Chapter Thirty-One
“Hey,Josie. Is Julian in his office?”
He’s been in back-to-back meetings all day, but I’m hoping to catch him to see about leaving early tonight so we can talk. I’ve decided that I’m going to tell him about the baby tonight. And then I’m going to tell my dad that I’m taking a step back. Being a mom isn’t what I planned for, but now that it’s happening, I want to be the best mom I can be. The same way my mom was to me.
“He should be,” she says as I stride past her desk and straight toward his office.
His door is slightly ajar, and before I knock to let him know I’m coming in, in case he’s in a meeting, I hear my father’s voice, halting me in place.
“I know you’re just the man for the job,” Dad says as I peek in and watch him extend his hand to Julian.
“Thank you,” Julian says, shaking his hand.
“Welcome to the family, son.”
They hug, and my entire body goes cold.
Dad wasn’t supposed to pick a new CEO until December, yet he went behind my back and chose Julian? And he couldn’t even tell me first? I know I said I planned to step down, but, damn, it still hurts knowing that my dad really doesn’t believe I’m capable of taking his place as CEO.
I knew there was a chance he’d pick Julian, but to be honest, I really didn’t believe he would do it. I’m his daughter, his own flesh and blood. I’ve busted my ass for years, trying to prove myself in the business world.
But I’m not good enough.
And if I’m not even good at what I know, how the hell am I going to be good at what I don’t know?
I’ve failed at business. And now, I’m going to fail at being a wife and a mom.
Without waiting for their meeting to end, I grab my purse from my office and take off. Since we rode in together, I call for a car service to pick me up. It takes a while since we live in a small town, so I use the time to get a drink and cry.
Once I’m home, I eat something since I’m starving and then lie on the couch to watch some mindless television while I wait for Julian to get home.
I must’ve fallen asleep on the couch because when I awake, it’s dark outside, and Julian is standing over me with a look of concern etched on his features.
“I’ve been calling and texting you all afternoon,” he says. “You couldn’t let me know you were going home early?”
“Sorry,” I mutter, sitting up on the couch. “I overheard you and my dad talking in your office today,” I admit. “I guess congratulations are in order.”
Julian’s eyes widen, telling me he knows exactly what I heard.
“It’s for the best. I have news of my own.” I reach over to my purse and pull out the ultrasound picture. “Surprise, I’m pregnant.”
I hand him the black-and-white image, and he stares at it in shock. I don’t blame him since it was a shock to me as well.
“My IUD fell out,” I explain. “I’m due in May.”
His eyes ascend to meet mine.
“So, it’s for the best that my dad picked you to be the CEO since I’ll be busy having a baby.” I shrug. “I can’t do both. Not that it matters since he doesn’t think I’m the best fit for the job anyway.”
I laugh humorlessly. “Looks like he got what he wanted after all. His daughter barefoot and pregnant at home while my husband runs the business.”
Julian opens his mouth to speak, but I’m on a roll so I keep going. “Sorry you got more than what you bargained for. You wanted a fake engagement, and instead, you got a wife and a baby.”
Another laugh bubbles out of me, along with a sob. “All I wanted was for my dad to love me, to see that I’m capable of running Kingston. For him to be proud of me. And instead?—”
“You did exactly that,” my dad says, making me jump in my spot.
I look over, and he’s standing in the foyer.
“Dad, what are you doing here?”
“I was outside on the phone,” he says.
“When I couldn’t get ahold of you, I got worried,” Julian adds. “Your dad tried calling and texting, and when you didn’t answer, he came with me to look for you. You’ve been off lately, and we were worried.”
“Well, now, you know,” I tell them both. “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just pregnant, and you’re the new CEO of Kingston.”
“I think it’s time you and I have a conversation,” Dad says, coming over to sit next to me on the couch. He pats my leg and smiles sadly at me. “The truth is, I could run Kingston with my eyes closed, but I had no idea what to do with a daughter who wanted my attention.”
“I just wanted you to love me,” I whisper, emotions clogging my throat.
“I know,” he says, his eyes glassy. “You wanted the same thing as your mother, and I thought that was what I was doing. I had been raised in a poor family. We barely had enough food some days to eat three meals. My parents worked so hard to provide, but it was never enough. They were always fighting over money … or lack thereof.
