Betrayed (The New Yorker)

by M. O. Kenyan

  “Reno, I’m sorry.”

  Reno took an angered step toward him, his fingers balled into fists, his body coiled in rage and ready to attack. “Don’t apologize to me. I will not be the one to give you peace when my sister is out there, God knows who with.”

  “We are going to find her.”

  “Don’t you think I’ve tried?” he cried out. “I remember the night she was taken, unlike you, her father. I looked everywhere for her. It was the reason I never left the island, because I thought she was still there.”

  “Why did you come here, Reno?” Adrian asked.

  “I had a plan, not a plan but an intention.” Reno’s gaze focused on Dennis’s face. “I wanted to hurt you just as much as you hurt me, my mother and my sister.”

  “You came for revenge?” Adrian asked once more.

  “Yes,” Reno said through clenched teeth.

  “Is that why you attached yourself to my daughter?”

  Reno’s bewildered gaze switched to Adrian. He knew everyone would come to that conclusion once they found out about his ties with Dennis. It was what he was afraid of. “No, I adore Lisette. I would never hurt her.”

  “Prove it.”

  “How?”

  “Leave her alone until this thing with Dennis is settled. You might be a good man, Reno, but my daughter will not be caught in the middle of this,” Adrian warned.

  “She won’t allow that.”

  “Let me worry about my daughter and you worry about finding your sister.”

  “I have someone looking for her,” Dennis put in.

  “Why?”

  “I want my children together. I see how you are with DJ and Daniela. I know you haven’t carried out your revenge because of them. I want them to meet their sister.”

  A rush of relief blew through Reno. He couldn’t believe the old man was willing to help him. With his money and influence he was sure they would be able to find Rhyne. But what about Lisette? Reno didn’t think she would ever understand. He knew he owed this to Rhyne.

  “Fine, I’ll leave now if you give me your word that you are going to find Rhyne.” He directed his statement to Adrian.

  "I give you my word,” he swore. “Then maybe after all of this is resolved, if your intentions toward my daughter are honorable, you can get her back.”

  “I doubt she’ll forgive me for leaving her.” Reno turned around and walked away. From the hallway he could hear Lisette’s laughter, and although it ripped him apart, he knew he had to walk away.

  “Reno?”

  “Yes.”

  “I know you don’t want me anywhere near you,” Dennis muttered under his breath. “But I would appreciate it if you spent the Fourth of July with your brother and sister. I’m sure Lisette would also appreciate it.”

  “What about Mr. Ross?”

  “He doesn’t mind.”

  Reno chewed on the bottom of his lip. He would have rather made his escape without Lisette knowing he was that much of a coward. Having the chance to spend the rest of the day with her, to watch the fireworks together, seemed to be the perfect Band-aid for his already broken heart. Spending time with Daniela and DJ was also another bonus.

  “All right.”

  * * * *

  Lisette had a swarm of bees buzzing inside her belly. She looked up at Reno and the expression on his face gave her heart flutters. The light from the different colors of fireworks fell on his face so perfectly, highlighting the contours in his expression. This was it—she had to tell him how she felt.

  “Reno?” She swallowed the knot of nerves that had risen in her throat.

  “Hmm?” He looked down at her, and the adoration that shone through his eyes gave her the last boost of confidence that she needed.

  “I love you.” There—she had said it. She exhaled a sigh of relief and with it all the stress that had built up to that moment. But her heart had frozen in her chest, waiting for him to say it back or to totally blow her off.

  Reno didn’t say anything. He just leaned down toward her, his lips a gentle brush against hers, enthralling and lighting every nerve in her body. As the shock had begun to subside he pulled back, and a chill of loneliness invaded the space where his lips had left her hot. Lisette watched as the emotions flickered in his eyes, the love was there, then fear and replaced by regret. She found herself holding onto his arm with both of her hands. She was afraid of letting go, afraid that he would disappear if she closed her eyes.

  Lisette’s fear became true when Reno gently pulled his arm free and said. “I have to go.”

  “What do you mean you have to go?” Lisette followed as Reno walked into the house, his large strides making her run just to catch up. “But you are staying the whole weekend.”

  Lisette entered his temporary room to find him already packed. He hauled the duffle bag over his shoulder, before taking a step toward her. She closed the door and leaned against it. She was going to barricade them in there if she had to. Lisette needed answers and a perfectly good reason as to why he was leaving her, ten seconds after she confessed her love for him.

  “You are not leaving!” To her surprise her bark was only met by an amused smile. “Do you think this is funny?”

  Reno cleared his throat, replacing his smile with a frown. “I don’t think it’s funny, but I need to leave. We can’t be together right now.”

  “Why?” Fear fizzled inside her chest as her knees threatened to give way to her weight, sending her crushing down on the floor. Lisette’s grip tightened on the door knob as her body sagged against the door. “I love you.”

  “I know.”

  “Don’t you love me?”

  * * * *

  Reno looked away. What was he supposed to say? If he told her he loved her, that he wanted nothing more than to be with her, she would never understand him leaving. But he could tell her the truth. However, that would mean risking losing Adrian’s help. They just had to spend some time apart.

