You have a long way to go, Owen.
During the past week, the Bennets helped themselves by visiting and taking over her kitchen whenever they wanted. So Raffy was surprised that people who were not his family were in Regina’s house when he came on the day he and Regina got together to get her groceries.He called her every day, but she never mentioned a new family had taken over her house.“Regina, what is Yvan doing lying on the carpet in front of our TV while his mother and her maids are cooking in your kitchen?”Regina sighed. “You told them I was sick, and they’ve taken control of my kitchen and house. They won’t leave until Owen arrives at night, so I just let them be. I have no energy to fight with anyone, and having people here passes the time.”“What? Are you sleeping with Owen? I thought you didn’t want to get back together?”“Of course, we’re not together. He’s staying in the guest room. I can’t get rid of him, so he comes every night to watch over me.”“That sounds a lot like being together.”“We’re roommates
After all the guests left, Owen invited Regina to come out of the bedroom, so she wouldn’t think that sending them all home was a ploy to get her alone and restart their relationship. He wanted them to leave her alone because he could see that Regina was getting overwhelmed by the amount of people in her house. “So now that I got rid of all those noisy people, you can do whatever you want.” Owen left Regina standing in the middle of the living room. He brought their dishes to the sink and began loading them into the dishwasher. The maids informed him earlier that there was enough space for the added items, and all he needed to do was start the machine. “Everything in the kitchen is clean. I’m heading to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Good night, Regina.” Owen was heading to his designated bedroom when Regina called to him. Now that everyone was gone, the house was too silent. It made her lonely. “You want to play video games?” “Video games?” “Yeah, I got the new game called
“Regina, are you using protection?” “Mother!” Regina yelled as her cheeks bloomed red out of embarrassment. “You do not want to get pregnant out of wedlock. Who knows if this boy will marry you?” “Relax! We are not sleeping together.” “Oh, is he gay?” Samantha asked as she inspected Owen from head to toe. “I’m not. I‘m extremely attracted to your daughter.” “Don’t worry, if you are. I understand you younger generation is more gender forward than we were in our day.” “Mother! Can you please tell me what you are doing here?” “I heard from your brothers that his mother had been here all week. Why was I not invited to the party yesterday?” “There was no party. You know that Mrs. Bennet just comes to see me whenever she wants, anyway.” “Still, I feel slighted. I heard all your siblings and their wives were here.” “Who feeds you all these stories, anyway?” Regina sat down on the stool, exhausted by the conversation. “You want breakfast?” she asked, diverting the conversation from
Owen looked at his watch after Regina left the office. He had several hours before dinner, so he went to work and called his brother, Myles, to come to him as soon as he got home.Myles had just passed through the front doors when he got the message, so he went straight to Owen’s office.“Brandy, so early in the day?” Owen was pouring himself a glass when Myles walked in. “This must be something big,” he added when Owen did not offer him any.“Regina wants to leave.”“Leave, Mom?”“She wants to go on a vacation on her own.”“And this bothers you.”“I am afraid she is pulling away, and she’d never come back.”“Afraid… that’s a word I’ve never heard from you before.”Owen just sighed. He’d been using big relationship words he’d never uttered in his life, just to convince Regina to stay, but all his efforts were fruitless.“Do you think if I let her go, she’d come back willingly?” He downed the glass in one gulp. “What do I have to offer her, anyway? Nothing… I’m such a disappointment to
Owen “Have dinner with me before you leave,” I asked Regina the other day and was glad that she agreed, because I didn’t know what I would have done if she hadn’t. I’ll be following her to France already, and even though I know she would be mad about that, I did not care. I had to make sure she was safe, and there was no way I’d sit at home while she started a new life without me. I take a deep breath to stop the heavy beating of my heart. I did not want Regina to go, but her mind had been made up, and there was no stopping her decision. “I brought food from that Thai restaurant you loved. I know you’d be eating a lot of pasta and bread when you get there, so I thought maybe we should eat something that would remind you of home.” I grinned at her to take the edge off my nervousness. “Come on in,” Regina greeted like she was welcoming a friend. “I wasn’t hungry, but now that you mentioned food, it made my tummy grumble. Let’s see what you have.” She said as she took one of the bags
Regina made small talk. She asked about my business, and I replied as if I was there to pitch her a building proposal, the only way I knew how. We discussed the island project and the historical restoration in France because those were the ones she knew about. The island hotel would be operational soon, and I wanted to take her there for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, but I knew that was not happening. She would be in France for the next three months, and I doubt Regina would break her plans for me. “Don’t enjoy your time in France so much that you forget me, okay?” I joked, but my message was genuine. She did not smile, but kept her head down. “I have a place on the third floor of the El Vénétie, at the top of Francois’ restaurant. They finally got a vacancy and gave it to me. Let me know if you want it, and you can stay there rent-free.” “Thanks, that’s a nice offer, but I would like to live on my own in France. It’s the whole point of finding myself.” Regina pulled her hand away,
“Look at you, little sis, spending business class tickets for your favorite brother,” Raffy said, fanning himself with the tickets for France. “Shut up, Raffy, or I’ll ask them to transfer you to the seats at the end of the plane.” He laughed and zipped his lips. Regina warned, “If anyone else hears about this, you are toast. I cannot buy business class tickets for everyone.” They were lined up at the check-in counter, teasing each other when Raffy got distracted. Ever since the abduction, he had been extra aware of his surroundings, scanning the area repeatedly to make sure his family was not in danger. Seats in the business class were set up in pairs to have extra legroom and more reclinable seats to provide comfort, but since there were three of them, Raffy volunteered to take the seat across from his wife, on the aisle, beside another man. He said the women were better off together so they could talk more on the flight, as he wanted to sleep. As soon as Raffy stowed their bags
“Hey, I found these on the board up there,” Raffy said, showing the pictures he took of the postings. Maggie began mapping out the places, and since a few of them were already in the area, they decided to drop by after lunch. “I didn’t realize we were in the University district. This is so cool. I feel like a student again.” “This is a good time to explore Paris and fall in love,” Maggie said in a dream-like tone. Regina laughed. “Always the romantic. I’m here to find myself, remember?” “You’re single. Finding yourself can mean finding a French guy or two. French men are very suave and sophisticated lovers.” “And how did you learn that?” Raffy asked as he nibbled on his wife’s neck. “Raf, let me go!” She giggled and pushed her husband playfully. Regina had to look away. It reminded her of the reason she needed to get away from her family and people she knew were happy. After lunch, they visited a few apartments, and Regina liked most of them, but they were above her price range