Page 139 of Mr. Aster
“I hadn’t,” I said, feeling the words weigh heavy on my chest, “but I also know that being with a man like me?—”
“Oh, fuck off, Seb. You’re as irritating as you are ugly, you know that?” Titus shook his head, laughing. “Why don’t you letherdecide that,huh? Let her choose whether you’re worth the trouble of living the kind of life you live. Why are you making all these stupid, impulsive, brokenhearted, pathetic life decisions for her?”
“Well, because I know she would hate all of this.”
“You know that for a fact, eh?”
“She said that money doesn’t equate to happiness for her?”
“It shouldn’t equate to happiness foranyone,” Titus answered. “Just because you’re a busy man with more money than Scrooge McDuck and are away from home all the time doesn’t mean she wouldn’t want you. Love is love, friend, regardless of circumstances.” He looked at me with a flash of pity. “I swear to God, man. Did your parents ever allow you boys to date and figure this shit out on your own, or did they just shove the next intended bride-to-be who fit the bill in your face?”
“I sound like a fucking idiot, I know,” I said.
“You do. What you’re doing, deciding for Darcy that she is better off without you, essentially taking away her choice, is as fucked up as your parents choosing your wife for you. Have the hard talk, buddy. You can’t lose something you’ve already lost.”
“You’re right,” I nodded, feeling terrified and anxious with a sprinkling of hopefulness. “Tell me what you know.”
“Huh-uh,” Titus said, shaking his head. “No way. You get nothing from me. You’re the one who went dark on her, expecting she would move on and live happily ever after. Youcan’t get angry if you manifested that and made it all happen, but you won’t know until you ask her yourself.”
“Fair enough. I’ll call her,” I said, frustrated and scared out of my mind.
Titus put his hand up, “Don’t make a call, man. Go have the conversation like a man, face-to-face, just like you would if you were trying to close a business deal.”
“Fucking hell,” I said.
“That’s what your father will say if we can’t figure out how to get this family on board. I expect we’ll have these people signed by tomorrow, and you will be on a plane out of here soon after unless you chicken out and change your mind.”
“I’ve made her wait long enough. I’m going to her.”
“About that. She’s had a change of address. She lives in Mexico now,” he said, tightening his lips and enjoying my discomfort a little too much.
“Mexico?”
“You know, where the margaritas taste best?”
“You are going to close this deal, and I’m going to call some friends and try to figure out where she is living and precisely how badly I fucked this up to force her to move to Mexico.”
“Your fuck-up didn’t force her to move to Mexico,” Titus said. “She seems full of life, choosing happiness and herself over all else. She mentioned something about finally being clear-headed enough to start living the life she should’ve started long ago.”
“What about the magazine?”
“I was the subject of her final article, and then she quit because she thinks that work has been a life-sucking waste of her time. She got a job doing diving excursions for a travel agency, and she is really enjoying the freedom it has allowed her.”
“I’m glad you know more about her than I do,” I said, mildly irritated.
He grinned. “Well, shouldn’t I? I didn’t hide behind business to avoid a beautiful woman when I found one. Sadly, your dumb ass ruined her for me. Because of you, she’s pigeon-holed me into some billionaire bastard category, and she won’t give me a chance.”
“Thank God for that. At least I did one thing right, protecting her from the wolves I should’ve known would come once I left.”
With that, I took my suitcoat from the back of my chair and left Titus to finish dinner alone. I needed to call Jim, hoping he might have an update about Darcy. Before I went to Mexico, there was one extremely important person I had to pick up on the way.
These past few months, I’d not only been working hard in my business dealings, but I’d also been dedicated to seeing my daughter regularly. I even took her to Disneyland Paris when I had to work in France during Christmas. I wanted to send Darcy pictures of the biggest smiles I’d ever seen on Charlotte’s face because it was then that I finally understood what Darcy had meant about bonding through watching your child’s joy. It was a life-altering moment that’d changed me for the better, and I wished Darcy could’ve experienced it. Now was my chance to tell her and show her.
I just had to hope and pray that I could get my jet to Mexico without anyone stopping me. I wanted Darcy now more than I ever had. After all these silent months, I knew that Darcy was my other half, and even if I showed up in Mexico and she refused me, I would find a way to make things right.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Sebastian
