Chapter 31
DOMINIC
“Iwasn’t prepared for this,” August mutters.
We’re standing outside the front steps of our father’s villa in Miami, Florida. The weather is perfect this time of year. Dry enough to make the trip worth it, because everything else about it fills us both with uneasiness.
“Me either, but we have to do this,” I remind him.
Theo’s in New York with Phoebe, working with her and Penny regarding the legal steps needed to get our woman declared as the head of Baldwin Enterprises.
“We haven’t seen the old man in over a year,” August says. “And the last time we did wasn’t exactly a picnic.”
I remember all too well. It wasn’t pleasant. Our father is a strict and traditional man. His values are antiquated and often stifling. Our principles never aligned.
“He’ll never forgive us for not taking over his company,” I reply. “We built our own empire, and it left him sort of… rudderless.”
“And now, we’re about to tell him we’re in love with the same woman, and she’s going to have our baby.”
“He’ll want to know who the father is,” I say. “If it ends up being Theo, he’ll throw a hissy fit.”
“He’ll insist on a DNA test, for sure.”
“Listen to us, theorizing,” I chuckle dryly. “We haven’t even laid eyes on the old man yet. Maybe he’ll be happy for us. You never know.”
August gives me a doubtful scowl. “You’re forgetting the last conversation we had with him over the phone.”
“No, I’m just being hopeful. Come on,” I reply and pat my brother on the shoulder. “We’ve got this. Let’s get it done and over with.”
Our father’s villa sits at the front of a sprawling, lush garden filled with tropical flowers, agave bushes, and tall palm trees that cast a generous shade over parts of the house.
Built on two levels, it features large windows that provide each room with a generous amount of light throughout the day.
We make our way up the white marble steps and through the wide, double doors. Inside the foyer, a personal assistant greet us.
“Mr. Coates,” she says, then looks at my brother. “And Mr. Coates.”
“This is awkward,” I reply with a wry smile. “I’m Dominic. This is August.”
“And I’m new here,” the young woman with a tooth gap informs us. “You’ll have to forgive me.”
I shake her hand. “Don’t worry about it. Our father isn’t expecting us, but I know he’s in.”
“I’m Maura, Mr. Coates’ personal assistant. You should’ve called ahead. He hasn’t had a good day so far.”
“We weren’t sure he’d want to see us,” I admit with a sheepish smirk. “I’m not sure how much you know about our relationship with our father, but—”
“Oh, he misses you both terribly.” She laughs lightly. “But he’s a grumpy man with a giant ego. I can see right through him, though. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t fired me yet. It’s not about your family issues, however. It’s his health. It hasn’t been the best.”
August frowns slightly. “He’s getting worse.”
“And he doesn’t want you to see him like this,” Maura replies with a nod. “However, you’re already here. Mr. Coates will just have to deal with it. Come, let me take you to the tearoom, and I’ll escort him down to see you.”
“Thank you.”
“I’ll be right back,” Maura says after getting us settled in the tearoom.
“We’re not going anywhere,” I politely reply, then wait for her to leave before I finish my thought. “Even if we wanted to.”
“Screw it, we’re already here, right?”
“I haven’t been this nervous since we sat him down and told him we weren’t taking over the company like he wanted.”
“Hell, after that,” August sighs and runs his fingers through his hair, “everything else should be easy.”
“But it isn’t, is it?”
“Not with him, no,” he concedes.
Minutes pass in heavy silence as I glance around the room. Only then do I notice the abundance of framed photographs and newspaper prints. I move closer to gloss over them, surprised to observe a detailed record of our performance in the business sector.
“August, check this out.”
My twin joins me with equal fascination as we go over some of the photos and the headlines. “Coates Brothers Make a Killing on Wall Street with Secura 2.0,” August reads. “This is from five years ago.”
“I know. And look, here we are with the Under-Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce last summer.”
“The golf tournament we sponsored for that Silicon Valley fundraiser.”
“He’s been keeping track, August.”
“Yeah, I can see that.”
“I thought he hated it when we went into business on our own,” I mutter.
Our father’s voice startles us both. “I wasn’t happy about it, that’s for damn sure.”
“Dad,” I whirl around, and so does August. “We didn’t hear you come in.”
Instantly, I realize how bad his condition has gotten. Maura pushes his wheelchair into the tearoom, but then he waves her away. “Just get us some cold drinks, darling, if you will,” he says, then shifts his focus back on us. “What brings you two all the way down here?”
Neither of us are able to answer because we’re still trying to wrap our heads around the sight of him.
He looks so old and feeble, so breakable and fragile.
He wears linen pants and a breezy shirt, his tan profoundly caramel.
His hair is thinning and white as snow. He’s lost a lot of weight, and his steely blue eyes are sunken into his face.
“We wanted to talk to you. How’ve you been?” August finally says.
“Not as well as I’d like, but I’m still here,” Dad replies.
“I can see that. You don’t look too hot, either,” my brother tells him, unwilling to cut him any slack. I’m tempted to rein him in, but August has a heavy history with our father—perhaps more upsetting for him than for me. “What are the doctors saying?”
“The doctors can kiss my ass, August. I know I’m a dying man. I can feel it. What are you doing here?”
“Dad, we’ve got some news for you. We’re hoping you’ll see it as good news. We’re certainly happy about it,” I take over the conversation.
