Adaline (The Wallflower Series Book 3) (17 page)

Immediately, she emphatically shook her head even though he couldn’t see her. “No, don’t ever think that! This was just a silly accident. What would ever make you say such a thing?”

“Because of the way we treated you, Adaline. Because of how adamant we were that you speak instead of using sign language, even when I knew how much it meant to your mother that you never feel less than. She wanted you to know that your lack of hearing gave you a community few are privy to. That it made you belong, just in a different way. I knew that. Victoria knew that. But we still did nothing.”

Adaline reached out so that she could wrap her hand gently around his. “I won’t lie that it was hard for me living here, and that I weirdly feel as if I have a foot in both worlds as a result of my upbringing. It is a blessing and a curse, I think. But I don’t want
you
to think that you never did anything for me, Uncle. You signed for me when Auntie wasn’t looking, and that meant more to me than you could ever know. You told me stories about my mom when I needed to hear them the most.”

He scoffed, “But I never told you the whole truth.”

She smiled slightly, “I figured as much actually. Even what I know today doesn’t always add up.” Adaline paused before adding, “Would you fill in the blanks? Like you said, you’re not on your deathbed.”

To her surprise, he laughed at her, “Yes, I did say that.”

She waited as he seemed to gather his thoughts.

“I didn’t want to tell you this when you were a child because I didn’t want to confuse you. It was difficult enough for you to lose both parents. But then to find out that...I know why Victoria treats you the way she does. It’s because I loved your mother first.”

“What do you mean? Y-you were with my mother first.”

Dean nodded his head slowly. “I met your mother several years before I ever set my eyes upon Victoria. Before Amaris met your father.”

“What happened?”

“Amaris entranced me; she was unlike any woman I had ever met or dated before. In fact, I would say she was my first real relationship. I was a cocky and spoilt, having never had to question my upbringing or my future because it was all set for me. We were so different, I never knew what she exactly saw in me, but she always said there was something genuine about me that she was drawn to. Heck, I was just happy to grab her attention. But being the arrogant son of a bitch I was, I fucked things up between us. I couldn’t fathom being that young and having found someone I could spend the rest of my life with. So I sabotaged it. And I lost her.”

“How did you end up with Aunt Victoria then?”

Dean sighed and shook his head, “I don’t want you to think me telling you this means I don’t love your aunt. I do. When I met Vicky, I had no idea she was at all related to Amaris. They were so different in appearance and attitude. When I found out, your mother was already in a strong relationship with your father. And I was preparing to pop the question to Victoria. There was a moment of doubt in my mind; I wondered whether I could get Amaris back, but I saw how happy she was. And I knew I could find my own happiness with Victoria. So I did.”

It wasn’t what Adaline expected to hear.

“When your mother and I finally got up the courage to tell Victoria, as you can surely imagine, she was not very happy about it. I think it made her very insecure about our relationship. The rivalry between them had been going on for years! Amaris was the rebel and the free-spirited younger sister, while Victoria had always been highly conscious of following the rules and pleasing her parents. To her, it always seemed as if Amaris got the better end of the deal. To add insult to injury, she had me first as well.”

“So she blamed me for this? Why is it my fault that my mother marched to the beat of her own drum?”

“It’s not. And you should never have suffered because of the dissolution of their relationship. I know Victoria cares for you. And I don’t want you to feel that you are not an equal part of this family. You are as much my daughter as Carla is, Adaline. It pains me to see how you’ve run from us.”

Immediately, Adaline reached out until she was laying partially on the king-sized bed. With his hands between her own, she gently placed her head onto his shoulders. She couldn’t help the tears that began to cloud her eyes.

“It was never my intent to hurt you.” She sniffled and shook her head as she admitted, “I didn’t think you’d really care that I was gone.”

He leaned into her embrace. “I missed you, sweetheart.”

When Adaline finally stepped out of the room to allow him to rest, Victoria and Carla in the kitchen greeted her. For a moment, she admired how much they mirrored one another. Just as Uncle Dean had attested to, Victoria and Amaris were so different in appearance; they couldn’t have ever been mistaken for sisters. While Adaline had inherited her mother’s dark and even skin, Victoria was only a few shades darker from Carla’s natural honey skin tone. Both of their facial features were sharp and delicate. Adaline had sometimes envied their beauty. Not because she couldn’t appreciate her own, but because it sometimes felt that the world around her couldn’t. But for them, admiration always came easy.

“How is he?” Victoria asked softly.

“He’ll be fine; he’s just resting.”

There was an awkward silence that hung between them as they all became subsumed within their worry over Dean but simultaneously aware of how little they had to say to one another. It became starkly apparent how little they knew one another now. In a span of a few months, they were suddenly different people than before. Strangers.

