Page 81 of Escape To Paradise
I contacted my recruiter and renewed my contract for three months. Maverick didn’t want me to commit to a longer contract; he wanted me to spend more time enjoying myself and with him.
It was on a Wednesday afternoon that I felt ready to share one of my deepest pains with him. We were walking along the beachfront on his property. The sun was setting, turning the sky into orange. A light breeze greeted us as we walked hand in hand along the beach.
“It’s my mom’s death anniversary today,” I revealed.
“I thought your mother was still alive?” Maverick seemed surprised. “When you talk about her, it seemed as if she’s still in Chicago.”
“I know. It’s been almost two years. I can’t believe she’s gone.”
Maverick leaned and kissed my forehead. I tried not to cry, but tears came streaming down my face. “It’s okay, Harper. Just cry. Don’t hold back.”
“I’m a bad daughter, Maverick. I’m the worst daughter ever.” I started sobbing then.
He hugged me, and I cried on his chest. I felt so ashamed of myself. “I was always busy at work. She called one day, saying she wasn’t feeling well. I told her to go to see a doctor, but she didn’t go right away. I thought she was okay. But a few days later, I got a call from the hospital. She had died of complications of pneumonia.”
Maverick held my face. “It’s okay, Harper. You didn’t know.”
“It’s not that I didn’t care. I was too busy running my restaurant. I thought she was okay but she wasn’t. She died alone.” Tears blurred my vision.
In his soothing and calming voice, Maverick said, “Don’t hold on to the guilt. Your mom wanted you to live your life. You didn’t know. There’s no way you could have known what happened.”
“I know you will think I'm silly,”—I wiped away my tears—“but I kept her phone. It was among one of her belongings that I held on to. I still pay for her phone bill so I can call her. I leave her voice messages, pretending to talk to her, but it all goes to voicemail. It’s a way for me, in a way, to not feel so guilty for being too busy for her. I pretend she’s still alive. I pretend I have time for her. I pretend to call her. But I wasn’t a good daughter. I missed some holidays. And I never thought how lonely she'd been, especially on the day she died. No one was there. She died alone. I wasn’t there. The restaurant became my obsession and even the restaurant and my partnership with Benoit, it all amounted to nothing in the end.” She knew she was rambling, but she couldn’t stop herself.
“Don’t be too hard on yourself. Your mom knows that you love her.”
We walked back to the villa, still holding hands. I felt like a weight had been lifted. I had never told anyone about my secret. That night, I slept soundly for the first time.
***
Maverick made sure that my last day before my next charter was extra special. He didn’t go to work in The Flamingo. We just stayed in the villa, swimming on the beach, and sunning ourselves. Maverick had a special dinner planned just for me. He led me to the other part of his property, where his contractor had recently finished building four new private villas. There was a bigger pool there and an area for what looked like a bar and a restaurant. It wasn’t fully furnished yet, but the structure was there.
I was surprised to see Viktor and one other staff member from The Flamingo. They had set a table for two.
Viktor greeted me and said, “Enjoy your evening, Ma’am,” as he served me fresh pasta. The other staff served me salad and poured the wine for us. Viktor disappeared in the back, and when he came back, he had freshly baked pizza.
“You really did make good on your promise. You had a pizza oven built?”
Maverick nodded.
“All that in two weeks?”
“Not really. I’ve always wanted a bar and a restaurant on this property, but not a pizza oven. But then, when I tasted Rocco’s pizza, I realized that a pizza oven would fit this area. You know, just casual but slightly elevated dining,” Maverick explained.
I inspected the crust, and it was perfect. The pizza tasted amazing and like Rocco’s pizza.
“How is this possible?” I asked Maverick.
Maverick’s eyes twinkled. “When I had the pizza, I just had to ask for the recipe. So, I asked Lisa to do me a favor. Then I paid Rocco to teach Viktor how to make pizza the Rocco’s way. He also gave me detailed instructions on how to make a good pizza oven. The power of technology and connections.”
“Can I see the pizza oven?”
“Of course.”
We went to the kitchen, and although it wasn’t built completely yet, the dome pizza brick oven was already finished.
“Oh my God! This is amazing.”
We went back to our table. It was then that I noticed Maverick fidgeting.
