Until that moment, she’d never realized how fucked up her childhood was. Tommy and Killian had tried time and again to point it out, but she’d never truly understood what they were saying until this moment. “What are you doing here?” And how had he gotten in?
Turning on the charm, he asked, “A father can’t visit his daughter?”
It was such an absurd question, she couldn’t contain the laugh that burbled up. She laughed long enough and hard enough that his scowl deepened, the skin between his brows pinching together. She enjoyed the novelty of knocking him off balance. It was only fair, considering he’d spent years doing the same to her.
“Not when he’s been missing for months. You never wrote, never called,” she said mockingly.
“I had things to take care of.” He grabbed his glass for another swallow.
Portia raised a brow. “Really? What could possibly be more important than comforting your daughter in her grief? Or steering your company through a difficult time?”
He started to answer and she waved him off. “You know what? I don’t care. You let everyone think you were dead and I stepped in. I stepped up. I’m the CEO of the Tremaine Corporation now. So, you can go back to wherever it was you were and enjoy your retirement.”
He growled at that and took a step toward her.
Her heart rate kicked up again. Would he actually harm her? She honestly wasn’t sure.
Despite her concerns, she didn’t let her worry show. Just like he’d taught her. “They wanted to meet their granddaughter. You know, the one you kept locked in the basement to use as spare parts?”
He glared at her and she waited for his rebuttal. The way he would tell her that she wasn’t good enough. Surprisingly, it didn’t come. She didn’t believe he had changed, so what was he waiting for?
They stood in silence, tension crackling between them. When it became clear he was waiting for her to break, she pasted on her Ice Queen smile. “If that’s all, you should leave. I’ve had a long day.”
“Where do you expect me to go?” She couldn’t read his expression or his tone.
Portia stared at him. “I don’t really care. Back to your home or wherever you been hiding.” As far as she knew, his place had been sitting empty. She hadn’t been willing—or ready—to make a permanent decision about it until she knew for sure what had happened to him. She’d hired a caretaker to check on it weekly. Surely her father hadn’t been holed up there this entire time. She couldn’t imagine him not succumbing to the bright lights of the city.
“Next time you want to talk to me, make an appointment. Anything we need to discuss can happen in my office.”
Rage flared in his gaze. “Oh, we’ll be speaking further, missy.”
That cold, angry tone used to make her quiver in fear. She refused to show distress this time.
His nostrils flared, the only outward sign that her defiance had angered him. Portia stepped aside as he strode past her. The door closed behind him with an angry click.
She hurried behind him and engaged the deadbolt. Then she sagged against the wall as the adrenaline rush that had kept her upright finally dissipated.
Holy shit. Her father was alive.
That was a problem she really didn’t need right now.
Summoning enough strength to push off the wall, she returned to the living room. The decanter was on the coffee table where her father had left it, next to his empty glass. Clean glasses were across the room in the kitchen.
“Screw it,” she muttered and picked the glass bottle up by its neck. She brought it to her lips and took a long swallow. It burned, but she didn’t care. A drop slid down her chin and she wiped it away with the back of her hand.
Setting the bottle back on the table, she dropped onto the couch. Her father’s return was a complication she didn’t need. Not right now. He had the potential to screw up everything she’d done since his disappearance. All her improvements and fixes, erased.
She leaned back and closed her eyes. Maybe she wouldn’t have to deal with him again any time soon.
Haha. Not likely.
She’d barely rested her head on the cushion before she realized that he was most likely back to reclaim the company. She wouldn’t put it past him to stroll in tomorrow like he owned the place.
Screw that. The Tremaine Corporation was hers now. He’d thrown it away the moment he disappeared. Now she would do everything in her power to keep it, no matter who was trying to take it from her.
But as much as it galled her, she couldn’t do it alone.
It was time to put on her big girl panties and start rebuilding some bridges.
