Seduced by a Dangerous Man

by Cleo Peitsche

  That was out of character for her. I guessed she’d already lost the battle and wasn’t taking it too well.

  “What does the doctor say?”

  “These are good,” Dad said, neatly sidestepping my question. He had a lot more wrinkles than before. In my mind, he was like a mountain. Immutable. Even though he’d driven me crazy every day of my life—even when he wasn’t anywhere in the vicinity—I had assumed he would always be there.

  A weird feeling unfurled inside me. Fear tempered with the acknowledgment of inevitability. I told myself he was still recovering from everything he’d been through, but it was more than that. Dad was getting older. He wasn’t infallible.

  “Why did you sell to Henry?” I asked, staring at him evenly.

  He sighed. Fussed with the bottom of his shirtsleeve. “We needed the money.”

  “Why? We own the building.” We? Get a grip, Audrey. “The company is turning a profit.”

  His eyes didn’t turn toward the house—where Martha was sulking—but then, they didn’t need to. His next words spoke volumes. “I never planned to retire in my fifties. When I loaned your brother the money for his condo, I got a lot of heat for it. It’s a good thing you’re happy in your apartment, because I’m not sure I coulda swung another loan like that.”

  “You’re… broke?” I asked, stunned. While I had never been involved in running the day-to-day business of Stroop Finders, I’d seen the records. Hell, I’d seen the tax returns. Dad drew an enormous salary, and the company had quite a few assets.

  “I’m not broke,” he said. “Not even close. But assuming I live another thirty years, which I realize might be optimistic given the last few months, the money won’t last forever.” He snorted. “Correction. It would, for me, but I’d assumed I’d be single. Not married to a woman who wants to do month-long cruises and fly first class everywhere.”

  “So tell her no,” I said shortly, irritated.

  Dad smiled at me. “One day you’ll meet your match, and you’ll understand what it means to never want to disappoint someone.”

  “Some people feel that way about their kids.”

  He pulled off his glasses and squinted through them. Anything to avoid looking at me. “You don’t think I did this for you, too?” he asked.

  “No. I’m pretty sure that giving the company to an asshole wasn’t for our benefit.”

  “You don’t know as much as you think you do, child.” Even though he hadn’t raised his voice much, I knew he was getting angry. He was doing that thing where he puffed himself up, taking up more space. If he kept it up, he was going to float out of the chair and up into the sky.

  “You should have consulted us!” I yelled.

  Dad looked like he was going to rise up and scream right back at me. In fact, he tossed aside the newspaper that had been sitting forgotten in his lap. But then the tension drained from him. “You’re right,” he said. “I handled it poorly.”

  His acquiescence was a brick wall thrown up in front of my indignation, and my mind went blank.

  “I didn’t think you and Rob would be thrilled, but I didn’t expect you to storm out of the restaurant like that,” he said.

  “So it’s my fault.”

  “Damn, girl, shut up and listen for once,” he thundered. And I had to concede that despite his physical frailness, he wasn’t the least bit diminished once he lost his temper.

  I crossed my arms.

  “Try listening a little less angrily,” he said, but he’d already pulled himself back from the edges of his fury.

  The door flew open. “What is going on out here?” Martha demanded, looking accusingly at me.

  “Give us some time,” Dad said. “Please.”

  Martha sighed loudly, but she withdrew.

  “I’m sorry I wasn’t a better father,” Dad said.

  I sucked in a short breath. “Who said you were a bad father?” I countered.

  “You did. In the hospital.”

  My face blanched. “I…”

  “Just listen. You talked, and I listened. Now you return the favor.”

  I very badly wanted to point out that he’d been unconscious and unable to do anything but listen; however, I held my tongue.

  “I was hard on you. I’m sorry,” he said. He didn’t look at me, which I took as a blessing. Not that I was looking at him, but as I stared at the ragged edge of my uneaten muffin, I could still see him in my peripheral vision.