Seeming hesitant, Victoria asked, “How long will you be staying?”

“I only asked for a few days off from work so I can’t stay that long, unfortunately. But, I’m here to help out as much as I can while I am here.”

At her words, Carla snorted derisively. “
Now
you want to be here to help? When you’ve been so selfish these past months? My parents opened their home to you and look at how you repay them? The moment you got a chance to move out, you didn’t even bother giving them a second look back. You never even called.”

It seemed that the slight truce that had existed from their worry over Dean had officially passed. Adaline was flabbergasted by the hypocrisy in Carla’s words. Selfish? Carla had been catered to her entire life. While she was certainly grateful to Victoria and Dean for opening up their home after her parents’ unfortunate demise, did she owe them her hopes and dreams because of it? She had been under their wing for too long out of fear, and now that she had the courage to venture away she was being called ungrateful. Victoria’s silence at her daughter’s words was enough for Adaline to realize her agreement with the accusation. She felt her eye twitch at the irritation and disgust growing in her stomach at the sight of both of them.

Her only reason for coming back was lying in bed upstairs. And she felt torn as she faced the impetus for her hasty escape. She was tired of being looked down by these two women. Victoria may have cared for her at a certain level, but she never showed it. If anything, it seemed to Adaline that Victoria’s unresolved issues with Amaris drove the seemingly infallible dislike she had for her. Adaline didn’t understand it.

“You know what? I don’t get it, Aunt Victoria. You, on the other hand,” she pointed to Carla, “have never been anything else but a grotesquely hideous creature.” Adaline turned back to her aunt, ignoring the gasp of outrage from her cousin. “But, you…what do you have against me? I will never apologize for wanting to leave a place that constantly made me feel like an outsider. Why bother taking me in if you didn’t want me here? Huh, Auntie?

“Uncle Dean is the only reason I am here. I don’t need your judgment and frankly, I don’t give a shit because he is happy I’m here. I know how he was in love with my mother first before he ever met you. I know that makes you feel insecure about your relationship. But, hello! My mother is dead! You don’t have any competition anymore. So what do you want from me? What do you have against me!” Her accent had thickened considerably as her voice grew louder.

Adaline could no longer hold back the pain of rejection she continually felt at the hands of the only mother figure she had growing up. Tears sprang to her eyes despite her best efforts to keep them at bay. She felt her hands, balled into fists, shaking at the effort to control her inner turmoil. She didn’t want to be vulnerable in front of these women. She couldn’t afford to be.

Victoria looked upon her niece in confusion and shame. She let out a deep sigh as she replied simply, “Everything.”

Dominic didn’t know what to think as he looked upon the older man sitting behind the menacing oak desk. Just like the man, it was scarred but ruthless. Dominic could remember the very same furniture as a small child. He would look up at its brilliance with awe in his eyes and pride once his gaze would settle on his father behind it. That was whom he dreamt of becoming. But now…

He couldn’t help but to sigh wistfully at the memories of the past. The man before him was no longer an enigma of power, wealth, and dominance. Now, Dominic knew him to be just a man. And, as with all men, he had his flaws. At first his awareness that his childhood hero was not unflappable, that the invisible shield of armor he held around his person was not bulletproof, had created feelings of resentment and distrust. Now, that resentment was replaced with acceptance. Dominic had a deeper understanding of his father and was no longer clouded by feelings of inadequacy because of romanticized views of his father as an impenetrable force.

Consequently, Dominic was currently frustrated by the man’s lack of foresight. How could he not see that Dominic and Dmitri’s plan for the hotel resorts would be exponentially more profitable? Dmitri’s presentation on orchestrating more regionally relevant, go-to market strategies to international clientele were in hindsight pretty obvious according to the board members. It was as if they had completely forgotten Dominic’s presentation that had said the exact same thing their last meeting! But no, they had been so focused on the logistics of entering the international market they had never thought of carefully constructing a culturally sensitive marketing plan. Dominic blamed his father’s pigheaded resoluteness for such an oversight.

“You were right, son.”

At the four words, Dominic blinked but could not gather enough energy to respond. His mind was too overcome by those pleasant-sounding words. Had his staunchly proud father just admitted his fault?

