Beyond Eighteen

by Gretchen de La O

  “The whole thing hasn’t really sunk in yet. I guess keeping busy helps,” he said, still clinging to Camille.

  I didn’t want to be impatient, or a dick, but my girlfriend was upstairs waiting for me and I needed to see if Dan knew anything about Buck and Dad’s contract. I wanted to get back to Wilson.

  “So, Cam, do you think Mom still needs your help in the kitchen?” I asked, trying to get her to leave so Dan and I could talk.

  Camille flashed me a strained look. “I’m sure she can handle it, Maximum,” she snarled as her eyes pierced mine. She hated it when I called her Cam.

  “There you are! Alright, Dan, what in the hell do you know about Buck taking fifteen percent of our father’s company?” Calvin roared as he busted into the living room. His eyes met Camille’s and I could see he knew he’d fucked up, yet again.

  “What are you talking about, Cal?” Camille asked. The smile Dan planted on her face just seconds before vanished. As she looked around at each of us, daggers could have shot from her eyes and none of us were going to flinch. We just stood silently gawking at one another.

  “Dan, what is Cal talking about? Buck took fifteen percent of Daddy’s company?” Camille asked.

  “Sweetheart, I need to talk to Max and Cal. Can you—”

  “What’s going on?” she demanded.

  Dan clutched Camille by the biceps, making her look him in the eyes. “Sweetheart, let me talk to your brothers alone,” he whispered.

  “Anything you are going to tell them—” she snapped.

  “Camille, right now is not the time! Now please go into the kitchen, help Mom, and keep her from coming in here,” I interrupted. Camille’s eyes filled with tears and her porcelain cheeks burnt crispy red. I hated it when she started crying.

  “He was my father too, Max,” she yelped.

  “I know that. Don’t you think I know that? And right now our mother, who just lost her husband, is in the kitchen alone. I’m asking you to think about her. Go in there, be with her, and let Cal and I talk to Dan,” I steamed. I could feel my gut beginning to boil. I was reaching a point of just needing this situation to be over.

  “Hey, hey, come on now you two.” Calvin pushed between us before he slipped his arm around Camille and convinced her to go to the kitchen.

  “Camille, we really need your help. Be the distraction Mom needs right now. Can you do that for me?” Cal asked.

  Great, now Cal has swooped in to be the hero. It was his fault Camille found out about Buck in the first place. I watched as Cal coddled her and made her feel better about leaving us alone to talk. Dan walked over, leaned into her, and kissed her.

  “I promise to fill you in later,” he whispered.

  The three of us watched as she walked through the dining room and into the kitchen. It seemed like time stood still before Calvin turned to Dan.

  “Alright, obviously you know something about Buck swindling fifteen percent of the company from our father. What can you tell us about it?” Calvin held out a small stack of papers in front of him.

  Dan looked back through the dining room and into the kitchen before taking the papers from Calvin and leading us back to the foyer. He propped his foot on the small wooden bench by the front door and rested the stack of papers on his knee as he glanced through them. I noticed he didn’t take off his shoes. What the hell? I tried to remember if he’d ever taken off his shoes before.

  “Okay, look, the thing is I knew about this. Frank didn’t want me to say anything to anyone. GP wasn’t quite as prepared as we thought, so when the new environmental regulations were enforced, we got hit pretty hard. Pile on bad investments and lower consumer consumption…your dad had no choice.”

  “What do you mean? GP is a multimillion dollar company with advisors and lawyers. How could this happen?”

  “Your dad did everything he could to avoid having to give any percent of the company to anyone outside the family. He figured Tanner and Trait could float the loan using fifteen percent of the company as collateral. Look, Max, your dad wasn’t proud of this. He didn’t like mixing business with personal favors, but Buck was able to help him.”

  “What’s going to happen now that our dad is gone?” Calvin asked.

  “Well, according to the agreement, Buckman Tanner has the contractual rights to absorb the fifteen percent plus an additional one percent of the company upon the death of your father. Buck has all legal right to pursue a limited sixteen percent ownership of GP.”

