He won't control me

EVERETT

The feeling of numbness and worthlessness had always been familiar to me. I had spent most of my life feeling like I didn't belong anywhere, as though good things simply weren't meant to find me. Maybe that was one of the reasons I never had any real friends. I remembered being teased about my freckles during secondary school. People always looked at me as the girl with the messed-up parents. My neighbour had once brought social workers to our home. In her defence, she had been trying to help me find a better home with parents who could actually take care of me.

Sometimes I wondered what my life would have been like if I had grown up with parents who loved me and were present for everything I did. They could have attended my ballet classes in fourth grade or my netball games during seventh grade, but they never were. Instead, they fought almost every day because my father brought girls home, refused to find a job, and spent all the grocery money on alcohol. Looking back, I believed that was what had led Mom to drugs. It had always been my father. He was the one man who brought problems and trouble into our house.

When I arrived home, I took a hot shower with a bottle of wine beside me. Well, I blamed that on Father. Maybe I would end up like them too, a drunkard with a gambling addiction. The thought scared me more than I wanted to admit.

My mind drifted back to the wedding that was coming sooner than I wanted to accept. I was really getting married to my arrogant boss, Sebastian Kessler. I could barely stand being around him at work, yet I was expected to spend my life with him.

Maybe I should run away.

He wouldn't even bother looking for me, right? He didn't want this marriage either, so if I left the city and started a new life somewhere else, I doubted anyone would miss me. They hardly noticed me anyway. Still, the thought of leaving everything behind frightened me. I had worked hard to build a future for myself, and I wasn't ready to lose it because of my father's mistakes.

After bathing and changing into my pajamas, I walked into the kitchen and began making dinner. The front door opened, but I didn't raise my head. I already knew it was my drunk father, probably holding onto the door for balance.

"Kiddo, you are home early today," he said.

I tightened my grip on the counter. "Did you know the marriage will be in two days, Father?"

"N-No, kiddo, but it's for the best. We can move out of your mother's dump and stay in the finest house Landon has to offer."

I should have known. He had read the contract before signing it. I had fallen into his trap once again.

"You read the contract, didn't you, Father?"

Although I already knew the answer, I needed him to say it. I wanted to hear him admit that he had known what he was doing when he signed away my future.

"Of course I did, kiddo. I'm not stupid. I-I may be uneducated, but stupid I am not. I knew the stakes of signing the contract, so get ready for the marriage. We are about to get rich."

I dropped the knife onto the counter as tears rolled down my face. I had spent years making excuses for his behaviour, convincing myself that beneath the drinking and gambling, there was still a father who cared about me. Hearing him speak so casually about selling my future for money made me question everything.

I walked closer to him but stopped a few feet away. "I hate you, Father."

The words came out before I could stop them.

"I have never told you this before, but I HATE YOU. You are a liar, and you are very manipulative. You do things that benefit you alone, and don't you dare tell me about his money. I don't want it. But, as you always do, you get your way with everything. Not this time, Father. Not anymore. You will never manipulate me ever again."

"Now, hold up. I have fed you and clothed you all your life, and now you tell me that you hate me? This is my house, and you will not speak to me like that. You get me? You will marry Richard's son whether you like it or not."

A part of me broke at his words. My father would do anything for money or to get what he wanted.

I stumbled backward, tears blurring my vision. I didn't argue with him again. I ran to my room and cried until exhaustion pulled me into sleep. Before closing my eyes, I promised myself that I wouldn't let my father decide the rest of my life without a fight.

The next morning, I woke to sunlight shining through my window. I wiped my eyes and got ready for work. I needed a distraction from everything happening in my messed-up life, and I refused to let Sebastian control where I went before we were even married.

I dressed in a yellow blouse with black formal pants and walked outside. Two men dressed in grey suits stood by the porch, each holding boxes. I approached them, confused.

"Hello, how may I help you?"

"Mr. Kessler sent us to deliver these to Miss Chamberlain."

"That's me."

They walked past me and placed the boxes on the table. I followed them inside and picked up the note lying on top of the red box.

THESE ARE FOR THE MARRIAGE.

DON'T COME TO WORK TODAY.

I stared at the note, my jaw tightening. Even from a distance, Sebastian had found another way to order me around.

I opened the box and found a white wedding dress with a veil. The second box contained expensive jewellery that probably cost more than everything I owned.

For a moment, I stared at the gifts. The dress was beautiful, but that didn't change what it represented. Sebastian had chosen everything without asking what I wanted, as though buying me a dress and jewellery would make me accept the marriage.

And he actually thought I would stay home because he told me to?

I closed the boxes and handed them back to the two men.

"Tell him to wear all of this himself and obey his own orders. I will not do as he says."

"Mr. Kessler told us to leave these with you, regardless of your protests, Miss Chamberlain," one of them replied.

But I was only beginning.

"Well, you wear them, Mr... what's your name, sir?" I asked with a smile.

"Adam, ma'am."

"Yes, Mr. Adam. You wear them and tell him that I will go to work whenever I want. He is not my parent or my commander, and he will never be one."

I walked away before he could respond and took a cab to work. If this was how my life would be when I married Sebastian, then I wanted to marry him even less.

When I arrived, I prepared his coffee as always and carried it to his office. Luckily, he wasn't there, so I placed the cup on his desk and pulled a piece of paper from my bag.

My hands trembled slightly as I wrote my message in capital letters.

DO NOT EVER TELL ME WHAT TO DO.

AND DON'T BUY ME WEDDING CLOTHES.

I WILL NOT WEAR THEM.

I left the note beside his coffee and stepped back to examine it. I had no idea how Sebastian would react when he read it, but I knew he wouldn't be pleased.

For the first time since learning about the contract, I felt as though I had done something for myself. It wasn't enough to change my situation, but it was a start.

I couldn't control my father or the contract he had signed, and I certainly couldn't make Sebastian a better man. But I could refuse to make things easy for either of them.

As I turned to leave, I wondered what would happen when Sebastian found my note.

Knowing him, I was probably about to make the biggest mistake of my life.

But if he thought he could buy my obedience before the wedding, he was about to learn that I wasn't going to make things easy for him.