Ice and Fire novel Chapter 869

"Stop being so flippant!" Soren's voice started to intensify. He knew that his son was only playing with him, but he couldn't help raising his voice sometimes when he started to feel like losing in the argument. He was the father after all, and his son must be bound to obey him. "What are you up to lately? Why are you wasting so much time and money? You have already maxed out three of my credit cards." Soren continued, disappointed at his son's immaturity when it came to finances. He couldn't understand what Mike was doing with all the money he spent over the last weeks.

"Come on, Dad! Don't act as if I'm not your only son," Mike countered his father. Sitting on the couch next to the window with an overlooking view of the city, Mike wasn't paying so much attention to his father's homily about handling money. He grew up with money as his bed– figuratively. Being the son of one of the country's richest men, Mike didn't spend a single second thinking where their family's money came from. What Mike asked, Mike could get– this was the motto he simply lived by since he was a young boy. That was why he was still puzzled when his father chose to waste time lecturing him about spending money. "I thought all your hard work was for me?" Mike continued to tease his father about it. Being the only son, he was also the sole heir of their family's growing businesses. Mike was not the happy-go-lucky rich heir though. On the contrary, Mike was an absolutely genius in terms of business. His present attitude towards money was just to piss off his father, but when it's time for him to succeed his father, Mike could make their business grow larger. "Except for the money you need to feed your people, who else do you spend your money for aside from your only son?" Mike sarcastically asked.

"That's enough discussion about money for today!" Soren surrendered. He knew he wouldn't win an argument with his son. Aside from being eloquent, Mike had all the right to splurge this money being the only heir. Also, Soren loved his son more than anything in this world. He would always support Mike's interests and Soren never intervened in any of his son's personal matters. He was just upset that his son was nowhere to be found when he had some more pressing matters to discuss with him. "You know very well that money is not the reason I'm upset with you," Soren continued. He helped himself with a glass of champagne sitting near the couch. He lit a cigarette, puffed once, and relaxed his shoulders against the couch. More than business, Soren only confided with his son for any other matters involving their elite social group and those that could affect their business. Soren had this high respect and confidence in Mike that he wouldn't decide on anything without consulting his son.

Seeing his father this serious, Mike tried to ease his father's anger. He said politely, "Come on, Dad! It was just for a few days. Things got really boring here when Lawrence left," Mike tried to appear depressed to make his father believe. He relaxed himself into the couch and glanced over to see the view from the window. His eyes were still kind of sad and his expression was gloomy. "You know that he's been like a brother to me and I'm not used to him being away. That's why I left and traveled abroad. Besides, I tried to look for a girlfriend and bring her home here."

Hearing about his future daughter-in-law lightened Soren's mood. He had always hoped that his son would decide to wed soon so he could see his grandchildren. "So where is my daughter-in-law now?" Soren asked with an eyebrow raised. Though he liked the idea of his son bringing home a girl, he was suspecting that Mike was lying just to get away.

'What the heck?' Mike thought to himself. He was caught off guard by his father's reaction. Mike knew that his father always wanted to wed him off, but he didn't expect that he would take it seriously. 'Think, Mike! And think fast!' Mike told himself. "Well, I didn't find the woman I was looking for. The girls I met were ugly and they were just after our family's name and money. So, I decided to come back alone rather than bringing a wife that you wouldn't approve of," Mike told his father yet another lie. His sweat was starting to show up but he had to remain calm and composed to look believable. He wished he hadn't lied about getting a girlfriend- that was the most stupid thing he had thought of as an excuse.

Soren had seen through his son's lies. He was Mike's father after all. But he decided not to dig in further because Soren just wanted to see his son who was away for a long time. "Did you realize how long you've been away?" Soren asked his son. "A month. You've been gone for a month without notice. I don't blame you for squandering. But you could have at least told me where you would go. I was worried sick of your whereabouts," Soren continued and took the last sip from his glass of champagne. He was indeed worried about his son every time Mike would wander off somewhere without telling him. Who could blame poor Soren? Having one heir to all his businesses, he always wanted to keep tabs of what Mike was up to and made sure he was safe and sound. "Last month, I agreed to do my friend a favor and told him that you would help him with this matter. I looked everywhere in the city, but you were nowhere to be found. I left you several voice messages, but I didn't get a single reply!" Soren scolded Mike. "I didn't know what to tell my friend when I asked him to call off the favor for now. I had to put my pride down that time and I almost lost a business partner," Soren continued to scold Mike. He was getting angry again, not because he'd almost lost a business partner, but at the thought that his son had little respect for him and went away without saying a thing.