14: He called me

Josh POV

After Bethany told me my son was at the mansion’s pool, I walked over there, leaving her behind.

Mark was swimming calmly in the pool, but when he noticed me approaching, he turned his back, feigning disinterest. He was already a 21-year-old young adult, but he always acted like a ten-year-old boy upset with his dad.

“It’s a nice afternoon for a swim,” I said as I approached, keeping my hands in my trouser pockets.

“What are you doing here?” He got straight to the point, showing how much he disliked my presence.

“Your mom called me,” I replied, and he let out an audible sigh, keeping the lower half of his body in the crystal-clear water.

“What a drag. She’s probably after more money. What a drag,” his discontent was palpable.

“You know I don’t mind giving her money—or you, for that matter.”

“Enough!” He cut me off, acting immaturely. “We don’t need your money, I’ve made that clear.” He climbed out of the pool and walked to a nearby lounge chair, grabbing a towel to dry his face.

I couldn’t help but notice the clear scratch marks on his back—undoubtedly from a woman’s nails. I knew those marks all too well. I raised an eyebrow and gave a small smile at my son and his love life.

“On the other hand, you still need money to keep up your luxuries,” I stated the facts as they were. My ex-wife loved buying designer clothes and frequenting expensive places with her friends; Paris and Milan were practically her second homes.

Someone had to pay for those luxury trips. My son loved sports cars and was as much of a spender as his mother; it was obvious they still needed my money to get by.

“None of your business, is it?” He kept acting like a child, responding with a tantrum. “I’m a man now; I don’t depend on you anymore. I’ll make my own money and leave my own legacy. I don’t need you anymore. Never really did. So make sure you don’t show up here again because you’re just a stranger here, Josh.” He clicked his tongue and turned to leave.

“Hey!” I called out in a tone so loud that he turned to look at me, questioning. How could this kid treat me like that? I was his father, for God’s sake. Why couldn’t he grow up to be a bit more like me? How long was he going to keep up this stupid grudge? Doesn’t he see it’s time to grow up?

The truth was, this was all such a waste. I worked all these years so that one day my son would be proud of the father he had and stand by my side. He should already be working with me at Carter’s Wine Co.—that company belonged to him too.

It belonged to all the Carters, and even if he changed his damn last name to his mother’s, that damn company still belonged to him too. He still had so much to learn, and I had so much to teach…

For God’s sake, he was my son, so there shouldn’t be this resentment between us. I wanted to tell him all this; I wanted to yell it in his face and make him see the world for what it really was;

I wanted to shake him out from under his mother’s skirt and tell him to start being the adult man he claimed to be. But, lacking the courage to confront him so seriously, I just said, “Put some ointment on those marks on your back.”

He grimaced when he realized I’d noticed and walked off without another word.

After writing a check for a few million dollars to my ex-wife without my son’s knowledge, I returned to the car and asked Günter to take me to my next destination. So far, my Saturday was turning out to be a real mess.

Seeing my ex-wife and son again was, unfortunately, draining. They still held a lot of affection for me, despite the time and everything I’d done for them, but what more could I do? I couldn’t go back and do things differently.

I sighed, massaging my temples. Besides, I was doing my best. Now, it was better to focus on other things—like going to see Cassandra Millans, for example.

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Cassie POV

It was 5 a.m. when Joshua Carter called me.

I rolled over in bed, still groggy, and cursed when I opened my eyes and saw the time on my phone. I was annoyed, wondering who the hell was calling me at 5 a.m. on a Saturday, but I got curious when I saw it was an unknown number.

My mind went straight to Josh; last night, Beckie told me his friends had passed my number to him, so could this be him calling now?

“Hello?” I answered sleepily. “Who’s this?”

“Did I wake you up, huh?” he asked. I nearly jumped out of bed when I heard his voice. It had been two whole weeks since I’d heard that voice, but I remembered him like it was yesterday, and I missed him like it had been a year since we last saw each other.

“Oh, no, I’m already awake…” I sat up in bed, fixing my hair, which was a mess—pointless, since Josh wasn’t here to see my disheveled morning look, but in my defense, it was 5 a.m., and I was head over heels for this guy.

“You’re a bad liar, anyone ever tell you that?” he teased, laughing, which made me laugh too.

“Sorry, but why are you up so early?” I asked, unable to keep a calm conversation with him. I wanted to ask so many things at once and hear his voice over and over.

“I usually wake up early to hit the gym, but it’s not exactly fun. I’m jealous of you for getting to sleep in,” he said. I could clearly hear the sound of something heavy being set down—definitely a gym weight.

“Wow, that’s rough,” I said, hugging my knees. “You haven’t been sleeping well.”

“On the other hand, it makes my days more productive,” he concluded. “I should call you more often; it’s so nice to hear your beautiful voice first thing in the morning. It sounds lazy and sexy. Makes me imagine what it’d be like to wake up next to you,” he said, and I turned bright red, a goofy smile spreading across my lips.

His words were already getting me worked up down there.

“That’s sweet…” I said, flustered, not knowing how to react. “It’s nice talking to you too.”

“It’ll be even better when we meet up. Do you like Los Angeles? It’s got beautiful beaches and cool spots. I was thinking of taking you there this afternoon and bringing you back home safely tomorrow.” I had to cover my mouth to keep from screaming because I was literally freaking out. Josh Carter was inviting me for a weekend trip, just the two of us… My God!

“I’d love that…” I said, trying to stay composed.

“Great, perfect!” He replied with a laugh. “I’ll pick you up at your place at 6 p.m.”

“Sounds good. I’ll be here waiting.”

“Now I’ll let you go back to sleep. They say morning dreams are the most exciting, so dream of me, please,” he teased, making me laugh and practically boil with excitement.

“Alright, see you later.”

“Kisses.” And then he hung up.

I’d definitely get evicted from this building if I kept screaming like this, but I was so happy I jumped on my bed with joy.