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I’m so stunned I don’t know what else to do but pick her up and carry her over to my bed. Laying down, I wrap her in my arms as she buries her face in my chest and lets her tears fall. Rubbing my hand up and down her back, I try to soothe her the only way I know how.
By being here. By holding her. By promising her that everything will be alright.
“They’re awful,” she whispers.
“Who?” I ask, though I’m fairly certain I know exactly who she’s referring to.
“My parents. They took my credit card and cut it up in front of me. They’ve basically cut me off. The only thing I got to keep was my car, and that was so they didn’t have to drive me back here.”
I can feel anger radiating off her in waves as I let her confession sink in. Her parents are insane. I don’t know how else to describe them. If this is how they show their love, she’s better off without them.
“Why?”
“I refused their present.”
“What present?”
“For Christmas, my parents decided they’d give me my own office at my father’s publishing house. That was my gift. A job. An office. That’ll be waiting for me when I graduate in April. They gifted me with the future they want for me.”
Jesus. Do they even know their daughter at all?
“When I turned them down, I confessed I wasn’t studying graphic design anymore. I thought my father was going to lose his shit in the middle of his office. His face turned so red he had to excuse himself. My mother broke down in tears, asking why I hated them so much. So I left. I took a taxi back to our place and started to pack up my stuff. I was going to come home last night. And I would have if they hadn’t stopped me.”
Scarlet pauses, wiping away a fresh set of tears and taking a deep breath before continuing.
“I tried to call you. That’s when I realized my phone was turned off. They disconnected it. Then they showed up before I could make my escape. Demanded answers for betraying and lying to them. Told me I was cut off unless I apologized, which I refused to do. I’m not sorry I don’t want the life they planned for me.”
“You shouldn’t have to apologize for wanting to do what makes you happy.”
“In their eyes, I should be grateful for what they’ve provided me with. And I am. But I also want more. I see what my father really wants. Five years from now, he wants me to be my mother. He’ll find me a suitable husband, someone who comes from money. I’ll be expected to quit my job because I won’t need it, to stay at home and have kids, and to be a socialite who drinks during the day and cheats on her husband. That’s not me.”
I have no idea how to respond to her confession, so I don’t say anything, letting the words swirl around in my head. There’s so much about her life I still don’t understand and probably some things I never will. I don’t come from money. And the women I grew up around are strong, they work for a living, and to them, having a child is a blessing, not an expectation.
Eventually Scarlet falls asleep. Slipping out from beneath her, I remove her shoes and cover her frail looking body with a blanket before quietly leaving the room.
I have no idea how to help her, but I want to.
If she’ll let me.
Heading downstairs, I search everywhere for Kane only to find Max instead. On the phone. Having what turns out to be a conversation I wasn’t meant to hear, judging by the look on his face when he spots me, quickly ending his call.
“How much of that did you hear?”
More than I wanted to because now I’m an accessory if he goes through with his plan.
“Enough to know that you’re an idiot.”
“This is none of your business and doesn’t concern you, so I’d appreciate it if you kept what you heard to yourself.”
“Max, you know it’s a bad idea. Nothing good will come of this. You won’t get the girl in the end. In fact, you might lose her forever. Why don’t you just man up and confess how you feel about her?”
“I did that!” he hollers, attracting the attention of Kane as he enters the room.
Shaking my head in warning, Kane quickly backs out the way he came, a look of surprise on his face. We’ve all heard Max shout before, but this is different. You can hear it in his voice. The passion. The anguish. The sorrow.
“I’m guessing she doesn’t feel the same. Which means your plan is pointless. If she doesn’t want to be with you–“
“That’s the thing. She does want to be with me. She loves me as much as I—" Max stumbles over his words before recovering. “She’s just scared. And we had a fight. We’re always fighting. And she refuses to admit how she feels.”
“Love is scary as fuck, Max. If she’s scared, there’s a reason. It may not just be about the way she feels. There has to be something else going on. Find out what it is.”
Scrubbing his hands down his face, Max lets out a growl before stomping off. Knowing him, he’s tried every other available avenue and they’ve all led him here.
He’s going to go through with his plan, even though he knows it’s a mistake. Love makes you do stupid things from time to time.
