Page 25 of The Bargain (Dalton Family #2)
Chapter Twenty-Five
Sofia
W e end up sitting on the floor in front of my coffee table, drinking coffee and eating a batch of sugar cookies Lily made me to celebrate the Zoey brand.
And talking. A lot. About everything. It’s surreal in so many ways.
It’s almost as if we were supposed to meet when he met with my father, and it didn’t happen, so the universe found another way.
The money thing is starting to matter less and less.
“If Lily wasn’t a fashion freak, she’d be a famous baker,” I assure him when he’s raved about the treats. “And I honestly think she’s missing her calling. I keep telling her to open a bakery. This is her own recipe.”
“If she ever puts her heart in it, she’d go far.”
“Right now, it’s still a hobby, but we’ll see. Maybe I’ll inspire her by chasing my dreams.”
“That’s just all the more reason to make the Zoey brand fly.”
He’s right, and one thing I really like about him is that I thought he’d just dole out his own form of wisdom, but he listens too, with authentic interest. And the more we sit there, the more we share our views on life and the world, it becomes clear to me that no matter how many ways we might shred each other, we’re really going to try to make this work.
We can’t seem to help ourselves. “I think you’ll like Paris,” he says.
“Paris is all about art, history, and fashion.”
“Do you like it more than the States?”
“Not more. In a different way, and at first, I didn’t like it at all, outside of the escape it offered from my family drama.”
It’s becoming crystal clear that in many ways his life has been dictated by that drama, and I realize now that we never know what is going on behind the scenes for people who seem to have it all. We all have pain. We all experience loss.
“It’s a different pace and lifestyle,” he adds. “Slower. There’s more of a balance between work life and personal life.”
“And that means what to you?”
“Professional dominance in some ways. Peace in others.”
I can read between the lines, as he surely intends.
In other words, he uses his obsession with success to his benefit, no matter the circumstance.
He’s a killer in the boardroom, and he doesn’t hide that truth, nor would I want him to try.
And as for the peace he speaks of, I’m not sure he really found it at all.
He escaped. He ran, just like I did, only he did so based on a solid decision-making process and a negative situation he wanted to remove from his life.
I ran from him based on emotions and fear, neither of which is good professionally or personally.
“How long have you been spending part of the year there?”
“Ten years, but I’m looking forward to seeing it anew through your eyes.”
“I’ll like that,” I say, a flutter in my belly at the idea of exploring Paris with him, but I can’t help but fret a bit.
“Have you heard anything on my contract?”
“I told them what needs to happen. It’ll get done tomorrow.”
“You’re certain?”
“Very,” he assures me. “This is not what you should be worrying about. Save that for things that deserve the attention, but since we’re talking about this, we need to pick up your passport tomorrow morning, but I’d like to fly out either tomorrow afternoon or the next morning, early.”
My mind is instantly on our earlier conversation. “Then I guess I know why you wanted to go to New York before Paris.”
“I was going to leave a lot of things open ended until we got back, but that’s not a good decision. That’s why I’d like to leave sooner than later. We can detour to New York, let me take care of business, and then head to Paris from there.”
“I’m done saying no, so I’m fine with all of that as long as I won’t distract or rush you from why you’re there.”
“You won’t. You’re the reason I’m going to try to work things out with my father again.”
“I’m not the reason. You were already thinking about that loose end when I spoke it out loud. And if I’m going with you, I need to go say goodbye to my father. I’ll see if he can have breakfast with me.”
“Don’t forget your passport.”
“Right. We just talked, and the idea of talking to my father has me rattled. I’ll try dinner tomorrow night.”
“Are you going to tell him about me?”
“I don’t know. I think I just need to feel him out.”
“You think he’s going to push back?”
“I’m not worried about him pushing back. I’m worried about hurting him. I feel like the secret I’ve kept will feel like a betrayal to him.”
“I doubt anyone would have told their father about a one-night stand that, for the record, was never a one-night stand, but you thought it was at the time.”
“But I should have told him I saw you there. Maybe that we connected, and I walked away because of who you are. I just didn’t see the point. And now it feels a bit like telling him you believed in me and not him.”
He rotates to face me, and his hand settles on my knee. “First, he knows I believed in him. It was the situation he’d gotten into that was messy.”
“What does that mean?”
“He had too much debt. It was bad timing for what I’m trying to achieve right now.
And I regret walking away now that I know more about him through you.
To that point, if he is the man I’ve seen through your eyes, he’ll be happy for you.
And he’ll be upset that you felt the need to keep all of this from him.
My two cents, but you need to call him for dinner and consider seriously confessing.
Guilt will eat you up if you don’t, and the damage might be real if you hold this back for too long.
If you decide to tell him, just be honest. Your reasoning is that of a loving daughter, but don’t let it linger and fester.
” He leans in and kisses the tip of my nose.
“Do what feels right. And on that note, I’m going to settle into that chair I spied in your bedroom and do some work.
” He stands and walks away, and I’m aware of his ploy to offer me privacy to talk to my dad.
I’m stunned and pleased by his ability to be dominant and demanding in bed but unassuming in both my work and professional experiences with him.
There is so much more to Ethan Dalton than I ever imagined possible.
He’s powerful and influential, seemingly always in control, but beneath it all, I believe he’s broken.
And so am I. We’re either going to save each other or destroy each other, probably the latter, but I can’t seem to see any path forward that doesn’t include him right now. Nor do I seem to want to, anyway.