Gio asked Anthony, like his problem mattered more, “And that’s okay?”
“She married a cousin, apparently.” Anthony swirled his second glass.
Lorenzo asked, “What?”
Anthony's lips pursed like the rest of them should know this already, and he thought less of them for not knowing. “Father’s brother, Jake, had four sons. Jennifer married Chris.”
Bart stopped thinking about himself long enough to recall that their father and grandfather had mentioned that Jake had been the black sheep who had never worked with them.
At least his mind for one second wasn’t replaying how Rebecca had been so close to tears and he’d held the door for her to go. How could he have done that?
Kiwi asked, “So Jennifer married another Morgan?”
“Yes,” Anthony said.
And once again silence filled the air. Bart’s neck began to feel less tight. He’d done the right thing in letting Rebecca leave. He protected her in many ways from the poison in this family. He’d set her up when he shouldn’t have and allowed his father’s influence in his mind convince him to fear her. She didn’t belong in his ugly world.
“So Bart," Kiwi asked, "what are you going to do about Rebecca?”
Her American accent hit him hard. He wasn’t sure he’d do anything. Though tonight, without Rebecca, might be cold. “What can I do?”
Kiwi wiped her fingers on a cocktail napkin and selected a strawberry from the fruit platter. “Tell her you love her and want to be with her.”
Love. The word fluttered in his heart like a caged butterfly. Rebecca had made him happy, but… “I don’t want to lie.”
Gio gestured for Bart's wine glass and topped if off. “Maybe it is you who's like our father, and not Anthony.”
“I’m not the bad one today?” Anthony scooted closer. “Continue, Gio. This is good. I’m listening.”
Kiwi put her hand on Gio's knee as if in support. Gio said, “Look, Anthony made a mistake with Jennifer. But it’s clear he cares about her.”
Anthony had a gleam in his brown eyes reminiscent of when he'd just won the last rugby game he’d played in college. “Glad you see that.”
Gio covered his wife’s hand with a squeeze and then asked Bart, “And you… what caused the break up with Rebecca?”
He'd let her go because they didn’t match, not long term. She wasn’t made for his life and she’d kept her mechanic past from him because she knew it. Judging by how he'd reacted and set her up, Rebecca was clearly smarter than him in even that. His father’s voice spoke in his head, reminding him he needed to protect himself from gold diggers. People had their places. He took a deep breath and said, “Her father’s a mechanic.”
Kiwi held a finger in the air as she said, “Wait, wait, wait one second. This is America, Bart.”
Gio’s wife was not afraid to share her opinion, and right now her demeanor let him know he'd offended her. Rebecca didn’t need to haunt his dreams because here she was and everyone seemed to side with her. His collar tightened again as he asked, “And?”
Kiwi looked up at Gio but then turned her attention back toward him when she said, “I agree with your sister, who just stormed out.”
“Kiwi?” Gio patted her hand he held.
Kiwi pointed toward the door. “Gio, that girl was in love with Bart, and he acted like a spoiled brat. Her father was or is a mechanic really has no merit when it comes to who you love.”
Bells clanged with every word Kiwi said, making his head pound. She was right. Love mattered more than class or station. And Rebecca had treated him like he was some prince.
No one had ever made him feel so wanted or appreciated.
Gio kept his voice low as he told his wife, “It’s not our place...”
Kiwi nodded, squeezed his brother's hand, and said, “Look, I might only be a sister-in-law, but in America we don’t judge people based on what their parents did. My mother works for a living too.”
Anthony jumped in as if to defend Bart, “But your mother is an accountant, as was your father.”
She looked toward Anthony as she said, “So what?” Kiwi's compassionate gaze turned his way as she asked Bart, “How did she make you feel?”
Like he was the only person that mattered to her. Rebecca had lifted his heart, but he simply said, “She… she was pleasant to have around.”
Kiwi’s lips pursed and she motioned with her head toward his brother while she said, “I feel bad for her if that’s all you have to say. I’d have hated giving my heart to a man who only felt sorry for me because of who my parents were.”
