Page 9 of Convincing Him
“Wow Dad,” Gabe breathed out in frustration. “You really know how to go out with a bang.”
“I like to think someday you’ll be telling my grandkids what role I played in the happy marriages that ensued from this,” James smiled at Dotty.
“Or perhaps we will be telling the divorce lawyers about it,” said Gabe dampeningly as he rose to his feet. He didn’t wait for his father’s reply before heading out of the room. There was a funeral attendant waiting nearby and Gabe ascertained from him that his brothers had chosen to go to the parking lot. Pushing open the door of the funeral home’s entrance, Gabe joined them.
“I can’t believe it,” Marshall bit out.
“I can,” Parker muttered darkly as he ended the call, shoving his cellphone back in the inside breast pocket of his suit. “He’s always trying to run our lives and make us dance to his own tune. This is one last attempt to meddle by the old man.”
“What did the lawyer say?” Marshall wanted to know.
Parker had a short, bitter laugh. “It’s iron-clad. Dad already sent out copies to our lawyers, hired them to give suggestions so they wouldn’t be able to argue it. He literally turned our own lawyers against us.”
“Isn’t that a conflict of interest?” questioned Marshall.
“Apparently my lawyer was delighted to give his input,” Parker was sarcastic. “It’s impenetrable. We are officially screwed. The countdown begins as soon as Dad informed us of what he’s done so we’ve literally got thirty days to get wed or walk away from our jobs and our inheritance.”
Marshall eyed his oldest brother. “You’re being very quiet Gabe.”
Gabe ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. “As much as I would like to thumb my nose at him and walk away, I find I don’t like the thought of being poor. Nor do I want to give up my stake in the company. I have worked hard to establish myself there. I like what I do. And in this economy, getting a similar position could take years.”
“So, who’s the lucky lady?” asked Parker in a flippant tone.
“No idea,” Gabe ignored the fact he had been proposed to within the last hour.
“Hey guys?” Max propped open the door of the funeral home, raising an eyebrow at them. “Is your dad okay?”
“He’s officially gone insane,” Parker supplied the answer. “Flipped his lid. Wacko. Belongs in the mental ward.”
“Dad is dying of cancer but otherwise he is his normal self,” Marshall frowned at Parker.
“It’s complicated,” sighed Gabe.
Max paused for a moment, noting the tension between his cousins, not certain how to digest their words. “Maybe we should talk about this later. Right now, there is a funeral that needs to happen for Nate’s wife and siblings. If you could come inside, we could get started…”
Gabe shared a look with Parker and Marshall. None of them were happy about the situation but Max was right. Now was not the time to deal with their father’s ultimatum. “Let’s help Mom and Dad back to their seats and put any discussion off about this until tomorrow.”
His brothers grimly nodded in agreement and they all followed Max back into the funeral chapel, none of them noticing Agent Keller as he calmly took a notebook out of a pocket in his suit jacket while leaning against a tree. His icy blue eyes narrowed as he scribbled something in his notes. When he was finished, Keller put the notepad and pen away, folding his arms as he patiently waited.
Throughout the funeral Gabe’s mind was distracted by the ultimatum their father had dictated to them. He had never felt the urge to get married before. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Most of Gabe’s relationships were short and uncomplicated. When a woman started suggesting rings or more, he ended it. Gabe liked his life the way it was. Plus, many of his friends and business colleagues were divorced, sometimes more than once.
What made a marriage last? Sure, his parents had been married for a long time, but things were different in this day and age. Now people were fickle. They were always searching for some notion of Hollywood love which Gabe wasn’t sure existed. Some people seemed to get along better than others in marriage. An example would be how his cousins were doing in their relationships, but there were many others that didn’t. Max swore true love existed and he had found it.
What sort of difference was there between true love and love? Gabe frowned. It was all ridiculousness in his opinion. He liked to deal with facts, numbers, corporate problems. He had never liked to deal with people’s feelings. They were complicated and messy. In his experience, someone was always bound to get hurt. Marriage wasn’t the solid institution everyone seemed to think it was.
One thing was for certain. Gabe wasn’t about to lose his position in the company which he had worked so hard to get. People might think he had been given the job because he was the owner’s son. James had made certain Gabe had jumped through extra hoops just to prove he was worthy.
Nor was he going to lose out on his inheritance. Why his father couldn’t have already given them their shares like how his uncles had already done for their sons, Gabe didn’t know. It was frustrating. The old man had them over the proverbial barrel.
Gabe resolved to ignore the issue until a more appropriate time, trying to concentrate on the eulogy being given about his cousin Nate.
How was it that Nate was gone? In his mid-forties, in excellent shape, a health food junkie and a man who appeared to be everything healthy. Gabe wondered at how his cousin could have a heart attack so young and have suddenly passed, leaving behind two boys and a wife. Nate had everything. He was charming, driven, healthy, a family man, successful in his work, rich, admired, and it was all taken away in one instant. Gabe glanced at Cora who was pressing a tissue to her eyes.
Was it smart to attach oneself to another person? They could die or divorce. They could leave and then what happened? Gabe frowned. He had been the recipient of far too many of his friends asking him to help drown their sorrows over break-ups and divorces. The guys complained during marriage and complained afterwards. Gabe just didn’t see the point in being married to someone.
As for kids, Gabe didn’t have much experience with them. He remembered being one and he had noticed some of his cousins had procreated an alarming amount begging the question of why anyone would want four or five little humans running around. Kids were messy, noisy, and broke things. They interrupted well thought out routines. Gabe didn’t expect to have kids. He had always thought Parker would accidently get someone pregnant, something which hadn’t occurred unless his brother had kept it very quiet, and as for Marshall...
Marshall would be the type to get married and have two kids. He would be good at being a dad and a husband. Gabe didn’t think for a moment he had it in himself to be a good dad or husband. Gabe didn’t know the first thing about being a father. His long hours at work would be detrimental to a marriage.
