by Amber Heart
“Can I help you with something? Why couldn’t you have called instead of bursting in on me?” He looked bewildered for a moment, then closed the door behind him. That in and of itself told her that he wasn’t going to leave anytime soon.
“I could have called, yes, and most reasonable people would, but then you would have had the chance to tell me no, and I didn’t want that.” Logic. He was throwing logic at her first thing in the morning. She threw her pillow at him and grumbled. Eric came and sat down on the bed, giving her that puppy dog look that basically got him anything he wanted. She peeked out from under the blanket, saw the look and groaned, burying herself even deeper in the covers.
“And what exactly could I have said no to?” she asked, her voice muffled by the comforter.
“Coming to breakfast with me.” Rosalie popped her head out from under the blanket.
“I have no problem going to breakfast with you, but does it have to be right now? It’s the one day that I don’t have to get up early, and now you’re taking it away from me.” She was in full blown five year old mode and wanted nothing more than to duck under the covers.
“Well, yes it does, because it’s not just going to be with me. It’s going to be with my mom, too.” Rosalie froze. Her eyes grew wide as saucers, and her mouth fell open.
“Run that by me again?” She was pretty sure she’d heard him right, but she was hoping that she’d imagined it. He just grinned at her in that annoyingly cute way of his and refused to say anything. “If you want to break up with me you can just do it. You don’t have to sacrifice me to your mom for breakfast.” He laughed at that.
“I have my reasons for doing this, I promise. Just come with me and be your naturally sweet self and there won’t be any problems.” Rosalie seriously doubted that, but she was willing to do this for him.
“Fine! But boy do you owe me!” He gave a huge victory fist pump and did a little happy dance. Rosalie had to bite the insides of her cheeks to keep from laughing. Laughing would only let him know that he was getting away with it and would get away with everything if he just tried. She got out of bed, grabbed him by the shoulders, opened her door and promptly pushed him out of her bedroom.
“Hey! You already said you’d go!” He was indignant when she slammed the door in his face and locked it.
“And I am! But give me some privacy to get changed, geez.” There was silence on Eric’s side of the door, and she knew that he was feeling embarrassed now that he hadn’t even though of that. She dug through her closet, looking for something that might possibly pass his mother’s test, but she came up empty. All she could do was put on a nice pair of dress pants and a sweater, and hope that it would be good enough. When she opened her door he jumped up off the couch. “Slow down, cowboy. I’m going to brush my teeth and get fixed up.” He put his hands up in surrender and got himself comfortable on the couch again.
The car ride was almost silent. Not because Eric didn’t want to talk, but because Rosalie was so nervous that she couldn’t do more than stare out the window. She kept running over their first meeting over and over again in her head. Why had she been so snotty and bratty? Oh, how she wished she could go back and do it all over again. At the time, she hadn’t had a clue that she would ever be with Eric, so she hadn’t cared if his mother liked her. Now that she wanted the woman to like her, she couldn’t for the life of her figure out a way to salvage the damage she’d already done. When he pulled up into the parking lot, Rosalie got another shock. It wasn’t a restaurant, as she’d expected. It was a country club. A real, authentic country club.
“This isn’t going to go well. I’m not what she wants for you.” Rosalie could feel her knees trembling, and she didn’t want to get out of the car. Stalling seemed like the best way to go about it. Eric was at her door, holding out a hand for her, and she was all but pressing herself into the console to get away from the door.
“Rosalie. Look at me.” She did. What she saw in his eyes gave her the strength to get up. They’d been together for almost two months now, and what he was telling her with his eyes was that he wasn’t going anywhere, no matter what his mother said. It gave her that extra push that she needed. Rosalie straightened up, took his arm, and squared her shoulders as he led her in. The banquet hall was pristine, with not a fork out of place. His mother was sitting at a little table by herself, doing something on her cell phone. He strode up to her with a purpose, and Rosalie stayed behind him a little.
“Good morning, mother.” She didn’t take her eyes from the screen as she smiled in his direction.
