“No, it’s my mom…I have to go see her,” I said.
“Of course. Although you didn’t need to go to all that trouble. You could have just politely asked me to leave,” she said, standing up.
“Heidi, this isn’t an excuse. I really do have to go see my mom,” I said while I watched her turning her back on me. She was getting dressed herself and I felt like a jerk. This was not how the rest of the night was supposed to go. How was I supposed to explain to her that I had other plans for us for the night? That I wanted her to stay with me.
“Heidi…” I said her name as she zipped up her dress and turned to face me again.
“It’s fine, don’t worry about it, Rhett. I’ll see you around,” she said and walked over to pick up her purse from the chair she was sitting on earlier.
“I know how this looks, but someone…someone broke into my mother’s house and I need to go be there for her,” I said, and put on my suit jacket.
“You don’t need to explain it to me. Thank you for the lovely dinner, Rhett. It was a pleasure as always,” she said cuttingly and turned from me to walk back to the French windows that led back into the house.
“Wait, Heidi!” I called out to her and thankfully she stopped in her tracks.
“Will you come with me? I’m sure my mom could do with the extra support,” I said to her, pushing my hands deep into the pockets of my pants. What was I doing? This was a big mistake. Taking Heidi to meet my mom? My mother hadn’t met a single girl I was sleeping with, ever in my life.
Heidi was eyeing me curiously, like she still expected a surprise to be sprung on her.
“Are you serious?” she asked, turning to look at me more clearly. I shrugged my shoulders and checked if I had my car keys and wallet in my pocket.
“Let’s go,” I said and walked towards her, the whole time aware of the little voice in my head that told me I was going to regret this very soon.
Chapter Twenty-three
Heidi
We were silent in the car on the way to Rhett’s mother’s house. He hadn’t said a word and was driving with full concentration, with his jaws clenched and his eyes on the road. Either he was seriously worried for his mother’s wellbeing, or he already regretted inviting me to go along with him.
I stared out of the window, catching a faint reflection of myself. When I saw how messy my hair looked I ran a hand through the curls, trying to settle them back down. My lipstick had all but faded and my silk dress looked slightly crumpled. Not exactly the first impression I wanted to leave on Rhett’s mother.
He stopped outside a medium sized, quaint looking house where a woman was standing at the gate, clutching a scarf around her shoulders. Rhett had barely parked before he jumped out of the car and rushed towards his mother. Gingerly, I got out of the car and followed him. They were hugging and I kept my distance.
When Rhett pulled away, his mother looked past him and to me and I caught the look of surprise in her eyes. She was much shorter than her son, older and stockier with her white hair tied in a small ponytail, but she had the same strikingly blue eyes.
“And who is this lovely, young lady?” she said and stepped towards me. I gulped and exchanged looks with Rhett.
“This is Heidi, mom,” Rhett told her, and she came even closer and then to my surprise, gave me a tight hug.
“I’m so sorry to hear about the break-in Mrs. Larkin,” I said to her when she pulled away from me. Even though she had been worried about her house only seconds ago, now that she had seen me, her demeanor had changed. She was smiling and friendly…and no doubt curious. Something told me that Rhett didn’t bring many girls to introduce to his mom.
“Call me Martha, please honey,” she said and clutching my hands she led me towards the entrance of her adorable house.
Rhett was leading the way, anxious to see the damage done.
“You know, I was just about to make myself some hot chocolate. Would you like some too?” Martha asked, turning to look at me again.
“Hot chocolate would be nice,” I said politely, just to indulge her, because I was definitely too full to eat or drink anything else.
We entered her house together, and found Rhett standing in the middle of the hallway, peering into the different rooms.
“Everything looks in place, mom. What made you think that the house had been broken into?” Rhett asked, and I noticed the worry on his face.
“The door was open, son,” Martha said, finally letting go of my hand to walk into the adjoining kitchen. I followed her in and so did Rhett.
“Marshmallows in your hot chocolate?” she asked me, as she poured milk into a saucepan to boil.
“Yes, please,” I said and stood by her, watching her and then looking at Rhett again. He was running his hand through his hair. His eyes looked wild and he was looking around the kitchen as though still looking for clues of a break-in.
“Mom, this isn’t time for hot chocolate. You need to tell me exactly what you found when you came back to the house,” Rhett said in a firm voice, but Martha didn’t bother to look at her son.
“More chocolate or more milk?” she asked me instead, and smiling at her, I replied.
“More chocolate,” which made her only smile wider.
“That’s what I wanted to hear,” she said and stirred in drinking cocoa into the warming milk.
“Mom!” Rhett scolded her, and finally Martha turned her head, only sideways a little, without looking at her son directly.
“This is the first time you’ve brought a young lady over to meet me, son. Will you just give us a few minutes to introduce ourselves?” she said, in as firm a voice as Rhett had used on her. I nearly smiled when I saw how quickly Rhett fell into silence. I had never thought that someone could put him in his place or silence him.
“Now, tell me about yourself, Heidi dear,” Martha said to me, and poured the steaming hot chocolate into three separate big mugs.