  I felt a radiant pressure build across my chest and push up through my shoulders and neck. I hated hearing the words pouring from Dan’s mouth. How could he do this to us?

  “So Buck will own more of our father’s company than any of us? How long have you known about this?” I growled through an exhale.

  “About six months. Technically, your mother will own the controlling thirty-nine percent now that she absorbed the remaining fourteen percent left of your father’s shares. But yes, Buck will own sixteen percent. One percent more than any of us.”

  “You’ve known about this and never said anything to us? What the fuck, Dan?” Calvin exploded.

  “I couldn’t say anything, not even to Camille. Do you know how fucking hard it was to be a part of this family and hold in a secret like that? Not even able to tell your sister what your dad had done? Do you know how many times I wanted to tell you?” Dan held the papers out to Calvin. “I could only be here for a couple of days with the family. It was really hard for me. I hang out too long and I could feel myself wanting to tell you.” Dan looked down at the hardwood floor. I could tell he was ashamed, and yet it looked like a huge boulder had been lifted from his shoulders.

  “I’m calling Gary. He has to be able to fix this,” Calvin barked.

  “No. Hang on, Cal. Don’t call Dad’s lawyer yet,” I demanded.

  “Come on, Max. I think we should look at all our options,” Cal answered.

  “Well, considering Gary will be going over your father’s will tomorrow, it might not be a bad idea,” Dan said in a low grumble.

  “Wait, I didn’t know we were going over the will tomorrow. Why hasn’t anyone told us?” Cal spouted.

  “Gary pulled me aside at the service today, said that everything is in order and that he will be going over the will with us tomorrow morning.” Dan’s response was matter of fact.

  I could see Cal was getting bent out of shape. Our father always kept him just close enough to help with the business, but far enough away not to mess anything up. So when Dan came into the picture and married Camille, he ended up being our father’s prodigy boy; the one he groomed to take over Goldstein Petroleum. No matter how much Cal tried to show our father he was worthy, something would always come along and fuck it up, proving Calvin’s inability to handle working with our father.

  “Great, then I’m calling Gary,” Cal added before he left into the family room.

  Dan looked over at me. I could tell he had something else he needed to say. I don’t know if I want to know what other shoe is going to drop. His eyes narrowed even tighter and I watched his Adam’s apple bounce up and down his throat as he swallowed. I think it was the beads of sweat that formed across his upper lip that forewarned me he had more to say.

  “There is something you should know. I didn’t want to say anything in front of Cal. I know how he feels about me and my position in GP.”

  “Yeah, well, Cal knows you’re doing what’s right by our family,” I said as I mentally braced myself for what he was about to tell me. God, please don’t tell me the company is bankrupt.

  “About two weeks ago, your father had me sit in on a meeting with his lawyer, Gary Browne, about his future wishes for GP. I don’t know if he knew he was sick or what, but he made sure that if something happened to him and he couldn’t continue in the capacity of CEO, that I would become COO of Goldstein Petroleum.”

  “Well congratulations, Dan. Chief Officer of Operations. No need to be nervous about that. You deserve it. You’v
e worked your ass off for him.”

  “Thanks, Max, but that’s not all. Your father named you as CEO.”

  I felt my knees buckle and my ass slam down on the wooden bench. “I don’t want it. Why would he do that? I’m not the guy! Goddamn him! He couldn’t leave me alone, could he? I won’t do it.”

  “Max, he stipulated that if you don’t take the CEO position at Goldstein Petroleum it is to be broken up and sold off piece by piece.” Dan’s voice went into a low murmur of words that swirled around my head.

  “It’s obvious he never really respected my choice of becoming a teacher. Now he’s going to force me into the same life that killed him.”

  I couldn’t focus on anything and the deep yellow walls crawled in on me. My toes and fingers became extremely cold while every other part of my body began to sweat. My stomach lurched and my heart pounded so hard in my chest I thought it was going to burst through my sternum. Is the room really spinning? What the fuck? What was Dad thinking? He fucking knew I couldn’t say no; I won’t hurt my family. Son of a bitch…I can’t even argue with him. And Wilson? What am I going to do?