  “I was unfair to you,” he continued. “You said that you didn’t think I realized it. That’s untrue. I knew. You were right. We’re very similar. I love you, Audrey, but sometimes I do want to strangle you. It’s mutual, I know, and deservedly so. I’ve got flaws. I tend to treat people dismissively. It makes me a terrible boss and a terrible father, and when those things were combined…” He trailed off and shook his head. “Every word you said, I deserved. Everything you felt, I take responsibility for.”

  “Dad,” I said hoarsely.

  “Not finished,” he snapped irritably. Because only my dad could be cuttingly rude to someone in the middle of a heartfelt apology. No, not only him. Me, too. I’d done similar things to Corbin. No wonder he had left.

  I sucked in a shuddering gasp of air that burned as it went down.

  “Watching you make the same mistakes I made… I didn’t know how to handle it. Still don’t. Maybe these things I’m saying are the wrong words. I don’t know the right way to look at it. Probably shoulda been in therapy, all of us. Mrs. Rico suggested that, but I didn’t want to hear it, didn’t want to believe I was the root cause of your panic attacks. But my way, coming down harder on you… it just made you more stubborn. More hellbent on trying to prove you could handle everything at the expense of balance in your life. And it didn’t matter how much work I gave you. You resented me for it, then you went out of your way to take more, always picking up the slack for everyone else in the office.”

  “I wanted you to treat me like everyone else!” I said, unable to bite my tongue for one second more.

  “Kat didn’t get hired right out of high school…”

  I forced myself to unclench my fists. “Maybe if she’d spent her childhood breathing it—”

  “Everyone starts at the bottom,” Dad said. “Maybe I was too hard on you, but I was trying to treat you like any other employee. That was a mistake. I should have been grooming you and Rob to take over. You aren’t ready to run a business. There’s too much you don’t know. Of course you can’t see it.” He shook his head angrily. “You know the curse of having children? They inherit your genes,” he said.

  I wondered if I’d visited long enough to justify staying away another month.

  Dad heaved out a sigh. “The good and the bad. You and I are so much alike. Of course we butt heads. Just like my father and I did.”

  Our grandfather had died when Rob and I were twelve. We’d never met him; he had lived hours away and never came to visit. Dad never talked about him. I’d once asked Mom about him, but she’d only said she didn’t know him well, that he was a silent man.

  “So it’s his fault?” I asked, though not meanly. I was genuinely curious to know if Dad blamed him for how he’d turned out. I turned to look at him.

  “Pops never pushed me. He ignored me. The only time we had any real conversations was when we were hollering at each other.” His eyes were shining, and that was the most frightening thing I’d ever seen. My dad wasn’t the kind of man who cried. I’d always assumed he’d dug out his tear ducts with rusty spoons.

  We sat there in an awkward silence. I did wonder how his father had treated him, but it wasn’t really any of my business. Obviously there was a lot Dad didn’t want to think or talk about.

  I remembered how Corbin had seen through the things I’d said about my father. Corbin had realized I wasn’t a reliable judge of Dad’s reasons, that my wounds skewed everything.

  “I’m sorry, too,” I said.

  “Don’t be. You were a kid and you had a terr
ible example.”

  “Rob had the same example,” I pointed out.

  Dad dismissed this with a wave of his hand. “He takes after your mother. The things that bother us aren’t even on his radar. That need to prove to the world that we’re capable… I know it motivates you, too. That drive. That stubbornness. The refusal to back down. It’s our greatest strength, Audrey,” he said, looking at me. “Our biggest weakness, too, you know. Took me a few weeks in the hospital to realize I didn’t have to know everything, do everything, manage everything. Pops tried to tell me, but I didn’t hear him. I hope it will be easier for you.”

  I nodded mutely and turned away, gathering my thoughts. Already I was forgetting details of this conversation, but I knew I’d be playing it over in my head later, trying to separate truths from convenient excuses.

  “Hope it wasn’t too stressful coming out here.”

  “I came to see you,” I said simply. “To see how you’re doing.”

  Dad smiled, relief in his eyes. “Rob put you up to it, huh? We’re lucky to have him.”

