Page 102 of Tender Offer
KD moved back to London to be closer and now works with me out of the main office. She wasn’t happy when I rushed her homeafter her appointment, but I saw Madison’s eyes. I was losing her. A fact that was confirmed when I arrived home to an empty house less than an hour later.
“Eat.” William thrusts a barbecue lamb skewer in my face. He passes two others to Dayo, who devours everything but the wooden sticks. “Damn, Deep Throat.”
“Fuck off,” Dayo chides, tossing his rubbish into the bin. “I’m grabbing halal.” He heads across the street to a corner spot we discovered during my daily walks.
I pop over from our office for lunch and after dinner in hopes of seeing Puff. Texting is the extent of our communication. She’s not ready for a call yet, but I’ll take whatever I get.
Madison
You have a child to worry about, and I don’t want to get in the middle of any mess.
I reread one of her recent texts and sigh. She has every right to feel the way she does, which is part of the reason I gave her space after she left. How could I beg her to stay when I was struggling to come to grips with the fact that I’m going to be someone’s father?
It wasn’t fair to Madison, but I refuse to let her think I stopped loving her—or that me and KD will rekindle something that was never there. Our interactions are solely baby-related now. William takes meetings with her unless it’s imperative I’m there. He and Dayo are the only ones who know about the baby. Outside of Puff, who I plan to win back.
“How long are we in New York?” William gnaws on his skewer like our father didn’t shell out hundreds of thousands on etiquette lessons.
“At least a week,” I say.
“Jewel did you a favor disclosing her aunt’s location. How much did that bribe cost?”
“A month’s worth of groceries for struggling neighbors in her parish back home, funding for political education about climate change, and bail fund investments for mothers and caregivers.”
If it weren’t for the trust Jewel and I established, she would’ve told me to fuck off a long time ago. Madison didn’t tell her niece about the baby, but Jewel knew to give me a hard time.
William whistles. “Whatever it takes.”
I nod.
Dayo returns with some chicken over rice, which he shovels into his mouth. Then we do our laps until it’s time to go back to the office.
The sun is lower, no longer strangling us with its heat, but it’s still boiling. William and I model sweat marks on our shirts rolled up to our elbows. Dayo is breathing easy in a light polo and shorts with trainers.
I sigh at another unsuccessful attempt but welcome the blast of cold air once we reach our Donnelley property. The Upper East Side location is a beaux-arts building with ornamental windows and a grand staircase.
“Good evening,” Sadie, our new general manager, greets. She hands me a thick manila envelope. “This came for you.”
“Thank you,” I say.
Dayo heads to the security room, and William and I take the lift to our tenth floor offices.
“You know you have to let go at some point, right?” I meet William’s frown with one of my own and open the envelope. He runs a hand through his blond hair, which remains unbothered by the humidity.
“I love Madison for you, but you can’t keep chasing her. You got a baby on the way no one knows about and our father on your heels trying to deprioritize damn near every initiative you have in place. Bow out, bruv.”
My eyes snap from the document in my hand to my brother. “What did you say?”
“Bow out. All of this isn’t the answer.”
“Take myself out of the equation.” I repeat Jewel’s words as I zero in on a highlighted clause.
“Exactly.” William’s relief comes through ragged breaths. He’s been more than my brother these last few weeks. He’s been my best friend, a surprising voice of reason who kept me fed and out of jail.
My steps slow off the lift, until I’m laughing for the first time in over a month. The answer to ending my father’s reign has been here all along. “You’re a genius,” I say.
“Obviously.” William pauses. “Want to clue me in?”
His face twists at my grin. “I’m calling an emergency board meeting. I quit.”