  “Max, you okay?” Dan asked as he reached out and held my shoulder. His fingers, hot and stifling against my skin, pressed heavy into my collarbone.

  “No, umm, I’m going upstairs. I need some time to think about this.”

  I stood up and it felt like the world bore down on me. I didn’t want this. I wanted to be with Wilson in California. I wanted to have the life my father never got. I didn’t want to be stuffed in a suit, stuck in a high-rise, telling people what to do. I need Wilson. I had to get to her. I stood at the bottom of the stairs looking up at the twenty-something steps I had to climb to get to the one thing that made me happy. I started on the first step and stretched to skip the second. I got to the top faster than ever before, almost unconsciously aware of trying to leave behind the words Dan had so carelessly forced on me. My biggest fear just hijacked my life and Wilson had no idea our lives were about to change forever.

  Chapter Eleven

  ~ Wilson ~

  My phone vibrated in my pocket. Thank God, Joanie must be calling me back. But why was my heart thundering in my chest? Okay, so I was nervous to tell her about Nick. The third ring was even louder as I pulled the phone out of my pocket. Come on, Wilson, you can handle this.

  There was a noisy thud in the hall before the doorknob turned fast and the door flew open. Max stood in the doorway, his black hair looking severe against his ghostly skin. His eyes were narrow, the corners of his mouth swaying south as he forced breath through his nostrils. His usually strong, sturdy shoulders hunched with each exhale. I stood watching him, not knowing if I should run to him or stay where I was. My phone continued to ring as I dropped it on the bed.

  “Max? What happened? What’s going on?” I asked rapidly as I took a couple of steps toward him. He looked at me, his eyes filled with the burden of somewhere else. He held his arms out to me and I hurried to him. It was at that moment I knew he needed me. I pushed my body into his. I had no idea what had happened, but it didn’t matter; he needed to hold me, and that was enough.

  His rigid body leaned heavy against mine and his breathing became lengthened and determined.

  “Wilson, I need to— I need to talk to you,” he struggled to whisper.

  My heart pounded violently in my chest and my stomach twisted into knots as his words passed through my hair and cascaded into my ear.

  “Okay,” I said as I pulled away from him to look in his eyes. Damn, he looked so tortured. His expression struck the chords that connected us; he looked like he wanted to be anywhere else but there. “Tell me, Max,” I murmured.

  “Sit down, please,” Max said as he grabbed me by my biceps and eased me back. I lowered myself to sit on the edge of the bed. My eyes tracked down the front of him—from his broken expression down his white button-up dress shirt. I watched his shirt shift with each breath. He kneeled down and ran his fingers through his hair. I watched his expression change and his jaw tighten as he swallowed. His eyes vacillated between mine, back and forth as he spoke. He slipped his hand against the side of my face and I leaned into his touch.

  “Wilson, I love you—more than anything,” Max whispered before he stood up and walked toward the door. My face went cold and my heart dropped into my stomach.

  “Damn it,” he continued, “Why is he doing this to me? It’s not what I want. He knew I never wanted this.” He thrust his hands into his hair and bent forward. I could see tension through his shoulders and back.

  “Who? Max, what are you talking about? Listen, I’m starting to get a little freaked out.” I got up and slid my hands around his waist as I pushed my lips against his spine, between his shoulder blades.

  “My dad, Wilson.” Max spun around and caught my shoulders. “He’s made it so I can’t ever get away. I’ll be stuck—just like he was.”

  “What are you talking about?” I asked as I held his face between my hands and made him look me in the eyes.

  “Dan told me I’m going to be named the CEO of Goldstein Petroleum tomorrow—when we go over my father’s will.” Max’s words exited from his mouth like vomit; like if he said the words fast enough the poison they exuded wouldn’t penetrate his system and cause him to become the president of his dead father’s company.

  “Whoa, slow down, Max. What does that mean?”

  Max started shaking his head no. My hands dropped to my lap.

