Chapter 40 Cole
Cole
“Tell me about your previous boyfriends.” I took Charlotte’s hand as we walked down the stairs to dinner.
Her eyes widened. “Why do you want to know? Jealous?”
“Extremely. It’s helpful if I can put some names to the imaginary men I’m kicking the shit out of in my head.”
“There’s only been a couple. None of them were ever serious. You don’t have to be jealous.” She swung her hand in mine as we stepped into the lobby and flashed me a dry smile. “For a start, none of them ever made me sign a confidentiality clause or asked me to fake marry them.”
I met her teasing eyes. “Slackers.”
We walked together, our joined hands swinging between us, through the cool hotel foyer.
A familiar cold voice drifted to my ears, and my heart stopped beating.
A tall silver-haired man stood at the reception desk.
He pointed a berating finger and spat out impatient words at another recognizable face.
Reuben stood quiet and still at my father’s side, eyes on his flashy tennis shoes, his shoulders hunched with mortification.
For a moment it was me. My father was screaming and shouting at me for some perceived slight.
Spit it out, you stuttering fool. Panic curdled in my stomach.
Words clogged my mouth, but I couldn’t speak.
My father had told me over and over again that I was nothing.
His vicious words had become a backing track on a loop in my head.
He’d made me believe that he was right. That he knew me in a way that others didn’t and those cruel eyes of his saw everything lacking in me.
Shame dripped down my spine, and I was a powerless boy again.
Coming across him when I was unprepared made me feel like I was sinking, like I’d landed on a snake in a game of snakes and ladders and slid right back to the beginning of the board.
He’d made my life a living hell as a child, but that hadn’t been enough for him.
He’d still had to trap me by his side as a teenager.
Just when I’d had my whole life ahead of me.
A wave of sympathy washed over me for Reuben.
I knew how it was to be on the receiving end of my father’s anger.
Reuben wasn’t my favorite person in the world.
He was annoying as fuck, and I swear he was trying to get in my wife’s pants.
But who could blame him? Who wouldn’t want to fuck my wife?
It was hard to see Reuben with fear glittering in his eyes when he was usually bouncy and carefree like a big overgrown Labrador.
The next couple of seconds happened too fast. My father raised his hand, ready to slap Reuben.
But I intercepted, grabbing his arm and holding him still.
I shouldn’t have stepped in. The last thing I wanted was to attract Philip’s attention.
My father’s mean gaze drifted from me to Charlotte.
A fire ignited under my skin. Don’t look at her. Don’t you fucking dare.
My father ripped his arm from my grip. My mind reeled, but I stood tall. Get it together. You have to, for Charlotte. I wasn’t a powerless kid anymore. I was a man. A husband with a wife to protect. My father didn’t get to make me tremble. He got to behold the strength I’d forged to survive him.
“You.” He looked me up and down with a cold appraisal. “I knew you’d be here.”
I believed him. He’d probably found out I was here from a listening device in one of my offices. Theo’s moral compass might lead us away from corporate espionage, but this man’s moral compass was set to “relentlessly awful” mode.
My father’s lips thinned. “Meeting with Gabe?”
I fought to maintain some stillness and composure. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
My father’s eyes flicked to Charlotte. Realization dawned on her pretty face as she understood who this was. My stomach dropped. Shit.
“Hi,” Reuben mouthed at her awkwardly.
She gave him a strained smile and a quiet “Hello.”
“Don’t you have better things to do?” My father straightened his tie. “Stay out of my affairs. You’re pathetic.”
Charlotte stiffened at my side. “Now wait a minute, you can’t—”
“It’s fine. Don’t get involved. Please.” I squeezed her hand. I can’t stop him. Please, just don’t listen to him.
My father inclined his head in Charlotte’s direction. His voice was ice. “You’re not going to introduce us?”
“No.” I gave Charlotte a meaningful glance and tugged her hand. “Let’s go.”
My dad held his hand out. “You must be the new Mrs. Thorner.”
No. Charlotte would never suffer the burden of being Mrs. Thorner.
Not like my mother. Memories of her brushed my mind.
All those times I’d found her passed out alone in her penthouse suite and I’d been the one to clean her up and take her to the hospital.
Her head resting on my shoulder while I’d played the piano for her, trying to ease a sorrow that was heavier than either of us could bear.
She’d looked so tired and frail at the end, like a bird with broken wings.
The pain was like a grinding ball inside that I’d never be able to remove.
