who I can and can’t have a relationship with just because you don’t lie it.”
The words tumble out of
me. I’ve been dying to say this since he first ordered me to break up with Lyle. His approval is now the furthest thing from my mind, though.
Lyle is by my side. Lyle has believed in me and praised me and even supported my ambitions. If my father can’t at least support this one decision, then he doesn’t deserve my help.
My father snorts.
“Right,” he says sarcastically. “Are you going to go away and marry him, then?”
I flush angrily. But then Lyle steps forward, his expression serious.
“We haven’t been together very long; it’s too soon for us to even think about marriage,” he says. Then he pauses. “But I’m not going to rule out a future possibility.”
A red flush crawls up my cheeks. I can’t believe Lyle just said that! My father looks thrown too.
I glance at Lyle. Was that a joke? No, the expression on his face is completely sincere. He really meant it. Someday in the future, he can see himself marrying me.
What am I even thinking? It’s way too soon to even consider it! Even if it’s Lyle, I’m not about to marry a man I’ve only known for around a month.
“Future things need to stay in the future,” Lyle adds, completely unconcerned by the reactions of my father and I. “For now, I want to discuss the present. I love your daughter, Alan.”
My breath catches.
“When I first met her, I was smitten,” Lyle continues, not looking at me. His eyes are resting intently on my father’s face. “She was amazing and perfect. Then I got to know her better and, before I knew it, she had me wrapped around her finger. She’s smart, beautiful, independent and driven. She knows what she wants and she fights for it, never letting any of the obstacles get her down. I would be a fool to let someone like her get away.”
My heart is beating very hard. His words are straight to the point and plain, but I can hear the deep sentiment behind them. Part of me almost can’t believe that the woman he’s talking about is me. I don’t feel smart or perfect or amazing. Is this really the way Lyle sees me?