Page 103 of Falling for the Billionaire Best Man

I hesitated, then held up the earrings. “Mom’s earrings. I’m giving them to someone.”

His eyes narrowed, and I could see the gears turning in his head. “Someone special, I take it?”

“Yes,” I said. “My girlfriend. The woman I plan to marry one day.”

My dad’s expression didn’t change, but I could see the skepticism in his eyes. “And who is this woman?”

“Her name’s Dorie,” I said, trying to sound casual. “She’s a baker. Lives in Cape May.”

My dad’s lips twitched. I braced myself for whatever was coming next. “A baker,” he repeated, his tone dripping with condescension. “In Cape May. And you think she’s ready for… all of this?” He gestured vaguely, as if “all of this” encompassed everything about my life—the money, my reputation, him.

“Do you know who you are?”

“Yeah, I think I do,” I answered sarcastically. “Do you know me? Don’t answer that because we both know you don’t.”

“You have a reputation. You said she’s a baker. I’m guessing it’s not a five-star bakery. She’s not going to be ready for your life. For the public scrutiny.”

“She’s strong,” I said. “She can handle it.”

“Can she?” my dad asked, his voice sharp. “Do you even know what you’re asking of her? Her life would be public, Kaisen. Every move she makes, every mistake she makes, will be under a microscope. And the money—yes, she’ll have it, but it comes with a price. The stress, the expectations, the people who will try to use her. Are you sure she’s ready for that?”

I opened my mouth to argue, but the words caught in my throat. He wasn’t wrong. I hadn’t thought about any of that. I’d been so caught up in how I felt about Dorie that I hadn’t stopped to consider what being with me would mean for her.

My dad must have seen the doubt in my eyes because he pressed on. “And what about you? Are you ready for this? You’ve spent your entire life avoiding commitment, avoiding love. What makes you think you’re any different from me?”

I flinched, his words hitting harder than I wanted to admit. I’d spent years trying not to be like him, but standing here now, I couldn’t ignore the similarities—the way we both made decisions, the way we both shut people out. Was I setting Dorie up for the same pain my mom had gone through?

“I’m not you,” I said. “And Dorie’s not Mom.”

My dad studied me for a moment, then nodded. “Maybe not. But think about what you’re asking of her. And think about what you’re asking of yourself. You’ve hated me all these years because of what you think I did to your mother.”

“I don’t think, I know,” I shot back.

“Fine. You know. And now you’re going to put another woman through that?”

I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. Instead, I closed the lockbox and turned to leave. “It was nice seeing you, Dad,” I said. “Always a pleasure. Take care.”

He didn’t try to stop me. I didn’t look back. But as I left the bank, the earrings felt heavier than they had before. Was I making the right decision? Could Dorie handle this? Or was I setting us both up for failure?

Leave it to my dad to fuck up my happiness once again.

I headed into the office for the meeting I had to attend. My head was not in the game. As soon as it was possible, I left the office and went back to the airport.

By the time I arrived in Cape May, I was feeling better. I’d been texting with Dorie all day, and hearing her voice—even through text—had a way of calming me down. I was looking forward to taking her out tonight, to seeing her smile, to holding her in my arms.

Fuck my dad. He didn’t know me or Dorie. He didn’t know what either of us could handle.

Liam and Marcus left a message earlier that they had decided to stay in New York another day. That was fine with me. I wasn’t used to roommates, and quite frankly, I didn’t like feeling like I lived in a frat house.

My phone rang while I was shaving. I glanced at the screen and saw it was Dorie.

“Hey,” I answered with a smile. “I was just thinking about you.”

“Kaisen, the ovens at the shop are officially, horribly broken,” she blurted out. “I need to bake Eliza’s cakes tonight, or I won’t have time to ice them this week. I have no other options. I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to take a raincheck. I’m going to be up all night and then I have to work in the morning.”

I could hear the panic in her voice. “Hey, it’s okay,” I said, trying to sound calm. “Come over to my house. I’ll help you bake some cakes. We’ve got the double ovens. It’ll go twice as fast.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line. “You’ll help me bake?”

“Yeah,” I said, smiling despite the situation. “I’m not a baker, but I can follow instructions. And you’re an expert. You’ll tell me what to do. We’ll figure it out.”

She let out a shaky breath. “Okay. Okay, I’ll be there soon.”

“Good,” I said. “And Dorie? It’s going to be okay. I promise.”

“Thank you, Kaisen.”

I hung up the phone, already mentally preparing for a long night of baking. I couldn’t help but smile. This wasn’t how I’d planned to spend the evening, but if it meant being with Dorie, I didn’t mind. In fact, I was looking forward to it.