His Secret

29. Adrian

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

ADRIAN

He doesn’t get out, forcing me to make the slow and dreadful walk to his SUV, all the while my stomach twists and turns until it’s in knots. My heart races in my chest, nearing an explosion.

His window is already down, and his jaw is clenched, nostrils flaring with barely controlled rage.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, huh?” he seethes. “Out in the open. Where anyone can see.”

“Dad, I?—”

“No. I warned you. I told you what would happen, and now I find out you skip spending Christmas with your family so you can be out here doing God knows what. You disgust me.”

My heart cracks in my chest. “I?—”

He doesn’t let me finish. “What’s his name? Who is he?”

“No,” I say, shaking my head, suddenly afraid. “Nobody.”

“He’s nobody? And yet you risk your future to be with him?” He huffs. “It’s fine. I got his license plate number down.”

I stand there, my feet frozen to the ground beneath me. My body trembles, fear flowing through my veins.

“It’s just college,” I say, lying through my teeth. “Isn’t it the time to make bad decisions?”

“There are bad decisions and there’s life decisions. You’ve been thinking this way for a while now, and I’m starting to wonder just how doomed you are.”

“I’m not doomed. I’ve been with women. I can be with women again. It’s nothing. He…he means nothing to me,” I say, feeling the quiver in my voice as the lie spills out.

Dad scoffs, reaching for the gear shift. “I’ll be back in a couple hours. Be dressed and ready to leave.”

He drives away, leaving me standing there like a statue, wondering what the hell to expect. When I finally move, it’s like a zombie, unaware of anything around me until I get to my room. I hardly feel the cold that’s seeped into my bones. My father knows now. Unequivocally. I can still try to lie and downplay the truth, but is that what I want?

Maybe now’s the perfect time to be honest and tell him everything. He’ll be mad, but wouldn't he get over it? He can’t actually mean to disown me. Who would do that to their own flesh and blood?

I text Matías, thinking maybe I can tell him. I only say hi , but he never replies. He’s driving, and he never texts and drives. His phone is probably on silent.

Before I know it, two hours goes by, and I’m standing outside like a trained dog, waiting for my Dad to show up.

I climb into the passenger seat and sit in the sweltering silence. In my head, I go over potential conversations I could have with my dad. The honest one, where I tell him the truth and force him to look me in the eye and tell me I’m not his son anymore, hoping he’d never actually do that. And, I go over the lies I can spew to make the situation better for myself. I come up with things I know he’d say and try to come up with an argument or a defense.

Dad remains stoic, forcing me to continue to live in my head with made up scenarios.

We come to a stop in the parking lot of an office building. With a sigh, he finally speaks.

“Matías Cruz.”

My lungs shrink, squeezing all the air from them. “Wh-what?”

“Business and project management major. Attends South River on an academic scholarship. Seems smart, but doesn’t come from much.”

“Why are you saying all of this?” I ask.

“I know all the important people at South River University. The Dean. The chair of Business Management. You get the idea. I can find out almost anything. On top of that, I created a company that makes a lot of money. It employs thousands. And we’re expanding. There are plenty of people willing to listen to me. People who want to make me happy for the chance at a job, or for support in one of their ventures, or for some sort of financial aid. Plain and simple, money rules the world, and I have a lot of it. You benefited from my money, from my connections.

“You graduate in five months. You’re set to start working for me after that. You’ll go from being dependent on my finances to making your own under my company. I will set you up in an apartment nearby, and it’ll be paid for a year until you take over the rent. By then, it shouldn’t be a problem. You’ll have a steady paycheck. You can keep the car I bought for you, until you can buy another one. You will be able to earn promotion after promotion until you prove you can take my spot as CEO. Then you’re set for life.”

He sighs. “Or, if you’d rather galivant with that boy and pretend like anything can come of it, then I take the car, money, and job opportunity from you. He doesn’t come from money. He has no connections. He can’t get you a job or take care of you, because he’ll be struggling to take care of himself. I can make it harder by talking to the companies I know he’s applying to. A whispered word from me about his lack of motivation could put an end to his chances at that place of business.”

“He doesn’t la—” I start, immediately trying to defend him.

My father lifts a brow. “Two struggling kids out of college. Doesn’t seem like it’ll work. You’ll fight. You’ll get frustrated with each other. And you won’t have a family waiting to help you. It’s up to you.”

He says the last part like it’s actually a fair decision. Like I have a choice at all. Not only has he threatened to make sure I don’t have anything, he said just enough to let me know he can ruin Matías’s chances at a future too.

I grind my teeth, wanting nothing more than to fight against this, but I can’t allow my dad to be responsible for Matías not getting a job he wants. I swallow down my pride, along with my hopes and dreams, and push out a bitter and ugly lie.

“I told you. He means nothing to me. It was just an experiment. Of course I want a future at the company.”