Page 65 of Deal with Mr. Cruel

“What I said to your brother the other day…it wasn’t true.” He looked down at the fireplace.

“Then why say it?”

“It was in the moment. I was heated. I just wanted to get under his skin. Piss him off. You know? It’s no excuse, but it’s the truth.”

“Why the hell do you hate him so much?” asked Mae frustratedly.

Jonas sighed and shook his head. Mae waited for him to speak. He turned around, but didn’t meet her questioning gaze. Instead, he looked out at the city contemplatively.

“Did you know my father almost left the team to Nico? His entire company?” he asked softly.

“What? What are you talking about?” she asked, surprised.

“Yeah. I saw the papers drawn up on his desk one day. It was right after he got sick. He knew he didn’t have much time left, so I guess he wanted to make changes to his will.”

“Maybe you read it wrong.”

“I read it three times to make sure I was understanding correctly. I didn’t read it wrong. He was going to leave his entire legacy to your brother. A twenty-three-year-old kid.”

“But why? Why Nico?” She sounded genuinely confused.

Jonas shrugged. He thought she would have some insight into their relationship, but she seemed just as lost as he was.

“It was no surprise to anyone that my father took to your brother almost immediately,” Jonas continued.

Mae nodded.

“I spent years trying to understand it. Was it because he was the underdog? Was it because it was somewhat of a Cinderella story? Was it because he felt obligated to be a father figure to him?”

Jonas was pouring it all out. He had never opened up to anyone about the relationship with his father, or the lack thereof. He especially never opened up about how much it had ravaged him internally.

“I knew they were close, but not to where he’d leave Nico his company. I know for a fact Nico had no idea about any of this.”

This gave Jonas some piece of mind. Maybe no one knew the inner workings of his father’s mind.

“In the end, he didn’t. Obviously. I don’t know what made him choose me.”

“You’re hisson,Jonas.”

Jonas let out a laugh. “His son,” he repeated to himself. “He sure as hell didn’t act like it. When I was younger, I would wake up early to catch him before he went to work, and all I got was a nod on his way out the door. My bedtime was before he even clocked out of the office, even though I begged my mom to let me stay up. She always assured me he would come check on me when he got home from work. I stayed up enough nights to know he never even walked down the hallway to my room.”

Mae looked at him sympathetically. He didn’t want her to feel bad for him. He just wanted her to understand.

He continued, “I just wanted to be close to him. That’s why I wanted to work at the company after college. To be close to him. He made me go through several interview processes, and wouldn’t even meet with me himself. Maybe it was to show there was no favoritism. But damn, it was the exact opposite. Even when I became his employee, that’s all I was to him. I tried everything to be the man he wanted me to be. Hell, the child he wanted me to be. But nothing was ever good enough.”

“I had no idea, Jonas. I mean, I knew how hard you worked, but I didn’t know why, until now,” said Mae softly. “You never told me any of this.”

“I was too embarrassed. What father doesn’t love their son?”

“He loved you, Jonas. He probably just didn’t know how to show it.”

“He loved work. No matter what I did, I always came second to it. Second to the team. Then your brother came into the picture.”

“And you fell even further down the ladder.”

Jonas nodded. “I just wanted Nico to know what it felt like to come second to the person he loved the most.”

Mae thought for a moment. “By using me in the process,” she said coldly.

---