“Good morning, Eric. I’m glad that you could join me for breakfast. I wanted to talk to you about something. Your sister’s cotillion had quite a few eligible young ladies, and I wanted to see which ones might interest you.” She still hadn’t looked up. Rosalie felt like clearing her throat so the self-absorbed woman would look up at her and see that Eric wasn’t alone.
“That’s a great idea, mother, because I have something to say on that subject, too.” She closed her phone finally and looked up. The smile on her face vanished the moment she saw Rosalie. “I’m sure you remember Rosalie, right?” The scathing look in her eyes told them both that she did.
“I don’t recall inviting her here to join us.” The icy tone would have frozen a flame, but he just shrugged it off.
“No, you didn’t, but I did. Which makes it just as good. Now, about those girls. I know that you’ve been making spreadsheets to highlight the pros and cons of each one as a wife, and I’m telling you that you’re wasting your time.” She finally dragged her eyes away from Rosalie to focus on her son.
“You know me all too well. I wouldn’t say that it’s a waste of time. I think being organized and looking at the whole picture is a good way to try to build your future. Sitting down to go over these charts is something we need to do before you choose one to get serious with.” Rosalie bristled. The bitch was going to pretend like she wasn’t here at all. Eric pulled out a chair for her, and she sat in it, keeping her gaze on his mother the whole time. She wanted to let the older woman know that she didn’t care what she wanted. She would leave when Eric told her he didn’t want her anymore.
“That’s just it. I already have one picked out to get serious with.” That was news to Rosalie. She’d thought things were going great between the two of them. He’d brought her here so she would be part of this conversation, and so she would understand that he had to break up with her because of his mom. She could feel the tears starting to well up, and she wanted nothing more than to get out of there, but she couldn’t make an excuse to leave. She couldn’t even talk. The tears she was holding back were choking up her throat, and she knew no sound would escape. She would sit here, mutely, until he took her home, then never speak to him again.
“How can you have already picked someone? You haven’t even seen my lists.” She was trying to be calm, but it wasn’t working.
“Because I don’t need to make lists. I can get to know someone and know whether or not I want to be with them because of who they are.” Now there was some venom in his voice, and she flinched. Something told Rosalie that this was the first time that he’d spoken to his mother like that, and she didn’t like it. She turned her eyes to Rosalie, clearly blaming it all on her. Eric caught the look and took that opportunity to throw them both into turmoil. He took Rosalie’s hand, sliding out of his chair down to one knee. “We’ve been together for two months now, and I know all that I need to know about you. You’re hardworking and honest, you kept my secret when I asked you to, even though you had no reason to be loyal to me. You helped me, even when I was at my worst. You’re the person that I want to spend the rest of my life with.” He pulled a ring box from his pocket and opened it. “What do you say?” His mother found her voice first.
“NO! I forbid it! You are destined for better than this trailer trash! You could be social royalty! A king, for god’s sake! Why would you throw that all away for a gutter mo
use?” Anger fueled Rosalie as she decided on her words.
“Eric, I’m sorry, but I have to say no.” She took a brief moment to compose herself, and his mother folded her arms across her chest, smiling smugly.
“See? She doesn’t even want you. She knows there are more men out there that are closer to her social standing, and that she has no chance with you. You really are a smart girl. Good for you. I thought I’d have to point out that you didn’t deserve him.”
“I’m not saying no because I don’t want to be with you.” His mother’s mouth fell open in shock. “I’m saying no because we’ve only been together for two months. If you still feel the same way six months from now, and you decide to ask me again, then I’ll tell you yes.” She smiled at him, and the beaming grin he returned told her that she’d made the right choice. He got up, put the ring back in his pocket, took her hand, and led her out of the country club.
Chapter 15
“Um, can you tell me what just happened? Because I’m not sure that I processed it properly.” Rosalie’s voice was faint when the words came out, and she wasn’t sure whether or not Eric had heard her. She waited for a few minutes, and was just about to open her mouth to ask again when he cleared his throat. She looked over at him and saw that his face was beet red. Had she said something wrong? Had she embarrassed him in some way?
