Chapter 5 Rafael
RAFAEL
Around three that afternoon, Rafael let himself into the hotel room.
He’d been out for most of the day with Stone, Nico, and Trey, having a tame bachelor party.
They’d had lunch in town and then rented snowshoes for a hike through the woods.
The afternoon had ended with expensive scotch and stinky cigars.
His muscles slightly fatigued from exercise and his mind calm from the quiet of the woods, he shrugged out of his jacket.
Where was his bride? The suite was quiet. Too quiet.
Something was wrong. A darkness hung in the air, like the interior of a funeral home.
The hair at the back of his neck stood up as he called out to Lisa.
There was no answer. Glancing around, everything looked the same as when he’d left.
The door to the other bedroom where the wedding gown and the bridesmaid dresses were hidden remained closed.
The bathroom door was also closed. Even if Lisa were in the shower, she usually kept the door slightly ajar.
He crossed the room and tapped on the door. “Lisa, are you in there?”
“Yes.” The sound of splashing water told him she was in the tub. That was a bad sign. She only took baths when she was upset. What had her mother done? “Come on in.” Her voice sounded muffled and strange. Was she crying?
He opened the door a few inches. Thick steam shrouded his view, but he made out the outline of Lisa sitting in the middle of the tub. Her face was buried in her drawn-up knees.
He shut the door to keep the warmth in the room and crossed over to her. “Sweetheart, what’s the matter?” He knelt next to the tub as she lifted her face to him.
Puffy red eyes peered at him. “My parents are getting a divorce.”
He rocked back on his heels and then plopped hard onto the floor. “What?”
“Yes. They told David and me this morning.”
“The day before your wedding?”
She nodded. “Good timing, right?”
“I’d say.” His mind had gone from calm to enraged in a matter of seconds. What was wrong with these people? Couldn’t it wait until after she returned from the honeymoon? It was as if they wanted her to be as unhappy as they were.
“It’s my dad. He wants out.” She went on to tell him they’d been in counseling and that her father realized he’d been miserable for years.
“You won’t believe what Mom told me today.
She said they got married because she was pregnant.
It’s like everything was a lie. My whole childhood.
” She started crying again, speaking through her tears.
“I kept it together until after Mom left.”
“She was here?” He knew it.
“Yes. She threatened to leave before the wedding, but I talked her out of it. I was calm when she was here, like I was channeling someone else. But the minute she left, everything just crashed in on me.”
He was sweating under his ski pants and sweater in the warmth of the bathroom. Peeling them off, he uncharacteristically tossed them aside without a thought of hanging them in the closet.
When he’d discarded his underclothes, he climbed in behind her and encircled her with his arms and legs. “Everything’s going to be all right. Maybe they’ll both be happier.”
She nodded into her hands. He felt her relax against him.
“I hope so. I’m not sure my dad could be more miserable than he’s been, but she seemed content.
At least, that’s what I thought. Apparently she had to give up studying art in Paris when she got pregnant.
I had no idea.” She paused for a moment, quiet.
Her back moved up and down as she breathed.
One of her relaxation techniques was to breathe slowly in and out.
She’d learned it from the trauma therapist after witnessing a mass shooting.
She rested the back of her head against his chest. “I’m afraid, Rafael. What if we end up like them? Hating each other?”
“That’s not going to happen. We’re marrying for the right reasons.”
“Because we don’t want to live without each other?”
“That’s not really a question.” He caressed her upper arms with his thumbs. “Baby, you’re my soul mate and best friend. We’re nothing like your parents.”
“But maybe my family has the marriage curse, too. Look at what happened to David.”
“The truth is—statistically fifty percent of marriages don’t make it. There are probably a lot of different reasons for that, including being ill-suited, like your parents. If you have to give up who you are to please the other person, then it’s not right.”
“You think that’s what happened with my dad?”
“Seems that way to me. He doesn’t seem present. Like he checked out a long time ago. Her personality is so strong, there was no room for him.”
“He wants to come out to California to be close to David and me. He told us that in front of Mom.”
“Talk about salt on the wound,” Rafael said. He almost felt sorry for Mrs. Perry. Almost. Until he remembered all the ways she’d hurt Lisa over the years.
