33. Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Three
Leo
I n twenty minutes, the estate is going to be flooded with a bunch of kids.
If I had tons of little germ incubators rushing into my penthouse in New York, I probably would’ve had an aneurysm.
But the thought of Piper playing with all her friends to celebrate her birthday brings a smile to my face. She’s going to have so much fun today, and part of why is because of Dad and his surprising generosity.
As I adjust the collar of my white button down shirt, I walk down the hallway to the study and sit down at the desk. I’m curious how much Dad spent, but I didn’t get a receipt from the delivery guys for the inflatables .
I check some drawers and folders until I find a sticky note that has Dad’s bank of choice written on the top, followed by a username and password.
Bingo.
I get on my laptop and pull up the site, my fingers flying over the keys to log in to Dad’s account. A little evasive? Probably. But I just want to see how much he poured into Piper’s birthday party.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a few other charges for things he got for her.
I pull up the transactions for his main checking account, quickly finding the purchase for the inflatables that cost him almost $1,000. He really went all out.
My eyes glide downward, reading over the other transactions. He still gets money from the company every month, but I start to notice a pattern in the charges.
Harvest Food Pantry
Hope Youth Foundation
EH Volunteer Cente r
I check the other months. The charity donations only happened recently, but there are multiple instances of them. Hundreds of dollars each.
He never said anything about doing this.
A recurring month to month charge pops out at me.
Blooms and Blossoms Flower Shop
Why is he buying flowers every month? Who would he be giving—
Realization hits me like a clap of thunder.
“Holy shit,” I mutter.
Juliet said someone always leaves flowers on her mom’s grave, but she doesn’t know who. I just found the answer.
What else has he done without telling anyone?
I scroll through more transactions, checking all of his accounts and going back years and years to see where he’s been dumping money silently. There are large transactions to other people’s accounts.
I don’t know why he sent them money, but if it was to help them out, I wouldn’t doubt that anymore .
I go all the way back to a little while after I left home, my gaze skimming every transaction until they land on one worth $500,000. I lean forward, my eyes growing wide.
Yes, the amount is crazy, but where he sent it is even crazier.
High Rise Construction and Development
I swallow, a whirlwind of emotions sweeping me up. I’m so…confused. He bought shares in my company when I first started.
I thought he didn’t believe in me. Part of me thought he hated me.
But there was some part of him that must’ve believed in me.
I rest my forehead against my hand, as realization crashes over me all over again. He supported me from the start, even when I turned my back on him. On everything and everyone.
“Leo!” Juliet’s voice echoes throughout the house.
My head snaps up so quickly that it spins for a second, my hands gripping the desk to steady me as I stand up. I close my laptop and step out of the study just as Juliet heads down the hallway .
“Sorry, time got away from me.”
“It’s fine. Guests are starting to show up,” Juliet replies with an excited smile. She looks beautiful in her long sleeve burgundy top and black jeans.
I nod, my eyes trailing to the door of my dad’s bedroom. He should’ve said something. Things could’ve been different.
“Are you okay?”
I tear my gaze away and nod, putting a grin on my face. This day is about Piper. I can deal with all the train wrecks later.
“Yeah, let’s go celebrate the birthday girl.”
Juliet outdid herself with decorating for the party.
There are pink and white balloons and streamers hanging everywhere.
The kitchen counters and dining table are full of food platters and Piper’s large cookies and cream cake topped with cookies.
All the adults can hang out on the back porch and sip on hot drinks while the kids play in the backyard on the inflatables.
There’s no snow on the ground or snowfall today, and the sun is out.
It’s the perfect day for a party .
As soon as I step outside, I hear Piper squealing and laughing as she jumps in the bouncy castle with her friends.
“This place is beautiful,” one of the moms tells Juliet as they sit around and sip on hot cider.
“I’ve seen pictures of the house, but it’s even nicer in person,” another one says.
“It feels like I’ve lived here all my life,” Juliet replies. “My mom worked here. Now, I do. I love this place.”
A wooden board creaks under my foot, prompting the group of parents to look over at me.
“You must be Leo,” one of the moms says as she stands from her seat. She extends her hand out to me, multiple bracelets jingling together on her wrist. “I’m Mary Kate, Lanie’s mom.”
I shake her hand. “Nice to meet you. Welcome.”
“It was so kind of you to host the party here. Your house is beautiful,” Mary Kate says as she sweeps her wavy, blonde hair behind her shoulders.
“Isn’t it? It has been in his family for generations. Why don’t I give you a tour?” Juliet suggests from beside me .
I blink. Did she just materialize next to me? I swear Juliet was just across the porch talking to another parent. Now, she's planted firmly at my side. Close enough that our shoulders almost touch. Close enough that Mary Kate's smile immediately falters.
“Oh…” Mary Kate glances between Juliet and me. She obviously doesn’t want a tour.
Juliet is already opening the door to the house and motioning for Mary Kate to follow her.