“I, um, wasn’t going to do it that way, but sometimes my mom can just get under my skin. She’s been pushing me to go out with the girls from the cotillion whenever I’m at home, and it just gets annoying. I’ve been staying away from the house for as much as I possibly can. I wanted to tell you earlier that I had strong feelings for you, but I couldn’t seem to find the words. I had bought the ring because I knew that I wanted to marry you some day, but I wasn’t quite sure on the when and the where yet. I was going to carry it around whenever we were together and hope for a really romantic moment to do it in. Unfortunately, my mom pushed me past the breaking point, and I did this more to get a point across to her.” Rosalie knew that she was in love with Eric, and she would have loved to say yes, but she didn’t know just how long this was going to last. She’d had a good reason to say no, but she’d made it clear that it wasn’t really a no so much as a not yet.
“I honestly didn’t expect you to do that ever. I’m not really a catch of any kind, so I didn’t expect you to want to be with me very long.” That was the truth, even though she had fallen head over heels for him in the last two months and some part of her still hoped.
“Why wouldn’t you? What is it about yourself that you think isn’t good enough for me?” They were parked now so he took the time to stare at her. With him looking at her so intently, Rosalie’s face got hot.
“I’m not like those girls that your mom wants you to be with. I’m not rich or some socialite princess. I can’t give you that elevated status that she wants for you. I’m just a poor little dorm mouse trying to be a doctor that’s going to work hard for everything she has and wants.” It was something she was proud of, but she knew right now it wasn’t going to be good enough. If it was just up to matters of the heart, then she wouldn’t be afraid, but in today’s world, it was all about what you had and what you could do and what you brought to the table. Right now, she didn’t have anything, she couldn’t do anything, and she brought nothing to the relationship. She’d finally gotten a writing job online like she’d been praying for, but she hadn’t gotten paid yet for it. Technically, that meant that she wasn’t working yet because she had nothing to show for it. What could he possibly see in her?
“That’s exactly why I want to be with you! You’re not like those girls that my mom wants me to be with! I want someone who knows the value of what they have because they worked for it. I want someone who will do what needs to be done because they aren’t afraid of hard work! I don’t want some prissy girl who has a maid to do everything for her. I want someone who has had some experiences in life so that when we finally start a family, we raise our kids the right way! How could you possibly think that I would want all of that with anyone but you?” A smile spread across Rosalie’s face. If what he was saying was true, then they would be together for a long time yet, if not forever because he claimed he wanted everything that she was. Tears started in her eyes, and she couldn’t stop a few from falling down her cheeks. Eric reached out and gently wiped them away with the pad of his thumb. He put his hand under her chin and pulled her face up so she was looking at him.
“I don’t ever want you to think that you aren’t good enough for me. You’re everything to me. I don’t care what my mother thinks, or if she disinherits me. I have the grades and the schooling to get a job, and if I had to, I’d go work so you could go to school. I can see that you’re so passionate about your schooling and the career that you want that I will do whatever it takes to get you your dream.” Those words made something deep inside of Rosalie melt. The tears came back, and this time he had to hold her. She shook slightly with the emotion that she felt, and he was her rock, holding her until she was ready to go inside. When she was, he walked her to the door and made sure that she was alright before he left. Vanessa and Blaze were watching some horror flick in their pajamas when the couple came in, and Blaze stared daggers at Rosalie. She didn’t have the energy to fight right now, and she just ignored the girl. Eric, however, saw the look this time, and followed it to see where it landed. Once he realized that Blaze was looking at Rosalie as if she wished she would swallow poison, his jaw clenched. He would take care of that problem before he left, too.
“I’m ok. I think I just want to lay down for a little while.” The secrets and the feelings that had made it to light this morning were overwhelming. Even though they were all great and made Rosalie happy, it was still a lot to take in, and she needed some time to process it all. He hugged her tightly, kissing her, long and slow, just the way she liked it, then tucked her into bed. He locked the door, then pulled it shut behind him. That’s where the niceness stopped. Both girls in the living room were staring at him, horror movie forgotten.
