Page 35 of Family Affair

"No, nothing for me. I’ll have another cup of coffee later." She threw a quick glance at the door, and he understood. She didn’t want Alex to come home and find her visiting with him.

A corner of her mouth went up with self-deprecation. “Getting old is no picnic."

"Of course not." He barely resisted the urge to scoff.Old age, my ass…

It was not the age but the aftereffects of her multitude of medicines that were taking their toll on Maureen's looks and her state of mind.

She gave him a practiced, impersonal smile. "Have you seen him today?"

“No. We spoke on the phone. I caught him in a bad mood, he yelled at me and hung up. Nothing out of the ordinary.”

Maureen digested that. “I hope you don’t expect your father to change. It would be unrealistic on your part. But I wasn’t talking about him.”

“Ah.”

They stared at each other, and a wave of the past with its shared secrets and tangled emotions rose between them.

“What makes you think I’ll go see him?” he grated.

“Because he left you no choice.”

“There’s always a choice. We’re free people.”

“Don’t preach, Cade. Leave it to Ward. I know there are options, but none seem feasible.” She looked genuinely affronted. “Do you know what he wants?”

“He wants us to get back to business.”

Maureen looked slightly incredulous. “Why? Is it the money he needs?”

“Nah, it’s the hassle that he loves. To manipulate, to scheme, to watch people act in a way he predicted. In another life, he would’ve made an excellent pawn shop broker.”

She shook her head. “He can’t turn back time.”

“Tell that to him.”

“This is something you have to do. You have to work things out with him,” she said. “You’re the only one who can. If this is what it takes… Has he asked to meet with you?”

“Not in so many words,” he admitted. “He knows he can no longer order me around.”

“Yet you came to Atlanta,” she pointed out.

“Yes, I came, because I thought… It doesn't matter what I thought. I’ve seen enough. I will be leaving soon.”

“You can’t! What about us?”

He shrugged. “What about you?”

Her face whitened and she gripped her knees as if bracing for an impact. “A scandal will erupt!”

“Let’s wait and see.”

“You can’t be serious. It’ll ruin the company! Your father won’t survive it.”

He gave her a telling look. “Yes, he will.”

“What if the police get wind of it? Can you imagine if the old allegations are rekindled and they decide to investigate?”

“If Ward isn’t afraid to risk it, then you shouldn’t be, either.”