Page 52 of The Best Man: Unfinished Business

Chapter Thirty

Harper

The march across Robyn’s Nest, through the kitchen and into Robyn’s office, felt to Harper like a long walk to the principal’s office after he’d gotten into a schoolyard fight.

Except, while his body was still bristled for confrontation, there hadn’t actually been a fight.

Not to say there wouldn’t be. Nonetheless, how could this Kwesi character, all six foot four and chiseled, already feel so comfortable around his family?

Passing through the kitchen, the wafting food smells were unfamiliar yet intoxicating and immediately set off an embarrassing rumble of hunger in his stomach.

Since those in-flight short ribs, he hadn’t eaten, nor had he stopped to think or reflect at all on what circumstance he was actually in.

Mia had called, said there was trouble, and he’d reacted.

That was enough, Harper reminded himself.

Yet, by the time his hand touched the doorframe of Robyn’s office and his foot went through the entry, he started to feel the slightest weakening of his resolve. Clearly, there was more to this story.

“Mia,” Robyn said, arms folded, “it’s time to explain yourself, young lady. What’s this about you calling your father? And why didn’t you speak to me first?”

Harper’s eyes traveled to Mia. Instinctually, he wanted to protect her, even here and now.

She was so small, so vulnerable. His heart ached about having her here, so far away from him.

He should be the one to look after her, not some new dude, Kwesi, or whatever his name was.

Mia looked at him, tears brimming in her eyes.

It took every bit of restraint not to pull her into his arms and comfort her, to shield her.

“Mia?” Robyn repeated.

Harper forced himself to let go of Mia’s hand.

He kneeled to meet her eyes. “Mia, I’m here now.

You’re safe. Mommy’s safe. You can say what happened.

” Still, Mia was quiet, looking like a small animal in headlights.

Harper decided he’d support her in telling her story.

“Didn’t you say, there was a dangerous man, and that Mommy was in trouble? ”

“Trouble? What man?” Robyn interrupted. She was angry and that didn’t seem to be helping Mia along.

“Well, Robyn, who could she be talking about? Clearly, she’s not as comfortable as you are with whoever it is you have coming around.”

“Harper, you need to back down.” Robyn’s face was clouded over now, tight.

It’d been so long since he’d seen her like this, or since they’d even come to a place of real confrontation.

But the results didn’t lie. He’d seen with his own eyes the run-down refrigerator, the buckets in the corner, the look of a place that wasn’t anywhere near the spit shine of a New York establishment, even to Robyn’s standards. Something here was off and he knewit.

“Kwesi is not causing any trouble.” Robyn said firmly. She turned to Mia again. “Is he, Mimi?”

“Hey, take it easy on her—” Harper tried to intervene.

“Uh-uh.” Robyn held a halting pointer finger up toward Harper. “ Your daughter is going to answer.” Robyn turned to Mia again. “What did you see, Mia? Why did you call your father and tell him to come here?”

“She doesn’t need a reason to call me, Robyn!” Harper regretted his tone, but anger was getting the best of him. He didn’t approve of anyone jumping bad with his daughter.

“Harper, this isn’t about you. You shouldn’t be here.”

He felt his own voice rumble in his chest. “You can’t tell me where I belong—”

“You heard correctly!” Robyn retorted. “The audacity of you traveling five thousand miles—” she shouted over him.

“Daddy! I’m sorry!” Mia’s voice cried out into the room, startling Harper, who by now was braced in his core for an argument.

He drew his gaze away from Robyn to right down at his side.

“Don’t fight, please?” Mia blubbered and tears streaked down her cheeks.

In a confusing whirlwind of emotion, Harper’s instinct to protect won easily.

He dropped to a crouch on the floor and took her into his arms immediately.

He was all reaction, all love, all anger, all sadness, wrapped together with his arms around his child.

Only then could he look at Robyn, who seemed equally stunned, suspended in time.

“What is going on, baby?” He wiped tears from her face. “Why are you sorry? You don’t have to be sorry, ever. You called and Daddy came. I told you I would always come. You know that, right?”

Mia nodded slowly and pushed her next tears away with a small fist.

“Then what is it? What can’t you say?” Harper looked at Robyn, who seemed to be waiting just as he was for an answer.

