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“Have you ever tried to contact her?”
Miles shakes his head. “Edward made it very clear I was never to contact her, and if he found out, my life might as well be over. Like I said, I was young and arrogant. If it didn’t happen, it didn’t happen. I wasn’t going to compete with a man who could crush everything I’d worked so hard for.”
“Do you still love her?” I ask, but it’s faint.
Miles glances toward the glass of chardonnay, skimming his fingers along the rim of the glass.
“Some things you can’t change no matter how hard you try.”
The waitress serves our food which warrants a change of topic.
We spoke for hours. He asked me questions about my life, my work, and friends back home. I learned so much about him and my brothers, still shocked I have an Australian father.
We laughed, having a similar sense of humor which made it easy to converse. Spending time with him is effortless. I could have listened for several more hours if it weren’t for the restaurant staff sweeping the floors around us, warning it was almost closing time.
“This isn’t goodbye, Gabriella,” he tells me outside on the pavement. “I’m glad you have found me. I really hope we can be a part of each other’s lives.”
I throw my arms around his waist, pulling him in for a tight hug. His arms feel like shields of love—his protection and warmth filling the void that has consumed me my entire life.
I don’t want to let go, the tears shimmering in my eyes at the thought of never seeing him again.
Miles buries my head in his chest, stroking my hair as he plants a kiss on the top of my forehead.
“Hey,” he whispers. “It’ll be all right. We’re family now. You’re not alone.”
The heavy sobs gurgle up in my throat, the typhoon of emotions bearing down in this one embrace. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Anything, Gabriella.”
I pull myself away, creating a distance as I look into his eyes. “Can I call you Dad?”
His beaming smile is enough to wash away any doubts I had about meeting him.
“It would be my honor.”
We say our goodbyes, agreeing to meet for breakfast the morning before I leave for the States.
Back at the hotel, I knock on Lana and Sebastian’s door. Sebastian is still out with some friends while Ace is sleeping peacefully in the middle of their king-size bed.
“So, it went well?” Lana yawned, sitting at the edge of the bed with her legs crossed beneath her.
“He was everything I could have asked the universe for in a father,” I whisper contently.
Lana leans her head on my shoulder. “I told you it would work out. How can anyone not love you?”
I linger beside her until my eyes weigh heavy with exhaustion. “I’m going to go to bed. Tomorrow night for dinner?”
“Yes, it’s fancy. Some restaurant which revolves around a tower. Sebastian booked our table, so we’ll meet in the lobby at six.”
“It’s a date.”
For the first time in a long time, I wake up in a delightful mood. It’s almost as if a piece of me has returned, and boy, have I missed her.
The tension of meeting Miles has disappeared. I’m optimistic things will be great between us and look forward to meeting my new family.
The bed in the hotel feels like a giant cloud, so soft and inviting, making my sleep completely dreamless, giving me the much-needed rest my body craved.
After a healthy breakfast, I shower and change into a navy dress I bought in Venice Beach. It’s kind of quirky, nothing like the stiff wardrobe my mother used to make me wear. The dress has a lapel neck with the hem sitting mid-thigh. Around my waist sits a thin camel-colored woven belt. But that isn’t the best part—it has cats all over it—small white cats. I love it so much I bought the same dress with pineapples.
