by Claire Adams
“We need a plan, Chase,” I said urgently as we pulled up.
“I have a plan. Don’t worry, just follow my lead.”
The confidence in his voice reassured me instantly. I wasn’t sure what his plan was, but he sure seemed confident. The idea that he had things under control was a welcoming thought, and I was happy to let him take control of the situation. I had enough to worry about with trying to hide my foreign accent as much as possible and understand what they were saying to me.
“I’m nervous,” I whispered, as we stood at the front door and took a breath before going in.
“Don’t be nervous. Just remember, he puts his three thousand dollar pants on one leg at a time, just like everyone else.”
Chase laughed and grabbed my hand as he opened the door and pulled me into the house. The elegant entryway caught my breath as we stood there and took our shoes off before going farther into the house.
I couldn’t help but think back to all the fun American television shows I had seen and what it would be like to meet Chase’s family. I hoped it would be more like a comedy than a drama. I desperately hoped his parents would like me.
Finding a bride on the internet wasn’t something Chase had planned. It certainly wasn’t something I had planned, but I was really excited that we had found each other. I hoped his family would like me just as much as I liked Chase.
“Oh, gosh,” I said quietly as I looked up at the forty-foot ceiling.
Chase just smiled at me and pulled me toward the back sitting room. We walked through a study and down a couple steps where I caught my first glimpse of his mother. She was stunning, the kind of beauty that came from a life of luxury. She looked like she had done some plastic surgery and had enough chemical peels that she looked at least ten years younger than she probably was. But still, she was beautiful.
“Jordan, this is my mother, Susanne.”
“Oh, Chase, she’s beautiful,” his mother exclaimed as she came over to hug me.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Foster,” I said with the last bit of air in my lungs.
“Mom, let her go. She can’t breathe,” Chase joked, although it was entirely true.
“I’m sorry, dear. It’s just that Chase hasn’t brought a girl home to meet us in years. It is great to finally get to meet you.”
“Mom, I’ve told you about her for months,” Chase said.
I looked at him baffled as I tried to figure out how he could have told his mother about me for months, before he had actually even met me. But I figured this was part of his plan, and I needed to just go with it.
Chase was really good at improvising in situations, which probably made him a good businessman. It impressed me a lot how quickly he could think on his feet. I was horrible at spontaneously coming up with ideas.
“Oh, yes, dear. The student friend of yours. She sure is pretty,” Mrs. Foster said.
“Mom, you can talk directly to her you know. She speaks perfect English. And, yes, she is beautiful, but she is also a nurse and extremely smart.”
“Oh, honey, I love how you talk about her. I can tell you two are really in love.”
Chase seemed annoyed that his mother kept talking about me in the third person, but he didn’t fight her anymore. Instead, he started laying the groundwork for telling her we were actually married. I suspected it was going to be a very hard thing to sell to his mother. She struck me as the type of person who would want to plan her son’s giant wedding.
“Mom, Jordan and I have some big news that I want to tell you before Dad gets in here.”
Chase’s mom didn’t seem too worried at first, but then she looked over and saw the serious look on his face. She walked over and sat down next to him. I saw some concern in her eyes, and I wondered if she thought the news was bad news or something.
“What is it, Chase?”
“Well, Jordan and I have been dating for a while now. I really love her, Mom,” he said as he squeezed my hand.
“Chase, you are making me nervous, what is it?”
“We got married.”
“Holy hell! Why the heck would you do that? You eloped? Is she pregnant?”
“No, Mom, she isn’t pregnant. We just wanted to get married, and we didn’t want to financially burden our families.”
“Having a wedding isn’t a financial burden. It’s an opportunity for us to share the joyous day with all of our family and friends. What does Jordan’s family think of all this?”
For the first time since I was introduced to her, Mrs. Foster turned and looked at me. I took it as my cue to talk.
“Mrs. Foster, my father is dead and my mother just got remarried. She is very happy that I found a lifelong partner who I love.”
It was a total lie. I had not even talked to my mother since leaving Liechtenstein, but I knew my mother would be happy for me. My mother wouldn’t like that we had gotten married without her there, but she still would be happy for me.
She would have wanted to be with me on my wedding day. She would have wanted me to have a real ceremony. But then again, my mother wouldn’t have wanted me to travel across the world and meet Chase at all. So, I figured it was a good thing my mother hadn’t been around.
Meeting Chase was an adventure that I couldn’t have dreamed of. Until I met Chase, I never would have known what kind of chemistry and attraction there could have been between me and another person.
“I thought you were supposed to be showing your father you could be responsible,” Mrs. Foster said as she turned back to Chase.
“I am. I love her, and we plan to spend the rest of our lives together. I am also responsible because I didn’t let my father spend half a million dollars on a wedding. Instead, we did it quietly.”
His mother seemed to ponder Chase’s explanation for a moment, and then calmed down.
“Chase, I did really want to plan a wedding. Perhaps, we could at least throw a reception to celebrate?”
“Yes, Mother, of course. Whatever makes you happy.”
