A Need to Escape

Emily rushed to return to the bedroom. Taking her clothes on a table next to the bed, she ran to the bathroom to wear them. Then she washed her face to calm herself.

Staring at her face in the mirror, Emily took a deep breath and counted from one to twenty. She closed her eyes and shook her head.

It didn’t work. The thought of spending a lifetime with someone who didn’t love her haunted her. How could Jacob do this to her?

A few drops of tears dampened her face. Brushing the tears in a swift motion, she let out a heavy sigh. Yes, Jacob could fool her for five months of their engagement time, but she wouldn’t be a fool anymore.

Opening her eyes, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. A pretty girl stared back at her. She wouldn’t let him steal her life with his lies.

Clenching her hand, Emily combed her hair and ensured her appearance was neat. Then she left the bathroom and returned to Jacob’s room.

Jacob sat on the bed. When he saw Emily from the bathroom, he raised his eyebrow. “Honey, why did you dress up? I still want to make love to you again, at least once or twice.”

Inside, Emily was mad, but she pretended everything was okay. She sat on a chair. “My mom called and asked me to go home. She said we must discuss something.”

“Hmm?” He raised his eyebrow.

“I don’t know what she wanted to talk about, but it’s time for me to go home.”

He sighed, but nodded. “Okay, let me change my clothes first. Then, I’ll send you home.”

After changing his clothes to a casual gray t-shirt and black trousers, Jacob smiled and offered his hand to Emily. She hesitated to accept his hand, but if she didn’t take his hand, it would raise his suspicion. So, she held his hand and pulled him to walk to the door.

Jacob didn’t notice an unusual thing from Emily. So, he drove her to her parents’ house. They went inside the house.

Gabriel Emerson, the butler, greeted them. “Miss Emily, Mr. Jacob, welcome home.”

Emily nodded. “Gabe, where is my mom?”

“I believe she is in her working room, miss.”

“Thanks.” Emily walked to the living room and glanced at Jacob. “I’ll talk with my mom for a few minutes. Can you wait here?”

“Sure! No problem.” Jacob smiled at Emily.

She rushed to go to her mother’s working room. Inside, Elsa Brooke was drawing a new design for summer. Elsa focused on her work until she didn’t notice her daughter entering her room.

“Mom, it’s me.”

Elsa lifted her head and stared at Emily. “Ah, you’re home. Where is Jacob?”

“In the living room.”

“Ah, okay. What do you want, sweetheart?” Elsa knew her daughter too well. That’s why she asked her.

“Mom, I need to talk to you, but can you meet with Jacob and tell him I must stay at home for a month and can’t meet with him before the wedding?” she pleaded with her mother. “Also, ask him not to call or text me before the wedding day.”

Hearing what her daughter said, Elsa frowned because she knew Emily wanted the wedding because of falling in love with Jacob. “What’s wrong?”

Emily shook her head. “I’ll tell you later. But please, Mom, help me?” She clenched her hands together, and her face showed a pitiful expression until Elsa finally let out a sigh.

“Fine! Let’s meet Jacob first.”

The younger woman yelped and hugged her mother. Then she kissed her mother’s cheeks. “Thank you, Mom! You are the best!”

Elsa shook her head, but she smiled. Despite Emily already being an adult, she was always a little girl in her mother’s heart. So, Elsa couldn’t wait to send Jacob home to talk to her daughter.

They walked along to the living room, holding hands. Jacob read a newspaper while waiting. Seeing Emily and Elsa come, he folded the newspaper and put it on the table.

He stood and kissed Elsa’s cheeks. “Aunty, you are more beautiful each time I see you.” They didn’t have any family relation, but Elsa wanted Jacob to call her aunty before he married Emily.

Elsa grinned and shook her head. “You are such a sweet talker. No wonder my daughter likes you so much.”

Emily said nothing. She only bit her lower lip, praying her mother would finish talking to Jacob faster so she could be free for a month to think.

