Page 178 of Let Me Keep You

He steps toward me, closing the gap between us. “Watch your goddamn tone,” he hisses. “That was the deal. We get married, you move in, and you quit your job. Don’t like it? Then say goodbye to all of this because I’ll get a team out here this afternoon to bulldoze it down.”

Tears threaten to surface as I take in his angry tone and the bulging vein in his forehead. He’s not messing around, and I have no doubt he’d do exactly that.

“I hate you,” I seethe.

“Get over it, princess. They’ve already started packing and moving your shit.”

“You can’t do that! You can’t touch my personal property!” I argue. “I’ll call the sheriff!”

He leans back, pure amusement on his ugly face as he crosses his arms over his chest. “Go ahead. Remind him to bring a case of beer to our barbecue tonight while you’re at it.” Robert laughs as he walks away and goes toward the cottage. I’m going to lose my shit if they’ve touched my mother’s paintings.

At that thought, I march past him and barge through the door to check what they’re doing.

“Stop! Get out. Don’t move anything else,” I demand.

Three men stare at me, expressionless, then glance over at Robert. When I look at him, he shakes his head, and the guys continue working.

Goddammit!

Everyone’s on his fucking payroll, so no one will listen to me.

“You’ll never get away with this,” I say between gritted teeth.

“I already am.”

I storm out and go back to my car, feeling hopeless. Knowing Everleigh’s at work, I call Katie, and when she answers, I lose it. Tears fall and there’s no stopping them.

“Gemma? What happened, sweetie?”

“Robert!” I say between harsh breaths. “He has a company moving everything out of my place. He’s forcing me to live with him and get married to help his image.”

“What? That’s insane, Gemma!” she shrieks. “Tell him to kick rocks!”

“I tried!” I grow more hysterical with every passing second. “He owns my dad’s property. If I don’t do what he says, he’ll tear it all down.”

“What the hell? How’s that even possible?” she asks, and I explain all the details.

I feel awful for not knowing or helping, but my father’s a prideful man and keeps his problems to himself.

“So it’s either marry him, have his children, and quit my job, or my dad loses everything.”

“What about the shop?”

“I think that’d be safe, but he’d have no place to live, and it’s more than just a house to him. It’s the home where he and my mom made memories, and where Noah and I were raised. And to dig the knife even deeper, Robert knows how much the cottage means to me. Even if I can’t live in it, I’d be devastated if he destroyed it.” I cry harder at the thought. “I don’t know what to do, Katie. I love Tyler. We finally made love last night, and now everything around me is falling apart.”

“Does Tyler know about Robert’s ultimatum?”

“Yes, and he said we’d figure something out together.”

“Tyler should kick his fucking ass! Charge him caveman style and use his boxing skills to rearrange his ugly old face!”

I’d laugh at her dramatics if I wasn’t in the middle of a crisis.

“Trust me, he’s ready to do just that.” I sigh. “I need to ask my dad about this. It’s gonna kill him, but I have to make sure Robert’s not lying to me. I don’t know how I’m gonna get out of this without hurting Tyler or my father.”

“Robert seriously thinks you’re gonna marry him after this whole stunt?”

“He’s got me by the damn throat and has made sure I have no other options. The minute I defy him again, he’ll make his threats a reality.”