"Why would you think that?"
"Because nobody likes her," Arden said, certain that he must have been aware of that fact.
He wasn't, though. He looked confused and a little hurt. "Nobody likes Alice? Why?"
Arden laughed. "Because she's a bitch. Even she admits it. How do you not know it?"
Vince looked even more confused. "I guess I never noticed. Up until her parents got divorced, we had a fairly blissful marriage. But you like her, don't you? And Shannon and Emma?"
"Of course."
"Good. Because she needs friends. You'll take care of her for me since I can't, won't you?"
Arden swallowed, a lump forming in her throat. It was so pitiful and heart-breaking. She simply nodded.
"Good. I have to go. Don't tell Alice we talked." He stood and left.
Arden stared down at the table and lost track of time.
Arden had parked outside of the bank and sat there for almost an hour. She finally realized that she didn't want to do this in public. Too unpredictable. The situation had the potential to be completely humiliating. So she'd gone home and killed time. When she was sure Nick would be finished with work and would have gone home, she went to his house. She walked up the steps to his front door with the laundry basket of his things on her hip.
He opened the door, but didn't smile. Instead he stood tall and proud, clearly certain he was the superior one in the relationship. "Come to apologize, at last?" he asked.
"To break up with you. May I come in?" She didn't wait for an answer and instead shoved past him into the front hallway. She tossed the basket down next to the stairs and then reached in her purse to retrieve the black velvet bag that contained his ring. He was staring at her in shock, now, as he closed the door behind him.
"I was going to break up with you because you clearly don't respect me and I very obviously don't love you," Arden said. "And then I talked with someone who told me that you were the one who invested the money that bankrupted the Raymers."
"Did Ashley tell you that? I told you not to believe anything that comes out of her mouth!"
Arden shook her head. "Someone else told me. Also that you invested Lloyd Redding's money. You saw the paper a couple of weeks ago, didn't you? He committed suicide."
Nick put on his patient-father look. "Arden, people commit suicide for many reasons. Everyone who invested did it because they wanted to. They knew the risks involved."
"But why would you pitch an investment like that to people like them? Why, Nick?"
"Because the venture needed capital. My partner raised half of it and I had to come up with the rest. It should have been a very profitable investment, but it flopped. These things happen. We'll recover."
Arden stared at him in disgust. "You'll recover. Clint Holbrook is having to sell his farm. Others have lost their lives. These people aren't businessmen...they're farmers. How could you do this?"
"It's what I do, Arden. I don't want to work for your father forever."
"How come you never told me about any of this?"
"I've told you about the investment. You just weren't interested. I could tell you weren't listening. You never listen to anything I say."
"Well I'm listening now. I truly thought you were a basically good and decent person. But this...this is low. And you don't even feel any remorse."
"I refuse to be held responsible for the decisions of others. I presented an opportunity. Some folks took it, others didn't. That's their choice, Arden."
She shook her head, biting back tears of frustration. "You didn't see those two people, frozen in their attic, clinging to each other. They were still young, Nick. They had their retirement years to look forward to. You took that from them. Justify it any way you want, but as far as I'm concerned, there's blood on your hands."
Nick rolled his eyes and looked away. "Stop being so dramatic. You're acting like a spoiled princess."
She laughed then. This was what Travis had often accused her of. "I lied to you. Something did happen between me and Travis. I didn't sleep with him. But I do have feelings for him."
Nick seemed to harden all over with tension. "Arden, you and I are going to get married. Maybe it will be just a paper marriage. Maybe we'll live in separate bedrooms and screw around with other people. But I'm not losing out on this investment."
"Ha! I knew it!" She pointed her finger at his chest. "You're just after my money. You're a lying, cheating, conniving..."
"And you're no better than me with all your false declarations of love and fake orgasms all the time dreaming about some disgusting, worthless mechanic!"
"This is over, Nick. I'm done." She threw the ring bag at him.