  I laughed and reached for my muffin, suddenly starving. Anticipation of this encounter had wiped out my appetite, but now it was back. “Didn’t want him to kick me out,” I said around a mouthful of food.

  “Kick you out?” Dad asked, puzzled.

  “Yeah, we’re living together. I moved out when you were in the hospital,” I said, surprised to realize he didn’t know. Then I remembered he’d referred to my apartment in present tense earlier. “It’s temporary.”

  “I didn’t realize that,” Dad said. And the way he said it, I could tell he was bothered by Rob not saying anything. Dad probably hadn’t realized Rob could keep a secret.

  Not only wasn’t I all bad, Rob wasn’t all good. Quite an afternoon.

  “You won’t come back to Finders?” Dad asked. “I built it for you and your brother. Wish I could do the transition over. Do it better.” He turned to look at me. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about. My lawyers are already trying to get Henry out.”

  Startled by this, I didn’t react.

  “I’m embarrassed to say it’s not going smoothly. I haven’t signed the final papers, you know. What you said in the restaurant gave me a lot to think about. Then Rob took me aside and said he thinks Henry isn’t a good fit. Hell! Anyone who can’t get along with Rob is trouble. I was trying to decide how to handle things without pissing off Henry, but I ended up in the hospital before I could do anything. I want to come back for a few more years, and I want to bring you and Rob on as partners,” he said, leaning forward. “Equal votes. You earned it, Audrey.”

  A slow smile spread across my face. Starting my own company was better than working for Dad, but taking over Stroop Finders was what I’d always wanted. It was my holy grail. “Equal votes in everything?”

  Dad didn’t even blink before nodding. “You’re a damned good fugitive tracker. Better than I was at your age, by far.”

  Eight-year-old me was ecstatic with pride, but I’d learned not to be overly confident where Henry was concerned. “Henry is a bigger problem than you know,” I said. “Rob should be the one to tell you.”

  “Or you,” Dad said, his eyes hard. “The day you go easy on me, Audrey, I know I’m done for. I’m not that fragile.”

  So I told him about Henry’s bribery schemes, leaving out the stuff I only knew through Corbin. It felt nice to rat Henry out to someone who might be able to do something about it. Henry getting kicked out wouldn’t solve all my problems, but it would help Rob.

  Dad’s face went stiff with shock and anger as I spoke. “Thank you,” he said when I was done. He had listened without interrupting me, without defending Henry’s light-of-day reputation… and thereby defending himself.

  Apparently he really had changed.

  He adjusted his glasses. “Henry is gone once the lawyers get done fighting about the details,” he said solemnly. “Please come back. The place wasn’t the same without you.”

  And that made me blush. “Ok,” I said, trying not to seem too eager.

  Dad nodded, and I found myself slowly smiling anyway as I imagined how amazing Stroop Finders could be with the three of us working together.

  I looked at Dad… really looked at him… and saw myself. But not the version of myself I hated, the one who was restless, never satisfied. Not the one who couldn’t feel empathy for herself after her role in Zachary’s death, and not the one who blamed herself for Corbin leaving.

  Instead, I saw the good. When Dad was wrong, he was really wrong, but when he was right, when he settled on something, he was unstoppable. Pride welled up in me. It would take more than a heart attack and a stroke to keep him down. We were strong.

  He saw something in my expression that pleased him. “I’ll talk to my lawyer today, see if progress has been made. I’m going to fix this, no matter how long it takes.” He smiled and stuck out his hand. “Do we have a deal?”

