Page 51 of Secret Admirer
Bart stopped thinking about himself long enough to recall that their father and grandfather had mentioned that Jake had been the black sheep who had never worked with them.
At least his mind for one second wasn’t replaying how Rebecca had been so close to tears and he’d held the door for her to go. How could he have done that?
Kiwi asked, “So Jennifer married another Morgan?”
“Yes,” Anthony said.
And once again silence filled the air. Bart’s neck began to feel less tight. He’d done the right thing in letting Rebecca leave. He protected her in many ways from the poison in this family. He’d set her up when he shouldn’t have and allowed his father’s influence in his mind convince him to fear her. She didn’t belong in his ugly world.
“So Bart," Kiwi asked, "what are you going to do about Rebecca?”
Her American accent hit him hard. He wasn’t sure he’d do anything. Though tonight, without Rebecca, might be cold. “What can I do?”
Kiwi wiped her fingers on a cocktail napkin and selected a strawberry from the fruit platter. “Tell her you love her and want to be with her.”
Love. The word fluttered in his heart like a caged butterfly. Rebecca had made him happy, but… “I don’t want to lie.”
Gio gestured for Bart's wine glass and topped if off. “Maybe itisyou who's like our father, and not Anthony.”
“I’m not the bad one today?” Anthony scooted closer. “Continue, Gio. This is good. I’m listening.”
Kiwi put her hand on Gio's knee as if in support. Gio said, “Look, Anthony made a mistake with Jennifer. But it’s clear he cares about her.”
Anthony had a gleam in his brown eyes reminiscent of when he'd just won the last rugby game he’d played in college. “Glad you see that.”
Gio covered his wife’s hand with a squeeze and then asked Bart, “And you… what caused the break up with Rebecca?”
He'd let her go because they didn’t match, not long term. She wasn’t made for his life and she’d kept her mechanic past from him because she knew it. Judging by how he'd reacted and set her up, Rebecca was clearly smarter than him in even that. His father’s voice spoke in his head, reminding him he needed to protect himself from gold diggers. People had their places. He took a deep breath and said, “Her father’s a mechanic.”
Kiwi held a finger in the air as she said, “Wait, wait, wait one second. This is America, Bart.”
Gio’s wife was not afraid to share her opinion, and right now her demeanor let him know he'd offended her. Rebecca didn’t need to haunt his dreams because here she was and everyone seemed to side with her. His collar tightened again as he asked, “And?”
Kiwi looked up at Gio but then turned her attention back toward him when she said, “I agree with your sister, who just stormed out.”
“Kiwi?” Gio patted her hand he held.
Kiwi pointed toward the door. “Gio, that girl was in love with Bart, and he acted like a spoiled brat. Her fatherwasorisa mechanic really has no merit when it comes to who you love.”
Bells clanged with every word Kiwi said, making his head pound. She was right. Love mattered more than class or station. And Rebecca had treated him like he was some prince.
No one had ever made him feel so wanted or appreciated.
Gio kept his voice low as he told his wife, “It’s not our place...”
Kiwi nodded, squeezed his brother's hand, and said, “Look, I might only be a sister-in-law, but in America we don’t judge people based on what their parents did. My mother works for a living too.”
Anthony jumped in as if to defend Bart, “But your mother is an accountant, as was your father.”
She looked toward Anthony as she said, “So what?” Kiwi's compassionate gaze turned his way as she asked Bart, “How did she make you feel?”
Like he was the only person that mattered to her. Rebecca had lifted his heart, but he simply said, “She… she was pleasant to have around.”
Kiwi’s lips pursed and she motioned with her head toward his brother while she said, “I feel bad for her if that’s all you have to say. I’d have hated giving my heart to a man who only felt sorry for me because of who my parents were.”
Bart pushed to the edge of his seat and fisted one hand into the other. Rebecca had left him. There wasn’t anything he could do. “Expressing our feelings wasn’t something any of us were good at, it's how it is.”
“Gio, you’re my love and an absolute sweetheart, but there is no defending such callousness--exactly the same trait you claim to hate about your father.” Kiwi rose and Gio stood with her, as did Anthony.
