“And I’m sure you did nothing to encourage that questioning,” I said, my voice hardening. “Tell me, Dad, when did you meet with Rebecca Martin?”
Something flickered across his face. It wasn’t guilt, but a calculating look. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Really? Because Rebecca was very chatty when I called her a few hours ago. She was grateful for the ‘anonymous source’ who provided her with details about my relationship with Lexi. Details like where we had our first date, or the fact that we’re living together. Details that only my Dad could have known.”
Cora’s sharp intake of breath drew my attention briefly, but I kept my focus on Dad.
“Ed,” Cora said quietly, her voice strained. “Did you?”
I thought she had been the one trying to undermine me all the time, but my Dad just took the cake.
Dad’s jaw tightened. “Someone had to do something. You were throwing away everything I built for some?—”
“For some woman?” I finished for him, my voice deadly calm. “Say it, Dad. You destroyed an innocent woman’s reputation, made her daughter fair game for gossip columnists, all because you wanted to control my personal life? One you never had time for, anyway.”
“I wanted you to see reason!” His voice rose, his control finally cracking. “This relationship is inappropriate. It reflects poorly on the company, on our family name. I thought if you saw the consequences?—”
“You thought you could manipulate me into choosing the company over her,” I said. “You leaked our private life to the press, hoping the scandal would force me to end things with Lexi.”
“I was protecting what’s important,” Dad said coldly. “The company, and our legacy. Things you seem to have forgotten in favor of your personal life.”
The silence that followed was deafening. Cora sat frozen, staring at her husband, stunned. Going to the press was a line even she hadn’t crossed.
“Ed,” she whispered. “How could you? This isn’t what we discussed.”
So she had been involved, just not at this level.
He ignored her, his eyes locked on mine. “So what now, Jonah? Are you going to throw away your career for her?”
“Not my career,” I said quietly. “But I am stepping down as CEO of Altika.”
The words hung in the air between us and my Dad’s face went pale. Suddenly, he looked every one of his seventy-four years.
“I won’t hear of it,” he said hoarsely. “You’re the best person for the job, Jonah. Don’t let this woman?—”
“This isn’t aboutanywoman,” I said, anger rising in me. “This is about Lexi.”
Dad’s shoulders sagged slightly. He’d seen the article; he knew what this meant.
“The one who set up the birthday party for you?” he asked.
I narrowed my eyes. “How do you know about that?”
When he answered, something cracked inside my chest. Lexi had reached out, trying to heal the wound my father’s absence had left, and he’d turned her away without a second thought. That he could reject her request so carelessly only proved I was done trying to win his approval.
“The company has strict policies about relationships between executives and employees. As long as I stay as CEO, HR will have to investigate, and that investigation will put Lexi under a microscope. They’ll question whether I influenced any decisions about her, and whether she deserves to be here at all.”
I took a deep breath. “But if I resign now, before the formal investigation really begins, I remove the ongoing conflict of interest. What happened between us becomes a past mistake, not a current violation. It gives HR a way to close the case without punishing her. I won’t let her pay the price for my decisions.”
“But surely there’s another way?—”
“There isn’t.” For the first time since entering the room, I felt at peace with my decision. “And honestly, Dad, I’ve been holding onto this position for the wrong reasons. I thought being CEO would finally make me feel like I mattered to you. In these past months as interim CEO, I convinced myself it was everything I wanted.”
I moved closer to his desk. “But being with Lexi quieted all that noise. She never asked me to walk away, never tried to change me, but being around her made it impossible to lie to myself anymore. I wasn’t happy in this role. I never had been, not like I was at my Venture Capital firm. I wanted the CEO title because I thought it would fix something broken between us, but it didn’t.”
Dad started to speak, but I continued. “For the first time, I’m not chasing something to prove a point. I’m walking away because I know what I actually want.”
“And what’s that?” he asked.