  “I can’t be with you right now,” he mumbled.

  “Why?”

  “I don’t fit in your world.”

  “Is it because I told you about Ricardo—”

  “No!” Reno let the bag fall to the floor and took a step toward her. “It has nothing to do with you, but everything to do with me.”

  “It’s not you, it’s me!” Lisette barked, anger piercing through her questioning tears.

  Reno realized the only way she would get through him leaving would be if she had anger to hold on to. “You and I come from different worlds. I will never be good enough for you. And you will never be enough for me. What am I going to do with a bratty virgin with a questionable past?”

  Reno stopped before his damage was irreparable. He watched as Lisette viciously swiped the tears off her face. She stood up straight and held the door open for him. Reno picked up his bag, the closed expression on her face telling him Lisette was done with him. When he got downstairs he realized he had an audience waiting for him. The angry stares that looked back at him tore through his heart. Daniela and DJ only spared him a scowl before looking away. All of a sudden his sacrifice didn’t seem that important. Adrian was also waiting at the bottom of the staircase for him, his hand outstretched with a car key in it.

  “You can bring it to the office on Monday,” he said.

  Reno grabbed the key and ran out of the house. He couldn’t bear to listen to Lisette’s sobs, or the anger from the people he considered family.

  * * * *

  “You don’t need to come in today.” Adrian sipped his steaming cup of coffee as he watched Lisette.

  Lisette was determined to live her life as if she had never met Reno Kanaloa. She was glad he had never accepted her invitation to part her from her virginity. She worried everyone would know about Ricardo. She didn’t dare tell her mother or father she had trusted Reno with the family secret.

  “Would you give your other employees a day off just because they got their hearts broken?” Lisette didn’t wait for he
r father to answer. “I have work to do, Papa, I don’t have time to cry over a man I shouldn’t have pursued in the first place.”

  Lisette regretted her words once they arrived at the office. Reno was there, his head buried in a stack of papers. His shirt was rolled up to his elbows, a pen tucked behind his ear as he scowled at the reports in front of him. For a second, she thought about turning around and running. She wasn’t a coward and she never ran away from a fight, but sharing a space with the source of her torment was going to be too much for her.

  Lisette lost her chance to run when Reno looked up and saw her. He looked at her questioningly, probably wondering what she was doing here. This was Lisette’s domain, her world and she had been here first. She took a confident step into her office, and sat at her desk acknowledging Reno with just a nod.

  “How are you?”

  “Since you stomped on my heart? I have never been better.” She cleared her throat of the emotion that was starting to cloud there. “You actually opened my eyes. I have to thank you for rescuing me from that stupid fairytale. I have to concentrate on work, because opposed to love, I can touch and feel these files in my hands.”

  “Lisette I—”

  “I think we have said enough already. I need to review these files for Mr. Kent.” Lisette ended the conversation there, and soon a blanket of silence enveloped them for the rest of the day.

  Lisette had been counting the seconds to the end of the day. For some reason, the interns chose that day not to disturb her and her uncle Dennis too. She felt as if she was going to burst from all the tension in the room. Reno had only left the office for five minutes at a time, all three times that he had stood up. It hadn’t given her enough time to sneak in a tear, a sniffle or take a breath to ease the pain pulling her heat apart.

  She was glad the day was over, but just as she was about to leave, they got a call to see Dennis.

  * * * *

  Reno sat across from his father in the office. They were waiting for Lisette, who at the last minute had opted to take the stairs. It broke his heart that she would do anything to get away from him. He suspected that was the reason for the meeting.

  “Sorry, I’m late,” Lisette mumbled as she took a seat.

  “It’s obvious that the two of you are uncomfortable working together and I have come up with a solution. Reno, you are going to work up here with me. We will split our time between Ross and Kent and Kent Financials,” Dennis informed them.

  Reno didn’t know what to say. He leaned back in his chair and watched as Lisette found the right words to express what he knew was outrage. As he had predicted, Lisette leapt out of her chair and began pacing the length of the room.

  “I thought I was going to Kent Financials. You and Papa—I mean you and Mr. Ross—informed me I was being groomed to become the next CEO, DJ and Catalella were going to have this practice, while I was going to run Kent Financial,” she rapped as a crimson color crept to her cheeks.

  “I know what we said, Lisette.” Dennis’s cool voice blanketed Lisette’s angry tone. “You are still going to run Kent Financial, not necessarily as the CEO There have been developments we can’t tell you about right now.” Reno cringed as Dennis shot him a glance. He was the development robbing Lisette of her dream. Great, give her another reason to hate him. “There are also going to be some structural changes to Ross and Kent.”

  “What do you mean?” Lisette dropped into her seat in a huff. “What does it have to do with him?”

  Reno cringed; he was now just him to Lisette. He ran his fingers over his face and into his hair. He had come to New York to make Dennis’ life miserable, but so far Lisette was the only person hurting. He never should have gone after her at the beach. He grunted as he leaned his head so far back that he was staring at the ceiling.

  “I can’t discuss that with you right now.”

  Reno noticed the strain in Dennis’ voice.

