20. Chapter 20
Iwas in my office when Nova walked in. ”Hey, Aurora.”
”Hi. Has Callum arrived yet?” I had a meeting scheduled with Callum Pierce in about half an hour, but he sometimes showed up early.
She shook her head. ”Not yet. But there is someone here for you. If you say you don”t want to be disturbed, I can handle it.”
I waited.
”It”s Sophia Rhodes.”
I didn”t want to see Gabriel”s daughter, but on the other hand, if he was dating again, maybe it would help for me to talk to Sophia, and hopefully, she”d be less of a brat to the new girlfriend.
”It”s okay, Nova. You can send her in.”
I looked down at myself and noted that I was dressed nicely and professionally. Sure, I couldn”t compete with Sophia”s mother”s designer labels, but I looked like an architect. This was my office, my domain, and I was in charge.
I felt like an idiot for being nervous about meeting a thirteen-year-old, but our last meeting in her father”s house had been, as Luna had called it, a clusterfuck.
Sophia looked demure as she knocked on my open door and waited.
”Hey, Sophia.” I rose. ”Come on in.” I gestured at a guest chair.
She sat down. She looked adorable in a blue summer dress with sneakers and a backpack slung on one shoulder. Her blonde hair was tied into a ponytail, and she was fresh-faced and gorgeous. My heart hurt a little that we couldn”t have gotten to know each other better. I loved Gabriel, which meant that I loved his child, no matter how she”d treated me.
”Thanks, Aurora.” She set her backpack on her lap, clutching it.
”Do you want something to drink? A Coke, water?”
She shook her head. ”I”m good, thanks.”
She wasn”t looking at me, and I felt bad for her. She looked so forlorn and sad. ”How are you doing, Sophia?”
She looked up then, and I saw her eyes were wet. ”Daddy doesn”t know I”m here. I…he said that he”d talk to you and then set it up, but…I felt like I had to do this on my own.”
I couldn”t stand it and walked around my desk to sit next to her. I put an arm around her shoulder. ”Hey, what”s wrong?”
She looked at me. ”I”m so sorry. I was such a bitch to you. It”s been eating at me. I hate that I broke you and Daddy up.”
”Honey, you”re not responsible for the breakup of our relationship,” I immediately said.
She gave me a watery smile, her eyes clearing a little. ”Daddy says the same thing. He says he messed up.”
”It takes two people to mess up in a relationship.”
”I”m sorry, Aurora, for saying the things I did, for lying to my father about you. It was a horrible thing to do. I know you can never forgive me, but I wanted—”
Oh god, I couldn”t let a kid carry such guilt.
”Honey, I do forgive you. Don”t even think about it. It”s in the past, it”s done.”
Her eyes filled again. ”Why are you being so nice to me when I was so mean to you?”
I sighed and pulled her into a sideways hug. ”Oh, baby, you”re a child, and there are no mistakes that you can”t walk away from.” I wiped her tears. ”It”s alright. It really is. I”ve let it go.”
”My therapist said I should tell you why I did what I did. Would you like to know?”
I didn”t because I could guess, but it appeared like she wanted to explain, so I assented.
”First, this is my fault and no one else”s,” she began. ”I did the wrong thing no matter why. This is an explanation and not an excuse.”
I smiled. She had a good therapist.
I pulled away from her, and she sat straighter.
”My mother has never been happy about the divorce. My father was so happy after the divorce…well, he was when you were there. He hasn”t been happy since.”
I didn”t need to hear that, especially since he was dating again. Maybe Sophia didn”t know, and he”d tell her when he was ready.
”I was under a lot of pressure to bring my parents back together, and I caved. I was weak and—”
”No, you weren”t,” I interrupted. ”You”re a child, and like I said, we all make mistakes, and we learn from them. Don”t belittle yourself.”
Her mouth trembled. ”Now I feel even worse. You”re so nice, and I was such a bitch. My mother told me yesterday that I was weak, and that”s why I”d told Daddy everything.”
Telling her that her mother was a royal bitch wasn”t going to help. ”You”re not weak,” I repeated. ”The fact that you”re here, talking to me, tells me you”re very strong. It takes courage to admit our mistakes.”
She sniffled.
”I wanted to ask if you and Daddy can get back together,” she paused and smiled, ”but, as he has told me several times, and as you just did, I”m not responsible for your relationship with him or his with my mother.”
I smiled back. ”He”s absolutely right.”
”Do you really forgive me? I did a very bad thing.”
”It”s already forgotten. Don”t carry it with you.”
”Did you love Daddy?”
That killed! Damn it. ”I did.” I do, I always will.
”But not anymore?”
”Didn”t your father tell you that you”re not responsible for his relationships with other people?” I cajoled.
She nodded. ”He did. I”m so sorry, Aurora.”
”And that”s the last time you say that to me. Okay?”
”Okay.”
”Now, do you want some hot chocolate? I know it”s summer, but we have a bakery next door that makes the best.” I looked at my watch and saw I had ten minutes before Callum arrived. Well, he”d just have to wait. I”d tell Nova. Right now, this child was in crisis, and I wanted to be there for her.
Damn it! I”d have to tell Gabriel about this visit. I”d blocked him on my phone, and I was glad I did because that meant I didn”t wait for him to reach out to me.
I dreaded talking to him, but I was also excited that I”d be able to.
”That would be great.” Sophia got up and picked up her backpack.
”Come on, kiddo.”
I picked up my wallet and let Nova know that I might be late for my meeting with Callum and took Gabriel”s daughter for hot chocolate.