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“You better come back and visit us!”
“I will,” I promise.
“And bring Gemma with you,” she adds when we break apart.
“Sure. I’ll make sure her fiancé comes too. It’ll be a big ole threesome,” I mock.
“We better get on the road,” Liam interrupts.
I give Tyler a high five, then Liam and I leave. There’s no traffic, so we arrive at the airport earlier than expected.
As I grab my bag from the back seat, Liam speaks up, “Our house is always open to you, Tyler. Don’t be a stranger.”
“I won’t. But hey, when Tobias is a little older, y’all come visit me so I can show you around. Wouldn’t suggest coming in the summer, though, unless you wanna have a heatstroke.” I chuckle at the memories of Liam telling me stories of Maddie being pregnant all summer and how miserable she was.
“Yeah, maybe someday. I’ll miss you, bro,” Liam tells me as I step out of his SUV.
“You too. We’ll keep in touch,” I vow, then walk inside.
Goodbyes are always the hardest, especially when I’m leaving people I love. It’s probably why I try to avoid saying them. Before I board, I text Everleigh and remind her when my flight lands. While I hate to leave my friends in Sacramento, I’m happy to be going back to Lawton Ridge—a sentiment I never thought I’d feel.
Chapter Two
GEMMA
When I climb into Robert’s car, my skin feels like it’s melting off my body. I’m ready to internally combust after Victoria dropped the bomb that our wedding has been moved up. Robert thinks he’s so cunning, but I see through this act, and I’m disgusted I fell for it. It should’ve clicked that something was going on when Winnie messaged me more than usual this weekend. I went from talking to her every other week to getting questions every ten minutes. It all makes perfect sense now.
During the drive to his house, Robert goes on and on about how excited he is that Victoria’s interested in his company. I don’t respond to anything he says and stare out the window. Instead, I get lost in my thoughts, wishing I were anywhere but here. When we pull into his driveway, he notices I’m not playing the part of the ecstatic fiancée. After client dinners, he loves to have his ego stroked, but I’m not in the mood tonight. Too many revelations have come to light, and I’m questioning our relationship in a way I never have before.
Over the past few months, I’ve seen glimpses of this side of him, but I always made excuses for his behavior. I’d blame it on his drinking or jealousy, but there’s an underlying issue that’s bigger than I ever imagined. It’s frightening not to truly know who he is, and I hope I haven’t been scammed into marrying a man who doesn’t exist. Though a part of me should’ve seen this coming, considering how pushy he’s been. I’m so stupid for falling for his manipulative ways.
“What’s wrong, darling?” he asks as he yanks my weekend bag from the back seat. Not waiting for my response, because it’s not as if he cares anyway, he gets out of the car. I grab my purse, then follow him to the front door. I need to figure out how to bring up the receipt I found for the private investigator and list my grievances, but it won’t be easy. The last time I complained, he listened, but then nothing changed.
Once we’re inside the house and the door closes behind me, my emotions nearly boil over.
“How could you move the date of the wedding without consulting me first?” I finally blurt out. “That completely blindsided me tonight. It was disrespectful for me to have to find out from a stranger instead of my fiancé.”
Robert sits on the couch and slips off his shoes. “For weeks, I’ve asked you about it, and you’ve been indecisive. I understand you’ve been under a lot of pressure, which I assume is because you work with a criminal, so I’ll give you some slack. I can’t imagine how stressful that is for you, not knowing if it’s safe or if you’re being robbed blind. But I digress. Instead of adding more to your plate, I made the decision for us, something I’ll be doing a lot of when we’re married.”
My mouth falls open at his pitiful attempt to throw jabs at me, but he doesn’t seem to notice or care. I refuse to entertain him or argue about any of this because there are much bigger issues at hand. I’m well aware that Robert will continue to throw this in my face until I bend to his will, but quitting the garage isn’t up for negotiation, and I’ve made that crystal clear.
“I didn’t want the happiest day of your entire life—our wedding—to cause any anguish, Gemma. I thought if I moved the date and took care of the major things, you wouldn’t have to worry about it. And you said it yourself, you’ll be ready, so I took care of your dress and veil as well. Everything’s in place. Winnie’s paid and so is the venue. Invitations are going out soon.”
