Belong

by Jennifer Foor

  “Harper Addalynn Farrow will receive a trust fund in the amount of two million dollars she will be able to draw from at the age of eighteen for college, or twenty four if she decides not to attend. Your grandfather says he’s going to miss your pretty smile the most. He says that when the world seems ugly, he thinks of you and everything bad goes away.”

  Harper came out from under the table, not understanding what was going on, or how much money she would come into once she reached adulthood.

  “The rest of the financials will go directly to the grandson, Chad Michael Farrow to do what he sees fit.” He slid over an envelope. “He also asks that you read this letter in private.”

  “Now, onto the estate.” While he flipped to the next page I suddenly wondered why Rachel hadn’t been mentioned. Maybe he’d forgotten to mention what my grandfather had left her. I’d wait until he was done to bring it up. “The estate located at yada yada,” he was skimming through the wording. “will be split between Chad Michael Farrow and Rachel Marie Lewis.”

  I heard Veronica gasp, looked over to see Rachel’s eyes widen, and then swallowed the lump forming in my throat. “Come again?”

  He slid the file over and pointed. “It’s pretty clear. The estate and all it’s content will be joint owned by you and Miss Lewis. It also states that the property will remain in an escrow account for no less than five years, at which time you will be able to sell and split the profits.”

  “Why would he do such a thing? How are we supposed to maintain the property when we have nothing to do with Miss. Lewis? This is preposterous! I know you knew about this, Chad. If you think this is some kind of payback you’re wrong. I won’t stand for this.” Veronica slammed before standing up and walking out of the room.

  I found Rachel again, tears streaming down her beautiful cheeks. “Did you know? Is she right?”

  “Of course not. I swear. The old man was a jokester. This is probably his way of saying he knew about …,” I took a second, finally realizing I didn’t care if Ronald knew about our relationship. “Us.”

  Harper came out from under the table. “Where did Mommy go?”

  “I’m not sure. Why don’t you go find her?”

  I waited until she’d left to speak to Ronald. “Can you give us a minute?”

  He slid an envelope over to Rachel. “Sure. There are a couple other charities we need go through and some paperwork to sign.”

  “We’ll get to it in a bit. Just give us a couple minutes.”

  He left the paperwork on the table and exited the room, closing the door behind him. Being a lawyer, I was sure he’d seen a fair share of affairs. He probably suspected the worse, when Rachel and I were pretty innocent when it came to being illicit. It wasn’t like we’d been in a happy relationship and sought out a little extra on the side.

  I ran my hands through my hair, trying to figure out what the hell was going on. I began thinking about the last time I’d spoken to my grandfather, and the cryptic message in his final words. “Damn. I should have known.”

  “Known what?”

  “In the hospital last week my grandfather said something, and at the time I thought it was gibberish. Now I get it. He said three words. Happy – Home – and the last one he couldn’t get out completely. It was like a Ra sound. Now I know what it is. Rachel. He wanted me to come home to you.”

  I could hardly accept it.

  “That’s crazy. I mean, I know Charles means well, but how would this benefit either of us?”

  “Well, he didn’t know Veronica was pregnant, so maybe he thought if I had this place I’d be forced to reconnect with you.”

  “This is insane, Chad. I’ll sign it over to you. I’d never take something like that from your family.”

  “No.” I let out an air-filled laugh. “Don’t do anything.” Suddenly I realized how this could help us. “We can’t get into the details here, but I need to meet you later. I’ll call you when I can get away. I think this could be the way out I’ve been looking for.”

  Rachel wasn’t following. “How? You’re married and live in California, now you’re forced to own a property with me, who you’re supposed to be severing ties with.”

  I reached across the table and took her hands. “There’s not going to be a reason for us to sever ties, Rach. I have an idea, and if I’m right, I may not have to go back to California, at least not permanently.”

  “Your family is there. Harper.”

  I smiled. “Trust me. Just trust me.”

  “I do. I always have.”

  “Rach, I need you to know, this isn’t about being with you physically. I’d be happy knowing you loved me forever, even if we were miles apart. Being with you is the complete package. You drive me to be better. I’ve spent my life doing things in hopes that I could impress you, even after we were together before. In the back of my mind I wondered if you’d be proud of my accomplishments. Maybe I was blind, or just plain naïve to my own needs. I feel like we have a second chance at this. I want this life with you, more than the business, or anything else standing in our way. I can’t walk away from you again. I won’t do it.”

  “There will be consequences.”

  “I’m fully aware. Let’s get this paperwork done so I’m able to get away from Veronica, and then I’ll explain. I promise.”

  “Okay.” She nodded when she said it.

  “Assure me this is what you want. If it’s not I’ll walk away. I’ll leave you to live your life with your grandchild and daughter. We can pretend this never happened. Assure me this is exactly what you want.”

  “You don’t have to ask, Chad. Isn’t it obvious how much I love you? Of course I want a life with you. I want you to be a part of my family.”

  My stomach knotted up when she said it. It was something Rachel had always kept separate. Now she’d included me, and I was determined to make it happen, no matter how many bridges I had to burn.

