She waved her hand as if to erase that line of conversation. “He isn’t the right match for you, and you know that.” She leaned towards me and lowered her voice. “Clean up your affairs here so there isn’t some big story when you leave. Then get back home. The lawyers will be ready to get this thing annulled when you arrive. You can’t have it both ways. You don’t get to enjoy the family’s money if you aren’t helping to earn it.”
God, she sounded like a mafia don. I gave an exasperated sigh, and Derek appeared around the corner. He had tamed his hair, but the hard look he gave my parents hadn’t changed. “Everything okay out here?”
My mother gave him a tight smile. “We were just leaving.”
Derek mouthed,You okay?
When I nodded, he turned to walk my parents to the door. He reached to open the door for them but paused. “This is a strange situation. I hope you know that the only thing I want is for mywife to be happy. I’m sure you want that for Rosalind, too.” He glanced over at me, and the softness in his eyes had me melting into a puddle of goo.
“We want what’s best for her,” my father said stiffly. “The problem is we don’t seem to agree on what that is.”
That was the most insightful thing my father had ever said about my place in the family. I had a decision to make, and I avoided it so far. I could see myself living here with Derek for the rest of my life. But so much of what I had came from my family’s money. I still relied on Meredith for things, my expensive camera was paid for by my parents. If the question was whether I could be with Derek forever, the answer in my heart was yes. But that was only part of the question, the rest was whether I could stand on my own two feet and step away from the comfort of my family’s wealth. Could I even still play nice with them when they were so awful towards the man I thought so much of?
My parents headed out the door with a nod in my direction, and no acknowledgement of Derek at all.
Chapter 17
Derek
No,hi. No,nice to meet you. Not even afuck off.
I could see why Rosalind was so eager to step away from the family.
What they were asking for wasn’t a step away, though; they wanted her to either stand beside them or walk away entirely. Rosalind was a strong woman. She was driven and passionate about photography.
On the other hand, she’d never pursued that passion before. She’d chosen to stay just inside the lines of what was expected and let her twenties slip away. Being with me wouldn’t be as easy as her hand in mine, she would have to commit to a whole different world.
Our fake marriage had been mostly to save her butt, our real marriage required a big sacrifice on her part. I wanted to believe that she would pick me, but what if I was wrong? The thing I had to remind myself, was that it was her decision. I couldn’t go in and fix things like I wanted to.
That helpless feeling from the airport was back.
Rosalind’s shoulders were slumped, and the shine in her eyes had dimmed. How her parents couldn’t see that she didn’t want the life they had was baffling. Or maybe they just didn’t care.
I pulled her into my arms, and she deflated against my chest. It didn’t escape my notice that her parents didn’t hug her helloor goodbye. At least physical affection I could give her. “You want to talk about it?”
“Nothing to talk about,” she said against my chest. “It’s my decision where I live and what I do.”
I hated to ask the question, but I couldn’t not know the answer. “What if it means them cutting you off?” My palms were sweaty where they rested against her back.
She sighed. “I might have to play nicely so that doesn’t happen.”
I pulled back so I could see her face. “They want you there and me gone. There didn’t seem to be room for compromise.” She was talking about living in the gray, but her parents saw only black and white. That had always worked for her in the past, but it wouldn’t forever.
She chewed her bottom lip and pulled back. “It was a long day. We have a week to come up with a plan.”
My heart sank.
She wasn’t ready to let the money go. Unless that changed, our time together would eventually run out.
******
“I now pronounce you husband and wife; you may kiss the bride.”
The man who had been my rival up until a year ago planted a kiss on my sister’s lips, and we all applauded. It was hot as hell in their backyard where the ceremony was being held, and I deeply regretted my long-sleeved dress shirt.
Rosalind was stunning in a sundress made of some kind of silky material…silk probably, with the budget she was used to. It had been hard to keep my eyes off of her even as I was supposed to be watching the bride and groom.
I had never thought much about my own wedding, but seeing my sister grinning ear to ear made me want things I hadn’t before.
