Page 109 of Yours, Forever

His voice had lost all of its playfulness, carrying gravel instead.

"Tell me," I said. "I'm here if you want me."

He gave me a contemplative look. "Comparatively speaking, it's not the worst story in the world. I'm still obscenely wealthy and he will be too, no matter what happens. And I currently have a life many people look for and may never find. I don't want to complain."

"You don't need to complain. Just share with me. It's true, there are many pains in this world you will never have to suffer through, but it doesn't mean you can't be in pain for what your dad is doing to you."

It took him a minute to react, but he brought me closer with arms around my shoulders. I put my head in the crook of his neck; he put his head on mine.

He hesitated, but finally his chest expanded in a big sigh. "I hate that he cares more about his company than the relationship he could have had with me."

I squeezed him in my arms. "That makes sense. He's awful. He's missing out on you."

For the next many minutes, we did nothing but breathe together. Brine in our lungs, the sound of the waves keeping pace with the moment.

"I got you," I whispered against the pulse on his neck.

In each other's arms, while I comforted him as best as I could, I let myself believe he would hold me, too. If only I stopped expecting him to leave, and gave him enough time to prove it.

It made it easier to melt into the warmth of his embrace.

After a while, we returned to rEvalution hand in hand. After the evening rush, I left Lily to close the café and walked home with Max. His energy was still dim, but he seemed to be doing better.

It was one of our early days, and light still shone through the windows as I cooked dinner for us. Max opened a bottle of wine, and he sat at the peninsula to keep me company. We were almost done with our fajitas when his phone rang again.

He quieted down and frowned at his phone. I held my breath.

"It's Marlene, a board member from London." Max answered the call. "Hello, Marlene. Isn't it five a.m. over there?"

His tone, cordial and happy as always, brought a smile to his face. It disappeared in a second.

His nostrils flared. "What else do you know?"

I pushed our plates aside and leaned closer to him.

He rubbed his eyebrows with rigid fingers. "Thank you as always. Yes, of course I understand. I'll be there by tomorrow— later today for you. I'll email you as soon as I have more details of my arrival. Thanks for holding the meeting for me. See you soon."

He hung up and threw his phone on the stone counter.

"You're… going to London?" My stomach suddenly felt too full, and like the food had not settled properly in it.

He nodded. "She woke up to an email from my father's team calling for an extraordinary Board meeting, ten days from now. I wasn't invited, which isn't surprising. The two-line briefing for it said that it was to discuss me and my possible exit as future owner."

"What?! How? I thought that couldn't happen…"

"That's why Marlene called me. She's on my side, and also one of the Board members with the most power. My dad had to let her know, even if he didn't include me. And she let me know. She called for a meeting of her own. She's going to demand moreinformation, then she and her team, plus me, are going to meet to try to make sense of whatever she finds."

"When are you leaving?"

His sad eyes gazed at me. "As soon as possible."

"Okay." I nodded and bit my lip. "Can I help?"

"I'll pack. Can you help me write a few emails?"

I cleaned up the remnants of our dinner while he collected his suitcase and carry-on. Within ten minutes, I sat at the head of the bed, his computer on my lap. His luggage lay open at the other end, and Max fluttered around collecting his things.

He dictated messages to his team, asking to organize his flights, and to other friendly Board members. Twenty minutes later, I had sent five emails that subtly asked for details about what his father was up to.