AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He nodded toward Joanna, who was conversing with Lucy.
“She and I met when we were undergrads.” Edward’s expression softened a bit. “Twenty years old. She was the only person who didn’t laugh when I told her I wanted to start a computer company. She married me even though I had nothing. For years, I couldn’t even afford to give her a proper wedding ring. But she didn’t waver. Stuck by me through it all…the starts and stops, the failures, the times when I was ready to give up. I wouldn’t be where I am without her. Intellix might not even exist without her. And she has been heartbroken by Grant’s rejection of everything she wanted for him. Everything we’ve worked to provide.”
Edward stabbed his fork into his steak. “I won’t stand for it. I’ll remind him every chance I get that hurting his mother is unacceptable in every way.”
He turned to the person seated on his other side, effectively dismissing her.
Rory caught Grant looking at her. She found it very difficult to believe that he was intentionally hurting his mother. He tapped his watch and mouthedLet’s go.
“We’ll see you all tomorrow.” Pushing back his chair, he stood and turned to say goodbye to his brother and Alice.
As Rory said her goodbyes and thank-yous, Joanna rounded the table to her side.
“Tomorrow morning, we’re taking Alice to the spa for a few hours so she can relax before getting ready for the wedding,” Joanna explained. “Hot stone massage, facial, mud-bath, the works. I insist you join us.”
“Oh.” Rory shot Grant a desperate look, but he was speaking to his aunt. “I’m not really a spa kind of girl.”
“Nonsense. Every woman is aspa kind of girl.” Joanna narrowed her eyes on Rory’s face. “Your skin is lovely, but you might want to get those blackheads taken care of. The aestheticians can also show you how to enhance your features with makeup…red lipstick can be stunning, but with your pale skin, it’s a bit harsh.”
Rory forced a smile. She’d heard close to the same thing from her own mother over the years.
“A car will pick you up at nine.” Joanna patted Rory’s arm. “I’ll arrange a wake-up call just in case. I do apologize for Edward. He promised he wouldn’t cause a scene, but he has a hard time concealing his disappointment.”
Something twisted in Rory’s chest. “He has no reason to be disappointed in Grant. Neither do you.”
“Oh, I know, my dear.” Joanna smiled, though sadness touched her eyes. “Sometimes it’s just hard to let go of expectations. It breaks my heart that Grant’s choices have caused such a rift in our family.”
“Maybe…” Rory swallowed the suggestion that surfaced like a piece of sea glass in her mind. She had no right to interfere in Grant’s relationship with his family.
“See you tomorrow,” she said instead.
After Joanna left, Grant approached. A faint line of concern etched his forehead. “Was she asking aboutourwedding plans?”
“No, but I have to go for a hot stone massage and facial tomorrow.” Rory shifted on her uncomfortable heels. “I hope she hasn’t scheduled me for a bikini wax.”
He grinned. “Thanks for taking one for the team. And sorry about my father.”
“Tantrum aside, I like him.” She walked beside him to the elevator. “I’m sorry if I made things awkward by what I said.”
“You didn’t.” He glanced at her. “I appreciated what you said.”
“It just doesn’t seem like your dad is being fair. Has he ever tried your food?”
“Once when I was working up in Seattle, my mom dragged him to the restaurant where I was a sous-chef. She hoped it would soften him up.”
“Did it?”
“He ate everything I made, but didn’t actually tell me he liked it.” Grant tossed her a rueful grin. “So, no. It didn’t soften him up.”
“That kind of sucks.”
“Yeah.” He unlocked the hotel room door and stepped aside to let her enter. “I don’t like complaining about it, though. There are far worse things than your parents wanting a certain life for you.”
“But it’s not what you want.” Rory sank into a chair and kicked off her shoes.
“I have what I want now, so it doesn’t matter anymore.” After tossing his suit jacket on the bed, he lifted his arms above his head for a stretch. His shirt tugged over his chest, and his shoulder muscles bunched.
“What about your mother? It sounds like she was supportive.”