  We shook. And I had to admit… it felt better than I ever imagined.

  ~~~

  I practically floated home. Good thing, too, because Veronica would probably want to come over, and the condo needed some serious cleaning. I took a short nap, then rolled up my sleeves and got to work.

  The smell of cologne, and traces of water in the shower and sink, told me that Rob had already gone out for the night. For once, he wasn’t the only one with plans.

  Hours later, Veronica pushed herself off of Rob’s couch and indulged in a leisurely stretch. She was wearing a cute little black dress that hugged her curves. Seth was the designated driver, so booze-related lowered inhibitions weren’t why his gaze lingered a moment too long on her.

  “Time to go?” he asked, also standing.

  She nodded, yawning.

  “I’m going to make some water,” he said, and headed upstairs.

  As soon as we heard the bathroom door shut, Veronica and I stepped in close together. She laced her fingers through mine. “So?” she asked.

  Even though I’d already given my assessment twice before, I was happy to say it again. “He’s great. Really cute, too.”

  “I know!” she squealed, far too loud. She was pretty drunk. But I liked and trusted Seth, and had no problems letting him take her home.

  “You’re going to have to make the first move,” I said. “He’s definitely into you, but I think you intimidate him.”

  “He’s only had one girlfriend before,” she whispered. “They were together for four years. Do you think that means he’ll be bad in bed? Or maybe he got a thorough education and is really, really good.” Her blue eyes practically gleamed.

  “Easy there, femme fatale,” I said. “Make the first move but don’t traumatize him.” I nodded solemnly, then hiccuped. There was nothing so very funny about it, but we collapsed onto the couch, laughing hysterically.

  After they left, I began cleaning up from our little impromptu party. I realized that I felt, for the first time in ages, normal again.

  Like myself.

  Like I might not have to spend the rest of my life trying to recover from the last six months. Things were back on track. At some point—maybe even soon, with a little luck—I was going to return to Stroop Finders as a partner. I now had my best friend back—and I would not take her for granted again.

  As for Corbin… at least I could imagine a life without him. A good life, even if it wasn’t what I wanted.

  Though I’d had quite a few drinks, and that helped.

  I turned on the dishwasher and flipped off the kitchen light just as I heard Rob coming heavily up the stairs.

  “No luck?” I asked.

  He shrugged, tossed his keys noisily onto the dining room table. He looked around. “Either we were robbed, or you spent the night cleaning.”

  “I had a great day,” I said. “Didn’t get yelled at by the managers, then I patched up things with Dad—he’s pushing Henry out.” I nodded, beaming. “And I’m coming back. And we’ll all be partner
s.”

  Rob whooped, but I could tell it wasn’t news to him. “High five.”

  Laughing, I slapped his palm, and he did a clumsy breakdance. When he finished making a spectacle of himself, I said, “Veronica and her new beau came by. That’s why I cleaned.” I sat down, suddenly aware that I was still rather drunk.

  Rob’s eyes brightened at the mention of Veronica’s name. “She’s got a boyfriend?”

  “And he’s so not her type,” I said. “The exact opposite. Presentable. Polite. Pocket protector.”

  “Nerd?”

  I scrunched my brow, thinking. Seth was extremely attractive, and yeah, absolutely a nerd. I nodded. “Though he is in a band.”

  “Can’t expect Veronica to change completely overnight,” Rob said. “Feel like a video game? Cannibal Carnival?”

  Stifling a yawn, I nodded. Going to bed would have been the wiser choice, but I’d finally had a pleasant day, and I didn’t want it to end. Even if I had to work in a few hours.

  “See,” Rob said while the game loaded. “If Veronica has reformed her ways, it’s proof that everyone is settling down.”

  “I’m not.”

  “But you want to,” Rob said.

  That made me sigh. Loudly.

  Wanting to be with only one person on the planet didn’t mean squat. And anyway, I was over Corbin. I couldn’t even remember what he looked like. Tall, maybe. I thought his hair might be dark. Probably nice eyes and a deep voice and hands smooth as silk that played my body like an instrument, and lips that laid kisses like fire along my throat… and all that stuff under his clothes.

  “I’m going to bed in twenty minutes,” I said.

  ~~~

  I slept through my first alarm. And the second, apparently. Something made me wake up at 4:00 and glance at the time. I lay there a moment, thinking I had the day off, then shot out of bed when I realized I didn’t.

  My head pounded at the sudden change in posture, but no time to baby myself. It had to be admitted: I couldn’t keep going to bed late and then start work just a few hours after. It was killing me.