AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Did Dad like being put to work on his day off?” Sofia could picture his gruff grumbling about pruning being Enzo’s job.
Jo didn’t look up from her mocha where she flicked the lid with her thumb. “He didn’t come. He was too busy.”
Sofia rocked back in her chair. Damn. But if Dad wasn’t on set and he wasn’t home with Mom, where was he spending his days?
Her mother picked up her phone and started tapping again. “In fact, I’m heading out for a tour of the Winchester Mystery House in a little bit, so I’m afraid I can’t stay long.”
“Oh. That’s okay. I just missed catching up with you.” Sofia couldn’t help but resent whoever was on the other side of that text for taking her mother’s attention. She wasn’t a toddler who needed mommy all the time, but she sure felt like throwing a tantrum. She needed her mother’s support and enthusiasm, not a casual brush-off in favor of a haunted house. Everything about this felt wrong.
“You’re so sweet. How are things outside work?”
Finally, a bit of interest in her life. But how to answer that after her earlier silence? Adrian had been a large part of her life outside work. How could she explain any of that to her mother who clearly thought she was playing out of her league?
“Judging by your silence, I’m going to assume that you’re still working your fingers to the bone for that damn place.” Jo leaned forward and gripped Sofia’s hands tightly. “Listen. Don’t do what I did. Nothing—no company, no job, no man—nothing is worth sacrificing everything for. I gave that place thirty years of my life. I don’t want to see you trapped in the same pit.”
Sofia tried to hear the message of love behind her mother’s words, but shewantedthirty years at the company, just not behind the manager’s desk. To hear her dream condemned by her own mother sliced at her already wounded heart.
“That’s easy to say when you’re the one who walked away and left me holding the shovel.”
“I never said you had to take over the office work.”
“Who was going to make sure the bills got paid? Who was going to send out invoices and keep the place afloat? Who was going to make sure that our employees still got their paychecks? Dad? Enzo? Frankie? No. I was the only one stepping forward to do those things.” Sofia’s voice quivered with frustration.
“You always do this. You tear people down with all these questions. I don’t answer to you, Sofia. I did what I had to do, and I don’t regret it.”
Sofia’s heart took another hit and tears gathered behind her closed lids. She didn’t tear people down, did she? Was that how people saw her? Sofia gripped her hands together, battling for control. Her mother’s soft hand landing on top of hers nearly broke her. She was barely holding it together. This was not what she’d expected from coffee with her mom.
“No one is making you stay and do those things, Sofia.” Her tone, as soft as her hand, was meant to soothe, but the condescension behind it pushed her into an angry retort.
“I am, Ma. I want my design business to be an integral part of Valenti Brothers. We have the reputation you all worked so hard to build, the opportunity to expand our brand through the show, and I am finally getting to do what I love. I can’t walk away from the business side and let it all fall apart before I have a chance to succeed.”
Jo pulled her hand away and checked her phone again before tucking it inside her purse. Her words were so quiet that Sofia almost missed the pain threading through them.
“I wish it would burn to the ground.”
Sofia sat silent. She knew her mother had wanted Dad to step back, but this… This felt like more than that.
“He will never leave that company unless it is gone. I didn’t want to bring this up, but you should know. I am considering leaving your father.”
“What? Does Dad know about this?” Sofia was in shock. She’d known her parents had fought over the company for years and the show more recently, but she’d always seen their marriage as rock-solid. This news was an earthquake, shaking her foundation.
“I don’t know what your father knows. We haven’t spoken since he announced that ridiculous television show. He knew. He knew I needed him, and he put that company first again.”
Jo drank down the last of her coffee and set the white cup down carefully, while Sofia struggled to make sense of her words. Could her mother really toss aside a lifetime together? If Sofia had been asked yesterday, her answer would have been no. But today, the sadness and pain in her mother’s eyes made the impossible seem plausible. Sofia needed to try and salvage this.
“So he could leave it in a strong position for the rest of us.”
“Don’t be naive. He won’t leave until a backhoe loads his casket into the ground.”
Was that why her dad wouldn’t answer her questions? Because he had no intention of giving the company over to anyone?
Her mother’s attention had shifted from her to a spot over her shoulder, before returning earnestly to her face. “I don’t want to see what happened to me happen to you, too. I love you, Sofia. It’s just not worth it. My ride for the excursion is here. I’ve got to run. Thanks for the coffee. Give my love to Enzo and Frankie.”
Before Sofia had a chance to find her scattered words in the aftermath of the land mines she’d tripped, her mother had kissed her cheek and was gone, climbing into the car of a very attractive silver-haired gentleman who closed the door for her.
* * *
Sofia twistedher hair into a bun for the third time and pinned it ruthlessly. She wanted everything to go perfectly tonight. Graciela had been so kind and welcoming all the nights that she’d stayed over, and she wanted Adrian to feel the same way at her family table. She also knew that her family could be ruthless in their teasing. Hopefully, the fact that they all knew him already would make it easier. But after her weird conversation with her mom the other day, who knew?