Chase and his mother seemed to have a very close relationship. Although, I suspected she was pretty much the fun parent while his father was the disciplinarian. Her brief shock about the marriage quickly died down, to both my relief and Chase’s.
“Now, how can we tell your father so he doesn’t get angry with you? I do like that you two have been getting along lately.”
They talked for a bit and devised a plan that would help Chase in dealing with his father. It was a simple plan that basically focused on how Chase had saved so much money by getting married in private. I thought it was brilliant, but only time would tell what his father actually thought about it.
About twenty minutes later, we heard the front door open as Mr. Foster arrived home. My hands got clammy, and I felt the color rush from my face. He was an intimidating person – just his presence in the room made me nervous. I could sure see how he ran his billion-dollar company. His aura just oozed CEO.
But Mr. Foster was getting older, and it seemed like he was becoming very frail. Even though his presence commanded attention, I could tell that he tired easily and probably really wanted to retire from the day-to-day work of running his company. All we needed to do was provide him with the information he craved to feel like Chase would be a good person to take over the company. He needed to feel comfortable that Chase was able to make good decisions under pressure.
To be honest, I wasn’t really sure that Chase was all that great at making decisions under pressure. But, he did seem to want to really learn and grow. In the short time I had known him, he already had grown so much from the man he was in his past. Deep down, I hoped he would be able to prove to his father that he was ready for the big undertaking of running the company.
“Chase,” Mr. Foster said as he made a straight line for his son.
“Hi, Dad.”
The two seemed pretty distant. I couldn’t help but wonder if they were always that awkward together. Chase gave his dad a bit of a hug and then tur
ned to face me. Quickly, I stood up and put my hand out.
“Dad, this is Jordan. Jordan, this is my father, Reynold Foster.”
“It’s nice to meet you, sir.”
“So, Chase, how did you and this beautiful creature meet?” Mr. Foster said as he held onto my hand for a minute.
Mr. Foster seemed a bit enamored with me. I felt like it was the perfect opportunity to try and get him to think more positively about the decision we had made to get married.
“Mr. Foster, your home is so beautiful. You must work really hard to support your family so nicely.”
“Yes, darling, I do work hard. If I have my way, Chase will be working just as hard, and I’ll be able to retire and enjoy myself a bit more.”
“I know Chase has talked a lot about getting himself back on track with work. I hope you have seen some positive changes in him recently.”
“Dad, there is something I need to tell you,” Chase tried to interrupt, but Mr. Foster was much more interested in talking to me than he was to Chase.
“So, Jordan, tell me – what do you see in this kid?” Mr. Foster grabbed Chase by the shoulder and pulled him up next to him.
Chase seemed incredibly uncomfortable. It was the weirdest thing to watch a father and son be so distant with each other. I could tell that they loved each other, but there were definitely some hard feelings between the two of them.
“Oh, Mr. Foster, where do I start? Chase is incredibly kind. He always puts my needs ahead of his own. He’s also a very hard worker and has a sense of humor that makes me laugh every single day.”
“Wow, Chase, you got a good one here. You should keep her around.”
“Dad, I’m so glad you like Jordan. There is something I need to tell you,” Chase started to talk, but then I saw the nerves as they took over.
“Chase and I wanted to save money, so we got married,” I said as I tried to make eye contact with Mr. Foster. I tried my best to say something that showed we were responsible, but it didn’t come out well.
He didn’t seem amused at all.
“Chase Foster, didn’t we just talk about the importance of being responsible? You went and got this nice girl knocked up. That’s not showing any sort of responsibility. There is no way I can sign over my company to you now!”
Mr. Foster stormed off, and both Chase and I looked right at Mrs. Foster for help. I wasn’t pregnant – if that was why he was going to be mad at Chase, he should at least know the truth.
“Reynold, she’s not pregnant,” I heard Mrs. Foster say as she ran after her husband.
The two of them stopped at the edge of the room, which was just outside of our hearing reach. Chase and I sat on the couch. He held my hand as we waited to see if Mrs. Foster would be able to calm her husband down. At least he wasn’t upset about us getting married. It seemed he was actually upset because he thought I was pregnant. Hopefully, a conversation with Mrs. Foster could fix that.
“He will come around,” I whispered to Chase.
“I don’t know. I just don’t think we are going to have time. He’s not a fast decision maker. Even if he does trust me, I’m not going to have access to the money I need by the time I have to get it to Escabar. I really think I’m screwed.”
I saw the defeat in his eyes, and it was heartbreaking. But we didn’t have to give up. I wasn’t going to give up. Chase still had one option left. I knew it wasn’t one that he wanted to take, but it was an option.
“What about going to the Special Crimes Division?”
“No, we can’t. Escabar will for sure have us killed.”
“I’m sure they have some sort of protocol for things like this. We could at least go to them and talk about the situation.”
“If he has us followed and sees us go into there, we will be killed before there is any kind of discussion.”
“You’re right. But what choice do you have?”
