Chapter Six
Harry
The girl from Saturday night has been stuck in my head since the moment she’d gotten in that car and left. She was gorgeous and so down to earth. She seemed intelligent and not the kind of girl to automatically say yes to please someone. She knew herself and could stand on her own two feet. It was a refreshing change. I was bored with the women I usually met. They all knew me or assumed I was wealthy and tried too hard.
I couldn’t understand why William couldn’t see how great this Amber girl was. She was far better than Tiffany in every way. I smirked and shook my head. The only thing Amber didn’t have was the right last name. She didn’t have blue blood with a pedigree a mile long that would open doors for herself and her husband. William was a fool. Money and social standing were his priorities.
I didn’t have a lot of room to talk. I was fond of the money as well. It had undoubtedly made my life easy. Anything I wanted, I had, including women. I wasn’t a monk, and I couldn’t say for sure I would give everything up for the love of a good woman. I had never faced that situation. I shouldn’t be so quick to judge.
I grabbed my keys and headed out the door, forgetting all about the brunette vixen that had captivated my attention for the past two days. I had a date, and that person would demand my full attention.
I pulled into the club’s valet section and handed my keys over to the young man patiently waiting for me to unload my clubs. I walked into the country club and found my dad sitting at a table in the lounge, waiting on me. I wasn’t late, but in his mind, if you weren’t thirty minutes early, you were late.
“Hey, Dad,” I greeted.
“Oh, there you are. Our tee time is in five minutes. We need to get out there.”
I nodded. I had purposely arrived only a few minutes early. I wasn’t interested in having a drink and chatting with anyone, and I hated doing it even more with my dad. Unfortunately, it was one of those things I had to do.
We got out on the course, and the first words out of his mouth were all about how proud of William he was.
“Tiffany is a beautiful woman and will make a great wife,” my dad said proudly, as if he had hand-picked her himself.
In some ways, I guessed he had.
“She’s nice enough,” I agreed. “I hope William will be happy.”
“He will be. He is happy. He is settling down and strengthening the company. Marrying Tiffany is going to open more doors for us as a family and a company. We are going to be the strongest firm in the country—hell, the world with the way William is managing things,” my dad gloated.
“Great,” I said, biting back the sarcasm.
I wasn’t sure why it was so important to be that powerful. We had plenty of money to last our family and the future generations. It seemed greedy to push so hard to fatten the family coffers.
“It is great. It’s fantastic. You were born into a wealthy family, and with that comes some responsibilities. William has embraced his destiny and become a powerful man. He works hard to ensure our family name is respected. He keeps us all living in the lap of luxury.”
I took a deep breath. “I know, Dad. You’ve told me about a hundred times how great William is. I get it.”
“Your attitude stinks,” he shot back. “You think because you carry my last name you are entitled to all the money and the doors that open because you’re a Martin?”
I shrugged. This was a familiar argument. I didn’t need to have it again. I already knew how it ended. I was a slacker and an embarrassment and needed to do something worthwhile. And worthwhile wasn’t something like volunteering my time at a children’s hospital, which I’d done, or helping out at the homeless shelter, which I had also done. Worthwhile was making the family richer and dating the right women.
“Dad, we’ve talked about this before. I’m no good at the family business.”
“No, you’re not, but you better find something you are good at. You have a degree from Harvard. What the hell are you doing with it?”
I shrugged. “You’re the one who wanted me to get the degree.”
He glared at me. “Yes, I did, because I wanted you to do something with the damn thing.”
I sighed. I wasn’t intentionally trying to make the man angry. I had never measured up in his eyes. I was never as good as William. I had quit trying a long time ago.
“Dad, can we just golf? Does it always have to turn into a lecture about how much I disappoint you?”
He stopped walking and turned to look at me. “It’s time for some tough love.”
I raised an eyebrow. I hadn’t realized he was showing me any kind of love. “What does that mean?”
“It means you have until you turn thirty to get married to an acceptable woman.”
I smirked. “Really? And what if I don’t?”
“You’re cut off. I can’t have you continuing to disgrace the family name with a string of women who aren’t fit company for a man of your social standing and upbringing. The gravy train is coming to a halt,” he said through gritted teeth.
“Dad, I’m not going to run out and marry a woman to please you. Unlike William, I’m not going to sacrifice my happiness to make you happy.”
Now he was the one smirking. “Suit yourself. Then you don’t need my money to make you happy either.”
“I’m twenty-nine. I’ll be thirty in a little over six months.”
