Page 35 of Accidentally Perfect

“Nathan Whitmore.” I know it’s my father, but I can’t help it. I live to get a rise out of him. I see it as payback for the years he was a complete flunky as a father.

“Don’t you mean Whitmore-Riley?”

“Absolutely not. Do I need to send you the papers again, stating that my legal last name is Whitmore? I can have them framed for you if need be.”

“It’s too damn late for you to give me your normal amount of shit. What’s this I hear that you’re married but more importantly, why do you think you have the right to dismiss a man that has worked for me for years?”

“I have that right because he’s employed by Whitmore Assets. A company that I own; not you. And being as though I own the company I have every right to hire and fire whomever I feel like."

“Nathan, I don’t need your crap. Kirk has been a trusted employee of mine.”

“Of mine.”

“He has been my guard since you opened the company. He’s never done anything wrong; he’s been a model employee, and now he’s out of work. He has a family to support, Nathan.”

“Then he shouldn’t have spoken to my wife the way he did. He dug his own grave with such blatant disregard to which he owes his livelihood.”

“Seriously, son. You really expect Kirk not to act that way after hearing such ridiculous news? It was a knee-jerk reaction; he was stunned; shocked really. I know I was when he phoned me to let me know he wouldn’t be at the house in the morning.”

“I couldn’t care less what he thought or what your reaction was. He disrespected the one person who is most important in my life.”

“The most important person? Come on, Nathan, you’re smarter than that. You can’t seriously let go of a trusted employee because he may have spoken rudely to your latest piece of ass.”

“Father, there will be consequences to you, to him and whoever else has the audacity to speak of Laney that way. If you want him around, then you flip the bill for him. And don’t think I won’t be checking your expenses to make sure that Whitmore Holdings isn’t paying to have Kirk follow you around like a little puppy dog.”

“She must have a golden cunt for you to be acting like this, Nathan. Not even Diane got this much of a rise out of you. She must be angelic in the sheets, or is it the fact that she’s a dirty whore?”

“This is my last warning. So help me God, I’m only tolerating you because I’m trying to be a better man. A man that I can be happy with; someone that my new wife and step-daughters can be proud of.”

“Step-daughters? Christ, Nathan. I never took you for a fool. You’re as dense as your sister. This girl has got you totally snowed. All of your mother’s money is at risk. Do you know that? Did you even think about that before you put a ring on her finger? She’s after your money.”

“No she isn’t.”

“I highly doubt that.”

“I know for a fact. She doesn’t need my money; she has her own.”

“That may be, but I’m sure it’s nowhere near as much as the Whitmore name holds. Our family’s money, it’s legacy is in jeopardy because of you. Why can’t—”

“Her maiden name is Jacobs.”

“Jacobs? You mean Lane Jacobs from Oklahoma?”

“Yes, Lane Jacobs, from Jacobs Cattle and more recently Jacobs Oil. So you see, she doesn’t see me as dollar signs, or her next free meal. My last name means nothing to her. She’s set up for life. Her children, our children, are set up for life.”

“It may not mean anything to her, but it means a whole hell of a lot to that viper she calls a mother. She’s been spouting the importance of her name around town for as long as I can remember.”

“Kinda like how you’ve always ridden on the coattails of my mother’s name. You would be nothing without the Whitmore name. I’m surprised you never tried to change your name to Whitmore so you can feel more apt.”

“I’ve earned what the Whitmore name brings me. Don’t you forget who created you, Nathan? I brought you into this world, and I can take you out.”

“Just like you took out my grandparents? I know you were behind what happened to them."

"Your imagination has run amuck, son. They were robbed, plain and simple."

"I’ve given you more time than you deserved. I have a family to get to. A wife who needs me and girls who have been through more than any five-year-olds should have to. Kirk is gone."

I didn’t allow him to take up any more of my time. I’ve been in the waiting room for far too long.

Laney and the girls shouldn’t be dealing with this without me. It doesn’t matter that Brad is there; they’re my responsibility too. I walk down the hall towards their room. I can hear Laney and Brad's muffled voices. I open the door and see them standing near the window. Amanda is in Addie’s bed playing with their stuffed horses. “Nathan.” They yell in unison.

“Are you our new daddy?” Amanda asks excitedly.

I look over at Laney, and her hand is covering her mouth while Brad looks like he’s about to come undone. “Yes, I guess I am.”