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Retirement, though, well, that was worse.
To be clear, I decided to reach out to Mark Dixon only because I couldn’t endure the boredom any longer and not because they were dropping hints at every opportunity. I don’t think I could endure the gloating that would derive from an admission that Mark Dixon had gotten the better of me. In hindsight, though, I probably should’ve taken Jackson and Mark up on their offer to join them at Cole Security when they first extended it to me, but I believed I was done at the time.
“Will you have the chance to visit myMadreandHermanawhile you are there?”
“Already part of my itinerary, darlin’.” I confirm. “But when will you agree to move your mother and sister closer to us so you can be near them?” I inquire further.
“You know momma won’t leave Bellavista, Hawke; we’ve already discussed this,” she sadly replies.
“Then maybe you should come with me, Em,” I suddenly declare, even though I’m aware of the answer before she replies. “Come see how your mom and sister are doing for yourself. She misses you dearly, you know.”
“If my momma misses me that much, she’d leave her precious home in Bojayá and bring Camila to us here in the US,” she angrily retorts, sitting upright. “I swore the day I boarded that plane in El Dorado that I would never return, so it’ll be a cold day in hell before I go home.”
“You know I can keep you safe,”
My attempt to reassure my beautiful girl falls on deaf ears, but I expected that.
“While Antonio and Andres are still alive, Hawke, I’ll never be safe,” Emily whispers.
Her face suddenly pales, and I realize she is remembering what happened to her. Leaning across the table, I pull her hands away from her chest and cover them with my own. The look of fear in her eyes saddens me, instantly making me regret pushing her as far as I did.
“I’m sorry, Em; I didn’t mean to upset you,” I console.
“I’m okay, honey,” she insists, leaning toward me.
“Emily, sweetheart,” I begin. “It’s obvious this still upsets you.”
“Only because it keeps me from my family,” Emily admits, gripping tightly onto my fingers. “I dealt with what Andres and Sebastian did to me years ago, but I can’t rid myself of the anxiousness I feel every time I think of going back.”
I knew I was pushing buttons I shouldn’t when I asked her to come with me to Colombia, but she’s often been fixated on her family of late, and it concerns me.
“I will check on your family before the others join me,” I promise.
Thanking me, Em’s whole demeanor changes in an instant. The suddenness makes it seem like our previous conversation didn’t happen, especially when the subject changed from her mother and sister to my adopted daughter Sumner and her fiancé Tatum.
When I started seeing Emily professionally, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I never sought counseling after my family died because I never believed it could help me. Emily wasn’t your typical run-of-the-mill psychologist, and my liking of her was instantaneous.
For the longest time, though, the feeling wasn’t mutual.
She may have found a way to break through my façade, but to do so, she was required to give away more about herself than she ever anticipated she’d need to. I’m no ordinary man, which meant she didn’t realize what was happening until it was too late. Ultimately, she continued because I was a challenge to her, one she was determined to conquer.
For eight months, we danced our tango until I eventually won her over. That was when our relationship shifted from a professional to a personal one. It would take another six months before she would open up and tell me about what happened to her back in Bellavista, Colombia, when she was sixteen.
“Did Sumner tell you she has asked Mark to officiate at their wedding?”
Her voice reminds me who I am with and where my attention should be.
“Yes,” I confirm. “She sought my advice before asking him.”
“Do you approve?” she asks.
“Of course, I do; what makes you think I wouldn’t?”
“I know you better than most, Hawke, which means I know you’re a traditional man,” Em gently replies.
Over the past twelve months, I’ve learned to adapt to change. If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have received my second chance at having a family with the beautiful woman sitting across from me and the girl I now call my daughter.
“Apparently, you can teach an old dog new tricks.” I laugh, lightening the mood.
