Page 91 of Bad for Business
I nod. “I know. I messed up, but the job still got done. He’s getting approved by the board. Shouldn’t that be what counts? We succeeded, Dad. That’s a good thing.”
He looks back at me with a scathing glare. I try not to back down from it, but I don’t know if he’s ever looked at me with as much venom in his eyes as he does now. “I can’t even celebrate the accomplishment because you had to sleep your way to success.”
I try not to wince at his words. I don’t want him to get away with speaking to me like that. I don’t want his words to have power over me. Not when I know they’re wrong.
I push my shoulders back and take a deep breath. “I didn’t sleep my way there. I put in the work. I could tell you an ungodly number of details about every single member on the Davenport Media board. I worked hard to make sure Ryker had positive media attention and that he put in the effort to earn the confidence of the board. I didn’t sleep my way to success. Iearnedit.”
Dad scoffs and it’s one of those moments I know I’ll remember forever.
It’s a moment I realize that even though I’ve spent my entire life wanting his respect, I’m not so sure ifIeven actually respect him. And I don’t even know if I even want to be accepted by him anymore. Who cares about the opinion of someone who talks to their daughter like this?
“You made Vaughn PR look bad. I should’ve sent someone else for the job. They would’ve gotten the job done and wouldn’t have slept with their client to do so.”
I’m normally pretty good at hiding my reaction to things. I’ve learned to have a poker face with this job. But my jaw drops and the smallest gasp passes my lips.
He didn’t just say that. Surely I’m not hearing him correctly. My father can be mean, but that was just cruel. Maybe he’s always been cruel; it just took Ryker pointing it out to me to finally realize it.
“Dad,” I whisper, shaking my head. I stare at him in disbelief, wondering what I did wrong in my life for him to care about me so little. I’m his daughter. I idolized him. My entire life, I’ve done everything he’s asked of me…and now, I can barely even stand to look at the man sitting across from me.
“Don’t use the‘dad’card on me. At work, you aren’t my daughter and I’m not your father. You’re just an employee. One I expected better from.”
I nod. Fine. If he wants to treat me like an employee, then he shouldn’t be shocked by my next question. “When can I expect to be made partner?” The question has been at the back of my mind since the moment we left the Davenport beach house. At first, I was worried about my job, but as I had time to gather my thoughts during the car ride to the airport, I realized Dad won’t fire me. He might not admit it, but he knows I’m an asset to thebusiness. I’m damn good at my job. Better than anyone else at Vaughn PR.
I know I still have my job, despite how angry he is with me. What I don’t know is if he’ll hold up his end of the deal now that I’ve succeeded with my half.
He’d been looking at his phone, so disinterested in our conversation that he was no longer looking at me. My question catches his attention, and his eyes immediately find mine as he raises his eyebrows. “Is that a joke?”
I press my lips into a thin line to hide any kind of reaction. “No. I fulfilled my end. I got Ryker his board’s approval. You said if I did that, I’d make partner. I did it. I want to be made partner at Vaughn PR.”
He laughs and the sound makes my skin crawl. It’s condescending and cruel. Nothing about what I said was funny, but the way he throws his head back and claps his hands, you’d think I was a comedian.
Finally, he gets control of himself and focuses on me once again. “Of course not. You’re lucky to still have your job, Camille. You’re not being made partner. Not even close.”
I was prepared for his answer. It’s exactly what I was expecting him to say, but it still stings to hear. I can’t deny there was a small, naive part of me that was hoping that maybe he’d stick to his word.
But deep down, I knew better. I was never going to get the promotion.
Ryker was right. My dad never intended to make me partner. I just made it easy and gave him a way to deny me the position, even after holding up my end of the bargain. No matter how good I’ve been at my job, no matter how much I’ve dedicated my life to Vaughn PR—tohim—none of it was enough. It was never going to be enough.
And it was about time I realized that, accepted it, and did something about it.
I refuse to spend the rest of my life trying to accomplish the impossible. I’m never going to earn his respect, and I don’t even think I’ll ever impress him. He’s never going to be proud of me, and that’s something I have to be okay with.
Because it doesn’t matter.
He’s my father, and I’ve tried my entire life to be the perfect daughter so maybe one day, he wouldn’t see me as a burden, but all of it was pointless.
I’ve been the perfect daughter.
But he’ll never be the perfect father.
He’s never really been a father at all.
And it’s about damn time I stop wasting my time trying to pretend that will change.
I put in the work. I became one of the most sought-after publicists at only twenty-four. I’m good at my job. I don’t need him. I’ve never needed anything from him.
I stand up as a freeing feeling takes over.
