Needing You Close (Ex-Con Duet 2)

“What? That’s insane, Gemma!” she shrieks. “Tell him to kick rocks!”

“I tried!” I grow more hysterical with every passing second. “He owns my dad’s property. If I don’t do what he says, he’ll tear it all down.”

“What the hell? How’s that even possible?” she asks, and I explain all the details. I feel awful for not knowing or helping, but my father’s a prideful man and keeps his problems to himself.

“So it’s either marry him, have his children, and quit my job, or my dad loses everything.”

She lets out a long breath. “What about the shop?”

“I think that’d be safe, but he’d have no place to live, and it’s more than just a house to him. It’s the home where he and my mom made memories, and where Noah and I were raised. And to dig the knife even deeper, Robert knows how much the cottage means to me. Even if I can’t live in it, I’d be devastated if he destroyed it.” I cry harder at the thought. “I don’t know what to do, Katie. I love Tyler. We finally made love last night, and now everything around me is falling apart.”

“Does Tyler know about Robert’s ultimatum?”

“Yes, I told him, and he said we’d figure something out together.”

“Tyler should kick his fucking ass! Charge him caveman style and use his boxing skills to rearrange his ugly old face!”

I’d laugh at her dramatics if I wasn’t in the middle of a crisis.

“Trust me, he’s ready to do just that.” I sigh. “I need to ask my dad about this. It’s going to kill him, but I have to make sure Robert’s not lying to me. I don’t know how I’m going to get out of this without hurting Tyler or my father.”

“Robert seriously thinks you’re going to marry him after this whole stunt?”

“He’s got me by the damn throat and has made sure I have no other options. The minute I defy him again, he’ll make his threats a reality.”

“Which means he could literally hold this over your head for years. If you don’t do what he asks during your marriage, he’ll throw it at you again. You’ll be miserable, Gemma. You can’t marry him,” she pleads. “There has to be a way out of this without jeopardizing your dad.”

“I’m listening,” I say between tears. “Because I can’t think of any solutions.”

“Make him sign the deed over to you. Negotiate a deal with him. A trade, of sorts. He gets the wife and kids, and you get what you want too. After a year, file for a divorce.”

“A divorce? He’d never. That’d be against his values.”

“Well, then leave that part out for now and just say the only way you’ll agree to marrying him is if after the wedding, you get the deed in your name. I mean, that’s pretty damn reasonable because if you’re miserable, you’ll make his life miserable too. Tell him that.”

I swallow hard, contemplating it. “But I still lose. I’ll be married to him, forced to have his children, and won’t get to be with Tyler.” I let out a sob. “The only man I’ve ever loved.”

“Well, yeah…there’s that part.” Her voice softens. “I’m so sorry, Gemma. Want me to kill him for you?”

I snort, wiping my cheeks. “No. It would only make things worse. There has to be something I can do to get out of marrying him and get the paperwork signed over to me, like you said.”

“You’ll think of something.”

Katie and I speak for a few more minutes until I let her go.

Next, I call my father.

“Daddy,” I say, trying to keep it together.

“Hey, sweetie. You didn’t come over for breakfast this morning, so I went to the deli and chatted with Belinda.”

“Shoot, sorry, I forgot to tell you I wouldn’t make it today.”

“That’s okay. What’s wrong?”

I chuckle at how he just knows.

“I need to ask you something, but promise you’ll be honest with me even if it’s not something I wanna hear.”

“Alright,” he says cautiously. “What is it?”

I ask about the second mortgage, the almost foreclosure, and if Robert owns the property. Then I tell him about Robert’s threats.

“It’s true,” he responds in a somber tone.

“Daddy, no…” I hold back from more tears falling. “Why didn’t you ever tell me? I could’ve helped.” I would’ve taken out a loan or picked up a second job to help pay the mortgage.

“I was ashamed and embarrassed. I’m supposed to be taking care of you and had no idea he’d use it as motivation to blackmail you. I thought he was helping so the house would stay in the family. Gemma, I’m so sorry.” He chokes up.

“Don’t apologize, this isn’t your fault. I’m going to find a way. I won’t let him do this.”

“Don’t marry him because of me, sweetie. You told me it was over, and I can see how much you love Tyler. He can threaten it all he wants, but it doesn’t mean he will.”