Page 55 of Adrian

“What is going on with you?” my mother asks as soon as she’s seated. Her gaze is on mine. She sits tall and proper, but her face is tight.

“I needed a change, Mom.”

“So you just took off without a word and went to the mountains?”

My father glares at me as if I’m a child needing scolding. He looks like he’s about to admonish me for upsetting my mother. What a joke.

I refuse to cower to these people. I don’t even know them. “I knew if I told you my plans, you would try to stop me.”

“Damn right, we would have. You’ve lost all common sense,” my father says.

“That’s why I didn’t tell you.”

My mother leans forward, keeping her words barely above a whisper. She certainly wouldn’t want anyone in the restaurant to hear her raised voice. Appearances are everything. “We’re concerned about you, Blair. People don’t just walk away from their lives unless they’re having a nervous breakdown. Perhaps you’ve been working too hard, and you need some time to step back and catch your breath. There’s a lovely little spa I’ve looked into. They’ve gone out of their way to reserve a spot for you.”

My brows shoot up. A spa? Is that a code word for a facility where she thinks my head might get fixed? I shudder.

Adrian wraps his hand around mine on my lap under the table. “Mr. and Mrs. Snyder. You need to take a step back and listen to your daughter. She’s not having a nervous breakdown. She has simply reassessed her life and decided it isn’t right for her. That’s not grounds for medical intervention.”

My mother jerks her gaze toward Adrian. “What do you know? You’ve known her for a few days. I’ve known her for twenty-six years.”

“Have you, though?” I ask. “Do you really know me? You never ask me anything. I can’t remember the last time either of you checked to see if any of your plans for me were okay with me. You’ve never asked me what my hopes and dreams are. You simply set me on a path and expected me to follow.”

“Don’t be so ungrateful,” my father responds. “We’ve given you every opportunity in life. You’ve had the best money could buy, including a top-notch education.”

“And yet, in return, I’m expected to do as I’m told. Do you have any idea what plans William had for us as a married couple? Huh? Did you know he thought our marriage would just be a sham for public image, and he intended to keep a mistress on the side?”

My mother scoffs. “Don’t be so dramatic, Blair. It’s unbecoming. Marriages are arrangements. At least he was upfront about his intentions and didn’t lie about them.”

I gasp. So does Adrian. My gaze shifts back and forth between the two people across from us. I don’t even know them.

My father leans forward, seething. “You ungrateful little brat. We’ve done everything for you, including setting you up for life with the finest things money can buy, and your thanks is to run off to the mountains to sow your wild oats.”

“Watch it,” Adrian warns, his voice firm. “I will not allow you to upset my wife. If you can’t speak civilly, we will leave.”

My father jerks his attention to Adrian. “Don’t give me this nonsense about my daughter being your wife. What a joke. You must have forced her to marry you under duress.”

“No one has forced me to do anything, Dad. You’re the one being dramatic. I married Adrian because he’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“Well, you’re going to unmarry him, too, Blair, because you clearly don’t have any clue what the best thing is for you.”

“This is your last warning,” Adrian says. “Treat Blair with respect, or this meeting is over.”

My father growls, nearly coming out of his seat. “Don’t you threaten me, Gallant. She is my daughter. I know her better than you. She obviously suffers from delusions and depression. Stay out of our family affairs. You can go now. I’ll have my lawyers handle the annulment.”

Adrian stands, helping me up with him. “I’m sorry you are incapable of repairing your relationship with your daughter. It saddens me that you’re so heartless. I lost my parents over a decade ago, and it hurts my soul for my wife’s parents to be living and walking this Earth while being unwilling to have a relationship with her. But I can see you’re not reasonable people, so this conversation is over. Think about your actions. If at some point you decide you’d like to be part of our lives, contact me, and I’ll consider it. Until you’re willing to behave like sane adults and loving parents, do not contact Blair. I will not have her constantly upset by your unkind words.”

Adrian sets a business card in front of my father. It’s brilliant. Next, he reaches into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and pulls out a thick envelope. He sets that on the table in front of my father, too. “We had papers drawn up by my lawyer. If you even think of following through on your threat to have Blair committed, I suggest you read through these legal documents first. You have no grounds to stand on. She’s already been declared of sound mind, and she is my wife. My responsibility. I’m her legal next of kin. Not you.”

Adrian guides me toward the room’s exit.

My mother gasps and stands, dropping her purse on the floor. “Blair. Don’t you walk away from us, young lady. If you step out of that door, you’ll be making the biggest mistake of your life.”

I smile sweetly and lean into my husband. “I’m pretty sure I’ve finally started making the best choices. Any mistakes I make in the future will be my own. Not yours.”

My father growls again. “You’re giving up your inheritance for a lumberjack, Blair.”

I chuckle. I’m not even shaking. His words are too absurd for me to feel threatened. “Come on, Dad. You’re way too smart not to have done your research. Don’t try to convince me you haven’t Googled Adrian and know every single detail about who he is and what his net worth is. He may occasionally cut down trees, and let me tell you, it’s so sexy I have to fan myself, but he’s worth more than you’ll be valued at, even if you do merge with the Sanfords. Maybe you could adopt someone and have her marry William. I’m choosing love and laughter. Have a good life.”