by Jess Bentley
“Not today, Rory. Not today, okay? Please!”
“Stop bothering your sister and go do something useful instead,” Rory’s mother said from behind her. Even today, she has to pick on me. Whereas otherwise, such comments made Rory frown, today she just grinned. She was in a happy place and nothing could destroy that.
As Rory went to sit in one corner, wearing the ridiculous dress, she pulled out the phone and checked her sales page again. T-shirt sales had been increasing steadily and she realized that she had plenty of money to live comfortably for the next few months. Rory smiled as she thought about how she was going to fulfill all the orders. This is a welcome challenge, she thought.
“What are you smiling about?” Lizzy asked her, visibly uncomfortable in the surroundings.
“Well…” Rory paused.
“Well what?”
“I finally sold a whole lot of T-shirts,” Rory excitedly whispered in her ear.
“Wow. Really?”
“Yes. See.” Rory showed her the phone.
“Oh my God, Rory! I’m thrilled. Finally, things are happening for you. Oh my God! This is so awesome.” Lizzy hugged Rory, but was careful enough not to spoil her hair or the dress—that one Rory was so worried about fitting into.
“Isn’t this the T-shirt Arsen wore at that gig?” Lizzy asked.
“Yes,” Rory replied sheepishly. She didn’t want to even think about Arsen, let alone say a kind word about him.
“That was nice of him, don’t you think?”
“Whatever, Lizzy, I don’t think he was knowingly doing me any favors. He probably didn’t even know what T-shirt he had on. You know how these rockstars are. They couldn’t tell you what day it was if you asked them.”
“But Arsen isn’t like that.”
“They’re all like that. They don’t seem like that, but they are. Have you not learned that lesson by now?” Rory was getting slightly irritated.
“Yes.” Lizzy blushed. “Still, I don’t think Arsen is like the others. I bet he wore that T-shirt purposely.”
Rory chose not to reply. Arsen Ford was out of her life for good and as for the T-shirts that she had sold because of him, she considered them a thank you for all the things she did for him and his band while they were in Montcove.
With Lizzy constantly busy typing into her phone, Rory decided to wait out the hours quietly without getting in anyone’s way. She sat in a corner, and when they were told to head out for the wedding ceremony she followed obediently and did as she was told.
“Finally, you look presentable,” her mother said, as she looked her elder daughter up and down. Rory knew that this was as close to a compliment as she was going to get.
“Thanks, Mother.”
“Now you know what to do, right? I don’t suppose you go to too many weddings on that island of yours.” Her mother raised a brow.
“Yes, Mother. I’ll just stand there quietly. You don’t have to worry about me ruining it.”
“Don’t be sarcastic. It’s all about Tara today and I want it to go as perfectly for her as possible.” Is it ever not about Tara? Rory wanted to ask.
“And Rory, Mr. Carroll’s son, who works in New York, is in town, so I invited him as well. He’s a good boy with a good job and I think you’ll like him.”
Here it comes. The unavoidable matchmaking.
“Mother. It’s okay. I can...”
“No, you can’t. It is high time you had a family of your own. Isn’t it embarrassing enough that your younger sister is getting married before you? People are beginning to ask questions.” Her mother had a dark look on her face. She’s nine minutes younger, Rory wanted to protest.
“You aren’t capable of finding the right man for yourself and that’s why even in my old age, I have to do all the work. All I ask is please be nice to that boy. Don’t make a fool of yourself and I will pray that it works out. You cannot be alone all your life. Are you gonna die a spinster? See what happened to your Aunt Melissa? The wretched woman died with nothing but cats surrounding her.”
Rory stood silently. If it were any other day her anger would’ve reached its peak, but not today. Just one more day and I will be back home.
Rory decided to go through the whole ceremony and the party as silently as possible. She had decided long before that she would stick to the shadows and not interact much with people. It wasn’t a difficult task to lie low considering how many people were invited to the event.
