by Trisha Grace
No doubt they were the work of some new and upcoming artist.
Her mother always had to be in the know about new artists. She had to throw the most extravagant and exciting parties and come up with the best ideas for charity dinners. Working at being the perfect socialite took up so much time that Diana Espel never had time for Hayley.
“Tough. Julian’s mood goes from depressive to explosive just like that.” Hayley snapped her fingers.
“Things will get better. We’re all praying for you.”
Hayley cracked a smile and nodded. “Thanks for the flowers.”
“I would’ve stayed, but Paula didn’t want everyone crowding the hospital room. And I couldn’t ask for time off since I didn’t want them to know I was visiting you.”
“I know.”
They stopped talking as they drew closer to her father’s study.
“Remember, Jesus loves you.”
She sighed. As much as she wanted to be a good Christian and say that knowing Jesus had got her back was all she needed, she had to admit that wasn’t the case. Hearing that just multiplied her dread because she knew the battle she would have to face on the other side. Lord, please help me.
Taking a deep breath, she knocked and opened the door.
“Come in, Hayley,” her mother said from the cinnamon-brown leather couch. “Hayley!” She sighed and shook her head when Hayley stepped in. “What are you wearing?”
Why do people keep asking me that question? She glanced down at her dark blue jeans and pastel pink T-shirt. She supposed she should have anticipated this reaction, but she couldn’t really be bothered to dress up just to meet her parents.
She smiled sweetly at her mother, then looked over at her father, who was seated behind the mahogany desk. “Dad.”
Her father nodded once while her mother rolled her eyes.
When Hayley was young, she couldn’t understand why her mother behaved so differently with and without the presence of others. If her mother’s friends were around, her mother would greet her with great enthusiasm, lavishing her with hugs and kisses. If it was just them, her mother mostly nodded at Hayley to acknowledge her presence and would get annoyed if she went to hug her or tried to engage her in any form of conversation.
Hayley supposed that was where she learned the concept of wearing masks, of showing to her parents and the world what or how she was supposed to feel or behave.
But she was done. She couldn’t do that anymore. She couldn’t be in a marriage with someone who detested her. She wanted her own life—one where she could make her own decisions.
“Take a seat, Hayley.” Her father gestured toward the couch. “How’s Julian?”
“He’s fine.” She sat and crossed her legs.
Her father’s silence and stern glare clued her in to the situation. He knows. He’d already found out Julian’s real diagnosis.
“I heard he won’t ever walk again.”
Her first instinct was to ask how her father found out, but that would only confirm her father’s words. “He will.”
His brows drew together. “The doctor says so?”
“He’s already working with a team of professionals. He’ll be up walking in no time.”
“Did the doctor say Julian would walk again?”
“He will walk again.”
“So no doctors agreed, despite all the different doctors he’s seen.”
It seemed her father had kept quite a close eye on the situation, yet neither of her parents bothered to check in on her. She struggled with the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. Instead, Hayley drew a controlled breath through her nose. “He will walk again.”
“Hayley, this isn’t something you can will into happening.”
Her mother put a hand on her leg. “Hayley’s right. It’s way too early to tell if Julian will get better.”
Hayley blinked and struggled to hide her surprise.
“What will people think of us if Hayley leaves Julian now?”
Now that makes sense. To Diana Espel, all that mattered was maintaining the perfect facade, so of course sweet, submissive Hayley wouldn’t leave her husband in this trying time.
“We can say that their marriage was already on the rocks before the accident,” her father said.
“That just sounds like a pathetic excuse.” Her mother shifted closer to Hayley. “You understand what people will think if you leave Julian now.”
“I’m not leaving him,” Hayley said. Whatever reasons her mother had for helping her didn’t matter to Hayley. She was just glad someone was on her side.
Her father turned to her mother. “You can start dropping hints to the wives club about how Julian hasn’t been the nicest or most faithful husband.”
Hayley arched a brow. Did her parents know about Charlene? Her father seemed to be keeping a closer eye on them than she thought. Could he have found out about that too?
“Drop hints about abuse if you have to,” her father continued.
“Abuse? No.”
But her mother’s attention was solely on her father.
“Let everyone know Julian’s taking out his frustrations on Hayley.”
“Stop,” she said, but her parents continued to ignore her.
“I’m sure that in a month or two, everyone will support Hayley in leaving the marriage.”
“No!” Hayley closed her eyes and shook her head. “I’m not playing whatever stupid games you and Mom cook up. I’m definitely not playing along with whatever games you are cooking up. Julian will walk again, and I’m not leaving my husband.”
“The doctors already said he won’t be able to do that,” her father said.
“He will.”
“Hayley!” Her father slapped his hand on the table. “The nerves—”
“I know what the doctors said, but I’m also sure they’re wrong.”
Her father stood, and her mother quickly got to her feet as well.
