Page 81 of I Choose You

“I’m not the one kissing up to Dad by having a date just because he demanded it. Paying her to be your date? How’s it going keeping that separate from the account you’re in charge of at Halden Inc.?”

“Shut the hell up.” I shook my head. “Dad’s been talking about finding a third party for paper distribution for years.” Still, the way he tried to intimidate me bothered me.

“You’ve got a lot of fucking nerve. Coming in here and acting like you’re the shit when you’re just a liar anyway. Pretending she’s something she’s not.”

“Don’t change the subject. Just stop being such an ass to everyone!”

After I yelled that part, Pamela opened the door. She closed her mouth and ducked her head as she backed right out the way she’d stepped in. “Here we go again,” she mumbled before she shut the door.

“And another thing.”

He sneered at me. “I didn’t ask to hear what you think about anything in the first place.”

“Stop hitting on Margaux’s daughter.”

His groan was full of annoyance. “Seriously? Fuck off. Go worry about your fake date’s feelings and stay out of my business.”

“Mercedes is off limits.”

He strode toward me and got in my face. “That’s not for you to decide.”

I didn’t flinch. “She’s going to be our stepsister. Have some fucking respect.”

“I’m not disrespecting her.”

I shook my head. “Hitting on her before Dad marries her mom? You don’t think that’s disrespecting both of them?”

He stepped back and paced. His angry energy was unmissable, but mentioning how he could be disappointing Dad seemed to crack at his stubborn wall.

“I come back from a long weekend and you think you’ve got some kind of right to hand me my ass?”

“Just stop being one.”

He glared at me, pausing by his desk. “Anything else, Mr. Perfect?”

I didn’t react to his jab. It wasn’t original anyway. “You can handle the office today. I need some space.”

He didn’t reply, and I didn’t wait to hear what he might have had to say. I wasn’t dumping a ton of work on him. Dad, Kody, and I all showed wide-open days on the inner-office scheduling program. If anything major popped up, he could put out those fires.

Because I couldn’t stand the idea of looking at him again. Sitting around in my office didn’t appeal either.

I passed my secretary, telling her I was out for the day.

Once I exited the building, I headed to the parking garage to get in my SUV. It usually soothed me. The relaxing mood I felt when I drove through the city didn’t strike me. I was too pissed.

I was partly concerned too. He’d thrown me off by putting me on the spot. Yeah, I did care about Brooke, but I didn’t appreciate being forced to admit it, even to myself. Because caring about her wasn’t a condition we’d considered in our fake-date scheme. Caring about her muddied the waters of the money I’d given her too.

Kody wouldn’t tell Dad. He didn’t want to upset the old man this close to the wedding. The whole office was abuzz and excited, treating him like a king preparing to marry his queen. Dad was not to be troubled, and even Kody understood that.

Still, I hated that he’d called me and Brooke liars about it all.

Because we were. We were totally lying to everyone. Or at least I was. I couldn’t speak for her. I wanted to think she cared about me past our deals, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.

I parked at her building within minutes. Traffic was surprisingly manageable, almost as though the world knew I needed a break.

Finding a spot in the garage took longer than the drive over here had, but I snagged a spot and executed too many turns in the tight fit. Compact vehicles only, my ass.

The elevator seemed to take forever. Every minute I waited to reach her seemed like a test.