Bart pushed to the edge of his seat and fisted one hand into the other. Rebecca had left him. There wasn’t anything he could do. “Expressing our feelings wasn’t something any of us were good at, it's how it is.”
“Gio, you’re my love and an absolute sweetheart, but there is no defending such callousness--exactly the same trait you claim to hate about your father.” Kiwi rose and Gio stood with her, as did Anthony.
The three of them quickly said goodbye, the visit ending on a sour note. All that echoed in his head was how he'd hurt Rebecca, and that he was his father.
Mitch sitting in his opulent armchair with a cigar in his hand resounded in Bart’s mind but he saw himself instead.
He imagined Rebecca at her home crying for him, and how cruel he'd been, pressed down on his shoulders like a rock.
"Can I get you anything, Lorenzo?" He retook his seat and picked up his glass of wine as he met Lorenzo’s gaze.
"I'm fine." His brother shifted on the couch across from him, adjusting that ring of his he always wore. Instead of drinking, he lowered his glass. “So, tonight’s get-together could have gone better. Anthony is heading to California later. Gio, his wife, and our newly found sister all left. Want to talk about it?”
If Lorenzo wanted to give him older-brother advice, he’d listen. He’d have to. Back when their mother had been alone after their father left for good, Lorenzo had directed her to be happy and live again. She'd found contentment with Benedetto.
Bart sipped his wine and swallowed, his heart a pebble in his chest. “Lorenzo, have you ever been in love?”
His brother's face darkened, and he sat back, consumed in shadows. He put his wine down and avoided his eye gaze as he said, “I don’t count. Gio is the good example to follow.”
Except their brother Gio was the sensitive one. It had been one of the reasons their father had consistently bullied him. Bart wasn’t like that at all. “Why?”
“Because I’m more like Anthony.” Lorenzo clasped his hands as he leaned forward. “I wish I wasn’t, but Dad’s blood runs through my veins.”
“You’re nothing alike,” Bart instantly said. Their father demanded or raged. Lorenzo always had a pleasant demeanor where everyone, including Bart, looked toward him for advice.
Lorenzo lifted the lid off the fruit tray and took out an apple slice. “But we are.”
“How?” For once thoughts of Rebecca didn’t consume his vision. He would help his brother if he could.
Lorenzo sighed like he didn’t want to talk about this, but then said, “I let a woman leave me.”
“So?”
Many women had left him through the years though right now it seemed Rebecca’s memory would replay forever.
"I don’t know her real name, or how to find her." Bart focused on his brother who then said, “Whoever she was, she haunts my thoughts. I wish I'd had the courage to tell her before she disappeared on me how I felt. I would have married her.”
Bart nodded--so, Lorenzo had loved once. How could he locate this woman for him? He knew where Rebecca lived, what her hair smelled like, what her mouth kissed like. He knew she liked flowers and valued the simple joys in life.
He glanced at his brother and said, “If you can give me more details I will search for her.”
Lorenzo gave him a small smile. “Don’t. She’s gone anyhow. But if you don’t love Rebecca then what just happened with our fa
mily will pass.”
“Good.” Bart hoped his brother was right. He hated being at odds with his siblings.
With a long sigh, Lorenzo stood and scooped up some of the grapes in his hand. “But if you do love her, fix your mistake and be a better man than our father ever was.”
His skin had that sensation of snakes again. He needed to run it off or find a way to not think about Rebecca or how he was like his father right now. Lorenzo offered to shake his hand so Bart jumped up to say goodbye, his mind making plans. “Tomorrow I’m thinking of ordering the jet and just returning to Rome.”
“Then you've decided.” Lorenzo patted his shoulder as he passed him to the door, which he opened. “Good night--and good luck.”
Bart closed the door and ambled around his empty house.
Rebecca wasn’t here anymore. He was alone and for once in his life, he wasn’t happy. Rebecca honestly deserved better than him because if he was anything like his father then he didn’t deserve love. He deserved to be deserted and left, forever.
