“That’s not necessary. Please be seated,” he replied, stapling the pages together. Kiyah took her seat, and he slid the hefty stack towards me. I didn’t budge. “First, I’d like to congratulate the two of you on what I hope would be pure wedded bliss from here on out. Second, you two should seek marriage counseling as soon as possible. I don’t know what the hell happened that led to your separation, but I can imagine there is some lingering resentment on both sides. If you don’t take care of it now, that resentment will fester, and eventually, you’ll call it quits again. I can give you a recommendation for an amazing therapist. Lastly, Grant, don’t see this as a punishment but as me holding you accountable as a man. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Proceed.”
I snatched the document up and started flipping through the pages. What I found horrified me, and my frown deepened with each wire transfer. My eyes bulged when I reached the grand total.
“Kiyah… you… you gotta be fucking kidding me. What the hell?” My anger quickly switched to Dad. “And what the hell is wrong with you giving her all this money? You should’ve cut her ass off a long time ago!”
Dad shrugged. “How can you say no to a face like that?” he said mockingly.
I turned to Kiyah in my seat. “No, seriously. I need you to explain this shit. How the hell do you blow through two million dollars in seven years?! Two million one hundred and fifty thousand dollars to be exact?”
She shrugged. “To be fair, you probably would’ve spent more than that on me if we were together physically, so technically, I saved you money.”
“Don’t try to flip this in your favor, Ki,” I growled, snatching my checkbook out of my pocket.
“I’m not flipping it in my favor. I’m just offering a different perspective. You have the money, right?”
“Yes, I have the damn money,” I seethed.
“I thought I’d ask because—”
“Please stop talking. I need to concentrate on writing this ridiculous check to our father. I can’t believe you two,” I muttered. “And what does Mom have to say about this?”
“Your mother has never been concerned with the finances. She swipes her card and knows it’s there.”
“As she should,” Kiyah cosigned.
“Does Mom spend $300k a year?”
He snorted. “Easily, and Simone is to blame. She’s always abducting your mother and forcing her to go on these horrid girls’ trips and shopping excursions.” It was my turn to snort. “Simone is such a bad influence,” he said teasingly. “Kiyah, the printer.” I ripped the perforated check from the booklet and slid it to my father. “Thank you. It was a pleasure doing business with you.”
“Likewise,” I said with a petulant huff as he accepted the forms from Kiyah. He signed at the bottom with a flourish and slid the papers to me. I scanned them briefly and couldn’t believe what I was reading.
“W-what is this?”
“It’s a transfer of deed for your grandparents’ estate. You just purchased it for $2,150,000.”
Kiyah
What did he just say?
“I’m sorry, but can you repeat that?” Grant asked.
“You purchased your grandparents’ estate for aheavilydiscounted price. We’ll consider it a late wedding gift.”
I snatched the documents from Grant’s hands and read them myself. Sure enough, it was a buyer’s agreement.
“Why are you giving it to us?” I asked cautiously, wondering how our siblings would respond. Truthfully, I didn’t expect a big uproar, but I could see how they’d feel some type of way, especially since Grant inherited the law firm from Dad.
“Casey is a bachelor, and the estate is too big for him. Daisy and Nori are very attached to the residence that Anthony purchased years ago. Kieran would be too cheap to maintain the property taxes, and between him and Casey, they might turn it into the Playboy Mansion. Grant, you’re the eldest, and the estate should stay with the family. Your grandfather would agree if he were of sound mind.”
Grant remained speechless beside me. I could tell from the look on his face that he was trying to find the words to say, but they were stuck in his throat like a fish bone that refused to budge.
“Why the long faces?” Dad asked. “I thought you two would be ecstatic.”
Tears stung my eyes as I thought about how generous my dad had been over the years. I was transported back to the day my mother and I moved in with the Bakers. I was nervous but excited. I was looking forward to living in the big, fancy house with the enormous trampoline in the backyard and the freezer full of popsicles.