I think it's pretty natural to feel bitter about any new person in a parent's life, especially after a long marriage and especially if there is a divorce rather than a death. My friends whose parents found new "friends" after the loss of their marriage one way or another had a hard time with it. Treating this person gracefully will be more a reflection on you as a person than your father, and hopefully send that message to your customers. If it's a small town, there will be talk. There is always talk. Your close friends, whom you feel can be discreet, would be good sounding boards/support. Otherwise, I wholeheartedly agree with Llamo. To stick to facts, some phrases may help: "I'm sorry, but I'd prefer not to talk about that right now" or "You know, even I don't know all the details at this point" and/or "Well, you might ask (dad) about that, because it's really his business rather than mine" etc.
As for dad, not getting much more information it's hard to say what's going through his mind. He may just be wildly reacting to the whole thing and not really thinking about how this might be making you feel, or your son feel. It's sometimes difficult to see other points of view when you are in a lot of pain yourself, which may be where he is. If he has a history of being inconsiderate, this may be right in character, however. If the latter is true, you'll have to decide how much you're willing to put up with or go out of your way for.
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