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“I have given you everything, London. I don’t know what else you want from me.”
She just stared at him as she allowed the sobering reality to sink in. He would never be the father she needed him to be. She’d told herself this countless times over the years. But she had always held out hope that if she ever took the time to truly explain how his utter indifference had affected her, he would acknowledge his role in this fucked-up relationship.
But he wouldn’t. He wasn’t capable of it.
It was exactly as Drew had said. Kenneth Kelley was a textbook narcissist who simply could not view the world through a lens that wasn’t focused entirely on him.
“I don’t want anything from you,” London said. “I will make sure that my sisters know they are loved and appreciated just the way they are, and that it isn’t worth their time to seek any further attention from you.”
London pushed her chair back and stood. She did her best to stem the tide of disappointment and utter sadness that rushed through her—at least until she was no longer in the presence of the man who’d caused it for much of her life.
She hadn’t expected a storybook ending, but she had hoped to walk away from their talk today feeling as if her dad had finally heard her. She had hoped to mend what was broken.
But some things were not meant to be. It was time she finally, conclusively accepted that.
“London,” Kenneth called after her as she walked away from the table.
She didn’t look back.
She got behind the wheel of her Mini and held on to the steering wheel in a vise grip. London waited for the tears that had collected in her throat to burst forth, but none fell. Her dad had broken her heart so many times that this final crack barely had an impact.
Still, as she started her car, there was only one destination her brain would even allow her to consider. She turned toward Drew’s building, and five minutes later, parallel parked in a spot across the street from the high-rise.
She used the code to take the elevator up to his floor. But when she knocked on his door, it wasn’t Drew who answered, it was Samantha Gomez.
“Hello, Dr. Kelley. Come in,” Samantha said, stepping aside.
London entered the apartment and stopped short. She had been to funerals with a livelier atmosphere.
She spotted Drew leaning over a laptop on the conference table. His shirtsleeves were rolled up, and whatever tie he’d put on this morning was long forgotten.
He stood up straight when he spotted her. “London.”
Trepidation skirted down her spine at the strain she heard in his voice. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.
“What am I missing?” she asked as Drew approached.
His shoulders dropped in arrant defeat.
“I’m sorry, London. I’m just so, so sorry.”
36
Drew tried to swallow but was having a hard time of it. It felt as if his heart were lodged in his throat.
He held his hand out to London. “Come with me. Please.”
He didn’t want to go into too much detail in front of his team. It was Trident’s policy to bring their findings to the client first—in this case, Travis County Hospital’s board of directors and upper administration officials—before disseminating the information to other relevant stakeholders. But there was no way Drew could stomach leaving London completely in the dark. It felt too much like lying to her.
He guided her into his room, and they both sat on the edge of the bed.
“We found something today,” Drew started. “I can’t get very far into it, but a member of the team stumbled across a previously undisclosed financial situation. One that changes everything.”
“What do you mean?”
“The hospital is being sued. Or, I should say ithasbeen sued. The case was settled, but the payout hasn’t happened yet.” He looked over at her. “It’s a lot of money, London. I need to talk to those in the administration who were involved—”
“Coleman,” she said.
