I couldn’t look at my mom, her disappointment was the last thing I needed right now.
“I’m sorry,” I found myself murmuring. A gentle hand on my arm brought my gaze around to my mom’s. Surprisingly, her look wasn’t one of admonishment.
“I don’t think I’m the one you should be apologizing to.” I wrapped my mom in my arms. I might be a man, but every man needs a hug from his mom now and again, and right now I needed it like I needed to breathe.
“I tried, she wouldn’t listen. It’s too late.”
“You should never give up on the important things, Decker, the things you can’t live without are worth fighting for.” Mom began pulling bacon and eggs out of the fridge. “Are you familiar with the concept of groveling?”
I chuckled at her question. “I should be, I’ve watched Dad do it often enough.”
“He has perfected the art. You carry his genes, so it shouldn’t be a problem for you either. Both your brothers are pretty good at it too.” Mom poured me a glass of milk.
“So, I should buy her flowers or something.” Mom snorted. She damn well snorted at me!
“Please, Decker, nothing says I-can’t-be-bothered-trying like a bunch of flowers and a half-assed apology.” The sound of popping oil filled the kitchen as Mom began frying bacon. I thought about what I could possibly do or say to Andi that might make her see how sorry I truly was for hurting her and breaking what we had only started building.
“I could get a billboard in Times Square and put, ‘sorry, please forgive me’ on it.”
Mom actually rolled her eyes at me. “Seriously, Decker? That’s just cheesy.”
“Maybe I can go around to all the bookstores and buy any book with ‘sorry’ in its title?”
“That’s not bad, but I think you can do better.” Mom flipped the eggs, only allowing them to seal over before sliding them onto a plate and adding the bacon. She placed the food in front of me with a knife and a fork. “Does she have any dreams or fantasies?” My grin became instantly wicked. “I mean of the non-sexual variety!” she added, hitting me over the head.
I shrugged and dug into the food. Damn, how long had it been since I ate? My stomach growled with appreciation.
“Her favorite book is Alice in Wonderland. When she was a little girl, she said she always wanted to disappear down a rabbit hole into fairytale universe.” As soon as the words left my mouth an idea began to form.
“There you go,” mom whispered, no doubt noticing the light enter my eyes. “I know she’s a special girl, Decker, she deserves to be treated like one. Your father managed to keep me completely wrapped up in his heart because he never stopped for one moment trying to show me how much he loves me. To be honest, he doesn’t need to show me, I know he loves me, but women like to see, we like to feel. It’s nice to know you are the center of someone’s universe, and in return, he’ll always be the center of mine.”
I kissed my mom on the forehead. “Thank you, Mom.”
I had work to do, a girl to win back, and a universe that had barely begun to take shape that needed to be built. And if Andi could find even a spark of love in her heart for me, I would put her smack bang in the center of that universe for the rest of my life.
Chapter 23
ANDI
“Stop fiddling with it.”
My hand was pushed away by the brute force of one boutique owner on a mission. I stood in front of my mirror as Bella fussed over my dress, a dress that I had no idea why I was wearing. It was beautiful, like something out of a fairytale. It was strapless in a soft willowy chiffon that hung to the floor. It had an empire waist with a fitted bodice filled with encrusted crystals in a soft pink that bordered on being a blushed flesh color; it was simply beautiful. My hair had been lifted into an elegant bun, showing off the gentle arch of my neck. My makeup was minimal, a splash of ‘fairy dust’, as Casey put it, on my chest. I didn’t look like me at all, I looked like a princess. I slipped my colorful cast behind my back, it kind of ruined the look, and glanced nervously at Bradley.
“When are you getting dressed?”
His smile was devious. “I’m not.”
Bella stepped away from me, Vanessa stopped fiddling with my hair, and Casey took another damn picture.
“What do you mean you’re not? I’m not going anywhere with you dressed like that. I’ll look like a fool.”
Bradley shook his head. “Don’t be daft, I’d be the one who’d looked like a fool, daring to step out with a woman as beautiful as you.”
Casey appeared before me and sprayed something in the air. “Step through,” he ordered with a flick of his wrist.