“All right. I think it’s clear this conversation isn’t going anywhere.” Her mother cut in front of Hayley. “Let’s continue this another day.”
“Julian’s condition won’t change.”
“He will walk again.” Hayley stood, her back straight and her shoulders squared.
“You can’t know that.”
“Julian will walk again.” She couldn’t allow herself to have doubts. Julian had more than enough doubts. Besides her friends in cell group who were praying for a full recovery, everyone else—including the doctors—thought she was delusional. But neither the doctors nor her father had the last word. God did.
Her father’s face grew red, and her mother put a hand on his chest.
Hayley was tempted to put an end to the conversation by running out the door. Instead, she dug her heels in and refused to budge.
“I think we’re done for the day.” Her mother glanced over her shoulder at Hayley. “We’ll drop by and visit you soon. Call if you need anything.”
She rolled her eyes before she could stop herself. She’d never been this rude to her parents, and she wasn’t sure what was wrong with her.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Her father crossed his arms across his chest.
“Drop by and visit? Call if I need anything?”
“Hayley, enough.” Her mother spun around and glared at her.
“Why? No one else is here. Who are you afraid might overhear?” Hayley snatched her purse off the couch. “I forgot. The servants. God forbid they hear something and realize we’re not the perfect little family you want everyone to see us as. Guess what, Mom? They already know.”
This time, Hayley didn’t wait for a reply. She whirled around and headed for the door. Then for the first time in her life, she slammed the door shut behind her. She’d never done that at home. She’d never disagreed with her parents in her entire life.
Her mother wanted her to be the perfect student and daughter, and she was.
But she was done.
She stormed back to Desmond,
whose brows drew closer the nearer she got to him.
“Is everything all right, Miss Hayley?” Desmond asked as he opened the door to the back seat.
“No. Everything isn’t all right.” She didn’t notice the pain until she got into the car. The rush of anger from her fight with her parents had drowned that out temporarily.
“Home?”
Hayley glanced out of the window. Home? Where was her real home? “Yes.” For now, her place was with Julian. So for now, that was her home.
Chapter Eight
HAYLEY CLOSED HER eyes and kneaded her neck as she strode toward the apartment building.
The last time she’d been this busy was in college. Since then, besides working with Leanne on further promoting and launching sidelines for Hydrate, all Hayley had done was write checks.
Her father had directed all the letters requesting donations to her. And the Espels received a lot of letters since they always made the list of the richest people in the world. Her job was to sift through the mountain of letters and allocate the budget she’d been given to the cases she deemed were most impactful.
After the car accident, Hayley had to shoulder many more responsibilities. While Julian went through a carousel of doctors for his second, third, fourth, and fifth opinions, Hayley had researched and reached out to the people who could help Julian walk again. She’d read through research papers and case studies to learn the science and see what she could do for Julian.
At the same time, she had to find and hire a contractor to make the penthouse wheelchair friendly and give the staff instructions on how to move the furniture to free up space for a wheelchair to maneuver around.
She’d thought the hectic routine of rotating in and out of hospitals while she got everything ready for Julian would be over once they got home. She was wrong.
It had been four months since the car accident, so it had been four months of Hayley playing the art of business war with Julian’s father.
Julian’s father had been speaking with directors, trying to get them to lean his way if he needed to kick Julian out as the CEO and put his own puppet in charge. All that was so her father wouldn’t be able to take over the company.
Hayley had promised Julian she’d do everything she could to make sure he kept his position, so she had to start making nice with the directors too.
She wished it was as simple as buying them gifts.
Colin had given her dossiers on of the different directors so she would know everything about them—from where their children went to school to who their mistresses were. Hayley had to sit through long lunches that sorely tested her patience and diplomatic skills. She had to openly express gratitude for their support of Julian, and at the same time work in subtle threats and blackmail in a tone perfectly balanced between seriousness and mischievousness.
The most tiring aspect of it was having to listen to the directors brag about their lives and how much they’d done for the company. Sometimes, all she wanted was to roll her eyes at them. Other times, she had to bite her tongue to keep herself from reminding them that they didn’t even work for the company.
She also had to be kept updated with everything going on in the company. She couldn't risk getting caught off-guard if either her father or father-in-law tried to shift more power into his own hands. Her father-in-law was a shark looking for a point of weakness to attack, and Hayley wouldn’t let herself be the weakness.
So she was on the phone with Colin every other day. Sometimes, after a long and life-draining lunch with one of the directors, she would meet Colin for coffee. Over coffee and sometimes a slice of cake, he would brief her on what was going on and the rumors that were swirling about in the company.
Then there was the constant reassurance she had to give to everyone around her. Julian would walk again. She couldn’t allow herself to feel even an ounce of doubt. Though Julian hadn’t confided in her, Hayley was certain he had enough doubts on his own. He didn’t need her to add to them.
