Chapter 14
Freddie was not thrilled with the appearance of his father during his tete-a-tete with Tabitha. He’d traveled for hours only to find himself being constantly divided from his girlfriend.
“What’s the problem?”
His father’s steely blue eyes assessed his son.
“You’re back early.”
“The deal’s done, Roger. There was no point in staying.”
Mr. Hastings flinched as his son referred to him by his Christian name. It was a habit Freddie got into during his and his first wife’s separation and he’d refused to refer to him as Dad since. It irked him that Freddie persisted in winding him in such an insignificant way. He’d thought his son would grow out of his disapproval for his father’s lifestyle choices, but it seemed Freddie remained as unforgiving as an adult, as he was as an angry teen.
“When you left the deal wasn’t complete was it, Frederick?”
“I’d signed off on it and the lawyers were waiting on signatures from the other parties which were due the following morning. There were no potential problems pending. Everything had been ironed out. The one thing outstanding was a signature on paperwork from a firm of solicitors in South Africa on the lease. I didn’t feel that warranted my being there any longer. I’ve since been informed that the paperwork was signed off and everything’s tickety-boo,” explained Freddie with a smile.
“Don’t try and make light of something that’s actually a big step forward for Hastings-Bass. Your job was to organize the launch of the label’s first premise over there.”
“And that’s what I did.”
“Perhaps not in the most professional of ways.”
“Excuse me.”
Freddie’s tone was sharp and his eyes narrowed as he considered his father.
“On a venture that important, you should’ve been there when the ink dried on all the contracts and everything was sealed. What if something had cropped up and prevented the other parties from signing?”
“If I’d thought for a second that might occur, of course I wouldn’t have flown out. This is not the first time I’ve done this, Roger, and I doubt it’ll be the last. My instinct was that the final signature was a formality and I had no real cause to linger.”
“Would staying the extra night till the last contract was signed have been such an imposition on you?” barked Roger Hastings.
“Actually yes it would’ve. You dragging me here for a conversation of this nature when we’re attending the office Christmas party is also an imposition on me.”
“And my son broadcasting to my esteemed board of directors that he returned home early to please his girlfriend and accompany her to a trivial Christmas party is an imposition on me. Your unprofessionalism disgraces me as well. It looks as though I favor you and that I have no control over you in the office.”
“You don’t control me, father. We work side-by-side in the office.”
“I’m still your superior,” snapped Roger.
“Yes you are, but if it wasn’t for me the company wouldn’t be as financially successful as it currently is. I’ve been instrumental in increasing the profitability of Hastings-Bass. In case you forgot, it was me who spotted the sharp increase in sales in New York and it was me who investigated and discovered Tabitha was responsible.”
“You were supposed to bring her over here to raise our turnover, not your libido.”
Freddie’s hands clenched into fists. His normally full lips formed a thin line as he breathed deeply and counted to ten in his head.
“Tabitha has promoted the label and is responsible for the soaring profits from this year’s winter collection. I’d not met the woman before she started here. She was hired because she was good on paper. I’d no idea I’d develop feelings for her.”
“You do have feelings for her?”
“What do you care?” sneered Freddie.
“You make a fool out of yourself; you make a fool out of the company. You were in South Africa as an ambassador for Hastings-Bass. I’d like to think that your impulsive decision to make it to the Christmas party was founded on something a little deeper than lust.”
Freddie wasn’t quite sure how the conversation had turned around to his private life. He couldn’t remember ever discussing his feelings with his father and was taken aback by the verbal intrusion. What shocked him more than anything was that he detected a note of kindness in his father’s tone.
A silence settled between them.
“You might’ve at least greeted Tabitha. Ignoring her like that was unforgivable. I bet you wouldn’t have done that if I’d been speaking to any other member of the staff.”
“Probably not,” admitted his father. “I was cross at you, not Tabitha.”
Freddie ran his hands through his thick, dark blonde hair.
“I don’t understand why you’re cross at me. I’ve successfully engineered the opening of a Hastings-Bass branch in South Africa without a hitch. I came back early and yes, I did come to surprise Tabitha, but it’s not as if I’m the kind of man that flaunts his relationship in front of employees – as well you know.”
“True, but there are others aware of your history, Frederick. It doesn’t look good with you bed hopping from one female director to the next.”
“That’s not how things are, and you know that.”
