Chapter Twenty-Four
Sienna
After a rough night of non-sleep, I decided to go to work on Friday with a new outlook on life. My days of getting into Parker’s business were over. If he was going to make the biggest mistake of his life by marrying a gold-digging cheater, then that was his problem. Not mine.
It was no surprise to see a lack of texts or phone calls from him. He didn’t believe me, and that was his fault. I’d tried my best, and now we were going to go through the motions of this wedding a day from now.
When I arrived at Sunny’s, I wasn’t surprised to see Tony sitting on the back steps waiting for me. I got out of my car and strolled over to him with a big smile on my face.
“What’s in your mouth?” I asked. He was chewing on something. I hoped he hadn’t switched to chewing tobacco. I was sure to give him shit about that, too.
Tony held a toothpick in his hand and flicked it as if it were a cigarette. “I was sick and tired of you yelling at me.”
“Aww,” I said and patted his cheek. “You really do care about living a full and happy life.”
“I dunno about happy; cigarettes made me happy.”
“Trust me, once your withdrawals are over, you will feel a million times better.”
Tony stood up. “Yeah, yeah. What I’m craving right now is a stack of flapjacks.”
“I can make that happen.” I preened at him. Him quitting had totally made my morning. And after the shit night I’d had, I needed a boost like this to get me through the day. I tried not to think about how hard it was going to be to get through tomorrow at Parker’s wedding. I shoved the thoughts away. I’d deal with that when it came up.
I unlocked the door and we went inside. I hung my bag from the hook by the door.
I shivered at the arctic temperature in the room. “Shit, did we leave the air conditioning on last night?”
Tony went into the dining area and checked the thermostat. “Yup.”
My head had been a mess after learning about Rachel cheating on Parker. I wondered what else I’d forgotten to do.
“I’m sure when we start cooking it will heat up in here,” he said.
I hoped so. It was warm outside, but not warm enough to warrant the chilly temperature in my restaurant.
“So, did you talk to Parker?” Tony asked, coming back into the kitchen.
I sighed. “I did.”
“And?”’
“And he didn’t believe me.”
“What?”
“I know! He said I was being jealous and I was stooping to a low level by accusing her of cheating.”
“But you heard her friend,” Tony said.
“And he’s choosing to ignore it,” I said.
“I really find that hard to believe.”
“Do you? He’s been dating her for a year. If he hasn’t wised up to her lies by now, then he’s a lost cause.”
“You don’t really think that.”
“What else am I supposed to think?” I asked, starting to get annoyed. Not with Tony, but the situation as a whole.
“Are you sure you tried to convince him? He doesn’t seem that blind.”
“When it comes to Rachel, he is.”
Tony grabbed the large carton of eggs from the refrigerator and I took the thick package of bacon.
I headed over to my workstation. “Oh, and get this, he moved up the wedding to tomorrow.”
Tony cracked an egg a little too hard over the side of the large metal mixing bowl. “Are you serious?”
I nodded. “He said it was their idea, but I know it was hers. And conveniently it happened after I dropped by there.”
“Sienna, you have to try and stop this,” Tony said. “He’s making a huge mistake.”
“What else can I say?” I asked, turning to face him with my hand on my hip. “I told him what I heard, and he’s choosing to be an asshole about it.”
“Well, I don’t know if it’s that easy,” Tony said, attempting to be the voice of reason.
“If someone told me that my boyfriend was cheating on me, especially if it was Parker, I would at least investigate and not call him jealous.”
“It’s pretty obvious you are jealous.”
My jaw dropped. “No, I’m not!”
He gave me a look.
I let out a groan of frustration. “I’m done talking about this. Parker’s getting married tomorrow and I’m going to be his stupid best man, and then I’ll probably never see him again. And that’s that.”
I turned away from Tony and I could feel his eyes on my back. I chose to move on and not be egged on by him anymore.
Later that morning, my saving grace, the Lamontes, came in for breakfast. I handed over the reins to Tony and went into the dining area to greet them.
Kenneth was a slow mover this morning but I accompanied them to their table. He groaned when he sat down, pulled his handkerchief from his pocket, and hacked into it.
“Let me bring you some water with your coffee,” I said leaving them to retrieve the drinks.
When I returned, they thanked me.
“So what big plans are going on for you two today?”
Harriet smiled. “Not much, dear. We have a few doctor’s appointments.”
I stuck out my lower lip. “That doesn’t sound very fun.”
“We’re going to Bingo tonight,” Kenneth said then hacked into his handkerchief.
I slid the water closer to him and he nodded in thanks, taking a long swig of it before clearing his throat.
“Speaking of fun,” Harriet said. “Any fun wedding plans this weekend?”
“Actually, I’m attending a wedding.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful,” Harriet said, clasping her small, wrinkly hands together. “Whose?”
“Parker’s.”
Harriet’s thin eyebrows rose. “I thought that wasn’t for a little while?”
“He and his fiancée decided to do it sooner rather than later.”
Her shoulders dropped and she shook her head slowly. “I thought you’d have more time.”
“What do you mean?”
Harriet looked up at me with her soulful eyes. “It’s obvious you care for Parker.”