He hadn’t asked her to be his support, but she was determined to be. She was still his wife, after all, and that was what wives were supposed to do. Even if she was just a wife in name.
Hayley sipped on the herbal tea she’d bought from the cafe around the corner. She needed the one-hour break she’d taken.
Julian was working with Dale Andrews, the biomedical engineer, and she didn't have anything on her schedule. So she sneaked out and headed to the cafe. She’d ordered her tea, settled into a corner seat, and played the sermon she’d downloaded while on the way there.
She needed to recharge, to remind herself that all things would work together for good and that God was right beside her in this journey.
“Mrs. Nicholson.”
Red flags popped up in her mind as the smell of liquor assaulted her. Hayley took in the disheveled look of the man in a faded green plaid shirt and light blue jeans frayed at the hem and worn through at the knees.
Hayley glanced over at the glass doors of the apartment building and for a moment entertained the thought of running. But it was broad daylight and it seemed incredibly silly to take off running at the sight of a stranger, albeit a possibly drunk stranger. Julian would probably curl his lips back in disgust if he found out.
She shook her head. She didn't have to care what Julian thought of her. Not anymore. She would take her own stand and make her own decisions. Julian would be up and walking about soon. Soon, she'd be on her own.
“Mrs. Nicholson.”
Hayley frowned while the man scrutinized her from head to toe.
“You don't know who I am.”
“No, I don't.”
The man reached out, and his rough, dry hand grabbed hers. “I’m the guy whose truck drove into your fancy car.”
She pulled her hand back, but the man tightened his grip and kept her hand captive.
“You had better get your lawyers to pull the civil lawsuit before things get worse for you.”
“I don't know what you’re talking about.” She snatched her hand back. She didn't care what the truck driver wanted from her. She had enough things on her mind. “Stay away from me.”
The man took a long step toward her. “Your lawyers are threatening to destroy my life.”
“I don't have the energy for this.”
The truck driver cut in front of her. “Don’t have the energy for this?” His light brown irises grew dark, and his lips twisted into a sneer. “You’re walking away because you’re tired? My life’s at stake!”
Hayley glared up at the man staring her down. She pulled her spine straighter. “If you valued your life, then you shouldn’t have driven that monster truck of yours while drunk!”
The police had spoken with her and taken her statement after she’d checked back into the hospital. She had been infuriated when she heard the driver had been drunk, but she didn’t really care much about the truck driver. Whatever was done was done. She couldn’t turn back time. She had to move forward and focus on helping Julian get back on his feet.
“Because of you,” Hayley said, “our lives have been turned upside down.”
The truck driver’s face turned red, and he leaned in closer. The nauseating smell of alcohol leaking from his pores and coming through his breath was making Hayley uncomfortable. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with.” He grabbed her shoulder. “I can tell you things that no one else knows about you.”
She shrugged out of his grip. The idea of running into the apartment building now felt like a missed opportunity. “I’m not interested in what you have to say.”
“If you don't pull the lawsuit, I can make your perfect little world come crumbling down.”
“You and your stupid decision to drive drunk have already done so, you idiot.”
The man gripped her chin and jerked her face closer, and Hayley was just about to scream when a deep voice said from behind her, “Move away from her.”
The man’s hand was pried from her chin, and Hayley finally saw
the man behind the voice—Colin.
“Keep your hands off her.”
The truck driver shot another glare her way. “You’ll regret this.” Then he stormed away with his fists clenched.
Colin turned to her once the truck driver was out of sight. “Why are you having a showdown with a homeless man right outside the building?”
“He’s the truck driver who drove into our fancy car.”
“That’s even worse.”
“He was waiting here for me.”
Colin glanced over his shoulder. “What did he want?”
“Something about lawyers.” She drew a deep breath through her nose. “I think my parents probably had their lawyers file a lawsuit or something. But it’s been four months. I doubt they’ve only just now filed it.” Or maybe their lawyers were having a rather free month and this was the only suit they could file.
“Maybe they couldn't find him until now.”
She shrugged and slapped a hand against her head. “I’ve been so concerned with everything going on with my life that I completely forgot. What happened to the limousine driver?”
“He’s fine. He got out of it with a few scratches. You and Julian took the main impact.”
Hayley sighed. “That’s good to hear.”
“Are you going to talk to your parents?”
She arched a brow. “About what?”
“The one who drove into your fancy car—he deserves everything he’ll be getting.”
“Honestly,” she kneaded her neck, “I don’t care what they do to him. I have enough on my plate, and I don’t want to talk to them right now.”
Several months ago, Hayley had met her parents back in their mansion. Their short conversation didn’t go well. It ended with Hayley storming out and commenced the Espels’ cold war.
Her father, of course, had made his first move—cutting off all finances—right after that. For the first time in her life, she was informed by the staff that the checks she’d written for their wages had bounced. When she called the bank to check, she was told that her account had been frozen due to unusual activities.
