Not cool when the clinic went out of its way to help us.
I should’ve been more apologetic about barging in there after hours too. Hell, maybe I should’ve even tipped them.
Dad sighs roughly, sinking down into his wheelchair.
“We need you to start turning your life around, son. Wake up. Be more aware.” His frown looks tired this time, like my antics have aged him. “No one’s getting any younger.”
For a fraught second, we lock eyes and I see vulnerability behind his usual incoherent anger. He’s not the same man he was a few years ago before his brush with death, before the heart attack left him hollowed out.
“Understood.” I swipe away from the video and hand it back to Mom.
“I don’t need to tell you large brands are more online than ever,” Dad growls, his humanity vanishing. “We can’t have an unmarried thirty-year-old son playing tabloid prince that fucks everything that moves.”
“Alec!” Mother gasps, shaking her head.
Whatever flicker of sympathy I had for him a second ago dies.
The rush of anger is explosive.
I should’ve known it would come down to this—I should’ve fuckingknown—but it doesn’t make his words cut any less.
All this high-and-mighty hand-wringing over my organic pet food brand, and this is his real problem.
My sex life.
No, not even that—the public’sperceptionof my sex life.
The fact that I wasn’t a damn Boy Scout in my past life.
Bullshit.
And I’ve smelled it enough for today.
I snap my fingers, and Charlie’s ears perk up. He follows my silent instruction to come join me, then sits.
“You’re supposed to be retired. Find a better hobby than my damn dating life,” I snarl. “It’s beneath you, old man.”
I snap my fingers again for the corgi, and we’re already moving. I barely remember to grab Charlie’s leash before I slam the door.
“Now look what you’ve done ...” Mom says miserably as I leave the room.
I ignore them both and take the long, winding staircase two at a time to the entryway, waiting for Charlie to catch up on his stubby legs.
Luis, my assistant, is walking in through a side door. And Luis being Luis, he immediately notices the look on my face.
“Again?” he whispers.
“Yes. Selfish fuck.” I pinch the bridge of my nose and take a deep breath.
The truth is, Dad’s an old-school jackass, but he’s not entirely wrong. That almost makes it worse.
“What was it this time?”
“The usual lecture I’ve heard a thousand times. I need to get my shit together and stop fucking everything that moves.” I snort.
Luis rolls his eyes.
“You’d think they’d find better things to get on your back about.”
