Chapter Forty-Four
Sawyer
Kurt paced the living room while I sat on the couch drinking a smoothie. Tonight we were having dinner with Kurt’s father. Bastard. Using his son for money year after year riled me beyond measure. At least Lana had insisted Kurt not pay him another dime. From our phone conversations, I knew she was nervous and had gone to stay with her sister for a bit in case things got ugly. It was tough.
In a week, when we celebrated Kurt’s birthday, we’d be freed of this asshole. This year, Kurt simply wanted to spend time together. No party. No big production. Only mint chocolate chip cookies. Good thing my neighbor made some of the best in town.
I watched the clock—the hour was approaching when the sperm donor was due to arrive. Ugh. At least we’d decided to have dinner catered in one of the conference rooms downstairs instead of bringing him into our home.
Kurt’s heavy boots clunked against the floor as he paced.
“Kurt, everything is going to be fine.”
“Yeah.”
That was the fifteenth yeah he’d said in a row. Inside, he was a mess and not ready to process it. I took another sip as he wore a hole in the floor. George had given up trying to keep up with him and sat in a white heap of fur at my feet. Every few times around, Kurt would check his phone. When I was in the other room, he’d seemed a little more anxious, so I set up shop in the living room to work for a while.
My phone vibrated.
Cameron: Landed.
Me: Glad you made it home.
Cameron: Me, too.
Cameron had been in Denver, trying to see Adriane. For three days, he tried, but our sister would not see him. The facility had asked him to leave due to the stress it placed on “Matilda.” What a crock of shit.
Cameron was having a hard time facing what my parents had done. And they weren’t providing any explanations. After visiting the facility each day, Cameron had gone to my parents’ house, but they wouldn’t come to the door. They watched from upstairs as their son pleaded with them to open the door and let him in.
Heartless.
“Who was that?” Kurt asked, flexing his hands as he completed another revolution.
“Cameron. I think it’s been rough for him to face how terrible our parents are. I’ve had more time to process it and work through my emotions.”
“Yeah. You okay?”
I would not say yeah. The word was about to drive me nuts. “I am. Just thumbing through house plans and making notes of what I like.”
“Anything specific?”
“I don’t want it to be too big. I want it to feel like a home. And I want to try to figure out how to have places to sit and enjoy the view without putting in a balcony.”
“I like that idea. We could do a conservatory with lots of sliding windows. Would that work?”
Kurt’s posture grew less rigid and his hands relaxed. At least we were making progress. “I like that idea.”
His phone vibrated, and he stiffened. “He’s here.”
I stood and walked over to Kurt. “We’ve got this. I’ll be by your side the entire time.”
“I don’t want my mom to get hurt because of this.”
Raising my eyebrow, I looked him in the eye. “Then take the upper hand. You’re Kurt fucking Hendrix who has super sperm.”
“Hell yeah!”
That seemed to help. The darkness crept closer as the elevator descended to the first floor. Steve—who’d just returned last week—met us at the elevator. “Your father has been swept and his phone confiscated until the meeting is over.”
“Thanks, Steve. Let’s get this over with.”
All the issues we faced would be ending soon. After spending the last two weeks combing through Amanda’s and Jennifer’s lives, there had been no additional leads. It bothered Steve that he hadn’t been able to find the computer Amanda had used to communicate with Jennifer. And she had been committed to an institution due to mental instability, calling herself Sawyer Wade. It was creepy, but she was somewhere secure.
We rounded the corner of the marble cream and black columns in the lobby, and I nearly tripped when I saw the man waiting for us. He was Kurt—an exact replica—just older. His dark hair was cut shorter and he was in a business suit, but the features were spot on.
“Son, it’s good to see you.”
Oh my gosh. His voice sounded the same, too. As he moved toward us, it was hard to take my eyes off him. Kurt and his sperm donor were nearly exact replicas, except for where it mattered.
“Doug.” Kurt’s voice was devoid of any emotion, but the narrowed, flat eyes showed his utter contempt for the man.
Doug turned his attention to me and gave me a smile I was all too familiar with, yet it lacked…something. Life. I looked closer and realized this man was heartless and cold—the exact opposite of Kurt.
“I presume you are Sawyer Wade.”
His arrogant tone raised my hackles, and I immediately wanted to start in on him. Instead, my response underwhelmed even me. “I am.”
