His Secret

50. Adrian

CHAPTER FIFTY

ADRIAN

We realized after we cleaned up that Matías came on my pants, so we took some time to clean it up as best we could before getting dressed and heading downstairs.

I look at our abandoned glasses. “I guess we’ll need to try the whole drink thing another time,” I say.

His lips twitch. “I’m not mad about how it ended up.”

“Me neither.” I step closer and brace him between my arms as he leans against the kitchen counter. “I wish I didn’t have to leave.”

He starts to shake his head, his lips flattened into a line. “You don’t have to say it.”

“I know, but I really want to be here with you.”

He nods once. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“I guess I have to go to work.”

He smiles. “You most certainly do. Unless you want to be fired.”

I kiss his cheek, then the corner of his mouth. “What if I suck up to my boss?”

“You can try.”

I chuckle, my hand grabbing his. I intertwine our fingers, looking at the connection before I meet his gaze again. Bringing his knuckles to my lips, I plant a kiss on them.

He pulls my hand to his mouth and does the same.

“I still want to talk to you.”

My brows knit slightly. “Should I be worried?”

“No, but it’s a conversation we should have.”

“Do you want to tell me now?”

He shakes his head. “I’m sure you need to get home.”

I nod once. “I do. I need to…I think it’s time to talk to her.”

He doesn’t look happy or relieved. He doesn’t show almost any emotion. Then I realize he probably doesn't believe anything will come of it. He doesn’t have any hope.

Matías barely dips his chin in acknowledgement. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”

I lean in to give him another kiss, and then I make my way to the living room where I put on my suit jacket and shoes.

Reaching for his hand, I give it a squeeze before kissing him one last time. “See you.”

“Don’t forget to call me when you shower,” he says with a wink.

I laugh before I open the door and walk out into the night air. I fight the euphoric, post-coital smile on my face as I cross his driveway and into my yard.

Steeling myself, I take a breath and twist the knob, only to find it locked.

I sigh and knock, waiting to hear her steps come closer. When several seconds go by, I knock even louder. Several more seconds pass, and I’m about to walk around to the back, but then I hear footsteps heading toward me.

The door opens, and instead of being met by the face of my wife, I’m met by the stern face of my father.

“Adrian,” he says, jaw clenching. “Nice of you to join us. ”

Though I’m thirty, and at the door to a house I bought, I’m suddenly feeling like a child caught sneaking back into the house by his parents. My father’s always had that ability. The one that makes you feel like a kid even after you’ve become an adult. He’s a formidable man, and he knows it and takes pride in knowing people fear him.

I stare at him as he blocks the doorway. “Am I allowed in my own home?” I question, taking a step forward. “Why are you here?”

He finally steps back. “I’m here because apparently you are incapable of answering your phone when I call. I’m here because we need to talk.”

“Where’s Charlotte?” I question once I’m in the living room.

“In her room,” he says with a slight shrug, like he isn’t sure.

“I think driving out here was a little unnecessary.”

“Oh, I didn’t drive. I flew.”

I roll my eyes as I make my way to the kitchen. The flight is an hour and half. Even more unnecessary when the drive is only four hours, but of course my father would rather fly.

He follows me to the kitchen, his dress shoes clicking across the floor. He’s dressed in a suit, like he hopped on a plane right after a business meeting. I’m actually not sure I’ve ever seen my father dressed casually.

“Does she know,” he says in a quiet but firm voice.

“Know what?” I question, opening the fridge.

“Based on my conversation with her, I can tell things between you two aren’t going too well. She seems very upset. Does she know?”

I slam it closed and look at him. “Know. What?” I ask through gritted teeth .

“That you’re fucking your boss,” he says with barely disguised disgust.

His words launch at me, and I blanch, surprised even though the statement is true. Luckily, I can hear the water running upstairs and know Charlotte has just gotten in the shower. I still keep my voice down.

“What are you talking about?”

My heart gallops in my chest and I’m afraid that not only can he hear it, but if he looks close enough, he’ll see it threatening to burst through my skin. He can’t actually know. He’s only guessing. Assuming. And it pisses me off that he’s right.

He crosses his arms over his chest. “You move out here with some line about needing a new start. Wanting to get out from under me and find your own path, only to run straight to that boy and get under him.”

I bite down on my teeth, grinding them as I try to figure out what to say first.

“I didn’t know he worked there until I got here.”

“Sure.” He uncrosses his arms and places one hand on the edge of the counter. “But you do find yourself under him.”

I shoot him a look and shake my head. “This conversation is ridiculous.”

“It is,” he agrees. “I hate that I can’t trust my son to move his wife to a new town and NOT start fucking some boy. I thought you outgrew this. I thought you made the decision to work for me—to one day run the company. I thought you put these ridiculous thoughts out of your head and gained some sense. But no. You sneak off next door to fuck the same boy you?—”

“He’s not a fucking boy!” I shout, louder than I meant to.

Dad jolts back slightly, eyebrows up before his face settles into a sneer. “I knew it.”

I shake my head, remembering he’s aware Matías is my neighbor thanks to a conversation with Charlotte. “I don’t want to run your company. I’m staying here.”

