Total pages in book: 44
Estimated words: 40554 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 203(@200wpm)___ 162(@250wpm)___ 135(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40554 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 203(@200wpm)___ 162(@250wpm)___ 135(@300wpm)
"We hid it well. Everything to my parents is about perception. Even our marriage." Sadness takes over her beautiful features again.
"Both of our fathers are terrible businessmen. Thankfully, my grandfather and I were a lot alike, and he knew my father would never keep it together. He left most of the estate to me."
"You two were close." Truly places her hand back on mine, trying to comfort me. I had been close to my grandfather. He mentored me and taught me everything I know. I soaked it up, not wanting to end up like my father.
"I paid a stipend to my parents. It would be one thing if they were merely greedy. I could feed them money, but to them it's about everything, so I started to slowly pull back. When my father didn't have my money to bleed into his own investment, everything went to shit, and his name was getting dirty."
"Oh God." Truly puffs out a breath. "They forced you to marry me?" Her expression turns to pure horror.
"Forced? No, Truly. They used you against me." Her eyes widen. "Because they knew I wanted you." Truly is shaking her head no slowly. I keep going. "From what I've been piecing together over the last few days, they told me you wanted me to stay away so you could go to college and have some independence before you married. That if you wanted to speak to me, you'd be in touch." Truly's jaw drops, and I lift it back with my finger.
"I never…" She trails off. "I didn't care where I went to college, honestly.” Truly's shoulders drop. "Why would they tell you that?"
"The only reason I can think of is to exert control. They knew if we were close that I’d eventually find out you weren’t too fond of your own parents and could easily cut it all off. I have only helped your father to save face for your family. For you and your future, not because I give a shit about what happens to your parents.” Truly pushes her palms into her cheeks. "So they kept me away from you, and I found out nothing."
"This is a lot," she whispers, letting her hands drop from her face. "You've wanted me this entire time. That's what the remark was before about having wanted to marry me before you should have."
"I did. Fuck, you'd just graduated, and I was salivating at the idea of you finally coming home to me. That we could start our lives together.”
Truly tries to fight a smile.
"Don't fight it, wife; you'll soon see how tied up in knots you can have me."
"I don't know about that." She licks her lips. "Now what?"
"We can do anything you like." Her brows rise. "Don't say divorce."
This time she doesn't fight the smile, making me think—fucking hope—that wasn't what she was about to say.
Chapter Nine
TRULY
My emotions almost overwhelm me. This is a lot to take in. He wanted to marry me. Maybe that shouldn't be my focus with everything he laid out for me. I should probably be more wrapped up in what my parents had done. The manipulation—but is that so surprising?
When I’d gone away to school, I could see it better. With distance, a lot of the façade of things falls away. Those parental bonds are put to the test. Not that they were very strong, but I did still hold more faith in them than I should have. But they were all I knew, and my grasp on how a healthy family dynamic should be hadn't been formed or really observed.
My mother had a way of always wording things to make me believe everything she did was for my benefit. Now I see it was always for her own. I was always a prop to them. I will not allow it to happen again, at least not without fighting against it.
Blake watches me, and I know he's waiting for me to respond. "I don't know what I want to do, but I do know I don't want things to remain how they have been."
"Neither do I."
Sitting closer to him, I can see the faint dark circles under his eyes. It doesn't take away from how devastatingly handsome he is, but he's exhausted and clearly not sleeping.
"Where have you been sleeping?" I ask.
"I was not staying at that hotel." His eyes bore into mine, wanting me to see the truth. "I crashed at my office, which isn't abnormal for me." Not sure I care for that answer either, but it's better than a hotel. I glance away from him. "Hey." His fingers grip my chin to pull my attention back to him, not that it ever really left. "I won't be crashing in my office anymore. I'll come home and sleep on the couch like a proper husband who's in trouble."