Page 105 of Tender Offer
“Preston.”
“Goodbye, Bellamy.” My vision tunnels on the door. I have to get the hell out of here.
Something told me to push for a paternity test. But I was so caught up in trying to seize the reins of this company, I never stopped to question Bellamy.
Too many men shrug their children off and leave them for mothers to raise alone. I never wanted a child with Bellamy, but the seed I thought was mine would never want for anything, in this life or the next.
“It was a mistake!”
I keep walking.
“I heard you talking to William about Madison after you returned from holiday and realized she’s the one. I was jealous. I didn’t mean to sleep with him!”
What in the entire fuck?
I can’t look at Bellamy, but I glare at my brother.
“Inevertouched her, bruv,” he asserts with his hands in the air. “I swear to you, Pres. It wasn’t me.”
“Well, who the hell is the father of your child?” Hugh scolds.
Bellamy’s sidelong glance is all I need. “Fucking hell,” I say. “Myfather.”
The least he could do is look remorseful that he has a child on the way outside of his marriage. But he seems bored, as if the revelation that he’s having a baby with his best friend’s daughter, who’s half his age, is an inconvenience.
“I was lonely on the Malaysia trip,” Bellamy reveals. “You broke my heart, and he was there. It just…happened.”
William leaps for our father, but Michael pulls him back. “You son of a bitch! Have you no fucking decency?! What about my mother?!” He squirms in Michael’s grasp, testing the strength of the buttons ready to pop from straining over his chest. His face is beet red, and his eyes demand blood.
“Had I known a one-time fuck turned into a pregnancy, I would’ve told her to abort it.” My father’s nonchalance earns him my fist to his face. He stumbles when my knuckles connect withthe soft tissue of his nose and pulls a hankie from his suit coat. I hope it’s broken.
“You disgust me!” I spit. “Whenever I think you can’t stoop lower, you prove me wrong. It’s always about you, no matter who you hurt.” I shake my head. “How could my mother ever love someone like you?”
Hurt flashes in his eyes. “Leave her out of this.” His voice is a low gravel.
I huff. “You always do.”
“I loved your mother!” My father bangs his fist to his chest in a roar. “I haven’t lived since Antonia took her last breath in the hospital on the day you were born. You think you know loss? Your grandfather threatened to disown me and strip away my inheritance if I married your mother. The only reason he gave a shit about you was because you came out shades lighter and he could use you to hate me.
“I coped with Antonia’s death by pretending it didn’t matter that I never got the chance to say goodbye. Life took from me, so I returned the favor. Preston, hate me all you want, but you were conceived in love. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about your mother, wishing I knew how to let her go. If you learn anything from me, don’t let love consume you like I did. You’ll never recover when it’s snatched from you.”
I’ve never seen my father get emotional, much less cry. He wipes the only tear he lets fall and heads for the door. “You are my constant reminder she’s gone,” he says over his shoulder with sad eyes. “Antonia would be proud of the work you’re doing. I’m sorry I was a disappointment, son.”
Hugh chases after him without a care for his daughter, who’s sobbing.
“I’m sorry,” Bellamy sniffles.
“Do your baby a favor and take care of yourself. It’s time for you to leave.” Any attempt to make sense of the fact that thechild I thought was mine is actually my sister will cause an ulcer. KD and my father will need to work out their dynamic. I want no part of it.
“I expect your letter of resignation on my desk Monday,” William says with a power I no longer possess.
Michael hugs his sister, who cries into his suit as they leave.
“I never understood why he hated me until now.” William’s eyes are still on the door our father stormed out of, the shock petrifying him in place.
“He doesn’t hate you. He hates himself,” I say. William looks up. “I’m sorry you’ve been a casualty of his regret. You’re my best friend, Will, and a better man than he’ll ever be.”
Our father was hard on me, but he ignored William’s existence.