“Your wife is still fragile. She looked ready to break the minute she saw me. Not only are you cheating on her, but you’re cheating on her with a… man .” He looks me up and down like I’m trash. “You’re going to send her into a tailspin. She’ll be back to her old ways in no time. You can’t move her away from her family and everything she knows and then abandon her this way. Are you only concerned about yourself?”

I cross my arms. “I didn’t force her to come. She chose to follow me here.”

“She’s your wife. Of course she came with you.”

“And funny you’re talking about only being concerned with myself. Since when have you ever been concerned with anyone but yourself? You threatening to disown me was for who? You said I wouldn’t have a family, a job, a future if I didn’t do exactly what you wanted me to do. You said I needed to marry her so she could have a strong and stable figure in her life. You wanted me to be the father of a child that wasn’t mine. You and David forced us together in some marriage-of-convenience situation, except it was only for your convenience. So she wouldn’t embarrass him or bring negative press to your business dealings. I’ve been anything but selfish. Everything I’ve done in life has been to appease you! And now her. Everybody needs something from me, but what about what I need? Huh?”

If anything, he looks slightly surprised by my outburst, but not necessarily moved. Which isn’t surprising.

“What you need is to be a man and step up to the plate. What you’re doing isn’t any different from any other man out there.”

“That’s what you have with Mom? You’re with her because once upon a time your father and her father forced you together? Or were you allowed to meet and fall in love with her on your own accord?”

I know it’s the latter. I’ve heard the story about them meeting in college. Love at first sight according to Mom.

He doesn’t reply to my question.

“What’s your plan here, Adrian? You’re gonna have this little thing on the side forever? Stay married and continue fucking the neighbor? Wait until your wife finds out? Because trust me, son, they always do. And then what?”

I rub my eyes and then sigh. “Maybe I'll do what I’ve been wanting to do since I was in college.”

His expression hardens even more, eyes narrowing. “Which would be?”

“Whatever I want.”

His nostrils flare. “We don’t get to do whatever we want in life. We do what is needed.”

“I feel sorry for you then. You’re clearly living a life you never wanted.” I cross one foot over the other as I lean into the corner of the countertops.

“I’ve worked very hard for the life I have, for the life I gave to you and your sister. And now you want me to hand it over to someone who doesn’t share my blood?”

“If you spent a little more time being a better father rather than being a businessman, then maybe I wouldn’t have minded working with you. But tell me, do you really think I’d want to work for or with someone who hates the person that I am? Who says vile things to me? I should want to work for someone who threatens me because they can? Who uses their power and authority to scare me into doing things?”

He’s quiet for a few seconds. “If you think you’ll always work for someone who is going to cater to your feelings, then you’re wrong. Every boss you have will be an asshole. Every supervisor has to use their authority to keep people in line.”

I give him a small grin. “See, that’s the problem. You’re not my boss. Or my supervisor. You’re my father. I only ever wanted you to be my dad—someone I could go to for advice and support. Someone I could be honest with. Vulnerable even. But you don’t allow that. I’ve never felt comfortable going to you for anything, and that’s not my problem. It’s yours.”

The shower cuts off upstairs, and both of us glance up when we hear the floor creak with her footsteps.

“So, you’re telling me this…thing. This—” He waves his hand in the air. “You’re telling me you have no interest in your wife.”

He says the last part in a quieter tone, and somehow it feels like he’s trying to protect my secret.

I stare at him, knowing this is just part of the journey I have to take. “You’ve always known the truth. Haven’t you? You hoped you were wrong. You hoped I’d change. Or keep up with the lie. But you’ve always known.”

He takes a deep breath and sighs, pressing his forefinger and thumb into his eyebrows, like I’ve just given him a migraine.

“You can’t tell her.” He meets my gaze and repeats it. “You can’t tell her. She won’t be able to handle it.”

“She’ll be fine. She has you on her side, apparently. And her own father. She can go home, and you two can watch over her. That’s your priority, right?”

He opens his mouth, but a door opens upstairs.

“How long are you in town for?” I ask.

“Not long. I have work to do.”

I nod my head. “Did you rent a car? ”

Charlotte emerges from around the corner, wearing pajamas. “I got an Uber and picked him up from the airport.”

“I’m happy you both arranged this meeting without letting me know,” I say with a tight smile. “I’ll take you to a hotel,” I tell him, pushing away from the counter and heading to the front door.

“Adrian,” Charlotte says with surprise. “He can stay here.” She looks at my dad. “You can stay here. We have a?—”

“We have an air mattress that’s still in a box in the garage,” I say, cutting her off. “And a spare room that doesn't even have curtains up yet. He’s not staying there.”

My dad gives her a thin-lipped smile. “I’ll stay in a hotel.”

“Will you be coming by tomorrow? I can make lunch or maybe we can go out.”

My father smiles again, this time a little more genuine. “I’ll let you know. I may have to fly out in the evening, but I could probably do lunch.”

She nods once. “Okay. Yeah, let me know.” Her eyes slide to my face, but she doesn’t say anything, only turns away.

I grab the keys and walk out the door.