Chapter 4

“I’m not sure you’re going to believe it…” Derrick hesitated. “I don’t believe it, and I have to.” He turned and looked at his friend. “He says that he and my father have both been working on merging their businesses together.”

“Haven’t they already got some of their businesses merged together?” Garrett frowned slightly.

“Yes, but he means all of them. Everything that his family and my family have, into one big corporation.” He looked pointedly at Garrett.

“Why would he do that? He’s a billionaire, you’re a billionaire… what difference does it make if the businesses are together or separate?” Garrett tilted his head questioningly.

Derrick pursed his lips a moment, regretting having to speak the words aloud. “He wants to build a secure dynasty for his daughter when she gets married.”

There was a moment of confused silence as Garrett thought over what he had just heard. “Is Felicia getting married?”

“Not until I ask her, and then yes, she will be getting married.” He sighed again, quieter the second time, looking back down into his beer. No amount of alcohol was going to erase what was coming at him like a freight train.

Garrett blinked several times. “You’re… you’re going to ask Felicia to marry you?”

“Yup.” It was succinct to say the least.

With a doubtful shake of his head, Garrett eyed his friend closely. “Do you want to marry her? I mean, I know you guys have a little history from years ago, but… I tho

ught she was dating some guy from Europe, and you have been on the strictly single but playing list for a long time now. Did I miss something?”

“No, you didn’t miss anything. That’s about the size of where it is right now, but her father wants us to merge the companies, merge the estates, merge his daughter with me…” He rubbed his hands over his face and then dropped them flatly on the surface of the bar. “I guess he says that my father wanted that too, although I can’t remember my father ever really talking about it with me. Maybe he just didn’t get around to it before…” he trailed off and shook his head.

Garrett frowned thoughtfully. “How do you know your dad wanted you to marry Felicia? What if Franklin’s just pulling your leg to get the businesses?”

Derrick looked back over at him. “No, Franklin’s not pulling a fast one. He’s not like that. He has the best interests of his businesses and his daughter at heart, and there’s no doubt in my mind about that. Also, he had my mother’s wedding ring. I guess dad gave it to him to give to me when the time was right. They both expected me to give it to Felicia and marry her. Consolidate everything under the sun. It’s just that dad never said anything about merging business or family, and now I’m looking at doing it alone. It’s… unexpected.”

A dark look came over Garrett’s face. “Well, I think if you do have any doubts about it that you should do whatever it is that you want to do. Do what feels right to you. You shouldn’t have to change your whole life and future just because of some agreement your dad and his best friend had. They aren’t living your life; you should be making your own decisions for yourself about what you want to do. Don’t let them dictate to you.”

Derrick let out another sigh, then finished his drink and set the empty glass back on the bar. The bartender brought him a fresh one. “It’s not really that easy, Gar… it’s just not. I feel like I owe my father everything, and I don’t want to disappoint him. I don’t want to let him down and mess up everything he spent his whole life building, and for that matter, everything that my grandfather and his grandfather spent building. I’m the most recent inheritor of a long line of Madison’s, and I have a duty and an obligation to continue that. I’m a legacy. I need to leave a legacy. I don’t have the luxury and freedom to run off and do whatever I want to. More than all of that, I just can’t let my dad down.”

Garrett was quiet for a long minute. “Do you love Felicia?”

Derrick shrugged and answered nonchalantly. “I don’t hate her. We’ve been sort of friends most of our lives. Close a few times when we were younger. We know each other pretty well, I guess.”

He took another long drink and looked back at Garrett. “I could do a lot worse for a wife, I’ll say that. She’s smart, she’s hot, and she’s wealthy. She’s always had kind of a crush on me. I just… don’t love her romantically. I guess that’s not a deal breaker for me, though. I’m not really sure that real love exists, at least for me. I know my mom and dad had it, and my grandparents, but… not me. She has a thing for me, but I don’t know if I could ever really love a woman.”

“Sounds like a match made in heaven.” Garrett rolled his eyes.

Derrick scoffed a laugh almost inaudibly. “So, I guess I need to ask you to be my best man.”

Garrett looked away from him and then turned back to face him. “Yeah, of course, whatever… but, are you really sure? You really want to tie yourself to Felicia for the rest of your life when you aren’t in love with her?”

“Why not? I don’t have anything else going on. She’d be a good wife. She likes me. It will please her father, and I guess mine, if there’s a heaven and he’s actually there. It wouldn’t be terrible, would it? I could think of it as another business arrangement.” Derrick finished his beer.

“You old romantic you…” Garrett shook his head and waved at the bartender for another drink.