The thought tore through him. He needed just a bit more time — then he would listen to his dad. Then he would do what he should have done the moment he’d met her in his office all those months ago.
Even then, he’d known she was all wrong for him. His emotions had clouded his normally cool head. He’d chased her, something he never did. He’d won — but at what cost? The price may have just been too high for both of them.
“I just don’t know, Dad.”
“Go somewhere and think. You are surrounded every day by people whose only desire is to please you. If you give yourself some time alone, you can sort all of this out. You can come to grips with yourself and what’s best for you — and for her. I think you’ll be surprised by the answers you’ll find.”
Rafe rose and walked over to his dad, slinging his arm around his shoulders and giving him a warm hug.
“Thank you, Father. I’m sorry I’ve shut you out. I’m sorry I’ve disappointed you. I think time alone is just what I need.”
With that, Rafe left the room and called his pilot as he climbed in the car. Telling no one of his destination, he left the country. It was past time he figured out what he wanted.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Ari inhaled deeply, reveling in the evocative scents of her mother’s flower shop. She’d been coming here since before she was able to form lasting memories.
Her mom had told her about the brightly painted basinet that had sat in the corner until it was replaced by a playpen, and then eventually a school desk. In that corner she’d learned how to make beautiful bouquets for weddings and create corsages for girls at their first prom.
“Hi, Mom,” she called out when she spotted her mother at her beloved workstation.
“I wasn’t expecting you in here today,” Sandra replied as she wiped her hands, then quickly stepped around the counter and rushed over to embrace her daughter.
“I came to help and spend quality time with my mom.”
“Well, you certainly picked a good day. I have a small wedding I’m preparing flowers for. I have to drop them off in the morning, so it was going to be a long night for me. But with two sets of hands we might get out of here in time to grab a bite to eat.”
“I’m a bit rusty, but I’m sure you can refresh my memory in record time.”
“It’s just like riding a bike. It will all come back to you — besides, we’re working with roses and it’s hard to mess up a bouquet with such a beautiful flower in it. Come on and I’ll put you to work while you catch me up on what’s been keeping you so preoccupied these days.”
The stress from the last few months evaporated as she stood by her mother’s side and started bunching flowers together and tying ribbon around the stems. Turning nature into art was very soothing — therapeutic even — and soon Ari relaxed.
“Have you registered for classes yet?”
“Not yet, Mom, but I’m thinking about going back next term — I promise,” Ari answered with a wince. Without her mother’s pushing her so hard, she might have given up on going back. Nerves and Rafe’s insanely demanding schedule kept sidetracking her.
“I will go with you just to make sure. I want to see my baby girl receive that diploma.”
“OK. I promise I’ll do it. How about we make it a date and go in next Friday?” Ari asked with a laugh. If Rafe thought Ari was pushy, he obviously hadn’t spent much time with her mother. Not that Ari wanted him to — she was too deeply involved with his him and his family, and adding her mom to the equation would make parting with him so much more painful.
“Now that we settled that, how is work going?”
“It’s fine. I enjoy the Palazzo building. It’s beautiful inside and out. The only real negative is that I hardly ever see Amber, Shelly and Miley from my old job anymore. Rafe has a crazy traveling schedule; we leave on a moment’s notice. And then sometimes we’re at the office until midnight. It’s a little exhausting,” Ari admitted. She didn’t add that his demands in the bedroom were the most exhausting of all — very satisfying, but exhausting nevertheless.
“Ari, you have to make time for your friends. When a man starts to dictate too much of what you do and demand all your time, that’s your cue to back away. I like Rafe, honestly I do, but I worry that he’s taking too much from you. I’d have no problem with stepping in and letting him know he needs to back off,” Sandra threatened.
“That means the world to me, Mom, but I can take care of it. He’s not a bad guy; he just… makes the wrong decisions sometimes. However, he treats me well. When he tries some of his demanding crap, I don’t allow it. I promise you that if I ever feel as if I’m being taken advantage of, I’ll walk away from him so fast, his head will spin.”
Sandra looked at her for a long moment and Ari began to squirm. She didn’t know how her mother did it, but the woman just seemed to know things. She knew how Ari was feeling sometimes before even Ari knew. It was creepy and comforting all at the same time.
“I won’t lie to you and tell you I think everything is perfectly OK, but I will respect your decision and take comfort in the fact that I raised you to be a strong woman. I hope I’ve taught you enough that you’ll never accept less than what you deserve.”
Ari felt tears fill her eyes. She was so grateful that her mother had pulled through the accident and the cancer. Never had she been more afraid than when she thought she wouldn’t see her mom again. How could she lose the one woman who would always be her life preserver?
“Although I do make mistakes, and I will mess up, I was raised by a remarkable woman and I won’t ever forget the values that you taught me. Rafe does get to be too much at times, but when he does, I hear your voice in my head telling me not to stay down when I get in over my head. I promise you that I will be OK.”
“I think you will, darling. I see so much strength in you — more than I’ve ever seen before. You had to do a lot of growing up over the past year, but it’s only made you stronger. You need to be very proud of that. A lot of women would have just sunk to the ground and felt sorry for themselves, but you’ve risen above and chosen to make do with the circumstances handed to you. I don’t know when it happened, but you’ve gone from a little girl into a woman. Hmm. I don’t think I like this,” she teased with a sniffle.
“Thank you, Mom. I needed to hear that.”