A Rose Amongst Thorns

Chapter Twenty Seven

"Welcome to a Bouquet for You. My name is Rome how may I help you?"

Rome stepped forward and extended his hand to the man walking through the door.

"Good morning. I need to make arrangements for a very special dinner."

"Great. Come with me to our showroom and I can let you see some examples of what we have to offer."

"Fantastic."

The older gentleman followed Rome into the showroom. They looked at several arrangements. They eventually sat down at the conference table to browse through look books. Arthit entered the showroom looking for Rome when he stopped, frozen in his tracks.

"Master Tanawat."

He turned around and saw Arthit. He stood and approached Arthit. Arthit wasn't sure how to respond. He had not seen him since before that horrible night with Mike.

"Arthit. I've been wanting to talk with you, but I wasn't sure if you were ready. I wanted to tell you..."

"Rome, I have to leave. I...I..."

Arthit stepped back. His hands were shaking, and his voice was cracking as he moved towards the front entrance.

"Arthit. Please. I just want to talk."

"No. I c-can't. I...I n-need to le-leave."

Before Master Tanawat could react, Arthit raced out the door.

Rome stepped in front of Master Tanawat and glared at him.

"I thought you looked familiar. What the fuck are you doing here? Hasn't your family done enough to Arthit?"

"Please don't misunderstand. I know my family has done irrevocable damage to Arthit, but I want to make amends. My ex-wife and I have been rebuilding our family and we have committed ourselves to being there for Kongpob. Being there for Kongpob means making amends with Arthit for what Mike put him through."

"And how are you going to do that? Is that why you came here? Was this just some ruse to fuck with Arthit?"

"No. I didn't know this was Arthit's shop. I just wanted to order some flowers for our family dinner. That's all. I swear."

Rome squinted his eyes at Master Tanawat. He looked the man up and down before crossing his arms across his chest.

"Why should I believe you? Arthit told me what kind of a father you were to Mike and what kind of a husband you were to Madame Suthiluck. Am I supposed to believe that you've changed after all those years of being a complete piece of shit?

Master Tanawat bowed his head and sighed. He knew he didn't deserve anyone's faith, but he was willing to do just about anything to ingratiate himself with Arthit if it meant Kongpob would be more comfortable having him in his life.

"Can I sit and talk with you? I just want to explain a few things."

Rome didn't trust the man. He wasn't sure if he should allow him a chance to speak, but he felt he had nothing to lose by listening. He waved his arm towards the conference room table indicating that Master Tanawat should sit.

"Okay. Talk."

"I'm not sure where to start, so I guess I'll just tell you a little about myself."

Rome crossed his legs and leaned back in his chair.

"Go ahead."

"My marriage to Kongpob's mother was arranged by our parents. It was nothing more than a part of a larger business transaction to save the Suthiluck Enterprises. The company was failing, and their fortune was dwindling. They only had one daughter and I was the only son. It made perfect sense to our parents to consolidate the transfer of cash by merging the families. We didn't love each other, which for me grew into hatred because I was angry with my father.