Chapter 17
Bart slipped out of the Morgan town car with the sun high in the sky and stared at the huge terminal in front of him.
He hadn’t been to a commercial airport in years. This seemed strange. This morning, the idea of telling his own pilots that he wanted to return to Rome had felt like a failure.
His vocal chords wouldn’t open and his neck was pinched.
The adrenaline in his veins hadn’t let him sleep.
He needed to leave Miami, but if he took his private plane, he’d be sitting with the pilot and staring at his phone or tablet with no destination in mind. Rome didn’t feel right, despite what he'd told Lorenzo last night. Here, Bart saw the boards, the flights, and the possible destinations and hoped this would inspire a choice.
Once he'd chosen something his driver would take him to his pilot and he'd be off.
As a boy the hustle at the airport had intrigued him. Today he hoped it drowned out how lonely he’d been last night, without Rebecca at his side.
He stared at the monitor and a vision from the past went from fuzzy memory to vivid color. The vision wore royal blue and her perfect face was framed with dark hair--Nadia, holding a paper cup of coffee.
Americans loved drinking out of these and Rebecca wasn’t alone. Bart nodded his hello. “Nadia, I thought you left yesterday.”
She shrugged but smiled. “I intended to, but my flight was cancelled.”
In Rome she’d surprised him when she'd said her next stop was Miami and they'd flirted as he suggested they go together. This time he put his hands in his pockets and wished she was Rebecca, who had somehow tracked him down. “Did you get the necklace?”
Her eyebrow lifted as she tossed her empty cup into a trashcan behind them. “My secretary told me I had a package from you. I’m excited to get home now--thank you.”
That was the beginning of the end of his life. Rebecca hadn’t deserved being treated like a criminal. His skin buzzed. He’d been wrong. If a man had crossed him like that, Bart would ensure he was out of business. No wonder Rebecca had left him. “Yes, the hotel packed your necklace in with our stuff.”
She studied him with wide eyes. “Sounds good.”
“Why was the necklace important to you?”
“My grandmother was the only person that watched out for me as a girl. She taught me to be tough as nails and not care about anyone’s egos when I go after what I want. And that’s all I have left of her now, other than memories.”
“I see.”
“So why are you flying commercial?”
Because I was afraid of being in love. The thought hit him like a freight train. How had he missed that? He stumbled for words as this wasn't something he'd ever share with Nadia. “I didn’t want my family to know.”
Both brows lifted. “That doesn’t make much sense.”
He sounded like an idiot. Had he always been afraid of love? He kept himself around women like Nadia, beautiful, but too busy to ever want anything from him, and where he’d never have to worry he’d hurt anyone. His face was hot as he said, “I was bored and thought I'd look at the billboards and randomly choose somewhere to go.”
She shook her head but laughed low. “Now that sounds more like you. Rich boy problems.”
Rebecca must think him the worst snob. No one ever made him question his own world before. He gave her a sheepish grin. “Nadia, can I ask you a question?”
She pointed to a nearby coffee shop with a line. “If you’re buying the coffee, I’ll answer.”
Rebecca and his sister had acted like coffee in paper cups was normal. Nadia clearly agreed so it was just him that lived in his bubble that nobody had bothered to point out to him, except Rebecca. “This way.”
They stood in the back of the line and Nadia said, “Perfect. What’s the question?”
Bart was aware of the people around them and waited. Nadia ordered a mocha latte something and he just ordered the same. It was time to try what Americans thought was normal.
Maybe he’d get a clue on what to do next. Once they both had their coffees, he guided them away from the crowd for privacy. “When we were together for that week, did I ever make you promises that broke your heart?”
She shook her head while she said, “No. I knew what I was getting.”
“What was that?” His body stilled. How did Nadia see him? He’d never asked anyone before, but if he wanted to apologize to Rebecca he needed to see his character flaw--was there more than one?
