Page 24 of The Betrayer
“You would rather I brought someone I picked up on a street corner?” I had intended the question to be cheeky. Paul didn’t see it that way.
“You might as well have. People are talking, Dad. People have noticed. Allen Johnson told me to get you under control before you do any more damage to your reputation and the company.”
“Allen Johnson wouldn’t know fun if it hit him like a ton of bricks.” I rolled my eyes. “And he’s forgetting the age difference between himself and his third wife.”
“And you wouldn’t know decency if it hit you like a ton of bricks.”
My son’s words stopped me in my tracks, pulling the breath from my lungs and the air around me for a moment.
“Excuse me?” I finally managed.
“You heard what I said.” There was no hint of remorse on Paul’s face, only a furious glare that looked like it was trying to melt me down to sizzling fat and bones. “Wherever you picked that kid up, she doesn’t belong here, and everyone sees it. Your behavior is going to end up affecting more than just you or me.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Who I choose to spend my time with doesn’t concern anyone but myself.”
Paul’s laugh was anything but humorous. “That’s where you’re wrong, and that’s something you’ve never understood. What you do affects all of us, not just you. People know you, they know your reputation, and soon, it’s going to bring the company down.”
“Where the hell is this all coming from?” Not once in my son’s thirty-two years had he ever spoken to me like this.
“Where the hell is this coming from?” Paul’s eyes widened with incredulity before he threw his hands up again. “It’s coming from years and years of you doing whatever you want and whoever you want, damn the consequences.”
“What consequences—”
“Do you know what happened at my meeting this morning with Emerson?” Paul cut me off. “No, of course you don’t because I haven’t been able to get a hold of you all day. He said that he wasn’t ready to invest in our company because of you and your reputation. And Allen threatened me because people noticed you were making out with a kid barely out of her teens.”
For once, I didn’t know what to say. This was the first I’d heard of any of this.
Paul unknowingly echoed my thoughts. “You haven’t heard any of this, of course. You’re off in your own world. You only care about yourself and your needs.”
He spit the words at me, and there was fire behind them, which ignited an answering fire in me.
“What I do in my off time and who I spend my time with is no one’s business but my own,” I repeated.
It was my turn to take a step toward my son. He didn’t back away, however, which meant our faces were hovering close together, the anger between us palpable.
“Except you’re the company’s CEO, and what you do matters. Your image matters, and it’s reflecting badly on you, on the company, and me.”
“On you?” I threw a hand up into the air. “I see what this is all about. You’re embarrassed, aren’t you? Poor kid—does my dating other women make you uncomfortable?”
Paul blinked, his mouth opening for a moment before any sound came out.
“Did you not hear what I said? People are noticing—someone didn’t want to invest in our company because what you do in your private life is affecting your business life. What part of this don’t you understand? But yes, if you really want to know, I don’t like it. They are far too young for you. It’s revolting.”
I didn’t hear his words anymore. I was too angry.
“It’s a good thing you aren’t me, then, and you don’t have to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong,” I shot back. “Where is this coming from? Did your girlfriend put you up to this? Has she been trying to turn you against me?”
Paul threw his hands into the air once more and turned away. I could see the physical effort it took him not to do his usual pacing, his shoulders and back tight underneath his tuxedo jacket.
“Angela has nothing to do with this, Dad. I can’t believe you don’t get it, but why would you? You never have. What you do affects me, too. It’s not just you in this.” When he turned to me, his eyes were burning again, but I also saw something I hadn’t seen before—hurt. “It’s all about you, and you’ve never been there for me.”
The words struck me almost as a physical blow, and I took a step back. For a moment, my mind wouldn’t grasp the words my son had just volleyed at me.
“I’ve been there for everything. I put you through private school and college. I gave you everything you could ever want—”
“Except yourself,” Paul snarled, his lips pulled back over his teeth.
“You never needed me,” I snapped.
