Flipping through the stack, my heart stops.
“What...?” I blink back tears, holding a divorce settlement dated this morning. A settlement Aiden gave Sheila for fifteen million dollars.
Holy crap. Aiden is loaded.
“Dad... Aiden isn’t... married?”
“I’m sorry, Alice,” my dad says. “I didn’t know the details. I let Peter...”
“We didn’t realize his intentions,” Mom adds.
“Intentions?” I look at her, so confused. “Why do you care? You have acted like Aiden doesn’t matter since the moment I mentioned him. Now you find out he is a millionaire and he is good enough for me? Good enough for you to come here and pretend like we have a relationship?”
Mom’s eyes fill with tears. “I’m sorry, Alice. I know I’ve made a mess of things.”
I snort. “You have spent the last year acting like I was an idiot. And now you have a change of heart? Why?”
“Aiden wrote us a letter.” My mom reaches for a paper in her purse and hands it to me. “A letter that changed everything.”
Dear Mr. And Mrs. Camry,As you can see from the contents of this envelope, I married Ms. Sheila Morgan two years ago. Immediately after which, I discovered her intention of taking my fortune. We entered a two-year legal battle, which I decided to end last night after the truth of my marriage was brought to light.
Yes, in technical terms I am married until this paperwork is filed-- but in my heart, it has been over since the day it began.
The settlement that includes one-third of my fortune is absurd--but what is even more outrageous is the idea that I might lose your daughter’s heart over money.
I love Alice with all that I am. I intend on marrying her, which is why I need to settle with Sheila now.
I ask not only for your daughter’s hand in marriage but also for the chance to get to know you. I know on the surface I may not appear to be the man you imagined for Alice. I am not Peter Gunheight in any way, shape, or form--nor do I want to be.
The only thing I want to be right now is your daughter’s husband. And I want her to be my bride.--AidenI cover my mouth with my hands, my tears dripping all over the letter.
“I need to see him. Talk to him.”
“You can’t let him give his ex the money,” my mom says. “You have to talk him out of it.”
I shake my head. “Mom, don’t you understand it was never about money for me? It was about love. True love. And I love Aiden.” I reach for my phone. When I turn it on I see I’ve missed his calls and texts.
There are a few voicemails. One from him and one--
“Dad, the symphony called.”
“Before you listen to the message,” Dad says. “I need to tell you something.”
My forehead creases, confused.
My dad looks uncomfortable, not a word that I ever use on him. “I want to talk about what happened after we played at the reception.”
Oh. Meaning when my dad hugged me like he loved me. Like he was proud of me.
“You did so well at the audition, and then yesterday, it was… a moment I’ll never forget.” He runs his hands through his hair, not meeting my eye, and when he does, I see there are tears in his.
“Dad, are you crying?”
He brushes his hand over his eyes and shakes his head. “I know I’ve been intense ... that I’ve pushed you. And I’m sorry, Alice if that has made you hate me.”
“I don’t hate you. I just sometimes wonder if you resent me. Resent me for still playing when you had to quit.”
Dad places a hand on my shoulder. “Alice, no one ever fought for me. For my dream. I never wanted that for you. After you girls were born, and my career as a cellist hadn’t taken off, and I knew there were bills to pay and a mortgage to cover, I knew I needed to step up and get a real job. No one suggested I keep at it until I made it big. No one told me I couldn’t quit.”
I nod, slowly, seeing my father clearly for the first time in my life. “And that’s why you keep pushing me. You don’t want the same thing to happen to me that happened to you.”
“I messed up, of course. And I’m sorry. But I hope you believe my intentions, at least, were good.”
His revelation rocks my world. I’ve spent so long been angry with him. Never once trying to understand him.
“You make sense to me, but I wish you and Mom wouldn’t be so controlling. I feel like I can’t breathe sometimes, Dad.”
“I know. But just like me, she has her reasons for being the person she is.”
I scrunch up my face. “She wants an in with the Gunheight family because they get tickets every year to New York Fashion Week.”