Page 117 of Finding Fate
Why the man doesn’t just call my cell I’ll never know. It’s like he wants to verify I’m still sitting at his old desk in a company he still financially benefits from. I press the button and pick up the phone. “Patéras.”
“Yiós.”
“Are you well?”
“I have that information you wanted.”
Never will be a man of many words. “I could have gotten it from her father. We still have business ties, and his granddaughter.”
“The only thing that proves she’s his granddaughter is the gracious monthly inheritance payment he deposits into a trust she doesn’t know about. She hasn’t wanted anything to do with them in years. I’d rather you save your pride. We both know you’re still in love with her.”
I release a heavy breath. “If I didn’t still love her, I would have never loved her at all. Sostós?”
“Ypothéto.”
“I’m not doing this for me. I’m doing it for Gabrielle.”
He laughs. “And you think she’s going to welcome her back with open arms? A Thanos. Eísai anóitos.”
“A fool is not the man who is wrong, but the man who never tries to make it right.”
His aggravation comes across the phone. “For such a smart man, sometimes you can be so stupid. If she gave a damn, she’d have shown up by now. Move on already.”
“You don’t believe in divorce and getting remarried. It would embarrass you.”
“Min me sevasteíte! I raised you a Greek American. Sometimes we are forced to adapt when we aren’t at fault for the outcome. I don’t support a fifteen-year-old giving birth, yet I raised my great grandson for six years while I hid it from my granddaughter, so don’t tell me what I do and don’t believe in. She stepped out on you and then she left her husband and child to go have a bastard baby. You don’t have to love a woman at first to marry her.”
I stay silent. We will never agree where Gabrielle’s mother is concerned. I cannot just turn off my love for her all because she threw our vows away any more than I could prevent falling in love with her had I known ahead of time that this would be the outcome.
I grab a pen and hold the point over the clean sheet of paper. “It was never my intent to disrespect you. I will consider all discussed. I’m ready for the number.”
I write it down as he calls it out three digits at a time, my jaw clenching when I recognize the area code. I quickly key it into my computer and sit back when the city pops up. That fucking cunt. “I suppose you’ve figured out she’s been right under your nose. Several years now, as a matter of fact. Wonder how long she’s been back in the States, let alone the same state as you and her own daughter. Consider that before you make a fool of yourself. Oh, before I forget, the Greek Orthodox Church is available in June and September. Since we don’t want everyone we know to watch a pregnant bride get married, I booked September. Let my granddaughter know I’ll be expecting her call.”
The line goes dead. I replace the handheld back on the receiver and pick up my cell phone, already inputting the number. I place it to my ear with the first ring. It continues, one after the other, with no answer. I pull the phone away from my ear to hang up when I hear a voice through the earpiece. “Hello?” I draw the phone back at the sound of her voice. Loud music is blaring. “Anastacia Calista Thanos, turn that music down now! I’ve already told you twice.”
All of the blood drains from my brain and crashes in my feet. I jerk at my tie. It feels like it’s cutting into my airway. “It’s Ana, mother! For the love of God, call me Ana!”
A door slams, making my hand twitch. If Gabrielle acted like that, she wouldn’t see the light of day for a week. “Hello? Can I help you?”
My heart is pounding and my head is throbbing. The room is spinning. Christ, I feel like I’m having a heart attack. I can’t stop my thoughts. “It was mine?”
The line goes quiet except for the background noise. “Adonis? How did you get this number?”
Her voice makes my chest ache, and that makes me angry. I stand, walking to the window that overlooks Downtown. “Did you expect me to stay silent forever, Mary Elizabeth? You are my wife. You made sure of that every time you sent the papers back unsigned.”
“I still love you. I made a mistake. I let someone in my head and believed them. I thought you stepped out on me first.”
“You thought wrong. You also have a funny way of showing it. I chose to forgive you.”
“You gave me an ultimatum I couldn’t live with. I knew there was a bigger possibility it was yours.”
“Another girl?”
“Yes.”
“You gave her a Greek name.”
“You said all of your children would have them. I respected your wishes.”