She put on a smile as Tara walked down the aisle, clapping as her new husband Paul kissed her. Rory even stood in the crowd of women when Tara threw the bouquet, but made no effort to catch it.
Just a wedding party to get through and you will be done with this. Just a little more time, she reminded herself as yet another relative of hers asked her about her own wedding plans. You don’t see these people ever. Doesn’t matter what they say or what they think.
Rory was content and she liked this feeling. She didn’t need a big wedding or the spotlight like her sister did to feel happy. Small things in life, like not worrying about the future and being able to fend for herself, were good enough for her.
Rory pulled out her phone and smiled. The sales were still increasing. She was so happy she could cry, but she did not want to spoil the amazing makeup job that Lizzy had done.
25
At the lavish party, Rory found a quiet corner to sit in. Her feet ached in the tall heels and she drank more champagne than she should have. As she watched her sister and her new husband in the middle of their first dance, she looked at their glowing faces and wondered if they were truly happy or whether this was all part of the show.
Her parents seemed the happiest they had ever been. Is marriage the road to eternal happiness? She hadn’t thought about her own wedding since she was a teen, but in that moment Rory wondered if there was a Prince Charming for her too somewhere.
Jeez. What’s wrong with me? Why am I thinking of love and romance? Rory knew that in her case, it would not be a grand wedding like this or a Disney love story like Tara’s. For her that kind of thing was not genuine. This tradition of inviting hundreds of people and spending tons of money to “celebrate love” was a facade. She’d rather get married in a small ceremony in her grandmother’s house.
But first I need a groom to get married, she smiled to herself. If there was a Mr. Right for her, she was going to wait for him. She wasn’t going to rush into anything and she wouldn’t let other people’s opinions mess with her head. Rory had been fooled by Arsen, but there was no chance in hell that she was going to make the same mistake again.
A random thought of Arsen appeared in her head. His voice, his touch, that smile. Goddammit, that smile. Damn, this champagne is making me think stupid things. Lizzy seemed confident that Arsen wasn’t like those other celebrities, but she was too naive. Arsen would marry Tanya Cox. They would have great celebrity babies and be a famous couple like Brad and Angelina.
What a fool I was to think that Arsen Ford would give a damn about me. Rory almost blamed herself as much as she blamed Arsen. Regret simmered inside her. She could not deny that Arsen had ignited something deep in her, something much more important than a sensation of desire. But she also knew that she would get over him soon enough. Or will I?
“You’re Rory, right?” A man’s voice startled her out of her thoughts.
“Yes. And you are?” She did not recognize the man.
“Tim Carroll. Mr. Carroll’s son. We’ve met a couple of times before, I think.”
“Yes. I believe so. Hi,” Rory replied, cursing her mother in her head.
“Your mother sent me to look around for you. She tells me that you have a house up in Montcove.”
“Yes I do,” Rory replied.
“Incredible. I hear it is quite the place to get some sun and sand. It was number three on Getaway Magazine’s top ten places for summer vacations. That must be something, huh?”
Rory noticed his good-boy haircut, his clean-shaven face, an
d the expensive suit he was wearing. His disarming smile, the black glasses he wore, and his timid gestures spoke of a home life. Mother was right—this guy looks like classic husband material.
“If it didn’t rain there every other day we’d probably see a lot of sun and hit the beach,” she replied nonchalantly, and for some reason it made him laugh. It wasn’t that funny.
“Well, in NYC, we don’t get much of anything really, except traffic and a lot of fast-talking people.”
“Big cities are not my thing,” she said dismissively.
“Oh yeah, me neither.”
“So you don’t like living in New York?”
“Oh yes, I do, it’s pretty nice,” he said.
He’s just agreeing with everything I’m saying. Rory thought. Perfect trait for a future husband.
“What do you do in Montcove, Rory?”
“I run a bookshop.”
“Wow! That’s so charming. Must be a lot of fun.”
