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Chapter 3
Addie
Reggie and the rest of the men filed into the study quietly as Kent closed the sliding doors. This was where the family business took place and important decisions were made. As they all took their seats, their stoic faces told me one thing. Whatever this task was, I wasn’t going to like it. But that didn’t matter. I would do what they asked without hesitation. Whatever I had to do to prove to them that I could be King of the Kingsley family, I would do… within reason.
Reggie, decked out in his expertly tailored charcoal gray suit and wine-colored tie. Out of respect during meetings, everyone remained standing, waiting for the Don to sit first. Once my father took his seat, everyone else followed suit, except for Reggie. As he smoothed the front of his suit, I assumed the rest of the men had made him their spokesperson. There were ten men in the room, eleven if you counted my father. Reggie, of course, Kent sat next to him, and the others.
Reggie turned to me and pressed his thin pale lips into a smile. This was going to be interesting. I didn’t return the smile. He turned his attention to my father, who sat at the head of the table. After running a hand through his slick black hair, Reggie smoothed down the front of his suit again. He was clearly nervous.
“First, Don Harrison Kingsley, I would like to say on behalf of the rest of the family, we would like to offer our sincerest sympathies and prayers on your current predicament. You have led us for a long time, and it will be a sad day when you leave this world. But a happy day in hell, huh?” Reggie and my father smiled as some of the men chuckled.
I didn’t find it funny. I knew what he was doing, reminding everyone of my father’s impending demise while easing the tension with a stupid joke.
“That said,” continued Reggie, “and no offense to your lovely daughter here, but I can’t help but think that the cancer may be impairing your judgment.”
Some of the men murmured in agreement.
“Respectfully, we know she’s your first born and we know that you never had any sons.” Reggie let out a deep breath in an effort to regain his courage. “You may be worried about what will happen to her after you leave us and that is understandable. But to do something so drastic….” He looked around the room. “I mean, come on! We would make sure that she is taken care of, if that is what you’re worried about. But to give her… to have her sit at the head of the family… there are better choices. I implore you to see reason. Please, think about this a little more.” Reggie eased behind Kent’s chair. “Look at Kent. Wouldn’t he be a better choice? I think we should get this matter settled before we give her a task she can’t do. No offense. Little Addie has done a lot for the family and we thank her for it. But she’s only a child. There is a better man for the job.”
The way he emphasized the word man made it clear what this was really about. I stood up. “Permission to speak?”
My father smiled and nodded.
“For the record, I am not a child. I’m twenty-three. And in case there is a man here that doesn’t know how to count, that makes me three years older than Kent. And since I have the floor, I would like to point out that if my father was not sick and if I had a pair of balls dangling between my legs, you would not be second guessing his decision.”
“Probably not. But you don’t, so here we are.” Reggie let out a deep breath as if this pained him, but I knew he was glad. I wasn’t a man, and I couldn’t argue with that. “But you won’t take over until the day your father dies, God willing will be a long time. So, we still time to correct this.”
“There is nothing to correct,” my father said, having had enough. “My decision stands. I allowed you to come up with a task for her to complete so she can prove herself to you and you said you have one for her. Now, what is it?”
Reggie took a moment to smooth the front of his suit again before he answered. “Well, if she is to stand at the head, she will need to handle all of our business affairs. She will need to manage our business relationships and cultivate new ones. We’ve been trying to strike a deal with the Sky family for years.”
“They hate us.” Anthony scoffed, shaking his head. “No, I think hate isn’t a strong enough word for what they feel for us.”
“Exactly,” said Reggie. “That’s my point. We’ll need some of their…we’ll need them in the future. We need them on our side. If she could persuade them to become our allies, then—”
I sighed as loudly as I could, and everyone’s attention turned to me. “How long do I have to make this happen?”
“You want her to do something you that I couldn’t?” asked my father.
Reggie blinked. “Well…”
My father sighed, sitting back hard in his chair.
“I’ll do it.”
My father shook his head. “No. Try something else.”
Reggie looked back at me with the hint of a smile. “Okay. Well, since she’s supposed to be the head of the family then maybe we should start bringing her in on all sides of the business. I mean, we should know whether or not she can handle it.”
My father nodded. “That’s true. She needs to understand everything that we have our hands in and who we work with. She knows some of it but not everything.” His eyes met mine, filled with concern, as if he were trying to figure something out, as if deciding if I could handle it. He nodded slowly. “Okay. Tomorrow morning we’ll start. Nate and Joe will take her around so she can meet the important people.”
For the first time since they walked into the room Nate and Joe glanced in my direction.
“Okay, meeting adjourned.” My father waved his hand dismissively. “Now, everyone get out of my house.” The men stood up and walked out. When it was just my father and I, he sighed. “Is it too early to start drinking?”
“I won’t tell if you don’t.”
He chuckled as he waved his hand toward the bar. “For what it’s worth, you have more balls than any of the men who just walked out of here.”
“But not you.” I crossed the room, poured two glasses of bourbon, and handed him one. Then I sat in the chair kitty-corner from him and took a sip, letting the caramel liquid calm my anger.
“This is going to be harder than I thought.” He took a sip and then swirled the glass, watching the liquid twirl about. “I knew it was going to be difficult but…I don’t know. You’re the best option, Addie. I know these men. I know Kent and Reggie, and none of them are fit to rule.”
“They think they are.” I took another sip of my drink.
“I noticed.” He looked up from his glass and straight into my eyes. “But you’re going to have to show them they’re wrong.”
