Damage Control

Chapter 19

I stabbed my fork into the steaming parmesan chicken, stuffing a piece into my mouth as I watched the scene unfold in front of me.

Luther chuckled darkly and sighed. "It's always no-nonsense with you."

"You and I both know you came here for a specific reason; there's no need to beat around the bush."

"Fair enough," Luther nodded. "Have you thought about the proposal I sent you?"

What proposal?

Nathaniel's eyes quickly flickered over to mine before shifting his gaze back to Luther. "I have."

"And?"

"I've decided I'm not going through with it."

Luther clenched his jaw but kept his composure. "And why is that?"

Nathaniel's eyes flickered to mine once again, causing me to wonder who this conversation is actually about.

"Something came up."

"Son--"

Nathaniel's head snapped up as his eyes darkened with hatred. The fork in his hand was now bent out of shape with no hope of returning back to normal.

"Nate, we talked about this--"

"No, you talked, I listened."

I popped another forkful of pasta into my mouth before washing it down with the lemonade I requested.

"And here I thought we were on the same page," Luther scoffed, swirling the reminiscence of wine in his glass.

"No, you assumed I would go through with whatever ridiculous idea you suggest," Nathaniel revealed through gritted teeth, still leaving his food untouched.

Luther laughed bitterly while adjusting the gold Rolex on his wrist. "I can assure you this suggestion is far from ridiculous if only you'd take the time to think of how this could benefit the company."

"I've had more than enough time to think about it," Nathaniel replied as his eyes found their way back to mine once again, holding his gaze as he spoke. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, discreetly wiping my sweaty palms on my dress, trying to decide when was the best time to interrupt and ask what the fuck they're talking about. However, I chose against it and continued eating my pasta in silence.

"Just like you had time to think about Jason's deal before not going through with it?" Luther shot back, taking me by surprise. How the hell did he know about that deal and Nathaniel's decision? As curious as I was about this revelation, I was more curious about Nathaniel's answer.

"That does not concern you," he simply stated, finally tossing the useless fork aside and picking up a new one just to abuse it like he did the previous one.

Luther slammed his fist against the table, rattling the dishes in the process, causing me to jump at the sudden noise. "I've tried being nice and complying with your wishes, but I've had enough," he growled, finally showing his true colors.

Nathaniel remained unfazed at his father's outburst, looking at him through dark, murderous eyes. If looks could kill, Luther would have dropped dead the moment he stepped foot through the front door this morning.

"So you're here because of Jason," Nathaniel noted calmly, pushing his plate full of food away from him to rest his elbows on the table.

Luther sunk back into his seat and adjusted the cuffs on his sleeves before answering. "Jason reached out to me weeks ago pertaining to the deal we discussed. He informed me that you were no longer going through with it, but I assured him all you needed was time to think things through and come back to your senses but being here now is clearly proving that I was very sadly mistaken."