“I do know that, but what you and I know is irrelevant - it’s what you’re projecting that’s relevant. A bed-hopping lothario whose personal life is discussed more than his workplace accomplishments is not an image you want to be courting.”
“I don’t court it and I don’t believe people do question my abilities as financial director.”
“I hate to burst your bubble, son, but I’ve had directors in my ear the entire afternoon. Each one feeling obligated to tell me you were declaring your love for Tabitha and boasting you’d abandoned the South African enterprise to get home to her.”
“That isn’t what I said and it isn’t what happened.”
“It doesn’t matter what happened, what matters is what’s being said. If people don’t respect you, Frederick, you’ll find it very hard to exert any authority or have your ideas taken seriously.”
“Lucky for me my achievements support my credibility.”
“This is a friendly warning, Freddie, that there are folk in this company who would love to see my golden boy fall.”
His father’s brutal honesty hit home. Freddie was flummoxed. He’d known Samantha was against his romance with Tabitha. It was common knowledge that a lot of the old boy network afraid of Tabitha’s radical marketing strategies were desperate to see her fail at work. It hadn’t occurred to him that there were others at Hastings-Bass hoping to see him crash, too.
What confused him most was his father’s apparent concern. He’d never divorced himself completely from his father, but they’d never been close.
When Freddie’s parents split his mother was a raging alcoholic and his father was having an affair with another woman. Roger Hastings was smitten by his new mistress and had no interest in his two children, despite the fact he ended up with custody of them both. Although his father maintained their magnificent town house in London, he made an executive decision to change Freddie’s and his younger sister, Isabella’s, schooling arrangements. They both attended a private school in London as day students. Roger decided to transfer them to full-time boarders at the same school so that he only had to manage his two children during the holidays.
His mother had fought hard for a chunk of his father’s wealth and moved to Spain, where she bought a bar and married the manager, who was twenty years her junior. Again Roger took control of his children’s lives by sending the two teens to Spain on their holidays to spend quality time with their mother.
Freddie abhorred his mother’s alcoholism. Her new husband was a few years older than Freddie and the two hated each other on sight. They endured the enforced holidays until Freddie turned eighteen. He insisted he wouldn’t return to Spain again, nor would his sister. The two men reached an agreement that Freddie would take his sister overseas and travel on holidays. Thereby, Roger wouldn’t have to care for his children, but Freddie and Isabella weren’t in an unbearable environment to spoil their breaks.
The eventual introduction of step siblings wasn’t unexpected for Freddie or Isabella. What hurt the siblings was their father’s devotion to the twin girls. Freddie and Isabella made the effort to integrate with the little girls and adored them, but the rejection by their father wasn’t forgotten.
“I can’t remember the last time you called me Freddie,” he blurted, “and I hadn’t a clue you thought of me as your golden boy.”
His father turned his head away. Roger bit his bottom lip to gain control of his emotions. He knew he’d hurt Freddie and been an awful father first time round, but he’d always loved his children.
“Of course you’re my golden boy. You’re my only son.”
“You know what’s really sad?”
Roger raised his eyebrows quizzically.
“That it counts. I have a place in your heart because I’m your sole male heir. The twins, Lily and Poppy, have a place in your heart because their mother is the supposed love of your life. Izzy doesn’t get a look in. You’re worried about me and my reputation in Hastings-Bass, but when did you last ask after your eldest daughter. When did you last ring her?”
“I spoke to her this week as it goes.”
“And tell me, father, did you call her or did she phone you?”
They both knew the unspoken answer that it was Isabella who initiated contact.
“Freddie. She doesn’t work for Hastings-Bass.”
“No and that makes her even less relevant in the family, does it not?”
“That’s not what I meant,” growled his father. “I love you all the same. I’m merely concerned for you because I can see the repercussions of your behavior on Hastings-Bass.”
“And that’s what you care about most. Not me, Izzy or the twins. It’s always been the label at the top of your list of priorities.”
Roger sighed, knowing there was no talking to Freddie in this mood.
“We’ve gained nothing from this conversation. You’ve occupied my time and spoiled the party for me; thanks for that, Roger. It certainly wasn’t worth me making the effort to come to the Christmas party because you’ve killed my mood with your poisonous talk. Given I’ve been gone for nearly ninety minutes I don’t even know if Tabitha is still waiting for me.”
Freddie stalked off, leaving his father frustrated by his son’s permanent necessity to remind him that he was his own man and nobodies golden boy.