Nikolai’s gaze strayed from the sight of his youngest son to the image of his family on his desk. There were several photos of his daughter Nadia and his beautiful wife, Natalia. In contrast, there were only a few of Dominic. And absolutely none of his oldest child, Dmitri. His attention turned to the memory of watching his two sons present to the board. There were still feelings of resentment between him and Dmitri, so he was appalled by the overwhelming pride he felt at seeing his son’s brilliance. Dmitri was supposed to be sitting in front of him, not Dominic. He had been preparing his oldest son to take over since he was young. Despite the dissolution of his first marriage, Nikolai never felt that Dmitri was not his heir. But in his rashness, Nikolai silently admitted, he had destroyed any hope of that coming to fruition. While he was equally proud of Dominic, he wondered how his desertion of Dmitri may have marred the legacy he came to the United States to create.

Every day Dmitri’s wife came closer to delivering his first grandchild, he wondered what he was gaining by holding onto his resentment. Could he continue this way and face the loss of love from his other two children? Before, he was able to hold onto his hate because he had not been alone. Nikolai knew Dominic and Dmitri had never been close, and he inwardly triumphed at how the family had turned their back on Dmitri. To Nikolai, it had been well deserved. But all of his self-righteousness came back to haunt him that fateful night Dmitri had brought his future wife into their home. Suddenly, he was the family’s enemy.

“The board has agreed to follow Dmitri’s plan. And you will be in charge of overseeing our new branches in the Caribbean. And pretty soon, you will be in charge of it all, Dominic. I am going to step down.”

“What do you mean?” Dominic couldn’t believe what he was hearing from his father. The man lived and breathed his business; it was his legacy.

“I mean…I trust you,” Nikolai replied simply. “I have held on for as long as I have, despite my health scares, because I couldn’t let go. I saw the other day that my fear of your incompetency was misjudged. You showed me that you have vision, and I’m hoping that by leaving you in charge of the new resorts set to be built, that you have drive and execution as well.”

He should be happy, Dominic thought to himself. This is what he had wanted for years! He had wanted proof that his father believed in him. Instead, all Dominic could consider was how Nikolai’s statements proved the very opposite. He
hadn’t
believed in him.

Dominic sat down on the now familiar bench, and his body immediately relaxed into the soft cushions. The sun was beating down on the town today, but he found refuge beneath the overcast of the trees surrounding him. Even as he closed his eyes however, the earlier events of the day continued to dance in his mind. A part of him knew he hadn’t come just to find relief from the humidity and sun. He knew that by being there, there was a chance of running into her again. And maybe she could take his mind off of his father’s words and his brother’s actions.

At the thought, tears sprung to his eyes but he quickly shoved them away. Dominic’s relationship with his father had never been on the best of terms. He was constantly compared to Dmitri’s masculine stoicism and instinctive ability to lead. In contrast, Dominic hadn’t been too academically oriented. As a child, he had been drawn to music and art. Such a skillset was considered fruitless in his father’s eye, however. He could easily recall instances of verbal harassment,

“I won’t allow my child to grow up to be some sort of sissy. Stop crying, damn you!” Nikolai screamed at the young boy in front of him.

At the sound of his tears, Natalia came racing into the room, “What’s going on? What did you do?” Her tone was accusatory once her gaze rested upon her husband.

“I have a legacy to create. There is no way I am allowing my son to go to some fucking art school when he needs to be pursuing business. How do you expect him to ever grow up if you keep coddling him, Natalia?”

“Coddling? He’s passionate about music. What is so wrong with that?” She didn’t back down from the glare her husband returned to her. Natalia took a step in front of her oldest son and placed her arms firmly on her hips.

“You don’t get it!” Nikolai exclaimed in frustration. “You’ll never understand how hard I worked to come to this country and make something of myself. Music isn’t going to ensure he has a future, that our grandchildren have futures. He needs to be thinking about his place within the company.”

“He’s in middle school, Nikolai. Should he really be thinking about that now?”

“Dmitri’s always thought about it!”

Dominic winced slightly at the sound of his older brother’s name. Dmitri and Nikolai were two peas in a pod. They mirrored each other so much it was sometimes hard for Dominic to believe he was related to either of them at all. They both had strong, dominant personalities, and while he seemed to always be looking up to them, they constantly looked down at him. Dominic couldn’t remember a single kind word he had ever received from Dmitri. And his father for that matter.

Dominic returned to reality at the feel of someone sitting down beside him. Thankfully, dark sunglasses covered his eyes so that the visitor couldn’t see the sorrow in their dark pools. Just as he was secretly hoping, Adaline sat next to him with a small smile upon her dark features. Her hair was in an Afro of sorts, blowing gently at the slight breeze in the air. He could smell the shampoo she used in it and inhaled deeply at the sweet scent.

Despite his mood, he was excited to show her some of the signs he had taken it upon himself to learn.
“Hello,”
he greeted her.

He could see a blush come to her cheeks despite the darkness of her skin, and that made his belly do somersaults. Dominic didn’t know what it was about her, but he found himself reacting to her in ways he never had with Carla. He attributed it to being a sort of big brother and ignored the small voice that denied this and whispered something else.