“And you have my grandson.”
What an asshole. Kurt started to speak, but I interrupted. “Biologically speaking, I guess you could say that.”
There. That had a little more pizzazz in it. Don’t mess with my family, jerkwad.
Doug took a step back and smirked. “You’ve got some fire.”
I matched his smirk. You have no idea, buddy, so don’t fuck with us.
Grabbing my hand, Kurt took control. “Dinner is in one of the conference rooms down here. Let’s get this discussion over with.”
Why are we serving this asshole a meal? We walked into the room. Delicious smells filled the air in the otherwise sterile-looking place. Other than Steve, the room was empty. Kurt pulled out my chair, and I sat. Doug watched the two of us.
“So, son, another year. Thanks for agreeing to meet with me.”
Kurt’s jaw worked, and I knew he was about to break the news to him. But I had to know something. Suddenly not hungry, I put my napkin on the plate. “Why do you ask him to dinner?”
The man looked appalled at me for daring to question him. “Excuse me?”
“I’m curious. Once a year, during the month of his birthday, you ask Kurt to dinner. Why? If you wanted to mend fences, wouldn’t you touch base a little more frequently? Or is this your way of trying to fuck with his mind so you get more money.”
This man rubbed me the wrong way on so many levels. The light was coming back into Kurt’s eyes. Then I saw the fire. Good.
Doug took a sip of water, watching me, trying to take the upper hand. That would not happen. Finally, he put his glass on the table. “Maybe I don’t feel like Kurt’s ready to make amends.”
“Or maybe that’s a total bullshit line.”
Doug narrowed his eyes. “I believe my son can speak for himself.”
I gave a sweet smile. “He absolutely can.”
Under the table, Kurt grabbed my hand. “This will be the last dinner. After tonight, I don’t want to ever see you again.”
“That seems awfully harsh, son. I want to make things right.”
Slippery slimy weasel whose gravy train is pulling out of the depot.
Mimicking his father, Kurt took a drink of his water. “I won’t ask you again. Don’t call me son. Tonight’s the last time you’ll be able to reach me.”
“Then I’ll need enough to tide me over. Otherwise I’ll be forced to share certain incidents with the media.”
The men watched each other. Kurt released my hand and put his arms on the table. “Go ahead. I’ll run worse on you. By the time I’m through, there won’t be anyone who doesn’t recognize you for the cowardly fuckwad of a father you are. And how you abandoned your family.” Kurt rose, and I followed. “I. Dare. You.”
Doug sat back with a smug look. “You’re just like me. You’ll ruin your son’s life. You’ll ruin her life.”
I laughed out loud, and both men shifted their focus to me. “I’m sorry. But Kurt is nothing like you. I’ve known you for all of two seconds, and it’s painfully apparent that you’re a terrible person. Trust me, I know terrible people.”
Doug slapped his hands on the table, rising to his feet, and Steve stepped forward. “Damn it. I made you who you are. It’s because of me you look the way you do.”
I’d had enough. Luckily, I had my clutch and phone with me. Taking out my phone, I pushed the button and asked the all-knowing phone wizard, “How much does a sperm donor get on average?”
The robotic voice answered, “Sperm donor fees average from three hundred to four thousand dollars. Below are the sites I found for reference.”
“Perfect.” In my wallet, I had four hundred dollars. I looked at Kurt. “How much cash do you have on you?”
Kurt pulled a messy bunch of bills all wadded up and not in any order out of his pocket.
“Good grief. Let me count that.”
There was a little over two thousand dollars.
I added it to the stack and looked at Steve, who had his eyes trained on Doug. “Do you have any cash on you? Can you ask security outside as well? I’ll pay you back.”
Steve pulled out his wallet and handed me a stack of bills. Around fifteen hundred. I put it all in a neat little stack while Kurt watched with interest. Another security man walked in with around another thousand. “Okay, here’s how I see it. And, Kurt, it’s ultimately your decision. But this guy wants a cut because you look like him. Five thousand dollars is above the range for sperm donation, not to mention the other money you’ve already given him. Give him his fee and be done with him.”
The corners of his mouth twitched up, and he grabbed my hand. “Thanks for the sperm donation, Doug. Hope you have a great life. Don’t contact me again. And if you run a story hurting Mom any more than you already have, I will ruin you.”
We walked out of the room with our heads held high, neither of us turning back.