Chapter 8 - THE MAN WITHOUT THE COMPANY
Nathan did not call lawyers.
He did not call shareholders.
He did not call the board.
He sat beside Sophie.
Emma expected that to change by morning.
It did not.
Nathan learned how to sanitize his hands properly before touching her.
He learned the difference between every monitor tone.
He learned how to hold a bottle without tiring her.
He learned that premature babies could make powerful men feel completely useless.
On the third night, Emma found him asleep in a plastic chair beside the bassinet.
His neck was bent at an impossible angle.
His expensive watch was missing.
His tie was gone.
His daughter’s tiny pink hat rested on his chest.
Emma stood in the doorway for a long time.
Nathan woke.
“You okay?”
“You look terrible.”
He smiled.
“Mom says that a lot lately.”
Emma walked inside.
“What’s happening with the company?”
“They appointed an interim CEO.”
“Daniel?”
“Yes.”
“Are you fighting it?”
“Not right now.”
Emma stared at him.
“Because of us?”
Nathan shook his head.
“Because I finally understand something.”
“What?”
“For ten years, I told myself everything would collapse if I stepped away.”
He looked around the nursery.
“It didn’t.”
Emma sat down.
“Your company still matters.”
“It does.”
“So does who I became because of it.”
Nathan looked at Sophie.
“I liked being indispensable.”
Emma said nothing.
Nathan continued.
“If everybody needed me, I never had to ask whether the people I loved actually wanted me.”
Emma’s throat tightened.
That was different.
That sounded like something he had discovered without trying to impress her.
A nurse entered.
“Sophie can probably go home in another few days if she keeps feeding well.”
Nathan smiled immediately.
Emma did too.
Then the nurse asked, “Do we have the home address for discharge planning?”
Silence.
Nathan looked at Emma.
She answered first.
“The apartment above Harbor Light Books.”
Nathan nodded.
The nurse typed it.
“And father?”
Emma tensed.
Nathan answered calmly.
“I’m staying elsewhere.”
The nurse glanced between them.
“Okay.”
No embarrassment.
No argument.
No performance.
After she left, Emma looked at Nathan.
“You didn’t try to change her mind.”
“Whose?”
“Mine.”
Nathan leaned back.
“I spent eight years doing that.”
Emma frowned.
“What do you mean?”
“Whenever you were unhappy, I explained why you shouldn’t be.”
“Whenever you felt neglected, I explained why work mattered.”
“Whenever you needed something, I explained why tomorrow was more reasonable.”
He looked at her.
“I don’t want to explain you out of your own feelings anymore.”
Emma looked away before he could see how much that affected her.
Then a hospital administrator entered carrying an envelope.
“Mr. Whitmore?”
Nathan stood.
“You’ve been served.”
Emma’s eyes widened.
Nathan opened the envelope.
His jaw tightened.
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Olivia Grant had filed a wrongful termination lawsuit.
And in the filing, she demanded the release of every private communication between herself and Nathan Whitmore.
