AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Nah, I tend to be an early riser." My gaze lingers on the way her lips are pressed together in concentration. “Everything okay?”
I hate the worry that creeps into my voice, but I can't help it.Everything about her screams 'distant'. It feels like she's miles away from me, and the thought stabs at something vulnerable inside me.
"Everything's fine."
I quirk an eyebrow at her. "You sure?"
"Yeah, I was just looking at the email invite for my dad's retirement party."
"You seem awfully upset over a party invitation." There's a teasing lilt to my voice, hoping to coax a smile or even a half-hearted eye roll out of her. "What, did they pick Comic Sans for the font?"
She sighs.
"First, my dad refuses to sell me his shares. Then he asks you to speak at his party instead of me. And now he's sending me an invitation to watch." She gives another deep sigh. "It's all just so... insulting."
My stomach drops. "You placed a bid for the shares?"
Fiona snorts. "Of course, I placed a bid to own the family company. It's my legacy too, isn't it?" She pauses. "But Dad immediately said no."
Shit.
“Did he say why?"
"He said being a CEO was too much responsibility for a woman." Then her voice breaks. "He wanted me to focus on starting a family instead, as if that's all I should aspire to."
I can see her shoulders start to shake, and she breaks down into sobs. In one fluid motion, my arms are around her, pulling her into the fortress of my body.
“Baby, I swear I had no idea about any of this,” I murmur, my lips brushing the crown of her head. "Is that why you were mad at me this whole time?”
She nods, and my chest tightens, a mix of anger and an unexpected pang of guilt gnawing at me.
"He never thinks I'm enough," she chokes out, her voice barely above a whisper. "No matter what I do, it'll never be good enough for him."
I pull back just enough to see Fiona's face. "You are more than enough," I tell her fiercely. "For me, for anyone who truly knows you."
The absolute wrongness of it all stirs up this protective rage in me.
Harold Parker has always been pretty old school, but I didn't think he was this bad. To deny his own daughter the chance to lead the very company she grew up in? And for what? Because she's a woman?
He's her father, for fuck's sake. He should be proud of her accomplishments and support her dreams, not tear them down. And it makes me sick to my stomach that Fiona has been carrying this weight all on her own.
I tighten my grip around her. "I'm going to fix this, Fiona."
Fiona lets out another sigh. "There's nothing to fix, Wes. What's done is done. My dad made up his mind, and there’s no changing it."
"Trust me, baby," I reply firmly. "There's always a way."
Chapter Six
FIONA
A soft breezefloats through the bathroom window as I finish applying my makeup, taking extra care with the mascara.
Wes stands behind me, watching me in the mirror with a playful grin.
"That dress could start a scandal," he teases, his eyes drinking in every inch of me. "You look amazing."
I can't help but blush and playfully roll my eyes. "Thanks, but I was hoping for 'classy' not 'femme fatale.'"
