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I shook my head. “No, Mom. I’m not sure when I’m going to be able to forgive Daddy for what he did…or myself for listening to him. For all I know, Finn hates me right now. I was stupid and naïve to ever let Dad strong-arm me. I love you and love that you support me regarding Finn, but I don’t want your help in this. I made the mistake; now I have to figure out how to fix it.”
“Rory, you don’t mean all of that,” my mother said.
I took her hands in mine. “I do. Mom: Please, for once in my life, let me do things the way I want to do them. Let me make my own choices in life. Please.”
A tear slipped from her eye. “I never meant to force you into something you didn’t want to do.”
I drew her into my arms, and we hugged. “I know, Mom. I know.”
She pulled back and wiped her tears away. “I’m here for you if you need anything. Especially help with your father—who, I might add, is in the doghouse for his little confession Friday night and this whole insane thing with threatening Finn’s job.”
With everything else going on, I had totally forgotten about my father’s confession.
“What are you going to do?” I asked.
“Forgive him. I’d broken up with him, and he turned to another woman. Am I disappointed in him? Very much so, but at the same time, I’d told him we were through, so he technically didn’t cheat.”
Fear gripped my body and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Would Finn do the same thing? Turn to another woman for comfort? The thought made me sick to my stomach.
Autumn gasped and asked, “What happened?”
Turning to her, I said, “I’ll catch you up on all of that later.”
Clearing her throat and checking her makeup in a mirror, my mother turned to me. “I hate leaving you, but I’ve got to run. Will you be coming back to the office today?”
I shook my head. Seeing my mother dash off as if nothing had just happened made me realize I was doing the right thing. “Not today, Mom. I can’t. And when I do come back it will only be to clean out my office.”
A look of disappointment washed over her face before she forced a smile. Kissing me on the cheek, my mother whispered, “Good luck with Finn.”
“Thanks. Bye, Mom. I’ll talk to you later this evening.”
Autumn hugged and kissed my mother goodbye. As soon as she walked out the door, I turned to Autumn.
“I can’t tell you how amazing that felt.”
She walked up to me and drew me into her arms. “About damn time if you ask me.”
Taking a step back, she lifted her brow. “Now what?”
There was no way I could deny the sick feeling I had in my stomach. If my father had fallen into the arms of another woman, would Finn do the same?
“I know what you’re thinking, and he wouldn’t do it. No way.”
I nodded in agreement. My heart knew the truth.
I was done listening to my head. It was time to follow my heart.
Looking intently at Autumn, I asked, “How do I get him back?”
She smiled. “Call him. Right now, and tell him everything.”
Racing over to my purse, I pulled my phone out and hit Finn’s number. It rang three times before a female voice answered. My already sick-feeling stomach took a nosedive.
“Finn’s telly. How can I help you?”
The lump in my throat made it hard to speak. “Is…um…Finn available?”
The girl chuckled. “Aah…hold on a second.”
I snapped my eyes over to Autumn, and her smile vanished.
I heard Finn ask who was on the phone. “It’s Rory,” the woman said.
Finn’s voice appeared on the other end. “What do you want, Rory?”
His voice sounded distant and cold.
“I was…I was wondering if I might be able to come over and talk to you.”
Silence.
“Or we could meet somewhere and talk.”
“You promised me.”
His words felt like a knife piercing my heart. “Finn, please let me explain.”
“I’ve never in my life opened my heart to someone like I did you. I loved you, and I thought you loved me.”
“I do love you! Do you not remember this past weekend? My note…I’ll always love you.”
Finn let out a gruff laugh. “That’s not what your father said.”
I sucked in a breath of air. “What do you mean?”
Finn let out a frustrated sigh. “I can’t do this, Rory. I trusted you with my heart, and you broke it. No, you didn’t just break it…you destroyed it. You fucking destroyed me. I don’t want to talk to you. I don’t care what you have to say.”
And with those words, he hung up. I stared straight ahead, my arm dropping to my side as tears burned my eyes.
“Rory? What happened?”
“He hates me,” I whispered.
Autumn walked up to me. “He doesn’t hate you. I read that letter he wrote to you. He’s hurt and angry, that’s all.”