I lift an eyebrow at Juliet, but she just shuts the door behind them.
“Leo! Watch!” Piper shouts.
I turn and see her at the top of the inflatable slide.
She waves her hands at me, a bright smile lighting her face up. She told her mom that she had to wear a pink princess dress to her party. She got her wish, but she had to put a white long sleeve underneath and a pink beanie on.
I wave back. “I’m watching!”
Piper hops onto the slope, bouncing a little before sliding down the rest of the way to the bottom with an excited scream .
I chuckle and clap for her with the other parents. “That was awesome!”
Piper hops out of the bottom of the slide and runs over to me.
I catch her under her arms and lift her up to hold her against my side. “Having fun, birthday girl?”
Piper nods excitedly. “I’m hungry.”
“Well, there’s plenty of food inside. We’ll do your cake in a little bit,” I tell her. “Sound good?”
“Yes!” she says before throwing her arms around my neck and squeezing tightly.
I don’t mind the brief lack of oxygen at all. I hug her back and then place her down so that she can run inside with some of her friends. “Anyone else hungry?”
“I could eat.”
“I need a cider refill.”
“Lead the way.”
I head inside with the other parents as kids pour into the kitchen to grab chicken fingers and fries from Piper’s favorite place to eat. Hopefully, she doesn’t grow up to be like those people who don’t like eating anything but chicken fingers at restaurants, but I’ll love her regardless.
I stop in the doorway of the kitchen, my heart rate jolting for a second. Damn. She’s not even my kid, and I feel so bonded to her.
Maybe Juliet acts so weird about us being around each other because she doesn’t want that. She probably thinks I’ll hurt her daughter somehow.
“Look who made it to the party!”
I turn around, and my jaw damn near drops at the sight of Juliet guiding Dad by the arm toward the kitchen. He uses a cane to support his other side, and he’s walking as slow as a snail.
But he’s here.
“Are you sure you should be up and moving around?” I ask him quietly as I walk over to them.
“I saved up all my strength for this,” Dad says before motioning to the nasal cannula on his face. “And she won’t even let me go to the bathroom without this. ”
“Don’t you want to breathe?” Juliet replies, giving him a pointed look. “He doesn’t move around much, but he can on good days.”
“And today is a good day. Piper is turning seven. I’m showing up to her party,” Dad says with finality.
I glance at Juliet, raising my eyebrow. She’ll know his limitations more than me.
“You have to sit at the table,” Juliet tells Dad.
“Well, let’s go then,” Dad replies before shuffling forward. His body is tense as he tries to straighten his posture as much as he can.
I don’t try to directly help him because I already know what kind of response I’m going to get. Instead, I just head into the dining room first and pull out a chair for him at the end of the table.
“Mr. Frank!” Piper gasps, abandoning her plate of chicken fingers to rush over to him. She hugs his hip, and he lets out a light laugh and pats her back.
“Happy birthday, kiddo.”
“Want to blow your candles out, baby?” Juliet asks, gesturing to the cake in the middle of the table .
Piper nods. “Mr. Frank, can you watch me?”
“Of course,” Dad says before shuffling over to the seat that I pulled out and sitting down. He stays still for a few seconds to take a couple of breaths, his facial features tightening for a moment.
“Everyone, come on! Let’s do the cake!” Juliet calls out to all the kids.
I grab a lighter from one of the kitchen drawers and light the large number 7 candle in the middle of Piper’s cake before stepping back.
Piper sits up on her knees on the chair to hover over her cake, smiling as everyone starts singing to her.
My eyes sweep around the room, taking everything in. Piper’s friends singing as they crowd around the table. Dad smiling as he watches her. Juliet gazing at her with pride and joy.
Piper lifts her eyes and smiles at me, and for a moment, everything feels perfect.
Everything feels right.
Of course, I’d bond with my ex-girlfriend’s daughter. Of course, I’d start seeing her like my own .
That feels like a blessing and a curse.
Piper blows out the candle once the song ends, and everyone claps and cheers for her, making her glow with happiness.
“I’ll cut the cake,” I offer before grabbing a knife and a stack of plates.
Piece by piece, the cake disappears, along with the kids as they decide to run out and play now that they’re fueled by sugar. The parents head back out to the porch to supervise, and it’s just me, Juliet, and Dad before I know it.
I place a plate in front of Dad and pause, a million things to say coming to mind.
Dad meets my eyes and frowns a little. “What?”
I part my lips to speak, but the words don’t come out. I don’t know which to say first.
“I’ll get you a fork.”
That’s all I can get out.
Dad waves his hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get it. ”
I sigh as I watch him place his hands on the table to push himself upright.
“Frank, you don’t need to be moving so much,” Juliet says from the kitchen.
Dad steps away from his chair and starts heading toward the kitchen, not paying either of us any mind. “I got—”
He lets out a sharp wheezing noise and grabs at his chest, his eyes widening.
My blood freezes. “Dad?”
The next second, he collapses.