Chapter 57
ALARIC
“That was uncalled for,” I snarl at my son as Evangeline darts down the hall.
I can’t go after her, despite every cell in my body urging me forward. I can’t go anywhere until I deal with the matter at hand.
Luca and Sophie showed up at my door a few minutes before Evangeline. He’s in shock—spiraling from the news that he’s going to be a father—and in his time of need, he came to me.
Moments ago, he was opening up. Sitting across from me and asking for my help. Seeking advice.
Now his defenses are firmly back in place. And on top of that, he was disrespectful and unnecessarily cruel toward his ex-girlfriend.
“You’re fucking her.” Luca slumps back in his chair, glaring at me with all the usual disdain I expect from him.
“Watch your language,” I snap. “Given your current situation, we have more important issues to face.”
“She was my girlfriend,” he barks.
Fury flares hot in my veins. “You’re sitting here telling me that you got a woman pregnant nine months ago, Luca. Was Evangeline your girlfriend then?”
He sags in his seat again, the defiant look he gives me reminiscent of those he’d dole out when I grounded him from his PlayStation. Of course he doesn’t have anything to say for himself now.
His behavior is shameful. I don’t even know where to begin with him.
“So let’s get this straight,” I continue. “You were with Evangeline for more than two years.”
He opens his mouth to object, but I press on.
“You cheated on her. Frequently and habitually, it seems. You let her foot the bill for all sorts of things under the guise of paying her back, which you never did.”
“Ric…” Sophie warns.
Luca snarls, leaning forward like he’s going to defend himself.
Before he can, I barrel on. “Then when you see her in person, you disrespect her and mock her to her face. Do I have that right? You’re a shitty boyfriend.”
Luca launches himself to his feet and stalks toward me, not stopping until my back hits the wall. “And you’re a shitty father.”
The words don’t even hurt.
He’s right. Over the last several years, I’ve allowed Luca to guide the cadence and depth of our relationship.
When he insisted he needed space, I gave him space.
When he wanted to distance himself from me professionally, I appeased him.
But despite being grown, he’s still my son.
I should have pushed back. Fought harder.
I should have shown up for him, even when he insisted he didn’t want me around.
I’ve made so many mistakes.
And not only with him. My heart is aching, willing me to go after her. I need to talk to her.
Holding my breath, I survey the door.
Luca glowers at me, clearly clocking the move. “If you go after her, you might as well consider me a stranger.”
All the resolve leaves my body. Exhaling, I brush past him and round my desk.
He gave me an ultimatum.
Moments ago, I would have said this was my worst nightmare.
Now?
Clarity and grief wash over me.
I look at Sophie, then set my focus back on our son. “Love doesn’t come with conditions, Luca,” I say quietly. “It doesn’t have to be earned, then proven over and over again. It just… is.”
Head hanging, I fight the urge to rub at the ache in my chest.
“I’m sorry I failed to teach you that. I’ve failed in many ways over the last few years.”
Straightening, I lock eyes with the young man I barely recognize anymore.
“You’re a grown man now. You’re going to be a father.
You choose how to act, how you treat others, how you move through your one precious life.
I love you, and that will never change.” A lump forms in my throat.
“But by giving me an ultimatum, you’ve made my choice for me. We’re done.”
He picks up the chair he occupied moments ago and hurls it at the opposite wall. Then he surges toward the door and slams it behind him.
And then it’s over.
With a huge, exhausted sigh, I look at Sophie.
She’s staring at me, wide-eyed. “Really, Ric? You fucked his ex-girlfriend?”
Groaning, I scrub a hand down my face and drop into my seat. Luca may refuse to hear me out, but there’s a chance I can explain myself to his mother.
“Your judgment isn’t unwarranted. I wish things wouldn’t have gotten so heated tonight, but you know me, Soph. I don’t do rash or illogical. I don’t even do spontaneous or fun.”
She snorts. “I do know you. Which is why I’m stunned and also wildly curious.”
I rest my forearms on the desk and zero in on her. “I love that woman.”
