Chapter Nineteen
Wayne watched Richard enter his wife’s room and thought about what she could want from the good man to discuss. He followed Tony to the waiting room. A nurse stood guarding a man.
“Mr. Brown, this gentleman refuses to leave.”
He nodded for her to leave him, and he gave his full attention to George Jones, Lily’s father.
The man looked pale and older since the last time he’d seen him, but after having Lily in his life, he didn’t see the need getting in touch with the man who’d hurt her and risked thousands of people’s jobs from his carelessness.
“What are you doing here, George?” He had no time to deal with spiteful families.
“I’ve just heard about Lily. Is she all right?” The older man pulled off his cap to reveal a full head of grey hair.
“As good as can be expected in her current condition.”
Wayne was guarded. Her father, for the first time in all of her life, was taking notice of Lily.
“Thank God. I couldn’t believe they wouldn’t give me any information,” he said exasperated, pointing at the reception desk.
“I’m her next of kin. I get to know everything.”
“Can I see her?”
“You’re responsible for making her life a fucking misery, and you expect me to let you see my wife who’s been through enough already?” Wayne knew they were attracting attention but he no longer cared.
Fear and panic at the possibility of losing the woman he loved surfaced, and now, her snivelling shit of a father decided he wanted to be concerned, which just didn’t cut it with him any longer. He was fucking sick of the falseness of dealing with it all.
“I love my daughter.”
“Fuck you. You didn’t love her. You practically threw her at me when the debt collectors started calling. Your family hate my fucking wife, and she’s the nicest person to ever be born to shit like you. Now tell me why I shouldn’t have you thrown on the street.” Wayne knew how to deal. He may have been born around money, but he sure as shit made sure he could handle himself.
“Maybe we could go somewhere more privately to talk?”
“Come on, Wayne, you’re really pushing it now,” Tony said, taking his arm.
Wayne pulled out of his grip, squaring up to the older man.
“Tell me whatever I need to hear and then leave.”
George stood floundering for a few minutes, finally nodding. Some years ago, twenty-two years to be precise, I had an affair with a sweet woman who came and worked as a cleaner for me in my London office at the time. You want all this. You can have it. A pretty woman only out of her teens. She smiled at me and cleaned my desk, and one evening I took it upon myself to ask her out. I couldn’t stop thinking about her—”
“Maybe we should take this somewhere private,” Wayne interrupted. He spun round and moved to a private waiting area. “Continue.”
“I’ve not thought about her in so long. I just shut it all out. Anyway, one thing led to another, and I slept with her, and we started a relationship. I know this sounds bad, but she thought I was just a manager of one of the departments. She didn’t know I owned the place. It was a great business then, and I ruined it.”
“Just get to it, George.”
“She found out about my real name and my marriage, and everything blew up in my face. I loved her, not for her youth, or anything, I loved her. She was my heart and soul. I decided to screw the protocol of our standing and marry her. She was also pregnant with my child. I told Jessica I was leaving her, and everything was in place. Anyway, at some point, there were complications with her pregnancy, and I ended up taking her back home to where Jessica and Stephanie lived. I needed extra stuff to help care for her.”
Wayne watched as George relived his moment of grief and unveiled the largest secret of the Jones’s family.
“She gave birth in January. It was complicated, and we couldn’t get her to the hospital. Snow and everything that comes with that shit. Lily was born, and her true mother bled out with no way of stopping. I can’t remember what the doctors said. I was in shock. My Lily was gone.”
Wayne frowned. “Your Lily?”
“Her name, the love of my life was called Lily. It was the only thing I fought Jessica on with her upbringing. She had to have the name Lily.”
“Why did she live a shit life?”
“Because, Mr. Brown, I ceased to care about anything but the woman I lost. I stayed married to Jessica, and she cared for Lily but now I look back I see I was a horrid person. When Jessica told me to punish her, I did and I took my loss out on her. She didn’t deserve the life I gave, but I was too blind.” George allowed twenty-two years of contained tears to spill over.
“What happened for this change of heart?”
“I stood by the fire, burning some pictures from my wallet, and I picked one Jessica hadn’t found of my Lily. I saw her adoring face so much like young Lily, and I woke up for the first time. My wife came in and handed me a sandwich and sneered my whore’s daughter was in hospital, and I finally snapped.”
Wayne listened, understanding what he must have gone through. He only had to think of losing Lily, and it brought him to his knees.
“Let’s just say I’m done. I don’t want to be the monster of a man anymore. I loved Lily with all my heart, and instead of cutting it up and dealing, I should have loved the one thing that had been present of our love for each other—our child.”
Wayne had two choices. Number one, send the man off and never allow him near his wife, or let Lily have something she truly needed.
“I want to warn you I love Lily with all my heart and soul. You do anything to fucking hurt her, and I’ll fucking kill you.”
George nodded and followed him to the spare room. Richard stood outside pacing and glanced at him as he walked closer.
Wayne let him go in and watched the scene unfold. Lily reached out for her father, and George went to her with open arms. He heard them talking and knew he’d made the right decision.
“She knows about the pre-nup, doesn’t she?” Wayne asked a nervous Richard at his side.
“How do you know?”
“I know Lily, and I’ve fucked up. I want you to get every single copy of that...contract and bring it to me.”
“All of it?”
“Everything.”
Richard left him. Tony went to get more coffee, and Wayne got everything ready so he could take his wife home. Looking at the date on his watch, he noticed it was a week until Christmas. He wanted to make her first year with him special, but with all the ramifications rolling around, he truly believed everything he tried to do would be a lost cause.
Wayne watched the love of his life and prayed to the gods above to give him something to take away the Beast and bring her the man she deserved.