Arabella didn't even appear offended by the suggestion. In fact, she seemed reluctant to bite out, "Probably not."
That really didn't bode well. Knox leaned back in the upholstered chair, which like all the chairs in this cafe, were mismatched but comfortable. "What did she do this time?" he said.
Arabella's thin face pinched with resignation. "She's forcing me to get married in January."
Thunder cracked across Knox's pale features. "Towhom?"
Fear tugged at my insides, stretching a hollow black hole at my center that threatened to consume reason. Arabella, married? I couldn't fathom it. No, I couldn'tstandit. The thought of her married to some faceless, nameless asshole made me hollow on the inside, and at the same time, filled with a burning rage from absolutely nowhere. She couldn't.
Arabella shrugged weakly. Some of the misted rain had dampened her pink curls and dotted her eyelashes, and it only added to her beleaguered expression. "Some guy named Harry. She wants me to meet him Thanksgiving night."
"Meet him?" I seethed.
"The fuck?" Knox said at the same time.
Nope. Wasn't happening. I didn't have the time or presence of mind to contemplate how I knew this so decisively, but I did. Over my dead body would that ever become a reality. Arabella wiped her forehead, more humbled than I'd ever seen her. "Let me explain before you both go berserker."
"You'd better," Knox practically growled, echoing my own feelings.
Arabella pulled in an unsteady breath, refusing to meet our furious scowls. "It's my ranch. I know you both know I took it on a few years ago." Of course, we knew. She talked about little else when I happened to be around her—which wasn't much, these days. She began to trace the uneven patterns in the blue mosaictiles. "I couldn't afford to buy it when it came up for sale, but I couldn't let it fall into the hands of the other buyer at the time. They wanted it for the land, and the animals would have been euthanized."
"Oh God," I said weakly. I could see where this was going. Sylvia Rook had vast sums of money at her disposal, and more than anything, she loved to find ways to control her children.
Arabella dipped her chin in affirmation. "Mom bought it and said she would lend it to me for a price I could afford."
"Oh God," Knox echoed rubbing his mouth and looking away. "Ara, you didn't."
She winced. "Yeah. I did."
Anger surged through me. "And let me guess—she made the payments impossible to pay on your own."
"Yeah," Arabella said weakly, her light blue eyes finding mine finally. "She allows me to make smaller payments… if I do what she says."
"Jesus Christ," Knox said through his teeth. "Ara, how could you be so stupid?"
"I was desperate," she retorted hotly, her arms folded tightly. "And I…" she faltered, squeezing her eyes shut again. "I wanted to trust her. She's our mom."
"Wait a minute." I held up a hand. "So, are you telling me that your own mother is forcing you to get married to a stranger… because she owns your ranch?"
"Yeah," Arabella rasped out. "That pretty much sums it up."
"Fuck the ranch," I scowled.
"And fuck her," Knox added. "You can't seriously be entertaining something that insane."
"What am I supposed to do?" Arabella whispered fiercely, her gaze moving from me, to Knox, and then back. "Foreclose? Go bankrupt? Lose my practice?" Rook and I shared apprehensive glances.
The waitress chose that moment to bring our food, and we all fell into a contemplative silence. Although, mine was far from ponderous and a lot closer to tempestuous.
I'd watched Sylvia Rook run her children's lives with ruthless efficiency over the years, ensuring they succeeded as much as humanly possible without any pesky feelings to stand in the way of their progress. Emotion had no place in Sylvia's ideal future, and she had smothered both her children until they were mere shells of who they'd been as children.
At least for Knox, he'd found someone who loved him. Gemma had accepted all his faults and strengths with a fortitude I'd never imagined was possible in a partner. And Knox had become someone I barely recognized… in a good way. He talked about his feelings, now. He had become more emotive and open, and there was a smile that tipped up the corners of his lips that hadn't been there before.
But Arabella…
The blank stare that masked her face now was the one she donned as a habit. I could physically see her shoving her emotions deep under layers of hurt and trauma. It hurt to watch. And her own mother had done that to her. Worse, she had found a way to actually control Arabella's future with the brutality of the most merciless strategists in history. I couldn't stand by and let it happen anymore. We were grown adults, all of us. Arabella had earned her right to a happy future.
Once the waitress had left, and Arabella stared at her food without moving, I slammed a straw into my cup of iced tea. Arabella started, jumping in her chair, and Knox leveled a slow blink my way. I pointed my cup and straw at Bee. "You're not doing that. We'll buy the ranch from her."
