Daddy’s Little Pet

ROBERT

*A FEW MINUTES EARLIER*

“Please give me a minute, Mr. and Mrs. Charles. I need to check on someone.” I spoke to the elderly couple before me, and my gaze was drawn to the Rolex on my wrist.

“Certainly, Mr. Clarke. We’ll be patient. The party is still going on, and we’re not going anywhere.” Mr. Charles smiled at me, then returned his attention to his wife and whispered in her ear.

They moved toward the crowded dance floor, where several elites and socialites had gathered, sipping their cocktails and mingling.

With a sigh, I glanced at my wristwatch for the umpteenth time and then back at the hall’s entrance door, where Renee had vanished.

Not just a few seconds ago, but nearly a half-hour, and I was becoming increasingly concerned about her whereabouts with each tick of my watch.

She should’ve returned by now. It was unusual for her to spend so much time in the restroom, and as time passed, worry ate at my stomach like acid.

Renee was never late. She was always on time and given how the evening had caused such a strain on her, I knew she’d want to spend every second with me. So where the hell was she?

My fingers instinctively returned to the silver watch on my left wrist and I began to fiddle with the dainty accessory as various thoughts raced through my mind.

The well-placed air conditioners blew a cool breeze through the room, but it didn’t ease the hotness I felt under my skin, and as if on cue, a bead of sweat trickled down my face.

My patience was waning thin. I needed to check on her.

With a swift yank, I ripped the mask off my face and handed it to a nearby waiter.

Then, I began to stride purposefully out of the ballroom, past the crowds of other guests, making a beeline for the nearest exit. But then suddenly a voice rang out, stopping me on a dime.

“Mr. Clarke! Dad! Wait!”

Instantly I froze in my tracks and rooted there, dread seeped through every part of me.

“The hell?!” I muttered to myself as I heard the all-too-familiar voice say again from behind me.

“Won’t you turn around and acknowledge me, Father? For fuck’s sake.”

Dylan? No fucking way. What was he doing here? How did he gain entry to the masked party? Who invited him? My mind was racing furiously.

All thoughts of looking for Renee vanished at that moment. I focused solely on the sound of the voice behind me, calling my name with unmistakable annoyance.

My eyes narrowed into slits as I slowly turned around to face him, and I clenched my jaw angrily, my expression hardening.

My gaze locked onto two familiar blue orbs, and my blood ran cold. The sight of him made an uneasy feeling settle inside my gut.

Standing a few feet away, under the illuminating chandelier, was my 23-year-old son, Dylan.

His dark hair, like mine, was combed and slicked back with gel. On his face sat a mask that matched the shade of the dark blue suit he wore while holding a glass of champagne.

His blue eyes gleamed with mischief and amusement as he stood with a smug look.

“Good day, Father.” He greeted again, nodding maniacally before sipping wine from his glass.

He didn’t say anything else after that. Instead, he stared at me with a smirk as if daring me to react to the tension between us.

Oh, how I wish I could slap that smug grin off his face.

“What are you doing here?” My voice was low and threatening.

Eyes darting back and forth as I spoke, I tried to see if any guests or paparazzi had gotten wind of this encounter with my estranged son. Luckily for me, no one was paying attention to us.

“Well, hello to you as well, Dad.” Dylan responded with sarcasm. “You look great tonight.”

“Dylan! What are you doing here?”

“Does it matter? We haven’t seen each other in months, if not years, and this is how you greet your only son? Don’t you miss me? Aren’t you glad to see me?”

“Of course.” I scoffed. “Seeing you in unexpected places makes me happy. It’s not-”

“It’s not what?” He suddenly cut in, a frown flickering as he spat out bitterly, “This place is an unexpected place for us to meet, right? Since you never considered me worthy enough to be your son, you also think I’m low to attend all these parties?”

Gritting my jaw in irritation, I responded to his question. “You know that’s not what I meant…” I paused, trailing off. Then I asked him the question at the forefront of my mind. “How did you know about this event? Did you come to see me because someone told you about the party? Are you keeping an eye on me?”

“Keeping an eye on you?”

“Yes. Since I arrived in Orlando, your mother’s attempted to schedule dinner reservations for us, but you’ve never shown up. Why?”

“Because I had other things to see to. I can’t abandon my plans because of you.”

“So, I’m not that important to you. I understand. I get it.”

He laughed hysterically. “Of course, you get it. It’s pitiful to think you have a significant role in my life.”

“Dylan…” I drawled, warning in my voice, but still, he continued.,

“For someone who cut me off from my inheritance when I was eighteen, you sure have no remorse.”

“Don’t start this conversation right now, Dylan.”

“Of course, I will. There’re so many questions I’d like to ask. But perhaps I should begin by asking why you’ve never seen it fit to reach out to me all these years? Instead, my mother has to try and bring us together for you to respond. I’ve done everything in my power to earn your trust. I’ve done everything to be worthy of being called your son, heir, and successor. I’m through with college and have everything I need, but you-”

“You broke my trust when you obeyed your mother’s words over mine, young man. You not only conspired with her to defraud me, but you almost caused me to lose a business empire I worked years to build. Even after that, you chose the path of the radical prodigal son. Were you remorseful? No! Don’t you remember what you said in my office a few years ago? The stupid behavior you displayed in front of my colleagues before you left the room. Surely, you haven’t forgotten so easily.” I spat icily as I stared at him, refusing to show emotion to the son who’d casually disregarded me and followed in the footsteps of his errant mother.

“That’s bullshit, Dad.” He abruptly snapped, his gaze fierce.

