“He was like that with everyone?” Andi seemed almost disturbed by the revelation.
I nodded, “Even with my mom and my brother. He liked to make people laugh.”
“How was it different with Bec?” Andi asked Malachi.
He sighed, “I’ve known, or I guess knew… fuck, that’ll never get easier… I knew him for over a decade. I watched him find countless one-night stands, then helped him sneak out of said one-night stands’ houses, and so much more. I basically enabled his ‘manwhore ways’—his words, not mine. Only his mom thought he would settle down someday. The rest of us thought it would never come. The Forever Bachelor. Then Bec told him she liked him…”
I groaned, “Don’t remind me of that god-awful admission. It’s embarrassing to even think about.”
Malachi smiled, “Maybe, but it flipped something in Rome. The idea of being with anyone else was out of the question… when he called me that night for the first time? Did he tell you what we talked about?”
I shook my head.
“He asked me if it was too soon to propose or if it would get him fired.”
A startled laugh fell from my lips, “Why was he so scared of getting fired? He asked me the same thing after he kissed me.”
Malachi shrugged, “He’s dramatic, always has been.”
Andi looked between the two of us. “He loves you both a lot, doesn’t he?”
I didn’t answer because I didn’t know. We had never said it.
But Malachi did, “I’m up there, sure, but Bec is, and always will be, number one.”
Chapter Thirty
BEC
“Last chance,” Will mused from his seat next to mine. The second and final board meeting he would be attending was set to begin shortly. I had ensured we got here early to give me time to… process.
It was strange being back in the office. The blinds in my office were still closed from Livia’s paranoia all those months ago. My papers were left on my desk, but now had a layer of dust. Only two people had keys to my office. Rome and me. Without eitherof us here to let them in, the cleaners never came. I could have sworn I could still smell Rome’s cologne.
His office was left untouched. A spare jacket dangled on the hook on his door. He had a stack of notes on his desk as he deciphered what they had meant, that sticky note with his credit card PIN still in the drawer. The cleaners had dusted and vacuumed. It looked like he had just stepped out for a moment, and he would be back before I knew it.
The office was left in a state of waiting… waiting for me, for what was to come next, for answers? What it was waiting for, I wasn’t sure. The building was quieter than usual, many of the employees having left during my hiatus. The company was unstable, and no one wanted to tie their horse to this sinking ship.
“This is the right thing,” I explained to Will. I sat at the head of the table as we waited for the remaining board members. “At least, I think it is.”
“You can take more time,” he tried to placate. “The board will understand.”
I shook my head, “I don’t care about them anymore. This company took everything from me. It took our father, it took our family, it took my life… it took Rome. I don’t want it to take anything more.”
Will took my hand in a comforting gesture. We had never been the closest, but I always knew he would be there for me when it counted. He had proven that over the last few months. I would miss him when he went home, but I was excited for what our relationship could now become.
The door to the conference room opened. I was expecting Andi, or maybe Melissa, as the meeting wasn’t set to start for nearly half an hour.
Instead, it was my dad.
He looked horrendous. He had dark circles under his eyes, his suit was wrinkled, and his hair was mussed. Gone was the larger-than-life facade. Now, he looked like the shitty excuse of a father he truly was.
“Dad,” I greeted cooly. We still had no proof he was responsible for Rome’s death, even though I knew he was. Andi hadn’t seen the shooter, but it had my dad written all over it. He didn’t care about me, nor Rome. He only cared about money and his own success. By killing Rome, he had succeeded in shaking me… and thus, the company. The company was struggling, but I knew it could be saved… I just wasn’t willing to be the one to do it anymore.
“Rebecca,” he sighed and sat down on the other end of the table.
Will stiffened next to me, but didn’t speak. I knew this was hard for him, but he wanted to be here to support me.
“What do you want?” I asked.
