And what the heck was he going to say to Arie when he showed up with his ex?
At the thought his solitary grumbling started again but, as they’d done throughout the whole journey, the two women just ignored him.
When they got to the house Rome went around to the passenger door to help his mother out. That taken care of, he leaned down to give Daniela his hand. She took it but then she refused to let go. As she rose from the car she stumbled against him then clung to his arm as she steadied herself.
“Are you all right?” he asked, making sure she was standing on her own before he began prying her fingers loose.
“I’m all right now,” she breathed, leaning against him then sliding her hand down his arm before moving away. The way she was behaving, anyone looking on would think they were still involved. What kind of game was this woman playing?
He turned away from her, intent on getting as far out of her reach as possible, but it was too late. He glanced up just in time to see Arie at the front door. On her face was a look that told him she’d seen everything.
Realizing he had to do damage control Rome strode toward the house but Arie didn’t wait for him to get to her. Looking stricken, she turned swiftly and disappeared into the house before he could get close.
“Rome, aren’t you going to wait for us?” Daniela called out.
Then she gave a mocking laugh that made Rome’s fists clench. He wanted to turn around and tell her exactly what he thought of her but now was not the time. He had to get to Arie so she would understand. Nothing was more important than Arie.
“Arie,” he yelled and then he was bounding up the steps, across the landing and through the open door. “Arie.” She was nowhere in sight. “Arie, where are you?” He knew she wasn’t familiar with the house. As far as he knew, since arriving she’d only seen the entry hall, the green room and the library. She would definitely not seek refuge in his father’s study. It had to be the green room.
When he got there he found her huddled in the corner of the sofa, her face in her hands. He hurried over to sit beside her then put his arms around her shoulders.
“Leave me alone,” she growled, her words muffled by her hands as she jerked her shoulders, trying to shrug him off.
But he wouldn’t let go. “Arie, it’s not what you think. I can explain.” It probably sounded lame but he didn’t know what else to say. All he could tell her was the truth. Hopefully, that would be enough.
“I love you, Arie. Only you. Please don’t ever doubt-”
“That’s Daniela, isn’t it?” Arie lifted her face and glared at him, her eyes glistening with tears. “Daniela, your ex-girlfriend. The one your family loves.”
“Where’d you get that from?”
“Oh, your father told me all about the beloved Daniela, the one who should be the one in your life right now.” Her frown deepened. “And he told me that you broke up with her only a year ago. Why didn’t you ever tell me that?” She drew in a trembling breath. “That was just months before we met, Rome. Months.”
“Which means absolutely nothing, as far as our relationship is concerned.” He reached for her hand, wanting to reassure her, but she snatched it away. Determined to make her understand, he pressed on. “When I met you my relationship with Daniela was already over. Dead and done. There was no-one in my life when I fell in love with you.”
She gave him a look of disbelief. “Are you sure it was love? Or did you just fall for me on the rebound? Under other circumstances, you probably wouldn’t even have given me the time of day.”
“Arie, listen to me.” He reached for her hand again and this time no matter how hard she pulled he wouldn’t let go. “I love you and there’s nothing in the world that can make me stop. When I fell in love with you it was real. When I asked you to marry me, I meant it. I want nothing more than to make you my wife.”
She bit her lip and kept her head down, refusing to look at him. Then she shook her head and when she spoke her voice was tinged with hurt. “And what about Daniela? Why didn’t you ever tell me about her?”
Rome drew in his breath then he shook his head. This was the part he’d been avoiding all this time. It was an embarrassment but he had run away from it long enough. It was time to get it out in the open. It was only fair.
He gave Arie’s fingers a squeeze. “Yes, Daniela and I were in a relationship before I met you. But it wasn’t real, Arie. At least, not to me.”
Not surprisingly, she gave him a look of confusion. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
He let her go then got to his feet and shoved his hands deep inside his pockets. He was not proud of how he’d handled his love life before he met Arie. His back to her, he began to speak in a low voice. “Daniela and I were together because of our parents.”
“Come again?”
He didn’t turn around at her question but she had every right to ask it. They were in the twenty-first century, for Christ’s sake. These days, who went into relationships for the sake of their parents? It was past embarrassing. It was pathetic.
“Daniela and I have known each other since we were kids. Our parents are old friends. Business associates, too. Ever since we were kids they kept saying that Daniela and I should marry, that it would be the perfect partnership. We’d end up with a multi-billionaire dollar conglomerate.”
“An arranged marriage?” Arie’s voice was faint with obvious disbelief, and how could he blame her? He wouldn’t believe it himself if he weren’t the one caught in the middle of the whole fiasco.
“An arranged marriage of sorts,” he said on a grunt. “It wasn’t real. It was nothing formal. It was just that Daniela and I knew that was what our families wanted and we never even questioned it. We just sort of…fell in line.”
“So…what happened? How did you end up…with me?”
He turned around then and looked down at Arie, at her face so earnest, her eyes almost pleading. “Daniela got tired of the farce. She broke up with me, said she’d fallen in love with someone else. Thank God she did. It brought a close to something that should have ended ages before.”
“So you don’t love her anymore?” Arie’s eyes searched his face like she wasn’t quite believing what she was hearing.