We stepped out onto the portico, Max gave the valet a terse nod. As we waited for his Jeep, the door behind us opened.
“Maxwell.” His father stood there, appearing far too forbidding. “The evening isn’t over.”
Max barely cut him a glance. “For me, it is.”
“You will remain until the announcement’s made.”
Max stiffened.
Please, please don’t let it be anything bad.This barbeque had been a horrible experience so far. Max didn’t need any more misery added to it.
Chapter Nineteen
Max
Announcement?
My gut twisting with unease, I strode after my father to the study, determined to find out what the hell was going on, which was undoubtedly what he’d wanted in the first place.
I entered the room, but when faced with Mom’s portrait on his study wall, pain constricted my chest like vise. There was a little smile on her lips, a faraway look in her eyes, and her pale hair was pulled up in a feminine style. She was so beautiful, sweet—gentle. Again, I wondered why he had a painting of her in here when he’d never loved her. His business was all that mattered.
It was a struggle to keep my tone even. “What announcement?”
In response, he poured a shot of bourbon into a squat glass as if that were the most important thing right then. And sipped some.
At the delaying tactics, my entire body coiled tighter, bracing for whatever was to come. His steel grays met mine. “I’m going to ask Cecilia to marry me.”
A buzz started in my ears. Somewhere deep within me, I had realized this was coming. Yet hearing the words was like a kick in my gut. “Then don’t expect me here. Ever.”
“Don’t force me to do something you won’t like, Maxwell.”
Christ, I was so damn tired of the threats. “You want to disinherit me? Go ahead.”
“How long do you think that pretty little thing sticking to your side is going to last when she finds out you have nothing?”
“You don’t know her at all.” A grim smile rode my mouth. “She didn’t know who I was untilafterwe got together.”
Another sip. “I found out many interesting details about her. Such as her family’s financial difficulties. How will you play her knight and rescue her from her financial troubles? You think she’ll want a penniless musician?”
I nailed him a flat stare. The bastard was going all out to point out my so-called failings. My trust fund still hadn’t kicked in. I wouldn’t put it past him to have had a hand in its delay. “If I have to play music in a bar, I will.”
No way would I tell him about the offers I already had from the L.A. Phil and the San Francisco Symphony. Or the investments that I’d taken a chance on while interning at the family company. Hell, I was a chip off the old bastard, liked taking risks. And it was now paying off.
“Nothing matters so long as I’m with her.”
Steel gray eyes cut me a hard look. “For how long? You grow bored easily, judging from your history.”
My jaw hurt from grinding my teeth. I refused to let him see that he was getting to me. And it seemed he wasn’t done yet.
“She’s had only one relationship. She’s probably on a rebound, wants a bad boy fling before looking for something real. After her cheating ex, a woman like her won’t love again.” His lips twisted briefly. “If you’re looking for more, you’re doomed, headed for disappointment.”
All the shit the old man spewed out, I tolerated. But this? That Logan would never love me? Even if it was a fucking wild guess, it struck a nerve, hit my one fear right on the head. Something inside me splintered, shattering into little pieces. The torment too much to bear, I did the only thing I could and pivoted for the door. The next thing I knew, pain exploded in my knuckles, rushing up my arm. Punching the wall would do that.
“Maxwell!”
Better this pain than the one clawing at my chest.
“Maxwell, come back!”
