Page 50 of A Family Affair: The Vow
Vic satin a booth at the back of Harry’s Folly with the box of gifts next to him from the people Rae had helped. He wasn’t quite certain what he was supposed to do with the contents. Pull them out and show her each? Dump them on the table and let her pick which to open? Betty insisted giving Rae this gift box was key because it showed people cared about her, and it showedhecared enough to ask for help.
Yes, the woman loved her romance, had even called him a few seconds ago to remind him about Lily’s gift.Lily said you should open it when you’re having dessert. She was very specific about that.He glanced at the box, spotted Lily’s silver gift with the red bow. What had that girl done now? He was contemplating the many possibilities, when he heard Harry’s booming voice coming toward him, followed by Rae’s laughter.
“This place is hopping tonight. A sure sign Christmas is heading our way.”
“I can’t wait to try the… Vic?” Rae stood four feet away, looking beautiful and not happy to see him. “What are you doing here?” She darted a glance at Harry. “Where’s Christine?”
“Yeah, about Christine. She’s not coming.” Harry gestured toward the booth where Vic sat. “Seems you’ve got a substitute.”
A substitute?That’s the best Harry could do?
Rae narrowed her gaze on Harry, frowned. “SowasChristine planning to come tonight to discuss the rollout for the online shop? Or was it just a ploy to get me here?”
Harry ignored the not-happy look and continued with his “plan.” “It was a calculated risk to get you here. Seems you and Vic have a few things to talk about and what better place than where it all began?” His voice turned smoother than one of Mrs. D’s bowls sanded to 800 grit. “The place of your parents’ retirement party. It’s all here just waiting to be relived: the music, the ambiance, the food, the conversation, theattraction and the sizzle.”
Rae did not look the least bit interested in reliving any of those. In fact, Vic would call her over-the-top ticked. How could he blame her when he’d been the one blastingherabout honesty and he’d tricked her into coming? “Look, maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Maybe—”
“Are you going to start that again?” Harry raised a brow. “The whole town’s been waiting on you two to see how this story’s going to end. Me included. Can you at least share a meal?” He pointed to the box next to Vic. “Vic collected gifts from the people you helped. If that doesn’t say ‘thank you’ from the town and ‘I care about you’ from this boy, then maybe I did misjudge the two of you.” He motioned Rae toward the booth. “How about you share a bottle of wine and a meal, and maybe Vic can show you what’s inside this box? If things are going well, we’ll bring out the champagne and if not? Well at least you had a decent bowl of pasta. Sound good?”
Had anyone ever said “no” to the man? Vic bet Nate hadn’t even been able to do that. “Sure, why not?”
“Okay.” Rae shrugged out of her coat, eyed the box next to Vic.
“I’ll see to the wine.” Harry paused, glanced from Rae to Vic. “There’s a point where stubborn works backward and destroys everything a couple shared. Stubborn wipes out good times and magnifies the bad ones. Now I don’t know about you two, but Christmas is two days away and I plan to spend it with the person I love and the kids who own my world.” One more long stare from those blue eyes. “How are you two going to spend it? Think on that while I get your wine. And Vic, nice tie.” His laughter spun through the air as he made his way to the bar.
Vic cleared his throat, felt like he was sixteen again. “I’m sorry for the trick that got you here. I didn’t want to do it, but they thought it was the only way you’d agree to come.”
“They? Who’s they?”
Heat inched from his neck to his cheeks. “Harry, and Betty… Pop and Lily had a few things to say too.”
“What did you do, tell the whole town about our issues?”
“I didn’t have to tell anybody. Betty said they all figured it out.”
“When did Betty become your confidante?”
He could admit the truth and look like a fool, or he could stay silent and save a scrap of pride. But hadn’t Nate lectured him on pride and what it would get you? He’d had a few things to say about fear, too. Vic took a deep breath, pushed past the prideandthe fear and offered the truth. “I asked Betty to fill me in on everything that was happening with you. What you were doing, who you were helping... I wanted to know every single detail of what I’d been blocking out and refusing to see…” He rubbed his jaw, let out a loud sigh. “The woman sure can talk, but she gave me the answers I needed to hear.”
The stiffness in her voice told him she did not appreciate being discussed. “Needed to hear? I tried to tell you the other night. You weren’t interested. In fact, you accused me of having ulterior motives. Do you rememberthatconversation?”
Vic looked away for a second, slid his gaze back to hers, held it. “Unfortunately, yes. I remember every regrettable word I spoke.”
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“Vic, what’s really going on? Two days ago, you stormed into my house and accused me of using people and today you’ve changed your mind? What will you say tomorrow or next week? You once asked how you could be sure I wouldn’t changemymind, and now I’m asking the same of you.” The man sitting across from her displayed none of the anger or agitation she’d seen two nights ago, but what guarantee did she have?
“I give you my word that if you trust me this one last time, I’ll never leave your side again—no matter what.” His blue eyes turned bright, sparked with emotion. “And when we hurt or disappoint one another, and we will because it’s part of a relationship, I promise I’ll stay and work through it. It’s the ‘working through it’ that really matters.” His eyes turned brighter. “At least that’s what I’ve been told. Nate paid me a visit, talked to me about pride and fear and how I had too much of both and if I didn’t get my head together, I was going to lose you.”
He still cared. How many days had she waited and hoped, even prayed he still cared about her? So many… And yet, would it be enough if there wasn’t trust? “You want me to trust you, but what about me? Will you believe in me no matter what?”
Harry took that exact moment to return with the bottle of wine. “Sorry this took so long, but it will be worth the...” The rest of his sentence remained unspoken as he glanced from Vic to Rae, no doubt realizing he’d intruded at a bad time. “Sorry for the interruption,” he mumbled and proceeded to open the bottle, pour their wine, and exit in less than two minutes.
The man had only spoken once.
Vic watched him leave, his lips twitching. “I never thought I’d see Harry at a loss for words, but I think we just witnessed it.”
Rae tried not to smile, failed. “He did look a little ruffled.”