She greeted him in the same manner using her hands. “You know, you’re one of the only people I can talk to in ASL.”

Surprised by this, he questioned, “Doesn’t your family use sign language when they speak to you? I’ve never seen Carla use it, but I thought at least her mother and father were fluent.”

Adaline simply shrugged. Instead of answering his question, she looked intensely at the tension in his jaw as he spoke to her. While the feminine part of her appreciated how it accentuated his masculine bone structure, as a friend, she could tell that he was bothered by something. Adaline knew then that the sunglasses weren’t just an effort to shield away the rays of the sun, but to hide whatever it was he was feeling.

“Take your sunglasses off,” she replied instead.

Confused by the drastic turn in conversation, Dominic shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Not waiting for him to concede to her request, Adaline reached over and gently took off the lenses herself. The action forced her closer to him; their eyes connected almost immediately. Adaline had always loved the stark obsidian depths of his gaze. As she looked into them, there was the familiar butterflies in her stomach at his nearness and the effect of his eyes upon her. In that moment, she never felt more jealous of Carla than ever before. He was absolutely beautiful.

Dominic was frozen in time as her soft hands gently caressed his cheeks in order to remove the wall he had put up against the rest of the world. Because that’s exactly what it was, an attempt to hide his shame, self-doubt, and insecurities. He couldn’t help but silently laugh at the way things had seemingly flipped between them in one moment. When he had first encountered Adaline, it was in an attempt to make her feel better and solve her pain. Now, she was doing the same for him.

Reluctantly, Adaline returned to her former position, recreating the platonic gap that existed between them.

“What’s wrong? I can see in your eyes that you’re suffering.”

He couldn’t help the snort that he released in response. It was all a defense mechanism however, a way to distance her from the truth. “What, are you a psychic now?”

Adaline didn’t take the bait however. “You have the same look I get every time I fight with my aunt or have to deal with Carla. So, tell me. It’s not like I have anyone to spread rumors too. No one is going to listen to the words of a deaf girl.”

Dominic flinched at her words, knowing they were the truth. That didn’t mean he liked hearing her put herself down. A part of his reaction was his own guilt though; he had been one of those people. Oh, how wrong he was! Though they had started off as few and far between, his moments with Adaline on this scenic bench had shown him just how wonderful a person she was. And now it frustrated him to see and hear the constant taunting she endured at the hands of Carla and her minions. Adaline was so much more than her disability to him now.

“Do you ever wish you could move away now?” he asked softly.

Adaline gave him a look as if to say,
“Seriously?”

Dominic laughed dryly. “Well, I have that thought almost every day. I have a brother who has never truly liked me, and a father who ignores my very existence because I can’t live up to my brother. And I’m just at a loss as to what to do about it.”

“Why doesn’t your brother like you?”

Adaline watched and noticed the pained look on his face.

“I don’t know…I never understood why.”

She felt the urge to take his clenched hands into her own, but refrained from doing it. “And your father?”

“My brother is almost like a mirror image of my father when it comes to his temperament and his will. He is already set to take over for my dad. But then you have me...when I was younger my dream was to become a singer. I was organizing a band with some of my friends so that I could audition at an art school, but when my father found out…” Dominic took in a deep breath. “Needless to say, I learned to stop dreaming and be a man. My father has a very…
traditional
view of what that means being Russian.”

Adaline’s eyes narrowed at what he had revealed to her. However, instead of asking him to further elaborate on his relationship with his older sibling and paternal figure, she surprised him.

“Will you sing for me?”

Dominic wasn’t sure if he heard her correctly. “What?”

Adaline shrugged as if her request was an everyday occurrence. “I don’t know. If singing is what you love to do, maybe that will make you feel better. That’s something he can never take away from you, right? Music isn’t something that exists outside of you; it makes up who you are. I may be deaf, but I see what music does to people. It’s not just sound, but it’s also energy. Positive and invigorating energy. My cochlear implant isn’t meant to help me distinguish pitch that way, so I may not hear you exactly right…but I would like to at least see you sing.”

And then, for the first time, Dominic sang for an audience. And while it did help, he knew the true source for the shift in his mood. It was she. And he felt excited and terrified all at the same time.

Dominic left his father’s office after grudgingly thanking him for the opportunity. It was long past due, but he found he couldn’t focus on that so much. As the memory of Adaline wafted through his mind, there was an invisible pressure in his body to leave the building. So, he returned home earlier than planned and reached for his phone. It felt silly to him how much need coursed through him. But he had to see her face…he had to hear her voice.