Her wishes came true because her mother immediately asked Jacob to sit. “Since the wedding is a month left, I want to ask you something,” Elsa said.

“What is it, Aunty?”

“It’s not good if you two meet frequently before the wedding. I want to ask you two not to meet or communicate for a month. Is that okay?”

Emily clenched her hands together and held her breath. She wished badly that Jacob would say yes because she didn’t want to meet with him.

Jacob frowned to hear Elsa’s unusual request. He glanced at Emily and scratched his head with a hand. “It’s a hard request. You know how fond I am of Emily, Aunty. Not meeting her for a month will be a torture for me. I don’t know how I can survive without talking to her or just sending her text messages.”

If only Emily didn’t hear Jacob’s conversation with his mother, she would fly to the sky right now. However, after knowing the truth, Emily only felt fed up with Jacob’s smooth lies.

“It’s for the best. You will miss her a lot, and after the wedding, she’s all yours.” Elsa took a deep breath and bent her head. “It’s the only time I have left before the wedding to spoil her.”

“I understand, Aunty.” He let out a long sigh. “Though it’s hard for me, and I’m sure for Emily too, I’ll do what you ask. Besides, after marriage, Emily is free to visit you, and so are you. Our house is open for you.”

“Thank you, Jacob.” Then Elsa stood and smiled. “We’ll see you a month from now, then. Please send my regards to your mother.”

“Sure, Aunty.”

Jacob stood too. Since Elsa already said that, it was an indirect request for him to leave. He glanced at Emily. “Honey, I’ll go home now. Walk with me before I go?”

Emily stood and walked with Jacob to his car. She gulped because it relieved her to know Jacob agreed not to meet and contact her for a month. It would give her plenty of time to think.

Before she could think of anything else, Jacob pulled her hand and led her to walk behind his car, shielding their bodies from others. He cupped her face and kissed her forehead.

“I’ll miss you badly, baby.” Then he bent his head and kissed her lips in a lingering kiss.

Her body betrayed her. Though her heart hated him now, her body welcomed his touch, and instinctively, her lips opened and let his tongue delve and devour hers. Her hands rose to his hair and caressed it.

Then he whispered in her ear, “Don’t worry. A month won’t be long. I’ll wait for you at the church next month. I’m sure you will be the most beautiful bride ever.”

As if he threw a bucket of icy water onto her head, Emily pulled herself and cursed inwardly because of how easily she forgot everything and enjoyed his kisses.

But before him, she only smiled and nodded. “Yes, see you in a month.”

A Serious Talk

After Jacob left, Emily went inside the house. It was around eight p.m. Elsa waited for her daughter in the living room. She raised her eyebrows, as her daughter’s lips were a bit swollen. Elsa held Emily’s hand and led her to go to Emily’s room.

Once they were in Emily’s room, a feminine room dominated by pink and white, Elsa glanced at her daughter and asked, “Now, will you tell me what’s wrong?”

Emily hugged her mother and sobbed. “Oh, Mom!” She couldn’t tell the rest.

Elsa didn’t push her daughter. Instead, she sat on the bed, waiting for her daughter to tell her. She only patted her daughter’s back. After a few minutes, Emily’s sob ceased.

The younger woman wiped her tears, pulled herself from her mother’s embrace, sat on the bed, and bent her head to her bent knees. “He doesn’t love me, Mom.”

Sighing, Elsa reached out her hand to hold and squeezed her daughter’s. Then she patted Emily’s backhand. “You can make him love you.”

“Can I?” Her voice was shaky. “I thought he did.” Emily stared at her mother with dimmed eyes. “I thought he wanted to marry me because he loved me.”

“You know, I married your dad without love too at first. After marriage, I came to love him. It’s possible for him to learn to love you.”

“But Mom—”

Elsa caressed Emily’s hair. “You are pretty and sweet. He will love you later.”

“He loves someone else ….” Finally, Emily could tell Elsa about it.

