Page 125 of Reckless Harmony

Rayna placed the steaming hot coffee mugs on the table before sinking into the chair next to him. He took her hand again, holding it tightly as they watched his father add milk to his coffee and take a sip.

“How is your mother doing?” he asked.

Stark grimaced. “This isn’t a social call, and you don’t get to talk about her ever. Just tell me what’s going on with the company.”

Alexander’s nostrils flared in annoyance, but his tone was civil when he said, “The company’s in a bit of a downturn, currently.”

“Currently? Your company has been failing steadily for months,” Stark said.

His father’s lips pressed together in a thin line. “At this moment, I don’t have enough cash flow to cover our monthly expenses, including payroll and the building rent.”

He arched an eyebrow at him. “So, cover it yourself. You have plenty of liquid cash.”

“I have bankrolled the company for the last year and a half,” Alexander said. “My personal funds are no longer enough to keep the company functional.”

“Year and a half… are you fucking kidding me right now?” Stark said.

“Obviously, I am not,” his father said grimly. “If I don’t find an investor in the next few days, Stark Gaming will fold. Which is why I’m here.”

Rayna jumped when Stark barked harsh laughter. “You want me to invest in the company?”

“I do,” Alexander said.

“No,” Stark said. “Find someone else.”

“Don’t you think I’ve tried? Believe me, I have exhausted every possible avenue when it comes to investors, Isaac. You are the company’s last chance.”

He leaned forward when Stark didn’t say anything, his fingers tapping out a nervous beat on the table. “The company is solid. You know it is. We’ve just had a few missteps in the last couple of years.”

“A few?” Stark said. “The last six games you’ve released have failed dismally. Why should I invest in your company when it’s failing?”

His father took a deep breath. “Five months ago, we hired a new developer. A kid named Jaxon Miller. He’s good, Isaac. Really good. The game he’s developing right now will turn the market on its head. I promise you. We’re releasing it in three months. All I need is enough of an investment from you to keep the company afloat until its release. You will get your money back. I promise you.”

Stark rolled his eyes. “The developers Jasper hires don’t know shit about gaming. Why the fuck you ever let Jasper take charge of the company is beyond me. He’s useless and -”

“I hired this developer, not Jasper! And the reason Jasper is with the company is because you abandoned me,” his father snapped. “I couldn’t run the company on my own, and you knew it, but you still left. What did you expect me to do when you walked away?”

He didn’t want to feel guilty, shouldn’t have felt guilty, but he could feel it creeping in anyway, like a rank smell in the house that you couldn’t get rid of no matter how often you cleaned.

“He didn’t abandon you!”

Stark stared in surprise at Rayna as she leaned forward, her face full of fury. “Isaac left because you refused to see how talented he is. Even if the games he produced weren’t number one in the gaming community, you know goddamn well how amazing he is. It’s the reason you drove him away. Instead of being proud of him, of supporting him and his incredible talent, you couldn’t stand the idea that your son was better than you because you’re a terrible fucking father. Even now, when you’re asking him for help, you have to try to cut him down because that’s what people like you do. You make yourself feel big by making others feel small. What an absolute dumpster sack of rancid donkey meat you are.”

His father’s mouth gaped open, a look of stunned surprise on his face. Hot warmth flooded Stark’s chest. Rayna’s utter lack of fear in standing up to his father and her fierce defense of Stark filled him with pride, joy, and… love.

He stared at Rayna, his pulse skipping wildly, and the knowledge that he loved her an all-consuming drumbeat in his brain.

“You… you can’t speak to me that way,” his father said.

“Why? Because I’m a woman or because I’m telling you the truth?” Rayna asked.

“Isaac,” his father gave him a look, “control her, please.”

Laughter bubbled out of Stark’s chest as Rayna snorted. “Control me? Christ, no wonder Angela dumped your sorry ass.”

His father’s face turned an alarming shade of red. He pushed back his chair and stood, his hands clenched into fists at his side. “I’ve said what I came here to say, and the rest is up to you. Just remember that Stark Gaming employs people with families, people who need their jobs and would be screwed if the company folds. These are good people who don’t deserve the actions of what your selfishness would create.”

He paused in the kitchen doorway. “Call me if you decide to care about someone other than yourself for once.”

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