“Fine. If you can find an acceptable woman you want to marry, then I’ll expect you to be engaged by the time William gets married,” he said as if he was making some huge concession.
“That’s in four months!”
He looked at me with eyes squinted. “You’ve had years. You have been partying and sleeping around with I don’t know how many women. That was your choice. A man in your position needs a wife. Having a discreet affair here and there is acceptable, but flaunting your sexual conquests all over the news is not going to be acceptable any longer! I’m not going to bankroll your playboy lifestyle.”
He was serious. I couldn’t believe he was forcing me to marry a woman or be cut off from the family. It was twisted and wrong on so many levels.
“Dad, you’re being unreasonable. You should want me to be happy. You’re telling me to run out and put a ring on a woman’s finger because she has the right name. How is that going to satisfy anyone?” I asked with exasperation.
“I have a list of names that would make suitable partners for you. Most of the women are attractive, and I’m sure they would satisfy all your needs.”
“Eww, Dad, really?”
“I’m tired of the games, Harry. You are a spoiled brat. You’ve done nothing with your life. Your mother and I are tired of trying to explain your actions. It’s on you. It’s your decision. You can grow up, find yourself a woman, and settle down or get out. Get a job flipping burgers and pay your own way. You’ve had it too easy for too long.”
I called the caddy over. I wasn’t going to go through a miserable game that I loathed with a man who truly didn’t care for me. I had my limits.
“What are you doing?” he seethed.
“Leaving.”
“Don’t you dare quit in the middle of our game!”
I laughed. “This isn’t a game. This is you getting me out here to serve me an ultimatum. You could have saved us both a lot of time and told me over the phone or by email.”
“This isn’t a joke, Harry. I’m serious.”
I laughed. “I know you are, Dad, and that is the joke.”
I climbed into the cart and told the caddy to go. I left my dad standing on the eighth hole, his face red and his brow furrowed. I wasn’t a child. I knew I could make it on my own if I had to. There was no way I would let that man dictate my love life. He had dictated every other element of my life for too long. I hadn’t been allowed to have certain friends or attend parties like other kids. I’d had to keep up appearances. When I had gone to college, everything had changed. I’d found new freedom and made up for the years I had lived under my parents’ strict rules, controlling what I wore, who I spoke to, and where I spent my free time.
It was no wonder I had gone wild. I had gotten access to my trust fund at twenty-five and was still given a generous allowance from the family’s estate. I didn’t think there was any way my dad could take my trust fund away, but one never knew. I needed to do something quick before I found myself living in my car without a penny to my name.
“Thanks,” I said to the caddy, jumping out of the cart and grabbing my clubs before heading to my car.
I needed a drink. I knew it wasn’t the answer and the alcohol wasn’t going to help, but I wanted to forget all about my dad and his ultimatum. I drove to an out-of-the-way dive bar, not wanting to be recognized. For just a minute, I wanted to be a regular guy. I didn’t want the weight of my family’s name or money on my shoulders.
The first drink helped soothe my temper. My dad had a way of getting under my skin. I knew I was probably fucked up due to his shitty parenting. I knew it wasn’t right for parents to play favorites or even show they had a favorite. My parents hadn’t gotten the memo. They had made it clear for as long as I could remember that William was the golden boy. He was the crowned prince.
I had a few more drinks and realized I couldn’t drive home. I called a buddy and asked him to pick me up and find someone to drive my car back to my place. I wasn’t drunk enough to leave my car parked in a shady part of town outside a rather seedy bar. I’d come back to either a stripped car or it would be gone altogether. The more I thought about it, the more the idea held appeal.
“Dude, what the fuck are you doing in here?” Grayson hissed.
I shrugged. “Having a drink.”
“More like a bottle. Damn, it isn’t even five o’clock.”
I grinned. It was the grin of a drunk man. I could feel it was lopsided, but I couldn’t seem to straighten it.
“I went golfing with my dad.”
“Oh, shit. What’d you do this time?” Grayson asked, knowing my family all too well.
“I was born and I’m not married.”
He nodded his head in understanding. “Got it.”
I shook my head. “No, you don’t get it. He’s cutting me off if I don’t get married by the time I’m thirty. How fucked up is that?”
“Really fucked up. Come on, let’s get you out of here,” he said, giving me a hand off the stool.
I willingly went, ready to go home and sleep off the drunken stupor I had put myself in. I hadn’t meant to get drunk, but my dad had a way of making me want to stay oblivious. Something had to change. I just wasn’t sure what or how.