Nadia sipped her mocha and sized him up, holding her cup between her hands. “Someone not looking for a serious relationship but wanting to have a good time. And since I was in Milan often enough, spending my non-working hours with you that one week was fun. We went to nice parties, we ate at great restaurants and we saw a few things I’d have never put on my own schedule.”
And she fit into the profile of women he usually spent time with. Rebecca had been the exception. He saw that now. He took a small, tentative drink of the mocha, which was definitely sweeter than what he was used to. “But you weren’t looking for serious?”
She flinched but then pursed her lips. “I thought you were getting serious with Rebecca.”
“I thought so too.” Rebecca had been sweet and acted like he was some sort of treasure.
The truth was she’d been the real find. He’d been stupid.
“So now you’re asking me about us? Not that there was really an ‘us.’” A speaker announced something about a flight to New York. Nadia said, “And that’s my cue. Goodbye, Bart. I hope you find what you’re looking for. And for what it’s worth, Rebecca was clearly into you in a way I’ve never been with any guy. One day I hope I’ll actually be in love like that.”
He said goodbye the way he was raised and kissed both of her cheeks. “I’m sure you will, Nadia. You deserve to fall in love and be happy.”
She smiled at him brightly and turned to leave. “I have to go. And congrats.”
He called behind her as she took a few steps, “Congrats? For what?”
She winked. “For finding the one you love. That doesn’t happen for most of us. Most of us just settle with the one we are with rather than be alone.”
Boom. There it was.
Love wasn’t something to fear and he owed Rebecca more than an apology. He’d been wrong.
He hadn’t expected love or wanted it, and when it had come he’d let her go instead of bravely being honest.
He didn’t want to turn into Lorenzo, bitterly accepting. He would do anything to get Rebecca back. She made his life better. He called his driver and left the terminal, jumping in when it pulled up to get him. “Take me to Rebecca’s home.”
The driver nodded and drove him away from the fast pace of the airport and into a neighborhood with trees and houses that were closer together and much smaller than his mansion.
Rebecca had been so proud of being a homeowner, and he’d been nothing but insulting.
Eve
ryone seemed to keep their grass cut, and the houses neat. The moment he made it in front of her door, he hopped out.
The neighbors stopped working in their lawns and stared at him again. He waved this time and banged on Rebecca's door.
At first nobody answered. He thought no one was home. But then he heard voices. He called through the door, “Rebecca, please answer.”
A lock turned, and his heart sped up as he peered into his sister's brown eyes. “She’s not here, Bart.”
Aurelia had been right but for now he needed to apologize to Rebecca, not her. His pulse zipped as he asked, “Where is she?”
She shook her head at him.
No. His chest almost caved in. He needed to find Rebecca, so he reached for Aurelia’s hand and said, “I need to talk to her. You’re my sister. Please help me.”
She didn’t pull her hand back and turned her head into the house. “Destiny. I told you I’d need you in case this happened.”
Another woman, with midnight black hair, studied him from the doorway. “Ask him if he loves her and wants to apologize?”
Aurelia nodded at Destiny and then turned her attention back to him. “Do you love Rebecca? If you’re not here to apologize then you can leave.”
Love. He wasn’t himself without her now. He had to get her back. Bart met Aurelia's gaze. “I’m here to apologize.”
Her lips curved, and she asked, “You are?”
“I am.” He squeezed her hand. Aurelia needed to trust him--she understood better than anyone that their father had never apologized.
Her friend nudged Aurelia and said, “Then let him go.”
She didn’t blink but she took a deep breath before sharing, “She went to her father’s garage.”
“Thanks, Aurelia.” He released her hand. Hopefully he’d see his sister soon, but right now he needed to find Rebecca and apologize.
His sister waved at him as he made it to his car. The driver opened the back door and he said, “James’ Garage.”
They drove another few minutes and the car lightly bounced which meant the road was horribly bumpy, but he didn't complain.
The limo had barely parked when Bart got out at the garage.
Secret Admirer (The House of Morgan Book 13) Page 14