Gawking at me, she leans forward. “You love her?”
“I love her,” I confirm. “I was afraid to be with her, because of Luca and because she works for the team.” If only I’d trusted my feelings sooner. “I worried that if my hand was forced, I wouldn’t be able to choose between her and my career. But after that?” I shake my head.
The depth of Luca’s pain returns to the forefront of my mind. It kills me that he’s hurting, that I’ve hurt him. But I’d make the choice again in a heartbeat.
“I choose her.”
Sophie stares at me, unblinking. “He’ll never forgive you.”
It’s not a threat. Not even a judgment. It’s the reality of the situation; a truth I have to face.
“I know,” I acquiesce. “I hate that you’re right, but I’ve made my choice.”
Shaking her head, she chuckles dryly. “She must be really special.”
“She is.”
With a single nod, accepting my truth, she rises to her feet. The barely there bump she sported in Melbourne has grown to nearly the size of a basketball.
“I’ll go after him,” she says, glancing at the door half-heartedly.
“Give him time to cool off,” I suggest, standing to usher her to the door. “As stressful as this situation is, maybe a new level of responsibility is what he needs.”
She yawns, nodding.
“Sophie,” I say as we reach the threshold.
She turns back, her familiar smile teasing at the corners of her mouth.
“Keep me updated, please. He can spend his whole life shutting me out, but I’ll always love him.”
She takes my hand, squeezing once. “I will, I promise. I’ll call you later this week with an update. Maybe we can reach out to the mother of our grandchild together.”
I wince. Grandchild. Luca is going to be a father. I’m going to be a grandfather. It’s unfathomable, really. A new dose of anxiety surges through my veins, my concern for his ability to show up for another person as valid as it is disconcerting.
“Yes, but let’s try to go through him first so he doesn’t feel undermined.”
She lowers her chin, giving me a knowing look.
“Fine. But if that doesn’t work, or if he doubles down, I will contact her on my own and I won’t apologize for it.
I was wrong before.” A long sigh escapes her.
“This isn’t a phase. That boy needs a major wake-up call.
” Her lips tremble and her eyes go glassy.
“Even if he takes a while to come around, I want to know my grandchild. And we need to make sure the mother of that child has support, regardless of what bullshit Luca pulls.”
“Agreed. We’re in this together,” I assure her.
She rubs her belly. “It’ll be interesting to see how close in age my first grandbaby and my next child will be.” Her lips quiver again, and she throws her head back. “Dammit, Luca. This is so messy.”
I give her shoulder a squeeze. “Messy isn’t always bad.”
She lets out a loud scoff. “Who are you right now?”
Fair question. “I’ve been asking myself that a lot lately, actually.”
“Because of her?”
Mouth pressed into a straight line, I nod. “Yes. Because of her.”
We say our goodbyes, but before I can shut the door behind Sophie, she groans. “Wait,” she says. “Hold on.”
I poke my head out into the hall, finding her bending over, her feet planted wide.
Rushing over, I place a hand on her low back to support her. “What’s wrong?”
“Here.” She hands me a single sheet of paper. “She must have dropped this.”
I take the page from her, then she waves and continues down the hall.
Frozen to the spot, I scan the document in my hand. My heart thunders in my ears, my eyes blurring as I reread the same line over and over again.
Sophie was right. Evangeline dropped this. It’s her resignation letter, signed and dated today.
She was going to quit.
For me.
She was going to quit.
For us.
I can’t allow that to happen. More importantly, I can’t let her go on not knowing how I feel.
I jog back to my office, grab my phone off the desk, and tap on the text thread between my second-in-command, my assistant, and me.
Alaric
Quinn- schedule a director’s meeting for tomorrow morning
Leslie
Alaric. No.
Quinn
Any time, or first available?
Alaric
10 a.m. local time. I’ll need time to talk to Mitchum and the board beforehand.
Leslie
Ric, think about this…
Quinn
You got it, boss.
I turn off my phone, uninterested in anything Leslie has to say. I’ve made my choice, and now I have somewhere to be.