Page 67 of Rafe: Sins of the Father

I get no response. I wait five minutes, and every single one drags like an hour. It’s 10am. Is he still asleep? Is he passed out at the clubhouse with some woman draped across him? My mind goes to a thousand places. None of them good.

They all lead to the fact that I should have listened to him. I should have canceled with Alex. I should have blown him off and spent the day with Rafe.

On the other hand, this is showing me about Rafe, too. I get that I pissed him off, but we can’t disagree and still talk? And that’s pissingmeoff.

I try again.

ME: Rafe?

ME: Talk to me.

ME: Please.

I take a shower and get dressed, then carry my phone to the kitchen. I sit at the table with a cup of coffee and stare at my phone.

With every minute that passes, I feel worse. Is what we had really over before it even started? The sinking feeling takes holdthat I have no one to blame but myself. I did this to us. Me. Not him. Me.

And that feeling sucks.

I call him. It’s the first time I’ve ever actually called him. I listen to the call ring and ring, but he never picks up. It doesn’t even click over to voicemail. The call just ends.

I try again and again, and each time my heart breaks a little more.

Finally, I stop. I’m afraid if I keep this up, he’ll block my number.

My father comes in and gets coffee, then shuffles out of the room, and I don’t think he even realized I was sitting at the table. I’m sure he’s retired to his study, so I follow him a moment later, tapping on the door.

“Daddy?”

“Come in.”

When I enter, he’s behind his desk readingThe Wall Street Journal.He lowers the paper. “Tori, how was the event last night?”

Closing the door behind me, I take a chair across from him. “It was fine. I wanted to talk to you about Alex.”

“What about him?” He frowns. “He treated you right, didn’t he?”

“It’s about his character.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think you need to understand the lengths he’s prepared to go. He wants this mill, Daddy.”

“I know.” My father sighs heavily, leaning back in his chair. “What I want to do is sell him the Northridge Mill. Not this one.”

“But he’s not interested in that one, is he?”

He rubs his jaw. “No, he’s not. I guess I’ve been fooling myself, thinking I could persuade him. Men like him are not persuadable.”

“I’m through seeing him. I want you to understand that. I was nice to him as a favor to you, and I thought he was a nice man at first, but I’ve seen another side of him. And besides, I don’t want you to sell this land. I’ll never do anything to help you do that.”

“What other side?”

“He’s not the guy I thought, not the guy he presents to the world.”

“I’m sorry I involved you in this.”

“You shouldn’t trust him. Promise me you won’t.”

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