I’d failed her. I wouldn’t fail Charlotte.
I had to destroy Philip Thorner before he destroyed us.
Whatever it took. He had to be punished.
That was the only way to right such a terrible wrong. I couldn’t allow him to prosper.
I managed to keep my voice calm. “No. She’s not. I’m the new Mr. Ackroyd.”
Philip’s eyebrows rose so far they almost touched his receding hairline. If my heart hadn’t been pounding out of my chest, I might have been able to enjoy his shock and horror. But all that mattered was getting Charlotte away from him.
Don’t talk to him. You don’t have to talk to him. If he hurt Charlotte, I’d kill him. He didn’t even deserve to share air with her.
“Charmed.” He fixed his gaze on Charlotte, although his words were for me. “And does your wife know you brought her on honeymoon here so you could attempt to swipe a deal from under your father’s nose?”
Charlotte stiffened again but said nothing. A hollow ache spread in the pit of my stomach.
“It’s not very romantic, is it, dear? Your husband doing business on your honeymoon? The two of you should be enjoying your time as newly-weds.” His gaze drifted back to me. “No idea how to separate business from pleasure.”
His sharp voice gave me that old feeling, like I wanted to shrink into the carpet and disappear. Anything to not be the subject of his attention. I rolled my shoulders back and kept any hint of unease from my voice. “Is there any pleasure in your world?”
A haughty smile touched his lips. “Plenty. When I sign the contract on this hotel, it will give me immense pleasure. You’ll never outbid me.
I heard Gabe won’t even take your calls.
It’s pathetic that you’re persisting. Shame you’re such a sore loser, when you’ve spent so much of your life . . . not winning.”
My jaw clenched. Charlotte rolled her shoulders back and met my father’s unflinching gaze with one of her own. “Of course I knew about the offer. It makes perfect sense to come here on honeymoon. Better to kill two birds with one stone.” She glanced at me. “Isn’t that right?”
I should have told her. Guilt made my jaw tighter. “Right.”
“Well, I’d like to say it was nice to meet you, but I’ve never been a good liar.” Charlotte wrinkled her nose. “Don’t you dare speak to my husband like that again. You’re a disgrace.”
Philip raised an amused eyebrow, but didn’t reply. With a gentle tug on my hand, Charlotte led me away.
“Goodbye! Enjoy your honeymoon,” Reuben called.
He gave an awkward wave, trying his best to be polite despite the tension.
An unexpected pang pulled at my chest. I’d been him once.
Trailing around after my father, getting shouted at in hotel lobbies.
It was no life. Being Philip Thorner’s son was a hard burden to bear.
Nobody deserved it. I couldn’t help but wonder what my father had over Reuben.
I’d stayed for so long to protect the people I’d cared about.
What trapped Reuben? If it was a desire to win Philip Thorner’s approval, then he was hopelessly deluded.
I stopped midway to the stairs and called back. “We’ll be going for a drink in the bar shortly. You can join us if you want, Reuben.”
A look of surprise and delight lit Reuben’s face. “Really?”
My father’s stern gaze made him shrink back, a faint flush in his cheeks. After a moment, he straightened and pasted on a bright smile. “No. I’m fine. But thanks for the invite.”
Charlotte pressed the button to call the elevator. I fucking hated elevators, but I’d have to do it. There was a time and place to share my opinions on the obesogenic environment. This wasn’t it. The doors opened and Charlotte stepped inside. She pressed herself back against the mirrored side.
Her face was pale. “What did he mean? You’re trying to swipe a deal?”
The elevator doors shut, and my heart pounded at being trapped in a confined space. My father made me feel like a cornered animal. I needed open skies, not tight walls. “I want to buy this hotel.”
“And so does your father?”
“Yes.”
“Two billionaires squabbling over a luxury hotel?” Her voice was loaded with sarcasm. “How delightfully petty.”
This was more than a squabble. It was justice. I’d told her what he’d done to my mother. What he’d done to my family. Panic still bubbled inside, sharp and raw. It was stupid. I was a grown man, not a kid. Why did I let him make me feel like this? I have to be better.
Her voice softened, and she rested a gentle hand on my arm. “Look at you. You’re shaking. You’re arguing with an old man in a lobby. It’s not a good look. You’re lucky there were no photographers around. Don’t you think you need to let this one go?”
“If I let it go, he wins.”
“No.” She gave me a sad smile. “If you let it go, you win. How can you not see that?”