AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I look at Aunt Cass and mouth,I told you it wasn’t me.
CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE
REAGAN
The press conference is later this afternoon, but there’s something I feel I need to do this morning.
I arrive at my dad’s grave. I need to talk to him.
I go to his tombstone and trace my fingers through the inscription.
Scott Gregory Lawrence, beloved father, son, brother, husband, and soulmate.
I have tears in my eyes.Beloved father. That’s for sure. I look up. “What should I do, Dad? I need you. I need your advice.”
I sit down in front of his tombstone. “I hope you’re not upset with me. I guess I tried to take a shortcut. It wasn’t worth it. It definitely came back to bite me in the ass. I should have just worked hard like you told me. I compromised my principles. It was a mistake. You were right, as always.”
Tears trickle down my cheeks. “Maybe my wild side blinded me, but Dad, I love him. I think that maybe he’s my soulmate.”
I take a breath. “I’m trying to make you proud. Every day I try. I’m not perfect. I hope you still believe in me.”
I hear the leaves rustle and turn around. Mom is standing there. She walks over and sits down next to me. She wraps her arms around me and leans her head on my shoulder.
“Looking for his advice?”
I nod. “I feel like I let him down. Like I disappointed him.”
“Sweetie, you could never disappoint him. You were, and still are, his pride and joy. Do you know how incredibly proud of you he’d be right now?”
I shake my head. “He’d be disappointed. I lied to everyone for months. I knew it was wrong, but I did it anyway. He’d be ashamed.”
“Reagan, in a million years, he wouldn’t be ashamed of you. He’d be so proud of the passion you have for your company, how quickly you’ve built it into a highly successful business, and how you’ve gone about doing it. But more importantly, he’d be proud of the exceptional woman you’ve become.”
I choke back tears as she continues. “Obviously he was excited that you wanted to follow in his footsteps, but the type of woman you became was way more important to him. The kind who’s strong. The kind who advocates for herself. The kind who backs down from no one. The kind who takes shit from no one. That’s exactly who you are. He’s smiling down at you right now with tremendous pride. Trust me. I know. I feel the same.”
We’re silent for a few moments as that sinks in. We both stare at his tombstone.
I turn to her. “Do you think he’d like Carter?”
She nods, but I look away.
“Reagan, why are you being so stubborn?”
“He lied to me. Dad wouldn’t want me with a liar.”
“You’re seeing things so black and white. You’ve always been this way. He didn’t lie. Yes, he initially came to you to get something from you, and perhaps he should have mentioned it during the time you’ve spent together, but as soon as it made sense, he came to you to help, at great personal risk to his position with his father. He laid it all on the table for you. He had good intentions then, and he loves you now. Of that, I’m sure. He never once did anything to jeopardize your business. You’re being a little unreasonable.”
“I don’t know, Mom. Even if I let that part of it go, I hate how he is with his father. I hate how spineless he can be. I can’t be with a man like that. I want a man who will beat the shit out of another man for touching a woman without her consent.”
She rubs my back. “Let’s see what this press conference is about before you completely close the door. He loves you and you love him. You two are amazing together. I’m pretty freaking good at picking them, and I know Carter’s the man for you.”
She takes a deep breath. “I told him this too, but he reminds me of your father in the way he wants you to shine.”
“What do you mean?”
“Carter loves you, in part, for everything you want to be. He wants to be your true partner in life.” She gives me a knowing look. “He wants to pour gasoline on your fire, Reagan. He’ll never stomp out your flame.” I swallow at her reference to my father’s words in his letter to me.
She stands, takes my hand, and pulls me up. “Come on. Let’s go home and see what this press conference is about. He’s obviously going to say something pretty big today, and I think you may see him differently afterward. Keep an open mind. No one will think less of you if you follow your heart.”