“She acted like it was a contest and they’d chosen me over her. It was bizarre. She spewed all these hateful things at me. Awful predictions about my life. She said eventually you’ll leave me. I’ll be a has-been by then, and the kids will all have grown up and moved away. I’ll be left all alone.”
“Sweetheart, that’s like the classic case of projection. You are not your mother.”
She twisted her neck to look up at him. “Promise me we’ll get help if we ever need to. Before it’s too late.”
“I promise.”
“I wish we were home and this whole thing was over.”
“The wedding?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she said softly. “Not the marrying you part but having to deal with my parents. Maybe I should’ve let her leave. I mean, how awkward will the rest of the weekend be for all of us?”
His sweet girl. How dare her parents ruin this weekend for her? This was supposed to be one of the happiest events of her life. With their selfish behavior, they’d succeeded in ruining it for her. He’d like to shake them both silly.
“It’ll be okay, baby. Maggie and Pepper and I will make sure.
” He tightened his grip around her and kissed the top of her wet head.
“I want you to put all this aside and focus on what we’re really doing here—declaring our love and commitment to each other in a church under God.
Your parents’ lives have nothing to do with us.
We’re going to get married and then go on an amazing honeymoon. ”
“And then we’ll come home and spend the rest of our lives together.”
“That’s right. You and me forever.”
“I have something to tell you.” Her voice lowered into the apologetic tone she so often had around her mother. “I might have offered to pay for Mom to go to Europe for a year. Or two. I told her I’d rent her an apartment in Paris. I should’ve asked you first.”
“Why would you need to ask me?”
“Because it’s our money now. You should have a right to weigh in on how we spend it.”
“That’s sweet of you. Going forward, we should always talk about financial decisions. However, in this case, whatever it takes to get your mother out of the country is just fine with me.”
She giggled. “That’s terrible.”
“I know it is. But she hurts you, and I can’t stand it.”
“You’re my hero, you know that?”
“You don’t need one, but I’m happy to pretend.” He lowered his mouth to her shoulder and smiled against her silky skin.
“What did I do before you came to me?” Lisa asked.
“I can’t remember before you. And I don’t want to.” He kissed her neck. “Now, you have to get out of this tub. We have a rehearsal at the church to get to.”
She swiveled around to face him, then kissed his mouth with her velvety lips. “Do we have to? I’d rather stay here and make out.”
He laughed as she straddled him and splayed her hands through his hair. “I’ll make you a deal. The minute we’re back here tonight, you’re on.”
“You’ve got yourself a date, Rafael Soto.” She smiled as she placed her hands on his chest. “Thank you for always being here for me.”
“For better or worse, until death do us part.”
Rafael hustled Lisa out of the cold and into the lobby of the lodge. They’d just come from the rehearsal at the church. The rest of their party had already arrived, but Rafael and Lisa had stayed behind to discuss a few details with Pastor Jordan.
“Do I look okay?” she asked as they walked toward the bar and restaurant.
After getting out of the tub, Lisa had fretted about her puffy red eyes.
He’d fixed a cold compress by wrapping a hand towel around a pile of ice.
She’d pressed it to her eyes for fifteen minutes before fixing her hair and makeup.
The compress had worked. Lisa glowed, even if it was from the outside in, instead of the other way around.
“You look perfect, albeit something’s missing.” He stopped her in front of the fireplace. “I have the perfect remedy for you.” He pulled out the velvet pouch he’d stashed in his trouser pocket. “This is your wedding gift from me.”
She pulled open the pouch, and the delicate sapphire necklace he’d picked especially for his gorgeous bride spilled into her hand. Under the lights, the tiny stones sparkled. “Rafael, it’s…it’s so pretty.”
“The stones match your eyes,” he said. “There are fifty of them. One for every year we’re married.”
“Only fifty?” She looked up at him with raised eyebrows.
“If we live to be in our mideighties, I’ll get you a new one.”
She smiled. “We’re definitely living until our mideighties. Put it on me?” She turned around and lifted her fair hair from her bare shoulders.
“Do you remember the first time I helped you with a necklace?” he asked as he connected the ends and secured the fastener.
“How could I forget?”
“Your skin will always be the best thing I’ve ever felt.”
She turned, lifting her arms and wrapping them around his neck. “Will you still love me when I’m wrinkled and gray? When my skin’s no longer smooth?”