a moment, I catch a glimpse of the man I remember from my childhood, the fierce lion who’d strike out against anyone who dared hurt one of his own.
Only he doesn’t see me as one of his own anymore. I lost that privilege when I left for Sydney.
“The reason she fled her own wedding was because Mike thought he could use her to convince you he was mature enough for this job.” I’m not sure it’s worth telling my father any of this—but he does look surprised. “Oh, you didn’t know he took your ‘you need to be more mature’ conversation to mean that he needed a wife? She overheard him, for fuck’s sake. On her wedding day.”
Something shifts in my father’s expression, but he’ll never let me get a good look inside. “Regardless of what happened, it’s not appropriate for you and her to be in a relationship. It will make the company look bad—”
“Ah, so that’s your concern. Not for Mike’s feelings, but for the company.”
“The financial success of Foster & Co. is for all of our futures.” He stares me down. “But I will not put you in that position if you think you can flaunt Presley in front of him just to prove a point.”
“And what point is that?”
“You’ve always had to win, Sebastian. When I hired Mike onto my executive team, you told me he was only there because of nepotism. Then you left Melbourne and we’ve barely heard from you since. Now you’re back because you want something, so don’t make out like you’ve got the moral high ground.”
His words sting as if he’s slapped me across the face. For so many years I swore I’d be better than him and Mike; I’d do things for the right reasons. To uphold the family legacy. To preserve my grandfather’s spirit.
But by signing on the line now, I’m not doing any of that. I’m simply proving that people matter less than business. That I can turn away from someone I care about simply because it serves my needs.
Presley was right. She deserves a life where her presence isn’t associated with a business deal. Signing would be the easy way for me to have everything, but in the end, I’d be no different from them—putting a company before her feelings.
“This is wrong.” I shake my head.
My grandfather didn’t build a company so it could be dangled over future generations like a carrot, ensuring they’d fall in line. He built it because he loved to build things, because he loved to create. Because he saw opportunity and ran with it. Not because he wanted to create a noose.
“I won’t do it,” I say.
My father’s eyes are like lightning, but his exterior is a frozen lake. “You said there was nothing more between you.”
“There isn’t, because I was too pigheaded to actually give it a chance. I wanted to have it all without committing to anything.”
“You would choose her over your own family?” he asks bitterly.
“I choose the chance of something with her, over the certainty of losing her.” Because the fact is, I have been miserable these last few weeks without her. “Even if that means I lose this job.”
“What about losing your family?”
I stand for a minute, decisions swirling around me like autumn leaves. I have to choose, and not try to push and negotiate until I have half measures of everything. But the future is clearer than it ever has been before. I would never have been happy taking over Foster & Co. because I would have been living someone else’s dream.
Like my grandfather, I love to build and create. I love to teach and mentor and to help other people find their passion. If I sign this agreement and become CEO, I would be nothing but a hood ornament, still crushed by the weight of my father’s thumb.
By choosing Presley, I’m also choosing to forge my own path.
“I’ll keep trying, Dad. I won’t stay away this time, because I really regret doing that before. I want a relationship with you, because I remember how good it used to be. I remember what we had. But I won’t do it like this. Not with contracts and power plays and us treating one another like the enemy. That’s not the kind of relationship I want.”
I turn and walk out of his office, feeling lighter and freer than ever. I’m taking a huge risk, not knowing what my father will do next—will he give the company to Mike?