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He raked his hand through his thinning hair. “According to my doctor, the stress is getting to me. Since you stepped up to the plate, I’ll take that as a sign it’s time to let go.”
I wasn’t certain if he was doing nothing more than playing another game. “Did you know I was almost killed last night?”
He jerked his head up, shock tearing through his system. My father had mastered the art of the poker face years ago, but this was something entirely different. He pressed his hand against his heart, stumbling backwards. “What happened? Are you alright?”
“I’m fine. Kendrick saved my life. An assassin entered my room determined to kill me, just like Kendrick’s father was gunned down. You didn’t know?”
“Oh, my God, Suzannah. You may consider me a monster, but I would never hurt one of my children physically. But yes, Kendrick mentioned what happened to his father. I had nothing to do with it. Nothing.”
“But you had no problem hurting me emotionally and spiritually. Did you? You all but sent me away yourself and you know it.” I heard the anger in my tone and sucked in my breath. I wasn’t certain what getting angry with him over the past was going to do at this point.
He tried to smile but I could still see the look of pain in his eyes. “You were always the strongest and smartest of all of us, but you weren’t ready to run this company. You are now. I’ve watched you grow, keeping tabs on your success.”
“You know nothing about me.”
“You forget how many friends I have, Suzannah. Your boss is a guy I went to college with.” He was pleased with himself.
Was he kidding me? “You asked him to give me a job?” I was livid, more so than before I’d arrived.
He threw up his hand. “No. I did not. You remind me of him, full of morals. He told me in no uncertain terms he’d likely not hire you. But he was impressed with your resume. I won’t lie that when I found out, I was glad you’d landed a job where I could keep an eye on you. I was right to push you so hard. You’re not only a decent human being, but you’ve also turned into one hell of a businesswoman. I lost track of what I wanted when I was a kid, losing my morals. You never did. I’ll be proud to watch as you continue to allow this company to thrive. In the right way.”
I remained in shock for a few seconds.
“What about Steinbeck?”
His face clouded over. “There are some things you don’t know about your brother. We will talk about him after his wedding. I won’t destroy that for him.”
I wasn’t certain how to respond. I also wasn’t positive accepting the helm was in my best interest, even though it was being delivered to me on a silver platter. What I did know was that the man was dying. Perhaps facing mortality had been the single thing his power, money, and influence hadn’t been able to change.
I glanced down at the contract, taking it into my hands. “I’ll get back to you on this, Father. As you might imagine, I need to allow my attorney time to go over it.”
“Of course. Know that I do care about you, Suzannah. I always have. You were and are my bright shining star.”
This hadn’t gone at all as I’d planned, the fuel all but extinguished. I backed away, turning toward the door.
“I know you entered into an alliance with Mr. Gregory for the sole purpose of obtaining what you wanted within this organization, but I saw something last night in both of you. Just answer me one thing.”
I took a deep breath. “What’s that?”
“Do you love him as much as I believe you do?”
My father had always been observant, although his determination that feelings and emotions were a weakness was something I’d never forget. This was… another telling statement and a path I needed to choose carefully. It was funny to me how easy the answer was. “Yes. I do. With all my heart.”
“Then you have my full blessing.”
I walked out, uncertain how I felt at that moment. When I reached Kendrick, I couldn’t read his expression, but his eyes explored mine, searching to find out if I’d gotten the answers I was looking for. “My father didn’t try and kill us.”
“I know he didn’t,” he said quietly.
“You wanted me to discover that on my own.”
“Yes. You needed to.”
I dragged my tongue across my lips, finding it silly that I wasn’t certain how to react. After everything I’d been through, everything I’d learned, I had no clue what to say. That wasn’t like me in the least. But here I was, standing in my father’s office. With a series of my signatures, it could be my office.
“My brother. He did this. Didn’t he?”
“I think there’s some things you need to know.”