“I run a café in the town center,” I told her timidly and accepted a mug from her.
“Mom, will you please tell me what happened? It doesn’t look like the house has been broken into at all!” Rhett was trying to keep his temper in check, I could see that.
“The front door was unlocked,” Martha said and finally turned to her son.
“Couldn’t you have forgotten to lock it when you went out for dinner?” Rhett asked. He hadn’t touched his drink yet while I was gulping mine down.
“No, because I also found a letter waiting for me on my dresser when I went into the bedroom to change. Someone had been in my bedroom,” Martha said, as calmly as before. I stopped drinking when I heard that and I saw Rhett’s face change. He looked furious, furious enough to break something.
“A letter?” he asked, through gritted teeth.
“Yes, son, addressed to you. I haven’t opened it yet,” Martha added and fixed an icy cold stare on her son.
“Where is it?” Rhett asked.
“Where I found it,” Martha said and pulled out a chair for herself at the kitchen table before sitting down. Then she patted the chair next to her and looked at me.
“Come sit down with me, dear,” she said and I did as she asked me while Rhett bolted out of the room.
“Do you know what’s going on?” I asked Martha and she took in a deep breath, allowing her shoulders to relax slowly.
“I’m hoping it’s some kind of silly prank on my son. You know how boys are,” she said and patted my knee kindly. But I had recognized the look on Rhett’s face. It was the same look he had on his face that day at the café when he was about to beat up the older man. This was not a prank, whatever it was.
Chapter Twenty-four
Rhett
In my mother’s bedroom, I stared at the letter in my hand.
This is my last warning. I know where your mother lives. I know where that new hottie of yours lives too. Unless you want me to leave a note like this in her apartment, you will give me the money. And keep it coming.
> He had to have seen Heidi and me together. At the café? At the harbor? I should have been paying attention. I should have had an eye out for Massimo. I was seething with rage. He had broken into my mother’s house, entered her bedroom! I was ready to explode.
My stupidity might put Heidi in danger, I thought. I knew the things Massimo was capable of. Now I had given him a reason to harm Heidi. Just to get at me.
The sound of mom’s laughter from the kitchen snapped me out of my thoughts and I rushed out to them. When I entered the room, I found mom and Heidi sitting beside each other, mom was holding her hand.
Heidi turned to look at me, and the smile dropped from her face. She could sense that something was gravely wrong.
“Who is it, son? One of your prankster friends?” mom asked and I crunched up the letter in my hand.
“We have to leave, now,” I said, looking at Heidi and she stood up from the chair with a jerk.
“I just need to use the toilet,” Heidi said and looked at mom inquiringly.
“Sure, dear. Just go down the hall and it’s the second door on the right,” mom told her, and passing me a nervous look, Heidi left the room.
I was alone with mom, trying to control my rage.
“It’s not a prank, is it, son?” mom asked me and I snapped my head over to look at her. The well-meaning, friendly look had disappeared from mom’s face and was replaced with a look of worry. I didn’t reply, because I didn’t want to lie to her.
“She is lovely,” she added and I looked away from her.
“I know she is,” I told her in a quiet voice. Mom had her eyes fixed on me. If there was anyone in the world who knew me inside out, it was her.
“Is that why you’re trying to push her away?” mom asked and I clenched my jaw.
“I can’t discuss this with you now, mom,” I told her and she stood up from her chair and walked towards me.
“I’m not going to ask you what that note says. I don’t even want to know, but now that you have a sweet darling girl like her in your life, there should be no more notes being delivered to our houses like this,” she said in a low voice that was loud enough for my ears alone.
“Heidi is just a friend, mom,” I said, trying to ignore the fact that she had caught on, or at least had some idea what that note could be about. She was just not going to state it openly. Just like she always had an idea what I was up to with Massimo’s gang. She never believed in telling me how to live my life, other than reminding me that I had to stay out of danger at all times.
“Whatever way you want to look at it, Rhett. I’m just telling you that your past and your present actions are not worth breaking that poor girl’s heart over,” she said and I looked at her. She seemed more concerned about Heidi than me.
“I’m not going to do that,” I told her and she nodded her head just as Heidi came back into the kitchen.
“Thank you for the hot chocolate, Martha, and it was lovely meeting you,” Heidi said, walking over to mom. They exchanged hugs before she came back to my side.
“Did you say you wanted to leave?” she asked me and without a word, I turned around and left the room. She and mom were both following me outside.
Mom called out to us to drive safe, and it was only when she had shut and locked the door behind us, did I stop in my tracks. Heidi stopped behind me and I whipped around to face her.
“Do you want me to drop you at your apartment, or will you drive back home with your car?” I asked her sternly. Heidi’s brows knotted, and her expression looked confused. She had every right to be.
“Do you want me to go back home?” she asked in a soft voice.
“Yes,” I said sternly and turning from her, I walked back to the car.
Once inside, I said nothing to her. I started the car in silence, she still hadn’t given me her response. Heidi was sitting quietly by my side.
“What was in that note, Rhett? What changed?” she asked, and I kept my eyes on the road.
“It was a stupid prank,” I said to her, through clenched jaws.