  “What, the structural changes or Reno?”

  “Both. You need to trust that what we are doing is best for everyone.”

  Reno watched as Lisette stood up, a stubborn determined expression on her face. That same determination almost made him stay. He couldn’t get the picture of her leaning against the door trying to stop him from leaving from his mind. That memory was quickly assaulted by her pained expression as he was leaving.

  “You know what, it’s time for me to do what’s best for me. I am going to be a college student instead of behaving like the next CEO of Kent Financial.”

  Reno could smell the trouble brewing the second a sly grin claimed her lips.

  “I quit. If anyone wants to talk to me, I will either be at home sleeping off a hangover, or enjoying my youth in some club.”

  Reno had to choke back a laugh, the expression on Dennis’ face right after Lisette stormed out of his office was priceless. It was like they knew her all her life and yet they didn’t completely know her. Lisette would never play second best.

  “You shouldn’t have taken the company away from her,” Reno said, once Dennis had sat down.

  “That’s not my decision anymore. Kent Financial is yours now.”

  Reno sat up straight, his back rigid from shock. He stared at Dennis in stunned silence as he went on. “DJ will be here in a few moments. I will tell him that you are my son, my first born, and that Kent Financial is your birthright. He never had any interest in the company, so that won’t be a problem.”

  Chapter Six

  “You can’t be serious.” The man that Reno was bellowed, but the little boy inside was sacred. It was like going to the playground where he expected everyone to hate him. Dennis couldn’t tell DJ he was giving Reno everything DJ had grown to know to be his, after that disastrous weekend.

  “He’s going to hate me,” he gasped.

  “No, he’ll hate me,” Dennis interjected. “I kept his brother and sister away. I abandoned the two of you and now I have to make it right. It’s best this way.”

  “For who?” Reno growled. The shock kept his body paralyzed in the chair, but the anger racked his muscled frame. “So far all I have seen is you trying to save your own ass. What makes you think I will take over your family company?”

  “It’s you or no one.” Reno felt like he was being threatened. “You have Daniela’s, DJ’s and Rhyne’s inheritance in your hands. Issadora’s livelihood too, and let’s not forget Lisette.”

  “Are you serious?” This time the anger sent Reno out of his chair. “You cannot give me all that responsibility, only a second after acknowledging me as your son.”

  “I had all that responsibility from the day I was born. The responsibility only grew after the four of you were born.”

  Reno snorted and laughed sardonically. “Do not try and take any credit for Rhyne and me. You had no part in our upbringing.”

  “I think Rhyne is obvious, but who do you think paid for your tuition to private school, to college? Who paid for your books, your clothes, your food and the jeep you had on the island? I never forgot you existed—I just wasn’t able to take care of you personally.”

  Reno could feel his mind reeling in confusion. He always thought that their neighbor, Mr. Harris was the Good Samaritan who had provided for him. His mother could never hold down a job, and the little money Reno had been able to earn always went to support Kono and her boyfriend’s drug habits. All this time Dennis Kent was the man he owed all his good fortune to, but he was also the source of all his pain, his mother’s pain. Reno believed if Dennis hadn’t left, his mother wouldn’t have been with that creep.

  “You still weren’t there!” Reno barked. “Money doesn’t make up for what you did.”

  “What did you want me to do, leave DJ and Daniela?” Dennis roared back. “I almost did. When I found out Rhyne had disappeared, and your mother had turned into a drug addict, I almost did. I loved your mother—I probably always will. But my love for her destroyed her. If I had left my responsibilities behind my father would never have forgiven me.
Appearance was everything to him. I couldn’t risk getting disowned, especially since I had four children to support. Believe it or not, I love you and your sister.”

  “Shut up! I can’t listen anymore!” Reno could feel the strength leave his body. “If you loved us enough, you would have come for us. Daniela and DJ would not be strangers to me and Rhyne would be here with us.”

  “I’m looking for her. I swear I’m going to find her. I promise.”

  “How many promises did you make my mother?” Tears streamed down Reno’s cheeks as his heart thundered with rage. It seemed like the absentee parent was the only parent who had taken care of him. Neither of his parents had given him love, but Dennis Kent had given him everything else. “I need to get out of here.”

  “No, DJ is here. I think it’s time you met your brother.”

  “And Daniela?”

  “She’s too young to understand.”

  Reno wiped his face dry and watched through the glass walls as DJ walked toward the office. What exactly was he going to say to his baby brother?

  “Dad?” DJ looked at Dennis, his eyebrows joined together in a frown. “Why is he here?”

  The contempt in his voice was obvious. There was no winning this.

  “Take a seat, DJ.” Reno watched as Dennis shot nervous glances between his two sons. “I need to tell you something?”

  “What’s wrong?” DJ cautiously took the seat Lisette had leapt out of. Reno half expected him to do the same thing.

  “Twenty-five years ago I met a woman in Hawaii. It was before your mother and I got serious and got married. The woman I met was a native, and she was beautiful—”

  “Sweet Jesus,” Reno swore under his breath. He didn’t think he was able to listen to any more revelations about Kono and Dennis. If he could he would step out.