“You need to talk to him.” Warren kicked off his riding boots across Will’s office. “You’ve been miserable all weekend, Billy. The way you sulked through mine and Dad’s Father’s Day dinner was embarrassing.”
Will glared at Warren over his computer monitor. “Warren, I’m busy,” snapped Will. “I don’t have time to talk about Connor.”
Warren suppressed an exasperated eyeroll. He loved his baby brother, but he knew Will could hide behind the pretense of being hurt and shocked to avoid dealing with issues which bothered him. “Billy, stop it. You love Warren. I haven’t seen you this happy in years.”
“I’m not happy with him now.”
“So?”
“He slept with India!”
“Years ago! Everyone has a past. If you expect him to be pure without a hint of a past, you’re delusional.” Warren plopped down on the sofa near the windows in Will’s office. “When you lived in New York and Amsterdam, I know you weren’t celibate. I doubt Connor holds it against you.”
“That’s different,” insisted Will.
“How?!”
“I didn’t sleep with Connor’s sister!”
“Billy, grow up. You can’t allow India to rule your life. We all know she’s obsessed with Connor. That’s old news. If they had an affair or whatever years ago, it’s none of your business.”
Will bit his bottom lip. “It is my business…”
“Billy. Come on.” Warren shook his head with annoyed love. “Let it go. Don’t throw away your relationship with Connor because of India. She’s not going anywhere. If you two can’t ignore her, then you don’t deserve each other.”
“When I was in Paris, Mother seemed to believe that the only reason India came back to Kingsport was to cause trouble with me and Connor.” Will eyed Warren carefully. “Do you think she’s right?”
Warren nodded in agreement. “It’s classic India.”
“Our parents should have had her committed when they had the chance,” Will muttered under his breath. “She’s always looking for ways to ruin my life.”
“Then stop letting her ruin your life, Billy. Right now, you’re choosing to be India’s victim. Grow a pair and fight her head on. Or, better yet, ignore her. The less power you give her, the more she’ll fade away,” reasoned Warren. “When is Connor getting back from Maine?”
“Today,” sighed Will. “But I don’t know, Warren…”
“You need to see him. Forgive him. Move on. Why don’t you make dinner for him and apologize?”
“I haven’t done anything wrong!” exclaimed Will.
“Billy, I love you, but you’re acting like Dad right now. It’s time you admitted that you overreacted and move on. Be happy with Connor. Forget about India. If you can’t do that, then you don’t deserve to be happy.”
“Why has the board approved a stock buyback?” Sheila Davenport handed her son, Dylan, a copy of an internal email that she had procured through an ally at Davenport Technology.
Dylan put on his reading glasses as he skimmed the email. “Mom, this is a matter for the board of Davenport. It has nothing to do with me.”
Sheila let out an exasperated sigh. Without Dylan in control of Davenport Technology, she felt shutout from the real decision-making process of the company. While Sheila enjoyed the dividends that came from Davenport Technology’s position as a publicly traded company, she did not enjoy having little to no say like she did when it was controlled by Larry. “Dylan,” began Sheila, “the stock price is too high. Meredith should have received board approval when the stock was trading around thirty dollars a share.” She pulled up the stock symbol of Davenport Technology’s current price. “See,” she thrust the phone into Dylan’s face. “The stock is at eighty-two dollars a share right now. This is madness!”
“Mom,” said Dylan, softly, “this isn’t my problem anymore.”
“This is about protecting the family’s legacy…”
Dylan let out a long, irritated sigh. His plan for today was to go to the gym, have lunch with Lisa’s husband, Jackson, and make dinner for a woman he’d been seeing for the last month. However, his mother’s unexpected visit to his six-bedroom, eight-bathroom, ten-room mansion in one of the few gated communities in Kingsport, had waylaid his plans. “I don’t want to hear about the family legacy,” snapped Dylan. “You only talk to me when you want to complain about how Meredith McCarthy is ruining the company, or when the stock price isn’t where you want it, or how if they didn’t ask your opinion about what type of paper on which to print the annual report! I can’t remember the last time you asked me about my personal life. Quite frankly, I’m sick of it.”
Sheila sat in her son’s Drawing Room with marked silence. She knew her eldest child could be volatile, but he’d never deigned to be so abrupt with her. “Had you not quit as the CEO of Davenport, none of this would be an issue. You abandoned the company.”
“I’ve given most of my life to the company. I’m forty-nine years old. I want more from life. I want to enjoy myself. Travel. Have a second act.”
Sheila shook her head. “Go and find yourself. Travel the world. Have your second act, Dylan. But when you’re doing all of those wonderful things, remember that it’s the company stock sitting in your trust fund which allows you to live a carefree, self-indulgent life. You were supposed to live up to your father’s legacy, not runaway because the job was too hard. I’ve never been more ashamed of you than the day you announced your resignation. Just pitiful.” Sheila stood up, collected her alligator purse, and glared at Dylan with marked contempt. “I’m calling a family meeting to discuss the company. We may not own the company outright anymore, but through our trusts, we do control thirty percent of the company. What we say goes. I want Davenport Technology to last another hundred years. You may have abandoned the company, but I most certainly have not.”
Despite his mother’s harsh words, Dylan refused to waver. “You are entitled to your opinion. Just one thing: If you do call this family meeting, you’ll have to invite Eli.”
Sheila turned to Dylan with fire in his eyes. “He normally gives you his proxy.”
“I did that to keep the peace. Eli understood. I’m not doing it anymore, Mom. If you want to wage this war with Meredith and the board, then Eli will have to be a part of that conversation.”
“I can’t believe you’d do that to me,” hissed Sheila. “I do not want to see Elijah!”
“Tough. I’ve made up my mind. I’m done being your whipping boy…your unpaid therapist. Call a meeting. Invite Eli back into our lives. Or let Meredith run the company. The choice is yours. Either way, I will not do your bidding anymore.” Dylan walked to the door of the Drawing Room and opened it without looking at Sheila. “Have a nice day, Mother.”
In our next installment, Dylan confides in Lisa…
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