“Not really. Not many people read books nowadays. What do you do, Tim?” She changed the topic as she picked up another glass of champagne from a passing tray. She thought Tim seemed like a nice enough guy, but he was awfully boring. Well, boring guys make the best husbands. No surprises, no drama, and no worries.
“I work in garbage disposal,” he said, and Rory almost spit out the champagne that was in her mouth, thinking of another similar conversation.
“I mean, I’m not a garbage man, but I work with a company that designs garbage trucks and provides innovative solutions for garbage disposal.” He was clearly rather proud of his position.
She was instantly transported her back to that afternoon in Martha’s bakery where Arsen Ford had pretended to be a garbage man. Instantly, the movie of that day started playing in her head, almost bringing a longing smile to her face. What a beautiful afternoon that was. Rory quickly reminded herself to stop thinking about Arsen and focused on Tim instead. Arsen was a mirage. Tim was real and he seemed like a nice guy too.
“I don’t suppose you have much of a garbage problem in Montcove?”
“Honestly, I wouldn’t know, Tim, but I know a woman there who could tell you a lot about it.” Rory thought of good old Martha and smiled.
“In fact,” she continued, “just the other day she was mentioning that she is facing problems disposing of the extra food that is left over at the end of the day in her bakery.”
“That’s not a problem at all,” he started, and Rory waited to see if he would propose the same solution Arsen had. “We have a machine designed especially for compressing food items in a hygienic way so that it can be disposed of effortlessly,” he said proudly.
Not the answer I was looking for, Tim, she thought to herself. Tim’s reply paled against Arsen’s idea of giving it out to the poor.
“I’d love to come down to Montcove. See your bookshop, get whatever sun I can get, and talk to this person maybe,” Tim said hesitantly. Everything about him was rigid. Rory could tell that he was looking for any reason to find commonalities with her.
“Sure.”
“How long are you in LA? Maybe we can grab a drink and dinner or maybe a movie sometime?”
“Fortunately, I leave tomorrow Tim.” She shut him down. “Maybe next time we’re both in LA.”
“Oh, that sucks.” He seemed disappointed.
A perfectly nice guy with a stable life wants to take me out and I am shutting him down? And then I sit here looking at all these couples at this party and feel bad for myself? What is wrong with me? Opportunity knocks at my door and I turn it away because he is nowhere close to my idea of a dream man.
Maybe I should be more practical. Maybe Mother is right. Maybe she knows it better than I do. I can’t die alone. I can’t be alone. It would be nice to have a family, kids, someone to share meals with. A man to cuddle with, watch movies with. How long will I have do everything by myself? I can’t rely on Lizzy to be my family forever.
Rory wanted to be cherished, to be loved by a man who was there for her every night. Someone who could be a part of her daily life. Arsen was never that man, but maybe Tim was.
The wedding vibe in the air was getting to her. Everyone was dressed beautifully, busy dancing with their partners. She was sitting in the corner by herself, till Tim walked in and sat by her side. It is nice to be needed by someone.
“I’ll give you my number, in case you do end up at Montcove. It’s not that far from here,” she said out loud without thinking. A smile came upon Tim’s face.
“That’d be lovely. I am here in LA for a bit. Maybe I’ll head over to Montcove too.”
Do you know what you’re doing, Rory? Do you really see yourself with Tim? Are you that desperate? When Tim mentioned that he would visit her she had no doubt that he really would. Suddenly the idea did not appeal to her. It felt as if both of them were trying too hard to make this happen.
I am not attracted to him. I barely know him and I am already leading him on? Rory had let her mother’s words mess up her head again. She knew she was leading Tim on out of desperation. On any other day, she wouldn’t have shown any interest in him whatsoever.
It is not fair to him or to me. We can’t force things to happen just because our parents think they should. Or just because that’s how things are supposed to be. I can’t lead a man on just because I am feeling lonely and desperate. Rory knew that she should excuse herself, but she didn’t know how. A sudden exit would be rude, and Tim was a nice enough guy who she didn’t want to be mean to.