“When I left my family home and came to Texas, I thought money would equal happiness. I went to school and majored in business and put all my efforts into my schooling. And then I met your mother. She had been raised in a wealthy family, and when I asked her father for his permission to marry her our sophomore year in college, he said, ‘I’ll give it to you when you can provide for her like a husband should.’”
“I didn’t know that,” I admit.
“Nobody knew,” he confesses. “I left his house that day, even more motivated to make something of myself. And when I graduated, I presented my business idea to her father. He owned the bank in town, and I needed a loan. He told me I’d never make a living selling liquor and that I was being reckless.”
He chuckles softly and shakes his head, as if he’s remembering it.
“I didn’t marry your mom until I was confident the business would be successful,” he continues. “It’s why we didn’t have you until we were in our early thirties. By then, I was so absorbed with the company, with proving everyone wrong, that I didn’t know any other way.
“I bought us a big house and expensive cars. I made sure neither of you ever wanted for anything, but I refused to give you both what you wanted the most …”
“You,” I whisper. “We just wanted you.”
“The day she died, when we were at lunch, she asked me not to hire you,” he says, tears filling his lids.
“What? Why?”
That makes no sense. She knows how hard I worked to turn my life around so I could prove to my dad that I wasn’t a disappointment.
“She didn’t want to lose you the way she lost me,” he says softly. “I told her that it was time to cut the umbilical cord, and she got upset and left. That’s the real reason why we were fighting,” he admits, shocking the hell out of me. “That’s why she ran out, upset. She was afraid you would become me.”
“That’s why you didn’t ask me to come work for you,” I say, the pieces finally fitting together. “You were abiding by her last wishes.”
“I was,” he says, “but it wasn’t the right thing to do because all this time, you thought I didn’t think you were capable, didn’t believe you were worthy of working for Kingston or me. I never thought you were a disappointment, Anastasia. I just didn’t want what happened to me to happen to you.”
“So, you chose Julian as the new CEO.”
“No,” Julian says. “What you overheard had nothing to do with work. I was asking for your dad’s permission to marry you … the right way.”
“What?” I gasp. “I don’t understand.”
“You said you wanted a real wedding. The white dress, beautiful venue, your dad walking you down the aisle. And I want to give that to you.”
He smiles softly, and my heart pounds against my rib cage. Just when I thought I couldn’t love this man any more than I already do, he does something like this.
“Thank you!” I throw my arms around him as tears spill over my lids and slide down my cheeks.
“I know our engagement started off fake, but I love you, Ana, and I want to give you the world.” He reaches down and presses his hand to my belly. “Both you and our baby.”
I’m so caught up in the moment that it takes me a second to take in what he just said in front of my dad. When I do, I glance at him, and he’s smiling.
“You didn’t really think I believed your sudden engagement was real, did you?” Dad says with a laugh. “I run a successful multibillion-dollar company. I can sniff out bullshit from a mile away. I’ve known the entire time.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?” I ask, stunned at his admission.
I mean, it makes sense, but he had so many opportunities to call us out, and he didn’t.
“For one, it meant having you back in my life,” Dad says with a watery smile. “When I found out you were home, I didn’t care how you had gotten here. But the fact that it was Julian who’d brought you home … well, maybe I’m just an old man who’s in love, but that sounded a whole lot like fate to me. The man who I consider a son bringing my daughter home after six years? I couldn’t have asked for anything more.”
He clears his throat and smiles at both of us. “I was struggling with how to handle the CEO position. But then I got to watch the two of you fall in love, and you guys made it easy.”
“What?” I ask. “How?”
“There’s something you need to know, Anastasia,” my dad says, his smile fading. “I don’t want you to get worked up over this. Especially since you’re pregnant. But I’m sick. Lung cancer. Thankfully, they caught it quickly. I already planned on retiring before I found out, but it solidifies my decision to step down. I need to focus on beating this thing, and then I want to travel and spend time with my family.”
“Dad,” I whisper through a choked sob.
“I’m going to be okay,” he says, always so damn strong. “But I’ve decided to pass Kingston down to you. I want you to run our family business, sweetheart, with your husband by your side.”
“But I’m pregnant,” I cry, wiping the tears from my eyes.
“Which makes the childcare we’re building even more essential,” Julian points out. “Between you and me and our families, this baby will want for nothing.” He leans in and kisses me. “We got this, Red.”