Page 12 of Quadruple Daddy

My phone vibrated in my pocket, taking me by surprise. I dug it out and checked who was calling. I frowned as I read the name to myself.

“Everything okay?” Bella asked.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s just, Roman is calling me. I don’t think he’s called me in years,” I said before ending the call. I was about to put the phone away when it rang again.

“I hope everything is okay,” Bella said.

“I’m sure it is,” I muttered as I canceled the call again. “And if it’s not, he can send a text or leave a voicemail.”

When my phone rang a third time, I went to end the call again but noticed it wasn’t Roman.

It was my dad.

I stared at the phone for a long time, debating with myself. Did I really want to speak to my father after all these years? Not really. But with Roman calling and then Dad, it made me think perhaps something was wrong.

“I’ll be back,” I told Bella, slipping from my seat as I answered the call.

“Dad, is everything okay?” I stopped in the hall outside the dining area.

“Gabriel!” Dad exclaimed. “I wasn’t sure you’d pick up.”

“I almost didn’t, but Roman tried to call me too. I thought maybe something was wrong.”

“Oh no, nothing is wrong, son,” my dad said. “I’m just calling to talk business—”

“I’m not in business with you anymore, Dad.”

I was about to hang up the phone when my dad spoke again. “It’s about the property in Riverview.”

“Mom’s property?” My voice caught in my throat.

“Yes, and I know it means a lot to you, but we have an opportunity to make a lot of money—”

“I don’t need money, Dad.”

“Son, I don’t think you realize what kind of money we’re talking about here. Tony’s company wants to turn it into a casino. You know there’s limited riverfront property and with the laws regarding casinos in Missouri—”

“I don’t give two shits about casino laws in Missouri,” I cut him off. “The property is to stay in the family, just like Mom always wanted.”

I had thought my brothers agreed with me about that, but maybe not seeing as Roman had tried to call me. Didn’t really matter though, since I had the largest share of the property being the oldest and Mom left it mostly to me. And I knew Ava wasn’t interested in working with Tony, either.

“But Gabriel—”

“Not happening, Dad, find another piece of land.” I hung up before he could continue arguing with me. My blood was already boiling. Having my father try to talk me into selling that property was enough to piss me off, but my brothers too? Shit, I thought they were at least slightly better than him. Showed how well I knew the men they grew into.

5

Bella

Icould hear Gabe’s voice as I stepped out into the hallway. I paused, not wanting him to think I was eavesdropping, but it was too late to head back into the dining room. He turned and saw me standing there.

His face was twisted in a look of rage.

“Is everything okay?” I asked, walking toward him, concerned that something could have happened.

“Just family drama,” he replied.

I knew about his family. Ava had told me that their dad wasn’t the upstanding citizen that he tried to pretend to be. I knew that Gabe had a checkered past, running away from his dad’s influence and falling into a lot of trouble of his own before cleaning his act up. His brothers weren’t supportive of the new Gabe, or of Ava’s choice to go to law school.

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