  “How soon can you move into the mansion?”

  she laughed through her tears, which I hoped were out of happiness. “Seriously? Can I have a few minutes to comprehend all of this?”

  “Only a couple. Screw it, take your time. We have our whole lives to be together.”

  When she snickered I knew it was because we’d gone from fearing that we’d lost our chance at happiness, to having an opportunity to make it all work out, thanks to my crazy grandfather and his ability to see what I’d been denying for far too long.

  Chapter 29

  There were a bunch of important factors running through my head at once, though my main concern was to be as close to Rachel as I could. Nothing I could do would make up for the pain I’d caused her for the second time, so it was important she knew it wasn’t going to happen again.

  If I knew my wife at all, my plan would work. I’d be able to have a life with Rachel, while being able to see my daughter every single day.

  Before stepping out of the office to fetch the attorney, I walked around to the opposite side of the table and pulled Rachel into my arms. “It won’t be long now.”

  “You think this plan of yours is going to work?”

  “The other night when I had to leave you, I tried thinking of every single reason to turn around and drive back, but my conscience wouldn’t let it happen. I’ve been waiting for the moment where I could find a way out of this conundrum. It’s going to take me a few months to prepare, and maybe even longer for it to all fall into place, but I can promise you I’m coming home.”

  Rachel kissed me quickly, pulling away while staring at the door in fear someone would step inside. “I better get going. I’ll pull Ronald aside and sign whatever I need to before I leave. Go do whatever it is you think will help us. You know where to find me. I’m going into the office for a while, but I’m be home later. I have my cell on me.”

  I grabbed her and pulled her back into my arms for one more kiss. “You can’t leave without saying goodbye.”

  A chaste kiss left me wanting more, while watching he
r continue out the door.

  Several minutes later Veronica came in the room. Her hands were on her hips as soon as she came to a stop in front of me. “I’ve already called our lawyer at home. We’ll get this taken care of. There’s no way that bitch will keep us from selling that house.”

  I rolled my eyes, preparing to ignore her because I knew it was better that way. “Where’s Harper?”

  “She’s coloring at the receptionist station. Tell me what’s going on, Chad. You knew didn’t you?”

  “Not that it matters, but no, I didn’t have a clue. He never said a word to me about Rachel.”

  “Well this just seems too convenient. I know what you’re thinking.” She waved her hands around as she spoke. “You think you can use this against me. That’s probably why you were in here alone. You were scheming with your little whore about how to take me down?”

  “You have a vivid imagination. Rachel was only explaining how she also had no idea what my grandfather had done. She didn’t even know why she was involved in the reading. You saw the shock on her face.”

  “What I saw had nothing to do with the reading of the will. You were with her the other night, supposedly to say goodbye, but here’s the strange thing, neither one of you seemed the least bit emotional when she walked in the room earlier. You were both relaxed. Now, I may be a bit out of line, but I’m inclined to think there were no goodbyes the other night. I think the two of you are concocting some kind of plan to get rid of me.”

  This made me cackle at her. “Get rid of you? You think I’m going to hire someone and have you taken out? There are movies about that, you know. It’s too obvious. If I wanted you gone it would be when you least expected it, just saying.”

  “Don’t be an ass, Chad. I’m fully aware how you feel about me. It’s just funny, you never showed as much when we were home. As soon as she walked back into your life I became the enemy. Now, all of a sudden I’m supposed to step aside so the two of you can live a lavish life. It’s not happening. I’ll fight you. I’ll make sure you’re left with nothing.”

  “Go ahead and try. If you know anything about me, you’d understand I’m a man of my word. Don’t threaten me with your bullshit. You and I are getting a divorce. I agreed to come home with you for the sake of our children, but that’s the only reason. You and I will never reconcile. We won’t be friends, or fall back in love. Our marriage is a train wreck, and it’s been that way for too long. You and I know what we talked about the night before I came here. You knew where our marriage was headed. I’m done talking about this with you. You can threaten me all day long, but I’m not about to stand down. I’m a good father, and I was a hell of a husband before you walked all over me and ruined what we stood for. I don’t have to explain my actions. You have no right to judge me. If I were you, I’d take Harper home and start packing your bags. Once I’m done with this paperwork we’re on the next flight out of here.”

  I could tell I’d gotten under her skin. Instead of coming back at me with her angry lashes, she peered away and sniffled, as if she were about to cry.

  “I’m sorry. This is hard for me. I’ve been a good wife, with the exception of this year. Sometimes I hate myself for what I’ve done, but you don’t have to keep rubbing it in. I’m the one with the baby growing inside of me. I’m the one who will be raising him or her primarily on my own when you leave.”

  “Don’t you dare go there, Veronica. If I’m nothing else, it’s a good father. I won’t allow you to belittle me.”

  She sunk down in a chair and covered her face with her hands. Veronica’s tough façade was damaged. She could no longer play the evil woman she’d portrayed. She’d been stripped of her ability to pretend she could stay in control of our situation.

  I sat down beside her, knowing we only had a small amount of time before Ronald joined us. “What happened to the woman I married?”

  “She’s gone, Chad. You made sure of it.”

  “Bullshit. Be honest for once.”

