Page 69 of Miss Trust

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chance

Self-reflection preoccupied me during the flight to Barcelona. I’d barely slept last night, too wound up after Tory’s reaction. Perhaps if she’d stayed angry, I could have sat here and justified my actions. But the way she’d equated me with the other men in her life who’d taken without permission had cut deep.

I’d always been the one with power, therefore it had never occurred to me to think about the perspective of those who didn’t have it. Tory, on the other hand, had spent all of her life without power. As a child with a selfish, addict mother, as a teenager at the mercy of a predator, and now as a mother with a sick child. All of these circumstances had taken away her control. Then I’d gone and dealt with her ex without giving her any say. Taking away her power once again.

Sure, I could argue getting the termination of parental rights signed had been the absolutely right thing to do. Protecting Penelope was important. But I hadn’t let the one person who wanted to protect her more than anyone else in this world have a say in how to do it. Instead, I’d run roughshod over Tory and then presented it to her like a cat bringing a dead bird. I’d expected what? Her gratitude?

Had I acted to make her feel better or to make myself feel better? The question plagued me during the next week while I otherwise threw myself into work.

Although I was scheduled to spend an additional week in Berlin, I cut it to forty-eight hours, opting instead to return home early.

I went straight to the house, expecting Tory and Penelope to be there on a Sunday afternoon. But instead, Mona was alone, baking in the kitchen.

“You’re home early. How was your trip?” she asked.

“Good. Where are the girls?”

“They went to a farmer’s market with a friend.”

“What friend?”

She laughed at my sharp, almost jealous tone. “Their friend Daisy. She is selling some soaps at the market this weekend.”

I immediately calmed down. “How is Penny doing after the latest treatment?” I’d texted Mona to ensure everything went as planned with the hospital stay, but I had no idea how she’d been feeling.

“Good. Chemo takes a lot out of her, but she’s such a trooper. So is Tory. She may come off as strong, but remember always she’s a mother who is going through any parent’s worst nightmare. I’ve never seen a mom more devoted.”

“Me neither.” My mother was way too selfish to ever put her children first.

“I thought I’d come over here and bake some bread for them to come home to. Cinnamon raisin is Penny’s favorite.”

“I messed up with Tory by interfering in something that wasn’t my business,” I blurted out.

Mona gave me a kind smile, without judgment despite my deserving it. “You’ll fix it. Might begin with a drive over to Ojai.”

It took an hour to make the drive. Although I’d called California home for most of my adult years, I’d never been to the city of Ojai. And I most certainly had never been there for a farmer’s market. But here I was on a Sunday afternoon, walking in a suit and tie amongst families who looked as if they were on their way to a picnic.

I strolled along beside the vendor tents, where they were selling everything from fruit to crafts to hot food. All the while, I was trying to spot a familiar blonde. But nothing could’ve prepared me for the vision of Victoria Larson standing behind a soap-selling stand, smiling at a customer. She was stunning, wearing a long, lacy, white sundress, her long hair down, and with some sort of gold jewelry—or was it paint?—around her arms and wrists. She was every bit the beach goddess, and I was completely mesmerized. I didn’t think twice about taking out my phone and snapping a picture.

Jesus, who was I? Some lovesick teenager creeping on my crush and taking stalker pictures of her?

I’d never given her cause to smile the way she was now. Suddenly I had a mission. One which started with one hell of an apology.