Mr. Imperfect

chapter 54



“I like this candidate,” her mom once they were seated at the restaurant. To Rori’s surprise, her mom had taken great care as she looked over Anton’s profile. She’d spent the entire car ride over scouring the file and even brought the paperwork to the table, which was a rare move.

“He has potential,” Rori agreed.

As manners dictated, they were all speaking English now, since it was rude or made one appear ignorant to speak anything other than the host country’s language in public. If they were going to talk about her personal life in public, however, Rori rather wished they could do it in a language no one else would understand.

“Above reproach, I would think,” her mom said matter-of-factly. “And look at that body—that face. He will make handsome children.”

“Yes, he would” Rori agreed, but her mind wasn’t on Anton as she spoke.

“Mid-forties is a good age for a man,” her mom continued. “A man that age has already made most of his mistakes on other women, which makes for a less bumpy ride. Plus, he has no existing children, which means no headaches with exes or competing heirs. When does he arrive?”

“Tomorrow. About two hours before the event.”

“Excellent,” her mother said, picking up her menu. Rori did the same, noting that her step-father was watching her with a rather guarded expression.

“You seem a bit out of sorts tonight, Aurora,” he said. “Is everything okay?”

“Of course,” Rori said quickly. Maybe too quickly. “Just a lot on my mind.”

“And I’m sure your father didn’t help matters by showing up with his most recent trophy,” her mother noted.

“Yes,” Rori said. “I hadn’t been expecting that.”

“And he’s already gone?” Jean asked. “He won’t be at the event tomorrow?”

“Not unless he flies back from L.A,” her mom said with satisfaction. “Rori’s current amour is good for something, at least.”

Rori didn’t miss the slightly accusatory look her mom sent her way at the reference to Mike. The snideness in her mother’s tones had Rori’s hackles on the rise.

“He is a friend, Mama. A talented filmmaker who is doing me a favor.”

“And also the model for one of the most central pieces of your exhibit?” her mother asked with feigned innocence.

Well, there was that, and Rori knew better than to imagine her mom would miss the heart behind the art.

Her mom tapped the folder with a finger. “This is not a time to be confusing yourself, Rori. Men like Anton won’t be on the market for long. You need to snatch him up while you can.”

Again, she thought of Mike as her mother spoke.

“Don’t let a recreational relationship get in the way of a real future.”

“Now, honey, let’s not lecture the girl to death, shall we?” her step-father said as their server stepped to the table, and Rori was happy to have them distracted by the wine list.

Her mom was right about Anton. In her mind, Rori knew that. So why couldn’t she just say the words she knew her mom wanted to hear? That she would be signing the contract and taking things to the next level with Anton starting tomorrow. He really was a catch. No question about that. It could take years to find a man of the same caliber, and by then Rori could already have started the family she wanted with a perfectly acceptable man. Anton.

So why did the thought of marrying him hit her like a wave of cold water. Okay, maybe figuring out why wasn’t such the hard thing to figure out as how she could make the feeling go away. A week on a secluded island with Mike might just do the trick. They could just get all the sex out of the way and then she could move on. Her skin tingled at the thought, her breaths grew more shallow. Then she thought of doing the same with Anton and her body went immediately cold.

Yeah, Rori was definitely in trouble.