  “This relationship isn’t doing anyone any good. We need to stop fighting. I know we can be friends if you’d stop fighting me tooth and nail. I get you’re pissed, but how do you think it felt for me to discover you’ve been having an affair for months? I loved you and you took me for a fool. You were selfish first, and maybe I did things wrong in the past week, but what choice did I have? I couldn’t go back to pretending our marriage could be fixed. I wanted to feel something good for once. In the midst of my life crumbling apart I fell into the arms of someone familiar and I’ll be damned if I regret one second of it. If this proves anything, it’s that we shouldn’t be together.” I was quiet for a second and thought about my next words before allowing them to expel from my mouth. “You’re holding this pregnancy over my head and it’s wrong. I didn’t know about the baby, but the fact remains, we can’t get back together for our children. They’ll hate us. We’ll be teaching them that living a lie is okay to do. What happened to you in your past was horrible, but you have the opportunity to right the wrongs. Be a good mother, and a better friend. Be the person you’d want your kids to grow up and become. I realize I’ve only known about this for a couple days, but I know in my gut this is how I’ll feel in the future. Now, with that being said, I’m willing to go home with you and Harper. I’ll find a place close like we discussed, and we’ll make a schedule for all of us. We can make it work.”

  She sniffled through her words. I know I was being difficult, and maybe Veronica was hurting much more than I first imagined. It was obvious she was hormonal, and after taking that into consideration it was clear her heart was breaking just as much as mine, especially when we thought about our little girl, and what this was going to do to her. “I feel alone, Chad. That’s why I don’t want you with her.”

  “How do you think I felt when I discovered you were with Shelly? I know you assume I’ve been in contact with Rachel, but you’re wrong. I thought you were going to take Harper away from me.”

  “I wouldn’t do that. She adores you, and I know you think I’m evil, but I’d never keep you from your child.”

  I reached my arms out, waiting for her to stand and come into them. When she did I kissed the top of her head. “I’m sorry, Veronica. When I asked you to marry me I meant every word. I tried to be a good husband.”

  She backed away with a smile on her face. “You were perfect. I just wish you would have met me first, because I would have liked to know what it feels like to have your whole heart.”

  In that moment I knew I couldn’t argue with her statement. Maybe she had a point. Veronica didn’t know the difference until she’d seen me with Rachel, and then everything was clear. I hadn’t hidden my feelings, or denied what she was to me. In that instant I felt guilty, like my inability to give her my all had been the cause of our problems.

  Chapter 30

  I knew when I walked out of the conference room I’d find Veronica waiting for me. She stood in front of me wearing a fancy designer dress from the looks of it. With steady tears running down her reddened cheeks, a distraught grimace covered her beautiful face. I hated being the other woman, though in some ways I felt as if he was mine first. Was that fair? Was I being immature to think Chad was mine all along? “Is this how you planned on keeping him? Did Charles tell you about the estate?”

  “No. Charles never said a word to me. He’d never mentioned the house, or even Chad.” Not in any ways she wanted to hear. He’d hinted about his grandson, but never been direct about our relationship. “I know you must think I’m trying to sabotage your life, but…”

  “Think it? I know it.” She crossed her arms. “You don’t even see it. You’re too blinded by him being back in your life to see how important his is in California. Do you even know how much Harper means to him? Do you know she can’t sleep unless he tucks her in? Can you comprehend what taking him away from her would do?”

  She’d cornered me with the question, which made complete sense for her to wonder. “I never asked him to be with
me, Veronica. Contrary to what you may think of me, I begged Chad not to pursue our relationship. I knew how much hurt would be involved if we did.”

  “What good did it do? His mind is made up. I can tell it when he speaks to me.”

  “I’m sorry you feel like I’m to blame.”

  “You slept with my husband. How am I supposed to feel about you?”

  Gracie was walking in with Harper and made a quick turn for the exit. She knew this wasn’t anything the little girl needed to hear. “I know he’s going back to California. We said our goodbyes. Chad made his choice, and it wasn’t me.”

  Her eyes widened and I could tell she was trying to read me to discover if I was lying or not. “He did? He chose Harper?”

  “Yes, now I’d appreciate it if you gave me space to finish what needs to be done so I can go about my life.”

  “For what it’s worth, I think you’re lucky. Chad’s a good man; the best I’ve ever known, but I need him right now, more than you. I know he loves you. Sometimes it’s not enough to keep him. Trust me, I know from experience.”

  She walked away from me, entering the room where Chad remained.

  I took a few seconds to regain composure. She was a strange woman, always talking in some kind of code to get under a person’s skin. Even if I knew her outside of Chad, I’d never be friends with someone like her.

  Gracie and Ronald kept me company while I signed all of the necessary paperwork. They didn’t mention my encounter with Veronica, probably because they both knew Chad and I were involved. A part of me wanted to walk out of there with my head held high, because I knew one day I’d have Chad to myself, but another wondered if Veronica would be able to find a way to destroy us, once and for all.

  Chapter 31

  The letter from my Grandfather was shocking, to say the least. I waited until Veronica and Harper were both in bed to begin reading it from his private office. I had a feeling it was only for my eyes to see.