Chapter. 18

{Third person's pov}

Two weeks later, her exams were finally over and she was finally done with her college.

They were sitting on the breakfast table with the whole family when his father spoke. "Why don't you both go somewhere Everett and Arizona?"

Arizona kept staring at her plate while Everett looked up. "I have office dad."

"What office? before you we were taking care of it right? yes not as good as you, but we can take care of the office and meetings for a few weeks." His uncle said.

"Yeah.. you guys should go somewhere." His mother suggested and Everett opened his mouth to argue but he was interrupted by Emily. "She deserves a nice honeymoon brother."

The dining hall fell into an immediate chorus of agreement. "Exactly!" one of Everett's younger cousins chimed in.

"You two barely had a wedding," another aunt added. "It's been meetings, college, and family ever since."

Arizona lowered her head even further, suddenly finding her breakfast extremely interesting.

Emily, meanwhile, was thoroughly enjoying herself.

"What?" she grinned. "I'm only saying what everyone is thinking."

Everett calmly placed his coffee cup on its saucer and the soft clink was enough to quiet the table. "Emily."

His voice wasn't loud, It didn't need to be and she immediately straightened in her chair."...Yes?"

"Finish your breakfast." He said and she muttered under her breath, "See? This is why no one argues with him."

A few cousins hid their smiles and Everett ignored them all, he looked toward his father instead. "The quarterly review is next week."

His father waved a hand dismissively. "It can wait."

"The Singapore clients..." He said but his uncle interrupted. "I'll handle them."

"The board..." He said once again and he was interrupted once again. "We'll attend."

Every excuse Everett produced was immediately met with another family member volunteering to take over.

For the first time in a boardroom... or rather, at his own dining table... Everett found himself outnumbered.

Emily leaned toward Arizona and whispered dramatically, "We're winning."

Arizona bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from smiling and Everett noticed.

Of course he noticed, his eyes shifted to his wife, she still hadn't voiced an opinion.

He set his napkin beside his plate before asking the only person whose answer mattered. "Arizona."

The room grew quiet again. "If we ignore everyone else's enthusiasm for a moment..." His tone became noticeably gentler. "...would you like to go somewhere?"

No pressure, no expectation, just a question, one asked sincerely.

He held her gaze across the table. "If your answer is no..." He glanced briefly around the table at his increasingly disappointed family. "...then they'll survive."

Emily gasped theatrically. "We will not."

Even Everett's usually stern grandfather let out the faintest amused huff at that.

Everett, however, never took his eyes off Arizona, she took a deep breath and then spoke softly. "Let it be, I can just be here. it's fun here too."

Emily was taken aback. "Are you dumb? who said you had a choice? you have to go."

The entire table went silent and then. "Emily." Everett's voice was calm, but firm.

His younger cousin immediately closed her mouth.

"...Sorry." He didn't scold her further. A single word had been enough.

Only then did he turn back to Arizona. "You answered everyone else's convenience," he observed quietly. "Not my question."

Arizona looked up, confused, he folded his hands on the table. "You said it's fine to stay here but that's not what I asked."

His gaze remained steady, patient. "I asked what you want."

The room stayed unusually quiet and even Emily, who normally couldn't stay silent for ten seconds, kept her eyes on Arizona.

Everett continued, his tone even. "If your answer is genuinely that you'd rather stay with the family, we'll stay."

He glanced briefly toward his parents. "No one here will object."

His father nodded immediately. "Of course."

"But..." Everett looked back at her, "...if you're saying no because you think my work is more important..."

He gave the slightest shake of his head. "Then don't make that decision for me."

Arizona had spent so much of her life adjusting herself to everyone else's wishes that the question itself seemed unfamiliar.

What did she want? Everett waited, no impatience, no pressure, just the quiet certainty that, for once, her answer should belong only to her.

She looked down and bit her lips. "I don't want to go." She said and Emily immediately said. "She is lying, she just doesn't want to trouble you all."

Emily knew her better than herself, she was her best friend. Everett didn't answer immediately, Instead, he looked at Emily.

For a long second. "Are you finished?" he asked and Emily nodded once. "Yes."

Only then did he return his attention to Arizona, he wasn't interested in forcing a trip nor was he willing to ignore what had just been said.

"Look at me." His voice was quiet enough that the rest of the table instinctively faded into the background.

When she finally met his eyes, he spoke evenly. "I'm going to ask you one question.".A pause. "If there were no office...no family...and no concern about inconveniencing anyone...Would you still choose to stay home?"

Everett didn't rush to fill it and he had begun to understand something about his wife, she answered according to what others needed.

Rarely according to what she wanted, he leaned back slightly in his chair. "You don't have to answer immediately."

Then, to everyone's surprise, he stood. "I'll be in the study."

He picked up his coffee cup before adding one last thing, this time without looking at anyone in particular.

"When she gives me an answer...I expect it to be hers."

Not Emily's, not his mother's, not his father's, not even his with that, he walked out of the dining room, leaving behind a silence that felt different from before.

It wasn't awkward, it was the first time anyone in that house had insisted that Arizona's own wishes mattered more than everyone else's opinions.