I spoke in a low volume. “I remembered something you told me the last time we came here.”
“Was it that I couldn’t wait to get you to the hotel?”
There was no hotel this time. As soon as we left these offices, Van and I were headed back to Ashland.
My lips curled. “What you said was that when it comes to dollars and cents, no one gives a shit about flowery words. This—today. It’s about dollars and cents.”
“And hopefully learning more about the issue with your grandfather’s will.”
I nodded and took a breath as we entered the office space shared by Janie and Kathy, the latter my mother’s assistant. Janie was the first to get up and come toward us.
“May I give you a congratulations hug?” she asked, looking at me.
“Yes.” Her arms encircled me for only a moment. “Thank you.”
“I’m happy for you, Julia. And for you too,” she said, looking at Van, “Mr. Sherman.”
We both nodded. “My parents?”
Janie took a deep breath. “They’re in your mother’s office.”
“Mom’s? Okay.”
“Follow me.”
Van and I walked a step behind Janie to my mother’s door. The nameplate at the side read:Anastasia Wade McGrath, President. My father’s nameplate had the exact same title. After Janie knocked, she opened the door, and gestured for us to enter.
My parents were both standing near the oblong conference table. Dad was the first one to speak as he came my way. “Little girl.” His smile seemed tense. “I guess now that you’re married, I need to find a new name.”
I went closer and shared a hug. “I’ll always be your little girl. I get that.” I took a step back and looked at them both. “Today, I’m more than that.”
Mom nodded at Van. “Welcome to the family, Donovan.”
His hand went again to my back. “You have an astounding daughter. I’m honored she’s my wife.”
Mom took a breath, her hands clasped behind her back and her breasts pushing against her sheath dress with the matching jacket. She looked as professional as she always did. I’d dressed appropriately.
“You wanted to talk to us,” I said, “in person.”
Dad gestured toward the table. “Yes. Please, let’s all have a seat. We’re glad you could be here too, Donovan. This needs to be said.”
“Coffee?”
We both declined. The few cups I’d had already were percolating in my stomach.
After we were all seated, Mom began. “I apologize if some of this is old information, Julia, but I’d like to set the stage for the actions we took and why we took them.” She nodded toward Donovan. “And perhaps so you too will have a clearer understanding.”
Regardless of my self–pep-talks or Van’s support, my mother’s preamble had me imagining the worst-case scenarios. “Begin.”
Mom sat tall, perched on the edge of her seat. “My father was a very deliberate man. He wasn’t always correct, but no matter what decision he made, he stood by it.”
I turned to Van.
That was what he’d told me yesterday.
My attention went back to my mother.
“The decision to bring investors into Wade, to privately sell stock, was not an easy one. The financial climate back then was turbulent. The boom of the previous decade created an unstable environment. The bubble had to burst. You see many of the top pharmaceutical players were not stand-alone companies, but instead pharmaceutical units of multinational companies. It was the marriage between the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. They had money and power from other avenues.” She shook her head. “Pharmaceuticals were expanding. Mergers. Acquisitions. My father didn’t want to be a part of that.”