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“You don’t have to do what he says,” I said firmly. “You’re your own person, Emmy. You can make your own decisions.”
Emmy shook her head. “I can’t, not when it comes to the family business. He thinks that’s the only option for me. To be fair, I haven’t exactly been a bundle of success out here on my own. I lived in a shitty apartment. I could have been killed had I been home with the burglar showed up. I’m just a hot fucking mess. He knows I’m not going to make it. He’s got his people watching me.”
“What?” I asked.
“Your dad knew about the break-in,” she said. “How would he know that? Did you tell him?”
“I haven’t talked to your father in months,” I said.
“Exactly,” she muttered. “How do you think your father knew where to find me? He was waiting for me outside. He’s had someone on me since I moved out, which I can’t say I’m really surprised about.”
My anger was ticking up. I took her hand in mine. “You can’t keep living your life for someone else. You deserve to be happy, Emmy. You deserve to follow your own dreams.”
Tears streamed down her face. “I don’t even know what my dreams are anymore. All I know is that I don’t want to go home. I don’t want to lose you and this thing we have together. How are we going to be together if I’m sequestered at his estate? I’ll be stuck there.”
I pulled her close to me, holding her tightly. “You won’t lose me, Emmy. I’ll always be here for you.”
“He’s not going to leave me alone.” She shook her head. “He’s never going to just let this go.”
I knew she was right. Emmy’s father was not the kind of man who easily gave up on anything he wanted. And he wanted his daughter to take over the family business, no matter the cost. But seeing Emmy so afraid and unsure of herself broke my heart.
“Then we’ll find a way,” I said, determination filling me. “We’ll figure this out together.”
Emmy looked up at me, hope shining in her eyes. “Do you really mean that?”
I nodded. “Of course. I love you, Emmy. And I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you’re happy.”
The words were out of my mouth before I could think about what they meant.
A small smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “I love you, too,” she whispered.
Of course we loved each other. Love was love. Our love evolved, but we had told each other we loved each other before. It was just a little different meaning. Suddenly, the world around us disappeared, and we were lost in each other’s embrace. We kissed like it was the last time we would ever see each other, pouring all our love and passion into it.
As we broke apart, I knew what we had to do. “Give me a second and then we’ll finish that thought,” I said and got up from the couch.
I grabbed my phone and called my father to tell him exactly how I felt about him confronting Emmy with the message from her father. Emmy was a grown woman. She didn’t have to listen to her daddy and my father needed to back off.
I called him, ready to lay into him for ambushing Emmy outside my apartment. His boss was overstepping, and my father was doing his bidding.
“Dad,” I said when he answered.
There was a brief pause on the other end of the line before my father cleared his throat. “Son,” he said slowly.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I snapped. “You know Emmy. You know how unhappy she was there. She doesn’t want to live with her father. Why can’t you understand that?”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t know it would upset you like this.”
I gritted my teeth, struggling to keep my voice level. “That’s not good enough, Dad. You can’t just do whatever your boss tells you to do, and not care how uncomfortable it makes Emmy.”
My father sighed heavily. “I thought I was doing the right thing by helping him out.”
“And what about the right thing for Emmy?” I asked. “Did you ever think she might get a say in her own life?”
“This is not our business,” he warned. “We’re the help. We don’t interfere in family matters.”
“This is our business because you’re issuing threats on his behalf,” I said. “You don’t need to get involved. If he wants to talk to Emmy, he can do it his damn self. I have a message you can pass along to your boss. She’s happy. She’s fine. She’s not going home.”
“Why are you getting so involved in this?” he asked. “And why is she staying at your place?”