“It isn’t Dylan. You claim I cut you off financially, but I still send you money. Natasha, my overseas assistant, funds your account every three months, and I have the records. I only cut you and your mother out of the family business because you were both a thorn in my side. That’s the only thing I did.”

“So that’s it? You cut me out of your life and refused to check up on me all these years because of something I said and a few mistakes I made?”

“I didn’t cut you out of my life. Stop saying that. Have you forgotten that I gave you multiple chances to prove yourself? But you always let your mother’s words get to you? You obey her like the little chick you are.”

“Wow!” He exclaimed.

This time I let out a sigh, calming the rage brewing inside me.

Looking around the busy hall and remembering Renee still hadn’t arrived from the restroom, I faced Dylan and asked, “You still haven’t told me who brought you here? Surely, you’re not here to scour for potential business clients. Because last I checked, you worked as a sales assistant in a downtown boutique. What are you-”

“Mother brought me. She’s my date for the evening.”

My face paled instantly, and a slight cough escaped my lips as I nearly choked on my saliva.

Amanda was here. At this party? Had she come with him? No… this was a joke-a lie.

Another agonizing realization hit me like a punch to the stomach. My mind raced as I remembered the last time, I’d seen my ex-wife.

She’d just visited my office a few days before and seen the invitation to the masked ball party on my desk.

So, she’d followed through with her threat-of attending the not-by-invitation-only party- and brought Dylan with her. How convenient. Fuck!

“It might interest you that Mother has been fuming since you walked into the hall with a lovely young woman by your side. She’s not in a good mood, and-”

“Wait, what did you just say?”

“Talking about that lovely woman you came with. I had no idea you had a thing for younger women. It seems like my old man’s got a fetish. I’m sure you don’t see through the ruse. That woman is a gold digger after your money and-”

“You! Won’t! Talk! About! My! Girlfriend!” I barked angrily, my voice becoming increasingly loud, attracting stares from some guests nearby.

“Wow. And what would you do, Father? You can’t possibly mean to tell me that the woman has such a strong hold on you. How old is she even? 20? 21? 22? Or God forbid, 19? How intriguing.”

“I don’t have time for your antics.” I muttered with a sneer, and glancing at my watch, I noticed that an hour had passed, and still Renee was not back.

With the dawning news that Amanda was at the party, I knew I had to do something fast.

“Where’s your mother?” I asked Dylan.

“I have no idea.” He shrugged before continuing, “She excused herself from my company sometime earlier, and the last I saw her, she was headed to the restroom or something. She left through the nearest exit and-”

Shit! Shit! The thought that ran through my head seemed too absurd to be true. But could it be?

Amanda had visited the restroom. Renee also visited the restroom. Just like that, the disparate dots in my mind began to connect.

My entire body felt paralyzed, unable to move or make a sound. A chill engulfed me, settling deep like an icy river rushing down my spine.

Fuck! This was not a good sign. It wasn’t at all.

“Are you going to…” Dylan was saying, but I’d already turned away from him, intent on getting to the restroom and salvaging a situation that spelled trouble.

Before I reached the restroom, I saw a familiar figure with strawberry blonde curls marching through the crowd, her head bent as she walked haphazardly. Renee…

When I caught sight of her reflection, a sharp pain erupted from my chest. Without further delay, my legs began to move on their own.

My hands shot out, meeting her halfway, and I drew her tightly into my arms.

A soft gasp escaped her lips as she buried her face in my shoulders, her breath hot against my neck, and my hands snaked around her waist, gripping gently.

“Oh, Robert…” She called out softly, almost inaudibly. Her voice sounded broken and hoarse as if she’d been crying and I realized my worst nightmares had come true.

“What’s the matter, Renee?” I tenderly looked into her tear-filled doe-like eyes. “What happened? Who the fuck hurt you?”

“Robert… I… I’m at a loss for words. I…” She trailed off, hiccuping and sniffing, but I persisted, despite my resolve fraying by the second.

“Speak to me, Renee.”

“I… There was this woman in the restroom. She…” She started again but paused when suddenly someone called out her name from behind, and we both looked over my shoulder.

It was Dylan.

He stood there with a strange expression on his face. One that appeared bemused, as if he couldn’t believe the scene in front of him, and his jaw slowly dropped.

“Renee…” Dylan called out again, and I noticed Renee wiping her teary eyes with the back of her hands.

She also had the same look of confusion on her face, and her eyes widening; I heard her mutter under her breath. “I don’t think my day could be any worse. What the hell is this scumbag doing here?”

Scumbag? Were they acquainted? Did they know each other? What the fuck was going on? I asked myself the rhetoric question as I continued to observe the stare-down between my girlfriend and my son.

Despite the noisy atmosphere, the tension in this secluded corner of the room became palpable, and it was one I couldn’t condone any longer.

I shook Renee’s arms, bringing her gaze back to me. Before I could say something though, a mocking whistle rang out, followed by a loud resounding clapping.

It was none other than Amanda. The wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Her appearance made everyone in the hall stop in their tracks. They stopped whatever they were doing and focused on me-on us.

As I locked eyes with her, she smiled triumphantly, satisfaction written all over her face. The corners of her lips curled upwards in a devilish, trouble-making smile.

The bitch! My knuckles whitened, and I fumed inwardly, my entire body shaking in rage.

“Well. Well. Well.” She began, her voice still loud, as she waved her hands about. She continued to draw the attention of everyone in the hall.

“I suppose today will be a juicy night for the paparazzi…” She paused, strolling toward me. “What a beautiful elite family reunion. Isn’t this lovely?”

Her words dripped sarcasm, but I could see where this conversation was headed.

And just like that, all hell broke loose. Every intertwined secret I’d kept hidden in my closet threatened to burst open, and I watched my world flip upside down instantly.