He pushes his finger at the paper. “These fourteen people aren’t the entire public. It’s a fraction, and they’re important.” He continues reading from his notes, “Lily Calloway has sexual relations with two of my sons at once—as stated by five of fourteen. The women like that you’re pregnant, but they find you shy, impersonal and awkward on camera. Three men appeared to admire your Princeton undergraduate degree, while the rest thought it was insignificant. One woman said, and I quote, ‘she is the most popular Calloway but also the most unpopular’ which is ridiculous but true.”
Lily has the most negative press, but as a couple, we have the biggest fanbase because of the way Princesses of Philly edited us. So I get that comment. What I don’t understand is the point to this whole charade.
My father suddenly spins to me. I freeze as he says, “Loren Hale, my second-born son…” His shoulders slacken, and when his eyes flicker to mine, I see more admiration in them, more love. “…all fourteen were first scared to criticize you in front of me, but I goaded them into doing it.”
“Wait,” I frown. “You know these people, personally?” For some reason, I thought they were a random test group. Like someone asked pedestrians on the street their opinions about us.
“Of course I do,” he says. “All fourteen make up the Board of Directors for Hale Co.”
I stare off, suddenly realizing what this may be about. No, it can’t…
He continues while my head rolls, “Loren Hale is not as big of a hothead as Ryke Meadows…They were really going easy on you at first.” He skims the paper. “The majority found you to be ‘angry-looking’ which is a stupid little adjective. The women thought you came across thoughtful and caring towards your girlfriend, but they were worried if you were a team player. You are generally sympathetic in the media, being my bastard child, though you appear standoffish when it concerns Hale Co.—which worries all of them. It’s why I’m here.”
His eyes flit up to mine again.
And the answer that we’ve all wanted is about to finally come.
“I’m socially and corporately tainted since the…rumors about you and me.”
He can’t say it.
The molestation rumors. False accusations about my dad touching me when I was a kid. There will always be skeptics believing they were true, no matter how much evidence crops up advocating against it. No matter how hard we scream, people still won’t believe us. It’s what makes me sick most of the time.
“Stocks have dropped. Hale Co. isn’t looking good, and the board is pressuring me to not only name an heir but to hand the company off. I can’t represent it anymore. But I refuse to pass Hale Co. to some random, white-collared little shit. It’s going to one of you four beautiful little shits and staying in the family.”
He’s been sitting on this for weeks, months maybe. The board is forcing him to step down, and I can’t even wrap my head around stepping up. I have a comic book business. I’m about to have a baby. Lily is hormonal and starting to regress. I’ve been sober for only four months since the last time I relapsed.
Hale Co. is a multi-billion dollar company. And I still feel like a little kid playing grown-up.
“If no one is going to say anything,” my dad starts again, “then I’ll go on. You need to impress the board, not me. They can vote you out at any time, so you have to earn their respect. But they will accept one of you, guide you, train you. This, I know. Hale Co. is a family company, something my father passed to me, and they appreciate that. It’s a goddamn good marketing tool.”
Ryke points at Daisy on the loveseat. “She’s not my fucking wife, so keep her out of this.”
“I needed to give the board some options. She was one of the names brought up due to her affiliation with Fizzle. And if she means something to you, then she means something to me and the Hale legacy. If you don’t fucking marry her, then she’s still a goddamn Calloway.”
A rock is in my throat, but I somehow clear it to ask, “Is the board choosing who takes over or are we?”
“The board will decide. You’ll attend functions with them, meetings, and when they choose, you have to be willing to sign the papers and commit. If you don’t, the company is no longer in our family’s control, and we’ll lose a substantial number of shares.”
I didn’t think that my dad would turn my world upside down again. Not like this. It’s a life change for one of us.