Mia sniffled once again, shuddering her whole body. And time seemed to stand still, pregnant with all the possibilities of what she might say, or that she might still say nothing at all. But finally, she did begin to speak.

“Daddy, I’m…sorry.” Sorry? “I…called you because…I thought Mommy was in trouble and I thought you could help.” She spilled out all the words in her little-girl mumble and punctuated them with another sniffle.

Robyn’s face crinkled with concern. “In trouble with whom, Mia?” She approached, joining them in a crouch, four eyes now focused directly on Mia.

“There…there was a man…”

“Was it Kwesi?” Harper asked.

“Stop it, okay?” Robyn answered.

“Let Mia answer that,” he replied sharply. No reason for Robyn to keep defending this man who obviously made their daughter uncomfortable.

“No, it wasn’t Kwesi,” Mia said. Harper cocked his head and parted his lips to form a question. Wasn’t Kwesi? The disclosure was short-circuiting Harper’s mind.

“It was another man…with a round tummy and sunglasses. He wanted money from Mommy.”

“Aboagye…” Robyn said quietly. Robyn needs money?

Hasn’t she been getting the alimony checks?

Ohh boy, Robyn…And who the hell is Aboagye?

“Mia, did you call your father because you saw me talking to Aboagye? That’s the only reason?

” Mia shook her head no. “Did you see me with Mr. Kwesi?” Mia nodded yes.

And Robyn took a deep, long breath. Harper could see the fatigue in her, on her face, and the look of instant recognition.

Now he was on the outside of the moment.

“What is going on, Robyn?” Harper asked.

Robyn’s eyes never left Mia’s face. “It seems,” she said slowly, “that our daughter hasn’t been completely honest with either of us. Isn’t that right, Mia?”

Harper swiveled to look at Mia. And with disbelief, he watched as she nodded, yes.

Yes? My Mia? Dishonest? It was impossible for Harper to process.

After all, he was here, in Accra. And not to even imagine what he’d left, or who he’d left.

Or how he’d left. He pushed Jordan’s voice from his mind, and the seared image of her telling him to go when he’d insisted he needed to be here.

He did need to be here, right? He prayed silently for Mia’s response, one that wouldn’t make him out to be a fool.

“Mia,” Robin repeated, insistently. “Did you call your father because you saw me kiss Mr. Kwesi?”

“Kiss?” It was already reaching the limits of what Harper could process. He looked from Mia to Robyn. Robyn cut her eyes at her ex-husband before standing up and looking down at her daughter.

“I see,” Robyn said, standing now, arms folded again in her momma stance.

“Mia, you owe your father—and me—and Mr. Kwesi an apology.”

“You don’t owe me an apology, baby,” Harper reassured Mia. “And you do not have to apologize to that dude.”

“Oh yes, she does. And so do you.” Robyn looked right at Harper.

Then she got very close in Mia’s face and pointed at her.

“What you did was extremely selfish and irresponsible, young lady. You scared Mommy and Daddy half to death. How dare you.” Mia lowered her eyes and the teardrops fell to the floor.

Harper couldn’t allow another second of this. “Hey, hey,” he intervened.

Without looking at her ex-husband, Robyn fired back.

“I am the parent here, in Accra, with our child. My entire afternoon was upended because Mia was dishonest. And sneaky.” Robyn looked back at Mia.

“I am very disappointed in you.” Harper had heard those words before and they still hurt him to hear as an adult, even directed toward Mia.

For her, hearing it from her own mother looked like she’d received a gut punch.

“Robyn, you see she’s—”

“No. No.” Robyn shut him down. “You’re supposed to be an adult. I have enough going on here without you inserting yourself in my parenting and my personal life.” Inserting? Robyn turned to Mia. “Go to the bathroom and clean yourself up.”

“Yes, Mommy,” Mia’s quavering voice responded, and she rushed herself toward the staff bathroom. Harper watched her go, feeling for her, wanting to comfort her, but was frozen still, overwhelmed with the feeling that he had made a very big blunder.

“Robyn, don’t you think —?” Harper tried to say.

“I don’t have time to think, thank you very much.” Robyn grabbed her chef’s apron and called out to her staff from her open office door. “Okay, let’s fire those prawns…!”

At that moment it was clear to Harper that a whole world—Robyn’s world—was functioning without him. How well, he wasn’t exactly sure.