Then it became clear to me. He must have told Dad that I was unwell and stayed late in bed. That was why the old man didn't bother to nag me about not going to the store. Is that why he is having a meal with me? If I had known that he thought I was sick, I would have taken my time to dress up. I need to slow down on eating and what can I ask for?
Whenever I was sick, I always got whatever I wanted from him. As long as it's not over the top, he will give it to me.
What can I ask fooooor…?
"Is it your period?" He inquired.
"No Dad. Just a little fever with catarrh and sore throat. But I am better now after a good rest." I replied then faked a sneeze.
What can I ask fooooor…?
Good… Did your Mum say anything about your beach house maintenance bill?" He suddenly changed the subject.
House bill… oh! Yeah! The bill from last night. So that is what this was all about.
"No Dad." I answered, still trying to come up with something I could get out of feeling sick. Nothing was coming up.
"Are you sure? '' he asked with a suddenly stern voice as he placed his paper on the table and stared me down from across the table.
"She spoke about getting in-house staff for me but I told her I would rather do the hiring myself. Is that what this is all about?" I asked, now fully focused on him too. Any small thing can upset him and my chance to ask for a freebie would be gone with it. There was no way I was allowing that to happen.
He heaved and picked up a fork.
"She felt it's better you have inhouse staff because in the past four months, the company taking care of your estate has increased their fee without warning twice. With inhouse staff, that wouldn't happen."
"Okay. I prefer inhouse staff too. I just want to hire them myself." I responded, feeling my heartbeat increase with my anger. Mum is always using Dad to get to me when I fight her back in whatever way.
"Okay. So what agency do you want to use?"
"I don't know yet…Good! Now I know what to ask for.
"What about you make recommendations? I don't want to use anybody coming from Mum. She will have them spy on me." I said, pulling off a sad face. He smirked and started eating his food. Here goes…
" Or better still, let Uncle Liam go with me. That way, I wouldn't need to hire a cook. Just two or four domestic staff to take care of the house once a week." I said expectantly.
He put some food in his mouth and chewed them thoroughly and thoughtfully before nodding. I wanted to jump for joy but settled with shaking my legs in my chair.
I am very happy to leave Arizona but I am somewhat scared of leaving alone. For some Months now, I have been having some fears about my relationship with Riley. I believe that once I get to NewYork, everything will be settled and we will be back to normal but at the same time, I have entertained the thought of the worst things that could happen. In case my greatest fears come to pass, this is where Uncle Liam would come in. To help me get rid of any woman that has her hands wrapped around my man.
"You do know you have to ask him right?" Dad said, damping my spirit.
"I do? Why?" I blurted out.
"Not everyone wants to move to NewYork." He jabbed at me. I rolled my eyes and pouted. "But he is your staff no."
"He is a staff not a slave." He has the freedom to stay or leave. I can't force him to leave Arizona if he doesn't want to."
"But he is my bodyguard. He should go wherever I go."
"He is no longer your bodyguard. You discharged him yourself, remember?"
At this point, I had nothing to say again because truly, I was the one that said I don't want him following me around again.
"If you talk to him, he will listen to you Dad. Just ask him for me. Please. Please dad!" I begged like a cute little child, making dad chuckle.
"Whatever!" He said before focusing on his food. Where dad is concerned, 'Whatever and Okay' are the same. "Thanks. Thanks so much dad!" I clapped my hands in gee.
Haven gotten what i wanted, i also focused on my food and didn't forget to sneeze every once in a while.
"Are you guys getting a divorce?" I suddenly blurted out before realizing that I was thinking out loud.
"Why would you think that?" He replied after a pause. The question shocked him as it shocked me.
"You Guys are not talking for like forever now. You can't even stand each other's presence. So are you getting divorced ?" Now that I have already put it out there, I might as well get the answers I seek.
Dad paused his eating and looked at me. He dropped his fork and made to stand up.
"Look, if she is trying to wipe you clean, just know she can't. She is cheating too and she is worse off." I blurted out breathing hard and staring hard at dad who was also staring hard at me.
"What do you mean?" He said in a very low voice. The calmness he used in asking the question scared me more than anything ever scared me before. I stood up and mustered all the confidence I could.
"Just know that if she tries to divorce you because of Joseph, she will be getting just half or nothing… Excuse me, please." I turned to try to make a run for it.
"Young woman, stop right there!." He ordered in a very stern voice that sent shivers down my spine. It's true that Dad was my gist companion. We talked about anything and everything but since his fight with Mum and Joseph's death, he had become more and more unapproachable. He became so hostile to the point that I did do anything to avoid him but watching him go through all this alone was painful for me. Now that I have gotten here and he was asking for more details, I might as well just say something. But how do I tell him I know without telling him how I got to know? It was such a shitty situation and thinking about how I could lose Riley, I felt fear in my heart.