Thankfully she didn’t have to worry about it as a man she had not seen for quite some time intervened, freeing her from the awkward situation she was in.
“I know you,” the baritone voice said. Rory stilled.
“Hello, I’m Tim. And you are?” Tim asked, offering his hand to the man who had interjected.
“He’s the garbage man,” The words slipped out of her mouth as her eyes grew big in surprise and rested upon the slight smile on Arsen Ford’s face. That old deep sense of joy in her heart was followed by confusion. What the hell are you doing here? she wanted to ask, but didn’t.
“Tim, I hope you don’t mind, but I’m gonna steal Rory from you,” Arsen said as he confidently escorted Rory out of the chair and led her by the small of her back. She followed without a word.
Arsen grabbed a couple of drinks and led her to a gazebo that was at the back of the property, placed strategically by the pond. Neither of them said a word, but they looked into each other’s eyes questioningly. Rory wondered if his questions were the same as hers.
“I’m sorry,” Arsen said after a long pause.
“For what? What have you done?” The words came out sharper than she had intended.
“I didn’t see you at the club. I didn’t even know about it till I reached my office today and my assistant showed me the TMZ article.”
Rory stayed silent.
“I realize that you also called our office a couple of times but sadly, no one bothered to give me the message.” Arsen paused in reflection, as if realizing that it all sounded like excuses.
“Don hasn’t been in town either and had I known…”
“Yes, Arsen. Had you known… what would you have done?” Rory’s alcohol-fueled voice lashed out.
“I would’ve come to you.”
“And left as soon as Tanya Cox came calling?” Rory knew that she was being borderline bitchy but she didn’t care.
“Rory, look at me.” Arsen walked toward her and held her by the arms. “There’s nothing between me and Tanya.”
He paused and Rory searched his eyes for the truth. Do I even care what he thinks? Should I even bother looking for the truth? Haven’t I already given up on him?
“Maybe Tanya wants certain things from me, but I am in no position to give any of that to her.” His voice was soft and honest.
“And why is that, Arsen?”
“Because… my heart lies with someone else.” He stared into her soul. Fuck. Don’t fall for
his words, Rory.
“How many times have you used that line since this morning?” Rory regretted saying that as soon as the words came out of her mouth.
Arsen just stared at her silently. The sounds of the party drifted in from somewhere far away.
“How did you even get here?” she asked.
“I wouldn’t have found you if it weren’t for Lizzy. I had to ask Mickey for her number—a favor that he won’t let me forget about anytime soon. I texted her in the morning and she was the one who helped me out. She’s a really nice girl.”
“If she’s so nice, then why didn’t you save her from Mickey?”
”I would have, had I known. As you know, I didn’t leave Montcove with them so I didn’t know she was on the plane. I don’t really socialize with Mickey and I didn’t see her till the day you saw us at the club. I didn’t think there was anything fishy going on as he was being pretty nice to her.”
Rory contemplated whether she should believe this man’s words. So far it all seemed to check out. It is not like he keeps a watch on Mickey 24/7.
“I don’t know, Arsen. The memories from Montcove still taste bitter and I’m not sure I can take all this anymore. I felt really hurt.”
“And if I could…” He stopped and looked away. “There are so many what-ifs.” He seemed exasperated with himself.
Rory’s gut feeling told her that Arsen was being truthful to her. They sat in silence as she gathered her thoughts. It would be unfair of me to blame him for what I have gone through. Neither can I blame him for what happened to Lizzy. And yet… we’re from two different worlds. Nothing can ever happen between us. We don’t belong together.
“Thank you for the apology, Arsen. It takes a big man to admit a mistake.” She tried to smile.
“I am glad that we got that out of the way,” he replied after a moment’s pause. “I was scared I lost you. I thought you might never speak to me again.” The tension that was present on his face a minute before dissipated.
“Arsen…”
“When do you get out of this place? Can we go somewhere quiet?”
