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She sounds so down that it makes me sad, and wish that I had spent more time at home since returning from Capri, but things between Dad and I aren’t exactly normal, and my schemes to bring Mom around to Andries’ side would be much easier to figure out if I was under the same roof as her and my father. Still… I hate knowing that she’s so lonely. Hannah needs to step up and spend more time with her and not be so weird and antisocial.
I send Johan the information about this weekend, promising that we will hammer out flight details and everything else after I get off work. With that completed, I have a hard decision to make––do I tell Dan what I’ve done or do I keep quiet and just hope that the weekend will pass without him realizing Johan is involved at all? Finding the envelope is still fresh in his mind, I’m sure of it, and I don’t want him to sabotage this over jealousy.
So, feeling terrible about it, I quickly message Dan:I'm gonna go home this weekend to see if I can convince Mom to speak to the prosecutor so she can drop the charges, I type, hitting send, conveniently leaving out the fact that there would be a guest at the estate for those few days, too.
I feel even worse when Dan replies back almost immediately.You are the best. Love you! X, he says, and it makes my stomach sink. He’s so happy with me, and I’m positive he has no idea what I’m up to. After the confusion he caused just a few days ago when he found the invitation on my bedside table, I decide it's best to keep it to myself for now, even when there is the possibility it will come back to bite me in the ass.
Oh well, there’s nothing to be done about it now, and if I succeed, then he’ll certainly forgive me quickly.
If Idon’tpull this off, though… I don’t want to think about it.
I must push through. I must do everything in my power to persuade Mom to call the prosecutor so she can drop the charges, and for that, I need Johan by my side. I can feel the tension building in my chest as I type out another text to Dan, trying to put on an innocent front for him, but deep down, I'm filled with doubt. I try to push those thoughts aside and focus on the task at hand. I will have to tread carefully when it comes to Dan, making sure not to reveal too much, at least not until the time is right. I'll have to be strong and courageous, not just for myself, but for my family and for Roxanne and Andries. This is not just about me, it's about all of us and the future that lies ahead.
When I sit the phone back on my desk and look at my now-dark computer screen, the other big worry of my life begins to surface once more, too.
If I do all this to improve everyone else’s lives and bring our family back together, then where do I stand once the dust settles? What about my dreams? If everything goes according to plan, do I still have a future at Van den Bosch industries as the future CEO?
I just don’t know, but for now, it’s one selfless step at a time. During this turmoil, there is no room for me to worry about myself. No time.
But… will there ever be?
29
Elise
After heading over to my parents’house a few hours earlier, I’ve been running through what feels like a hundred emotions while waiting on Johan to arrive. After the stunt Dan and I pulled on Capri, there is obviously going to be some awkwardness, especially with the equestrian show situation, but I think he will be the perfect person to help me out tonight, so I have to set all of that aside.
Not to mention the fact that I need to firmly make Johan understand that nothing is going to happen between us––ever. I hope I can keep him as a friend, but that possibility will be up to him completely.
As the clock rolls around to 5 pm, I head to the foyer to greet Johan at the entrance of my family's estate. Everything has been cleaned and polished to a mirror-like sheen, no doubt on the command of my mother, but despite the lavishness of it all it just feels like home to me. Johan is punctual as usual, handing the keys to the pearlescent white Bentley to the valet and walking up the stone stairs to meet me.
I’m not the only one waiting on Johan, of course. Mom is with me, ever the perfect hostess, and Hannah is on my other side, almost vibrating with excitement. I give her the side eye, but she doesn’t notice, only having eyes for Johan. Whatever, let her have her little teenage crush. It’s not like anything can come of it.
Tonight, something feels different. Johan is an old friend, one who has always had feelings for me, feelings that I once reciprocated, but no more. And yet, here he is, standing before me, ready to spend the weekend at my family’s home, and it’s all too easy to imagine how things could have been different if someone hadn’t sent him that message and blocked him on my phone years ago. If that had never happened, then Johan might be coming here tonight to have dinner with my family as a way of announcing our courtship. Maybe even an engagement. But that possibility is long gone, and it’s a little bittersweet even now.
He certainly looks handsome tonight, in charcoal dress pants and an ivory oxford with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and his dark-blonde hair perfectly styled. Casual but sophisticated––which is very on-brand for Johan.
Once he reaches us, he greets my mother first with a kiss on the cheek that leaves her flustered and laughing and does the same with Hannah, except pressing his lips to her knuckles instead. She turns so red that it’s almost as if he kissed her on the mouth instead, which makes me roll my eyes right before Johan makes it to me. He kisses my cheek, lingering much longer than he did with my mother, but doesn’t press the issue when I turn away to break the connection with a smile.
“Johan,” I say simply. “Welcome back to the Van den Bosch estate.”
“It’s always a pleasure,” he replies, the corner of his mouth tilting up.
We enter the home, and a warm breeze blows in from the gardens outside behind us. The summer evening is a beautiful one, with a clear sky overhead and the sun just beginning to dip below the horizon.
We make our way to the library where my father is waiting, enjoying a glass of port. His eyes are distant as he stands to shake Johan’s hand, and I can’t help but wonder if he’s been talking to Karl, plotting more revenge. I want more of the version of my dad that came to my apartment the other night to comfort me, but he always seems to fall back into the familiar role of the stoic businessman we all grew up with when at home. Our relationship is better than it was, truthfully, but I’ve been waiting on pins and needles for the same thing to happen with him and Andries. I can’t help but be disappointed that it hasn’t.
Dad seems glad enough to see Johan, though, and even gives me a sly look when Johan turns to say something to Hannah, speaking quietly enough so only I can hear, “I think you invited the wrong one.”
I shoot my eyes at Johan to make sure he didn’t hear before saying, just as quietly, “Hush, Dad. It’s just dinner.”
“Dinner and the weekend,” he points out, but I know he’s joking, so I just wave my hand dismissively at my father and let the night move along.
Mom goes to the kitchen to talk to the staff about when everything will be ready, and when she sees Hannah hovering around Johan and me with doe eyes, she grabs my sister by the elbow and drags her along behind her. Dad makes his exit shortly after, going to his home office, and Johan and I are left alone.
“Thank you for coming,” I tell him immediately. “I know we parted ways… oddly… but this is going to mean so much to Andries. It already means a lot to me.”
“It means a lot that I’ve come to see you, huh?” he teases, shoving his hands in his pockets, and I scoff.
