Page 26 of Just a Plot Twist
Peter, who is second in command at Foundations, is seated in a comfortable chair opposite the desk. He drops his head back and looks at theceiling, barely able to contain himself. “It wasn’t my fault! I didn’t know the pool guy had moved Mandy’s stack of pool mats. I was distracted and I walked right in like I had no clue the pool was even there at all.”
“I would have paid money to see that,” Thomas says. His shoulders bob up and down a little and I wonder, with a start, if this is what it’s like when Thomas laughs. Like, actually laughs.
“Me, too,” I add good naturedly.
“No one else saw it. But Mandy was confused when I came into the kitchen, sopping wet.” Peter creeps his chair closer to Thomas’s desk and rests his forearms on top of it, giving into laughter. Thomas joins in, in his own, reserved way.
This is a different side of my father. Maybe I should hold off on bringing up the issues I found with Peter’s accounts. I hate bursting this bubble.
Soon, though, Peter brings up some of the forecasting his team has done for next year and we’re solidly in business mode like normal.
A few minutes later, when Peter leaves, Thomas leans back in his office chair, chewing on his bottom lip.
I’m pretty sure I’ll always think of him as just “Thomas.” I tried calling him “Dad” for a while, but it never felt right. Joe Kilpack was my dad. Thomas and I were both relieved when I began working here and started calling him by his first name. The buffer of being at work made the change not as awkward as it could have been.
“Benson, how’s the job these days?” He steeples his fingers in front of his chin.
I sink into the chair across from him. “Oh, well, I enjoy it here at Foundations.” I let out a short breath. According to well…everyone…he’s a lot more laid back than he used to be. But still, I can’t get rid of the sense that I’m going to disappoint him somehow.
He eyes me carefully. “And the family? How are things with them?”
I shift in my chair. We don’t usually have conversations like this. It’s either about the business or sports, and sometimes even family business about sports, like my niece Navie’s tae kwon do. We like to go to her meets. My sisters-in-law even make posters to cheer her on.
But this? This is new territory.
“Uh, well. Do you mean the Tate family? Ormyfamily…my kids?”
He shrugs. “Both.”
Why is he asking me this?
“Dax and Indie are great. Doing well in school. It was hard at first to move mid-year, but they’ve both been making friends.”
“And you’ve liked having them nearby? It’s good to have them over on the weekends?”
“Yes, very much so.” What is going on?
“Will they be in Highlands Ranch for the long term?”
“The kids’ stepdad, Harry, has opened up a new pediatrician practice, so I’m assuming this is it for them.”
“Good. Good. Uh, and what about your brothers? Is everyone getting along okay?”
Thomas Tate has been on the outs with nearly all his sons at one point or another. Although, by the time I came into their lives, things had mostly leveled out. His wife, Celine, had some health problems that mellowed him, taking him from the quintessential type-A high achiever to a toned down, softer, gentler version. Being a grandfather helped, I heard, as did when all six of the sons he’d had with Celine chose to work for Sebastianor strike out on their own. None of them, not even Gabriel, the one he’d always gotten along with best, ultimately wanted to work for him.
When he asked me to work here as chief technology officer, I jumped at the chance. It was a big step up in my career and I’d been looking for a change for a while. Losing your parents and going through a divorce will do that to you.
The only downside was being so far away from the kids, except now, they’re here. There aren’t any downsides, are there?
“It’s great with the brothers. I mean, I admit it used to be a little awkward, since they were all so close. But things are pretty effortless with them now.”
“That’s great.” But he’s scowling. Something is definitely on his mind. “And the job? Do you like it here at Foundations?”
“Of course.” I hedge, a prickle in my throat. “Is everything okay? We don’t normally…”
“No, we don’t. And yes, everything’s—” He sighs and shoves the heels of his hands in his eyes. “I want to make sure you’re happy here. Here at Foundations and in Denver. I don’t want to leave anything…unresolved.”
Underneath it all, Ithinkhe’s a good person. He loves his family in his own way, I have no doubt about that.