“Hey, Eric. Nice to see you. I didn’t even know you’d come to pick her up. I thought she was still sleeping.” Vanessa’s cheeks were pink with embarrassment that she’d been naïve enough to think that Rosalie was still in bed at this hour when she was usually up and moving about long before now.
“Hey, Vanessa. Yeah, I picked her up early this morning. We tried not to wake you up.” The sour expression on Blaze’s face could have curdled milk.
“We just thought she was being lazy.” The girl couldn’t resist getting a dig in at Rosalie. Eric’s face went stark white and he rounded on her. He was so angry that his words came out between clenched teeth.
“That girl is so far from lazy you don’t even know what you’re talking about. She actually goes to class, unlike you, and she passes those classes, unlike you. She is the sweetest person you’ll ever meet, and all you want to do is tear her down. For what? For me? Please. There is nothing in the world that you could do that would make me choose you over her. That girl,” he had to take a breath and point towards Rosalie’s closed door, “Is going to be my wife one day. I’m not sure when yet, or where, but it’s going to happen. The next time I see you disrespect her like you just did, I’ll bury you.” His eyes blazed with anger as he left the dorm room. Blaze stared after Eric like she’d lost the most important thing in her life. Vanessa, meanwhile, was staring at Blaze with a look of satisfaction. It had been Vanessa who had told Eric exactly what was going on. She’d warned her friend to leave Rosalie alone, and even though she hadn’t done anything per se to sabotage Rosalie’s relationship, she was tired of hearing Blaze put her down. Now she’d been put in her place by the one person she actually cared about. Vanessa hoped that would be enough to teach her a lesson.
Eric drove home, where he was instantly confronted by his mother. He cursed himself for letting himself get lost in thought, because it always put him on autopilot when he drove, and autopilot
meant home.
“Where have you been? Don’t tell me that you’ve been with that little gutter mouse the whole time.” His mother was fuming, and he didn’t care. He loved her to death, but lately, she’d been driving a wedge between them with all the dating talk.
“Yes, actually, I was with Rosalie. And I meant what I said at the club. I’m going to marry her. She might want six months for me to be sure, but I can promise you that I am serious as a heart attack. I don’t care what you have to say about it, and I don’t care if you disinherit me. I’m going to be with her, and I’m going to give her everything she ever dreams of.” The vehemence of his words were almost like a slap in the face for her, and she looked stunned that he’d talked to her that way. Before she could gather her thoughts, Eric walked right past her and into the house. His thoughts were still on Rosalie. In a way, he was kind of happy that she’d asked him to wait. He realized now how selfish he’d been by trying to prove a point to his mother by using her, and springing a proposal on her out of nowhere like that. He was lucky that she didn’t flat out tell him no. He decided that he was going to start putting together a resume right away to apply for a job. He didn’t care what his mother said or thought. He was his own person, and he was going to live life his own way. Right now, Rosalie was his world, and he was going to make sure that he took care of it.
He sat down at his laptop and started typing. It hit him that he really didn’t have much work experience, and that was going to hurt him in the long run. He chuckled sarcastically. Now was the time that he actually needed to use his real name. If he was lucky, they would see that and want him to be a part of whatever company he applied to in the hopes that his parents would make donations. All in all, he was a hard worker, and very determined. If it got him his foot in the door, his attitude and work ethic would keep him the job. A half hour later found his resume finished, and him scouring help wanted ads online, applying to what felt like hundreds of jobs. Every time he read one, all he could see was Rosalie’s face. If he had to work two or three jobs to make sure that she had the money for her tuition, he would see to it. The laptop was something she’d needed, and it was something he’d been more than happy to give her. Just like he was more than happy to give her the world. After submitting the fortieth resume, he decided to call it a day. He hoped that some of them would call him back, because he really didn’t have anything else to do for the rest of the day. But he would be damned if he left his room and let his mother start in on him again…