I probably should've called him to let them know I was coming, but I knew once I started talking, I would probably completely break down, and I didn't want to do it in the car. I was freaking my driver out enough.
My brother lived in a condo community that was more like an all-inclusive resort than a residential area. Anything and everything he could possibly want or need was available in the community. It was the type of place where a rich bachelor might live, but my brother wasn't a partier or a playboy. I think he lived here mostly out of convenience.
I arrived at his condo, backing up to a man-made lake. I knocked on the door and only then wondered if maybe I was wrong and he was entertaining guests for New Year's Eve. He opened the door wearing a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt, looking like he had just come back from the gym.
He smiled, but then immediately, his smile faltered. "What's wrong?"
"Everything." With that, the floodgates opened, and I wept so intensely that I could barely breathe.
"Oh, shit, Amelia." He reached out, taking my hand and tugging me into his condo. He led me to his living room and set me on the couch. He sat on the coffee table in front of me and took my hands in his. "What happened?"
Through sobs and hiccups, I said, "Our father is an evil man."
James’s eyes studied me intently, and he gave a brief nod. I wasn't telling him anything he didn't know, but I doubt he knew the depth of depravity that my father was capable of.
"There’s something I didn’t tell you. Actually, there are a few things I haven't told you. It's not that I wanted to keep them secret or that I didn't trust you, it's just that... well, it was embarrassing, and I promised I wouldn't. But now I know the truth, and I really need someone."
"Okay.” He rose and grabbed a box of tissue, handing it to me before sitting on the coffee table again.
“Remember that date I had with Max at The Roarke?"
"If I remember correctly, you were saying it wasn't a date."
I shrugged and snuffled, wiping my nose with a tissue. "It was a second date, really. We met and were having fun knowing it wasn't going to go anywhere. He lives in New York and I'm here."
"So it was just a little fling?"
I couldn't decide whether I should nod or shake my head. "That's what it was supposed to be. But we ended up seeing each other more than the two times. We even talked on the phone a little bit."
He tilted his head to the side. "Are you saying you’ve fallen in love with him?"
I nodded, but a new well of tears came at mentioning my love for Max. There was so much pain at what my father had done.
James’s brows narrowed. "What did he do?"
"He didn't do anything. I mean, this whole thing isn't his fault." I shook my head, feeling confused about what to tell him next.
"So what happened?"
"When we left the Roarke, there was a car waiting, and the driver said he was sent from the hotel. So we got in to tour the city and have champagne."
James nodded, and I was grateful that he was patient at how long it was taking me to tell him my story.
"Next day, we woke up, having no memory of anything past the time we got into the limousine."
"Did he drug you?"
"We woke up married."
Any other time, James might've laughed, but he could tell what was going on with me was no laughing matter. "So what happened?" he prompted me again.
"We decided we would get an annulment. But he had to go back to New York and so the process got delayed. During that time, we started talking on the phone and my feelings changed. The first time we were going to deal with the annulment papers, he got called away for an emergency.”
I looked down at my hands, my fingers toying with the tissue. "Just before Christmas, he was coming back to visit to do the annulment papers.”
“Surely, you weren’t ready to stay married,” James said gently.
“I knew that no matter what, we were going to have to get the annulment. But because of how my feelings changed, I planned to tell him how I felt and see if maybe we could continue our relationship."