I’m not!
But he was never going to believe me. That was why Glenda wasn’t the least bit surprised to see me. They thought I was responsible for the disaster.
“Well…you’re here now,” he mused, rubbing his palms together.
“Dad, what’s going on?” I breathed, my own complaints taking a temporary backseat.
Dad walked to the sideboard, poured a finger of single malt scotch, and tossed it back. “That’s a mercy. He liked you.”
I rubbed my arm and shifted in the middle of the room. “Who is he?”
Dad poured another small splash. “Maksim Varga. He’s a business associate.”
There was nothing even remotely businesslike about the man from the hall. He seemed the kind of man who tormented small animals for fun.
“What did you want?” Dad snapped, pulling me back into the present. “You know better than to barge in here. Dammit, girl, it’s like you’re a child. I thought you grew out of that.”
“I have!” I bit back, marching over to where he stood. “I have grown up. I got a law degree and a partnership at one of the best firms in the city. But you know what I heard,Dad? I heard that you’re taking credit for it. That you had me terminated. Not only that, but you canceled the lease on my condo! My things were already packed up and sold!”
Dad stared condescendingly at me, a parent allowing a toddler to throw a tantrum. Maybe if I smashed his precious, scotch he would react.
But he just stood there.
I fisted my hands at my side, glaring at him. “Say something!”
“You coming in here, acting like a spoilt brat, is exactly why you don’t deserve to be made senior partner. Kirk was right about you.”
I gaped at him. “Dad, I worked my ass off at that company! I earned my place there.”
“I’m astounded that you think that,” he scoffed. “You only got the job because I called in a favor. So ungrateful, thinking it was on your merit.”
It was.Emotion stung my eyes.
“Why did you take it all away?” I hissed, not trusting myself to speak at full volume.
“You didn’t need it anymore. And if you had just done what you were supposed to, for once in your life, it would have worked out. But no…no, my little Amanda had to go fucking everything up. You always have to do it your way, and then you’re upset when I have to be the grown up.”
Not only was he twisting words, lashing out at me with that narcissism, but he wasn’t making sense.
“What didn’t I do? How could I possibly fail to meet your impossible standards!” I flung my hands in the air. “I did everything!”
Dad slammed his tumbler on the sideboard, making the bottles of booze rattle. He stomped toward me. I didn’t scramble back far enough. A hard, angry touch pinched my cheeks as his other hand fell on my upper arm. He jerked me forward, bending into my face.
“You want to know? Fine, I’ll tell you,” he spat. “But don’t say I wasn’t a good father, trying to hide this from you.”
I swallowed a whimper.I will not show weakness.
“You want to act like a grown up? The real world is cruel, Amanda. It’s full of responsibilities and terrible realities. I tried to spare you. I did everything in my power, and you couldn’t fucking do the one thing you were supposed to!”
I was well and truly scared. “What didn’t I do?” I whispered through the tight grip he kept on my face. “I did everything.”
“You were supposed to marry that twat and move to his lavish estate. He had enough money to save this family, and now the collector has come, and oh! Guess what! Little Amanda didn’t follow through with her part.”
Dad’s face was turning purple.
“Daddy,” I wheezed. Money wasn’t part of my marriage to Steven. What wasn’t he telling me? “Daddy, I didn’t know.”
“All you had to do was marry him, live in a castle like some princess, and have a couple of little brats. Not a very hard thing to do.” The cold volume cut.