We both sat in silence as we waited for Mr. and Mrs. Foster to finish talking. Our only hope was that Mrs. Foster was going to be able to convince her husband that us getting married wasn’t a bad thing.
Chase held my hand. I took deep breaths as we waited to see what the fate of our relationship would be in his father’s eyes. I hoped that he would accept the situation. I really hoped that he would accept that Chase would be a good leader for his company.
After about ten minutes of talking, Mr. Foster left the room. We both stood up as Mrs. Foster came over to us. It didn’t seem like Chase’s father was very interested in welcoming me into the family. I tried to hide my disappointment, but I just couldn’t.
“He seems to have calmed down a little. Let me continue to work on him.”
“All right, Mother,” Chase said as he hugged his mom. “We are going to head out for now. We will check in later this week, and I’ll see Dad at work.”
Chase and I made our way back out to the car and didn’t say a single word. I could tell that he was heartbroken that his father had not been more welcoming.
“It’s all right. He will come around,” I said quietly and held onto Chase’s hand.
“I hope so.”
Chapter Nineteen
Chase
I don’t know why I had any hope that my father would actually accept me getting married. He never thought I made good decisions. It was the story of our entire relationship. But I did hold out a little hope that my mother would be able to calm him down.
One thing that was extremely clear to me was that there was absolutely no way I was going to get my hands on enough money by the end of the week to pay off Escabar. As we left my family home, I couldn’t help but think I was only days away from being murdered. After Escabar took care of me, he would likely kill Jordan as well, since she knew all the details. Then, of course, he would go after my family for their money.
Just before we left my family grounds, I took a sharp left turn into the wooded area at the edge of our property. There was a small path that the car just barely fit on. The path had been there for years and was used by the gardeners to get to the pond at the other end of the property. I wasn’t ready to go home, and I wasn’t ready to go back to the cabin – the pond seemed like a good place to stop and think.
“Where are we going?” Jordan asked.
“I need to think.”
Jordan looked concerned as she turned and watched me. Her intense gaze seemed to be weighing the pros and cons of the situation. I could tell that she was extremely capable at understanding the situation and what was at stake.
The sun shone brightly as it reflected off the pond. I let my body breathe in deeply as I exited the car. The air seemed sweeter when we were away from the stuffiness of my house. The flowers, animals, and even trees appeared to be there specifically to offer an environmental hug to Jordan and me.
We grabbed a blanket from the trunk of the car, and I spread it out near the edge of the water. Jordan sat down. I sat next to her as we both looked off into the distance. We didn’t need to talk. Both of us already had so much on our minds.
Somewhere in the middle of thinking about getting murdered by Jose Escabar and my father, my thoughts shifted back to Jordan. Her long legs sat twisted up like a pretzel next to me. Her brown hair was swept to one side of her shoulder, and her delicate hands fiddled with a handful of grass she had pulled from next to her.
In that moment, I didn’t really care about Escabar or my father. All I cared about was doing right by Jordan. She had come all the way across the world to meet me, and I had pretty much ruined every moment of our time together.
“I’m sorry,” I said quietly as I grabbed her hand and held onto it.
She didn’t ask what I was sorry for. She didn’t get mad at me. Instead, Jordan just looked back out at the pond and smiled. I saw a small tear leak from her eye and it absolutely killed me. She didn’t deserve a guy like me, she deserved much more. Yet, she was my wife now.
Wife, wow. I really couldn’t believe it.
“How are your ribs?”<
br />
“They aren’t nearly as bad. I think I’ll live.” I laughed. “At least, until the end of the week.”
We both awkwardly laughed, but I was seriously freaking out.
“Do you think if I just give him back the black book he is going to let me go?” I asked.
“No.”
“Don’t sugarcoat it for me or anything, Jordan,” I joked.
“I think he’s going to kill you no matter what you do. Even if you pay him back all the money and give him his book back.”
“Great.”
We sat, hand in hand, and looked out over the countryside. I was the man, the husband. I was supposed to be able to keep us both safe and make Jordan happy. I had to think of something.
“We could go stay with my brother Jack in Italy. He’s got a little woodworking business. I’m sure I could pick something up to do for work.”
“Italy is beautiful this time of year, I’m sure,” Jordan said.
She didn’t sound convinced that running off to Italy was a good idea. I didn’t really think it was, either. The second I left town, Escabar would go after my father, and I couldn’t risk that. As much as we had struggled in our relationship over the years, he was my father and I loved him.
“What do you think?” I asked.
“About Italy, or everything else?”
“Everything,” I said as I turned to look at Jordan and held both of her hands in mine.
“I think we should go to the police. Things are too deep now. There’s no way out. When there’s no way out, you have to involve the police.”
I just sat silently and took in what she said. She was right, and I knew it. I desperately wanted there to be another way out of the problem. I wanted to solve it on my own. I wanted to just take over my father’s company, give Escabar his money and book, then move on with my life.
Jordan lay back onto the blanket and looked up at the sky.
Her smile was amazing to me. Even in the midst of everything I had put her through over the last few days, she was smiling.