“He is my best friend,” I agreed.
She gave me a knowing smile. “Everyone but you two can see that it’s more than that. The love you two share deep down only comes once in a lifetime.” Harriet reached across the table and took Kenneth’s hand.
As much as I wanted to deny it, this was Harriet. She was the keenest older woman I’d ever met. Lying to her would be disrespectful. “I don’t want to lose him as a friend. I’d rather that than risk it.”
“Darling,” Kenneth said. “If Parker gets married to someone else, you’re going to lose him, anyway. You might as well go out throwing punches.”
I stared at him. He was absolutely right. My stomach churned with the thought of losing Parker for good. If I allowed this wedding to happen, I knew he’d be out of my life. I’d fought my way through my business but never my personal life. We were getting down to the wire, and I had a choice to make. Could I really do this? The only way to convince Parker to not get married was to tell him how I truly felt. The feelings that I kept locked away needed to be freed, no matter what the cost. I had nothing to lose since Parker had one foot out of the door of our relationship, anyway.
“I’m sorry,” I said to the Lamontes. “But I have to go.”
Harriet winked at me. “Good luck.”
I squeezed her arm then kissed Kenneth on the cheek. “Thank you.”
I pushed through the kitchen doors. “Tony, something just came up. I have to go.”
“Okay?” he said.
Before he could grill me, I grabbed my bag and keys and sprinted for the back door.
On the way home, I tried to think of what I was going to say to Parker. I only had one shot at this, and I needed to plan accordingly.
When I got home, the weight of the situation pressed on my body. What the hell did I think I was doing? Was I really going to try to break up a wedding? I knew deep down that Rachel was no good for Parker, but who was I to think I’d be the one for him? And who was I to say that he even thought of me that way? My confidence from Harriet started to fade. Then I did something I hadn’t done in years. I grabbed a pen and paper and started to write down my feelings. I knew I was going to burn the paper when I was done, like hell would I allow anyone to read it, but it helped organize my thoughts about Parker.
The more I wrote, the more tingles fluttered through me with the knowledge that I was going to put it all out there for him. I found myself reaching for more pieces of paper and writing until my hand cramped.
And when my doorbell rang, I nearly fell off the chair. I had zoned out my surroundings while I delved deeper into my thoughts about Parker.
“Coming!” I said and went over to the door.
I opened it and sucked in a breath when I saw Parker standing in my doorway.
“Hi,” I said, frozen to my spot.
“Hi,” he said and scratched his chin. “I went to the diner, but you weren’t there.”
“I’m here,” I said.
He chuckled. “Obviously. Can I come in?”
I muttered something and moved out of the way. He walked in and my palms started to sweat. Since when had I ever been nervous around Parker? I guessed admitting how I felt about him on paper had opened up something inside of me that I had buried for years.
“I want to talk to you about what you said,” he said.
I held up a hand. It was now or never. I didn’t want Parker to leave me angry again. I had to lay it all on the table and let him make the choice.
“Can I talk first?” I asked.
He nodded. “Sure.”
I took a steadying breath and glanced at the pieces of paper scattered across the counter.
“I don’t understand why you won’t believe me about Rachel—”
“Sienna—”
“Wait,” I said, “please let me get this out.”
He opened his hand to indicate me to continue. “Rachel aside. I think you deserve more. You deserve someone that appreciates you for who you are, and not how much money is in your bank account. You love to smile, laugh and joke around, and you should be with someone who loves that side of you. Someone who won’t put you down, but build you up. Someone you can come to in any situation and not worry about being judged.” I poured my heart out to Parker, and as much as I’d been nervous about it, the more I said, the better I felt. I was finally free.
“Where are you going with this?” he asked.
I took a steadying breath, willing the heat behind my eyes to subside. “That someone is me, Parker.”
His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. The steady rise and fall of his chest slowed. He blinked a few times.
I let out a laugh and took my own slow breath. “It’s news to me, too. But after a lot of thought, I want you to consider me. Instead of Rachel. I can—”
“Stop,” he said.
My lips pressed together. I was unable to read him.
“It’s too late, Sienna.”
“No, it’s not.”
He laughed sardonically. “Yes, it is. I’m getting married tomorrow.”
“To someone who doesn’t love you.”
“Rachel loves me. Everyone expresses it differently. Even you. You bottled up these emotions for who knows how long.”
He had me there. “Even if you don’t want me, you can’t marry her. She’s a liar and a cheater.”
“Yes, I can. And I’m going to.” He wiped a hand over his face. “Jesus, Sienna. I came over here to fix things with you. And you’ve made everything worse.”
“By telling you how I feel?”
“Yes,” he said.
“I don’t see it that way.”
“I have to go,” he said.
“Parker, wait. Just tell me if you feel the same way. If you do, then we can figure this out.”
I thought I saw a glimmer of a “yes” in his eyes. “I don’t,” he said firmly.
I inhaled sharply; I must have been mistaken about all of this. Wow, did I ever feel like a total ass. And the fact that he could be so callous with my feelings hurt even more.
“Maybe you shouldn’t come tomorrow,” he said and turned away from me. I watched him walk out the door and out of my life forever.