Dad thinks about it for a moment, then motions for us to join him at one of the round, glass tables by the window overlooking the pool. “Make yourselves comfortable, at least,” he says. “Ah, here comes Maura. Finest PA I’ve ever had.”
Maura smiles gently as she brings a tray of iced teas over—bold peach pink with plenty of sliced lemon poured into highball glasses. She sets it on the table, then politely leaves the room.
“Alright, what’s the good news?” our father asks after a tentative sip of his iced tea.
August and I look at each other. I let him handle it.
“We know you were never okay with our business decisions or our lifestyle choices,” he says. “Lord knows we’ve had our share of fights over pretty much everything we’ve done over the past few years.”
“And I stand by everything I said,” Dad bluntly states.
August pauses and pinches the bridge of his nose. “You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”
“I’m just being honest. That being said, I’ve made my peace with it,” he replies with a casual shrug.
“You wanted to go your own way. I put together an executive board that includes two of your cousins, just to make sure a Coates or two will still be running the show after I’m done.
But it’s fine. It’s all material stuff, anyway. Where I’m going, none of it matters.”
“Loving the optimism, Dad,” I mutter.
“It’s a fact of life, son. But anyway, I digress.
” He clears his throat. “Here’s the thing, boys.
It didn’t work out the way I wanted. I was angry about it.
Furious and bitter. But then I sat back and watched the two of you take everything I taught you and put it into a new business venture.
I watched you build your empire from scratch, much like I did before you.
And I realized, well, that was the whole point, wasn’t it? ”
“It was?” August sounds surprised.
“You made your own way, your own money. It makes you more of a Coates than anyone else in this godforsaken family.”
I’m just as confused as my brother. “Where is this coming from? The last time we spoke—”
“I was in a foul mood. I’m still not a fan of your lifestyle, Dominic. That isn’t changing anytime soon.”
“We’re with Phoebe Baldwin,” I blurt out. “August, Theo, and me. We’re building something good, something beautiful together. It’s working, Dad. We love her, and she loves us. Phoebe is the best thing that’s ever happened to us.”
Dad rubs his temple. “Yes, yes, it’s all over the internet. I’m not going to put any of that on these walls, though.”
“She’s pregnant,” August says.
“Say that again?”
“Phoebe is pregnant. We’re building a family,” August replies.
Dad needs a moment and another sip of iced tea to process this bombshell. But he doesn’t look anywhere near as horrified as we expected. If anything, he seems calm.
“I didn’t see this coming,” Dad says. A smile blooms across his face, and somehow, I feel as though I’m able to breathe again. “You’re going to be fathers?”
“Yes, sir.”
“The three of you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Well, that is one lucky kid, what can I say,” the old man grumbles. “Maybe you’ll be better at it than I was.”
August and I are speechless. We were expecting a shouting match. A fist banged against the table, the iced tea glasses flying across the room. Definitely not this. But it’s good. It’s better than I’d hoped for.
“I’m sorry, Dad. We thought you were going to be pissed,” I admit.
He shrugs again, a smirk twitching across his tired face. “I’m too old to fight with my sons, Dominic. Your mother would want all of us to get along. I guess I never told you this enough, and I should’ve.”
“Told us what?” August asks.
“That I’m proud of you,” Dad says. “I’ve always been proud of you boys.
You’re hardheaded, stubborn mules. You’ve pissed me off plenty of times, but that’s just because you’re more like me than I care to admit.
But you worked hard, you forged your paths, and you never made me seem a fool to the world. ”
August shakes his head slowly. “That was never our intention, Dad.”
“Well, I’m a stubborn mule, too. I wanted you to take over.
To follow in my footsteps. But life doesn’t always go the way we planned.
I’ve made my peace with it, and in that peace, I’ve found clarity.
” He pauses and leans forward. “I am damn proud of you. So proud, there aren’t adequate enough words. ”
As I look at my brother, I can see years of pent-up anger fading away with one deep breath as he finally has the one thing he’s always craved from our father—his approval. His support. His validation. Those things were always precious to him, and to see August get it now is a good feeling.
“We’re glad to see you’ve come such a long way, Dad,” I say. “I know August really appreciates it, even though he’s currently at a loss for words.”
“He’s always been the emotional one,” our father says with a chuckle.
“Can you blame me?”
“No, son. I know I didn’t make it easy. “He exhales deeply, then takes another sip of iced tea. I’m not sure what Maura put in it, but maybe it played a part in this much-needed change of heart. “So, when is the due date?”
“Early next year,” I tell him. “Phoebe has an OB-GYN visit scheduled tomorrow.”
Dad nods slowly. “Just be careful, boys. The world can be a cruel place. Protect your family. And be sure to make an honest woman out of Phoebe. She needs protection in the eyes of the law. The child, too.”
“We’ve talked about it. We’re planning to make it official,” August replies.
“Who’s going to marry her? It had better be one of you two!”
“What if it’s Theo?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.
“Hey. I’m fine with you two saying no to anything pertaining to the Coates business and fortune. But your kid deserves a slice of this pie when he or she gets older,” Dad says. “Give Phoebe the Coates name, and I’ll update my will accordingly.”
“Dad,” August tries to object, but I squeeze his shoulder to stop him.
“He’s got a point. We owe him that much. Besides, Theo won’t mind.”