We both knew I was lying.
“I’ll pick up the car from your house,” she said, in a voice that she had purposely hardened. I could sense the catch at the back of her throat. She was trying to suppress a cry. I wanted to reach out to her and drag her into my arms. I wanted to tell her the truth. I wanted to beg for an apology and explain to her why I was pushing her away. This was all for her sake, and for mine of course, because I never wanted Heidi to find out about the things I had done.
But it was all lost now. Heidi would never trust me again.
Chapter Twenty-five
Heidi
I was awake but I hadn’t gotten out of bed yet because I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. Not only had the previous night been a long one, but I felt miserable. I lay tucked in under the covers, having pulled them up to my ears, and was blinking at the sun pouring in through the curtains in my room. I had no interest in the day.
At nine, I reached for my cellphone and called Lucia.
“Hey, I’m not feeling well. Do you think you and Sophia can cover for me today? I’ll pay for the extra hours of course,” I told her when she answered the phone. I couldn’t think about the café. Sophia would just have to make do with a small batch of bakes for the day. It would just take a bit longer with the lack of my help, but it was much better for me to stay at home rather than turn up at the café feeling like this.
I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t believe that I had allowed myself to be manipulated by Rhett. By another man. This is exactly what he wanted, to sleep with me again with no strings attached and he had managed to pull it off smoothly.
What could a note from someone say that would change his mood that drastically? If he really wanted to spend time with me, a mysterious note wouldn’t make that much of a difference, would it? What could have possibly changed so quickly?
I tossed around in the bed and tried to make myself fall asleep again, just so that I wouldn’t think of Rhett anymore. But that was far from possible. I could still feel his touch on my skin, the force of his kisses, and how amazing he had made me feel. When I was with him, when Rhett had his arms encircled around me, I felt safe and happy…like I belonged there. But every time we had sex, Rhett changed his mind about me immediately after.
Why did he even bother to take me to his mother’s house in the first place? I couldn’t understand it. Nothing that Rhett did made sense to me and it was all just messing with my head.
After Jake and I broke up, I had made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t allow another man to control my life. I would spend the rest of my life alone if I had to, but I wouldn’t allow someone to have control over my emotions or my happiness. And yet, I had fallen hard for Rhett. I should have followed my instincts to stay away from that man.
From the first moment we met, I knew that Rhett was dangerous. That he was going to be a threat to my sanity. Besides, my first impression of him was that of him being a guy who knew how women reacted to him. He believed that he could have anyone he wanted, and I had foolishly affirmed that belief. I had barely even put up a fight. I was like a puppet in his hands, and he was probably now sitting in his lavish home laughing at me.
Was it all made up? Was it all a plan from the beginning? Was he the kind of guy who got a thrill from the chase but after he got what he wanted, the other person’s feelings didn’t matter to him? The only thing that I couldn’t fit into all that was why he took me to his mother’s house. Why he introduced Martha to me. Was he throwing me a bone? Did he feel sorry for me?
I pressed my eyes close and tried not to think about him. I’d barely slept all night, and the hours were just passing by and I was going to end up wasting a day.
I was wasting a full day over one man! I was beginning to despise myself now. Where had all my courage and strength gone? Had I learnt nothing after Jake and how he had treated me? How could I have been that foolish?!
As I gritted my teeth, I fe
lt the trickle of tears rolling down my cheeks. I wasn’t supposed to be crying over a guy. That was completely against my rules. I hadn’t even cried when Jake and I broke up! Why was I crying over Rhett? A guy I barely even knew…someone who clearly didn’t care about me enough to even offer me an explanation. What was I doing to myself?
I was tempted to call him, in one moment of desperation. I didn’t have his personal phone number, but I thought of calling his office. His receptionist seemed friendly enough, maybe she would connect me. I had to do something! If nothing else, at least I could give him a piece of my mind! Scream at him. Tell him that I hated him. Something!
I was able to stop myself from dialing the number just in time. I had to remind myself to breathe. To think calmly. To watch my every step. Even though these feelings of desperation for a stranger were unbearable, I knew that in time they would fade away. I would forget about him. I had managed to get over Rhett once already, or at least come close to getting over him. So, I could do it again.
I should never have fallen for his lies. For his excuses. Why did he want to trick me anyway? Didn’t he already have a whole queue of women waiting for him? I wouldn’t have been surprised if he already had plans of sleeping with someone else tonight.
I sat up in bed and threw the covers off me. The tears were still streaming down my cheeks. They were not about to dry any time soon, but the least I could do was pretend I was fine. I was going to go to the café and carry on as usual.
Chapter Twenty-six
Rhett
“I have something to tell you both,” I said.
I had invited Hunter and Owen to my office, and was now pacing around the room with my hands behind my back. After what had happened the previous night, I knew I needed to tell them the truth because chances were that the truth was going to come out eventually. It could be the next day or it could be the next year or even fifteen years later. At some point, I wasn’t going to be able to keep my end of the bargain and Massimo was going to find a way to hurt me, by telling my friends or my family. The least I could do was allow Hunter and Owen to hear it from me first.
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