  “Nothing. It means nothing, because I’m gonna find a way to get out of it. I’m not CEO material. Let Dan have it. Hell, let Cal take it. I don’t want that life,” Max spewed as he stood up and started pacing back and forth.

  “Hey, Max, come on, babe. Just because your father wants you to be CEO doesn’t mean you have to do it.” My words were sharp with the intention piercing through his impenetrable fear of being any part of his father’s company.

  Max stopped pacing, his eyes filled with the same pain I saw the day his father died. “No, he took care of that option too. If I don’t become CEO, GP will be sold off in pieces. Dad’s last twist of the knife to make sure I’d become the man he has always wanted me to be,” Max complained. “He knew I’d never do that to my mom,” he said under his breath.

  “Well, then, you’ll do what you need to do,” I said as I slipped into his arms and pressed the side of my face against his chest as I listened to his heart break. It wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t what he wanted, but sometimes choices aren’t always the most comfortable thing in the world.

  “What are you saying, Wilson? That I should forget about my life in California? Just leave you at Wesley, and come back here—alone? That isn’t an option for me.”

  I felt his words tumble and mix with his breath as he spoke. His arms tightened around my back as I slid my face up, meeting his stare. He wasn’t going to accept my idea. And to be truthful, I was glad.

  Pushing my lips to his, I swung my arm up around the back of his neck. I just wanted to kiss him forever. He opened his mouth, desperate to convince me I was the only thing that mattered in his life. His tongue mingled with mine. I wanted him to taste as sweet as butterscotch, but instead it was a twist of bitter sadness with a splash of salty regrets.

  “Max, I’m not going anywhere. I’ll graduate in May. That’s only five months. What’s five months?”

  “Longer than I want to be away from you, Wilson.”

  “Well, I don’t want to be away from you either, but what’s our other option?”

  “Let’s run away. Come on…we’ll sneak through the window. Nobody will know the difference.” Max pulled me up onto his chest and shuffled toward the bed. I was glad one of us broke the tension that was filling the room, because it was getting way too thick. He stopped carrying me, loosened his grip, and pushed me back against the bed. As my body hit the down comforter the cool air that swept between my skin and his bed was refreshing. I lay there for a moment, watching him stand above me, before I felt his leg push betw
een my knees. My body warmed as he pressed me into the soft mattress and the space where the cold that occupied my skin became the heat I craved. I noticed his dress pants weren’t as loose as they’d been before. Pushing my hands behind my head I pulled my hair from under my shoulders. The cool kiss of the comforter against the back of my neck sent chills down my spine. He noticed.

  “Was that for me?” he asked in a low growl before unbuttoning his dress shirt and tossing it on the bed. His aroma danced through the air as it landed next to me. The space, saved only for him, tingled.

  “Don’t you know by now you are always causing me to shiver?” I whispered as I snatched his shirt and held it to my nose for a heavenly inhalation.

  “You like to smell my clothes?” he asked as he stretched his white t-shirt over his head. I loved to watch his muscles flex and soften. It was a sight I never got tired of witnessing.

  I nodded as my eyes gave way to my smile. “I’ve missed smelling you,” I teased softly.

  “Me too,” he whispered pushing against the bed. He wedged his knee between my legs again as he slunk on top of me then slid his hands up the outside of my thighs, across my hips, and to the button on my pants. He exhaled slowly, growling something about how much he wanted me. I closed my eyes and let the chill of his fingers own me as he slipped his hands between the waist of my jeans and my skin. The vibration of the zipper on my jeans caused me to catch my breath. I grabbed his hands and stopped him from pulling my pants off.

  “Max, as much as I want this—and God knows, I really want this—your family is downstairs making dinner, and you know as well as I that your mom isn’t going to give us a pass on skipping out.”

  “I know, but come on…just a little…maybe a touch? How about I just press against you, like this?” he asked as he pushed his hips against mine. “I need a little something to get me through dinner. Damn, I want you so bad,” Max growled against my skin as he continued to kiss my neck and up behind my ear.