“Who? Is he having an affair?”

Shaking her head, Emily grasped her hands together. “No, but it’s Amy. He loves Amy …. He wanted to marry me because I reminded him of her.”

Elsa’s hand that stroking Emily’s hair stopped moving. She was quiet for a while, but then she smiled. “It’s normal I guess.”

“Normal?!” Emily’s voice pitched higher. “How can you say that?!”

“Amy was his fiancee thirteen years ago. It’s normal for him to still love her. It means he entered the engagement because he had a strong feeling for her.”

“But—”

“At first, I was worried when his mother asked me to arrange a marriage between him and you. His twice canceled engagements are the worst thing in his life. But apart from that, your father and I couldn’t find any bad things about him.”

“How can I compete with Amy, Mom?!” Emily groaned, covering her face with both hands. “She is beautiful, smart, and popular!”

“So are you, sweetheart.”

“But Jacob loves Amy, and he doesn’t love me!” She shook her head in desperation. “What should I do?”

Elsa let out a long sigh. “He will come to love you.”

“What if he won’t?” She squeezed her dress with both hands. She was too afraid of the possibility.

“Then you can try to find what he wants and needs in a woman. If he could love Amy, he could love you, too.”

Emily only bent her head, knowing no matter what she said, her mother wouldn’t let her cancel the wedding. So, she only stared at her hands on her lap. It was useless to explain everything to her mother.

“Sweetheart, you know I love you. Your happiness is the most important thing for me. You may fear the future. Being a wife is an important step in life, but you love him, don’t you?”

Emily nodded though her tears spilled a little. “I love him so much. It hurts me to know he doesn’t feel the same.”

“It doesn’t matter who loves more. Once you two marry, both of you will live together and learn to love each other. That’s the most important thing. Believe in yourself that your love is enough for both of you.”

“But what if he can’t love me back?”

“If you keep thinking that way, you will lose. Love is a feeling, but also action and determination. Yes, maybe you are right. Maybe Jacob doesn’t have a feeling or love toward you right now. However, if you keep loving him and are determined to win his heart, nothing is impossible.”

Emily bit her lower lip. Her hope rose after hearing what her mother said. “I hope so,” she said weakly.

“Now, get rest.” Elsa kissed Emily’s forehead. “A month isn’t a long time. I’m sure you will miss him a lot, but don’t contact or meet him as you asked. Let’s see if he will miss you too.”

Then Emily nodded. Her mother’s words made sense to her. She hugged her mother and kissed her cheeks. “Thank you, Mom.”

“Anytime, sweetheart.” Later, Elsa left Emily.

Taking a deep breath, she stared around her room, wondering what she could do to win his love. Since she made a silly request not to meet or contact him, it would torture her for a month. But then she grinned because she could still send gifts to him.

So, she called Pauline Hartfield, her best friend. “Hey, you! I need help!”

“What’s up, girl?” Pauline giggled. “Do you feel a wedding jitter already?”

“Nah, but I need your smart brain to help me. What’s the best gift I can send to Jacob?”

Pauline rolled her eyes. “You are his fiancee, and you asked me? Come on, girl!”

“Oh, please! I can’t think right now.”

Scratching her head, Pauline frowned. “Wait! Why is your voice different? Did you cry?”

“Oh, Line! If only you knew.” Then Emily spilled everything to her best friend.

After hearing what Emily said, the crease on Pauline’s forehead deepened. “Though your mother is right, I’m worried about you, girl. I met Amy a few times, and I admitted she was gorgeous. But she is pregnant now. For goodness’ sake! How can he still be in love with her?”

Emily bit her fingertip. What she discussed with her mother and her decision afterward vanished immediately after hearing Pauline’s comments. “That’s what I tried to say to my mom! I’m worried if he can’t love me back. I don’t want to be bound to a loveless marriage for the rest of my life!”

“Yeah, I know it’ll be hell. But then, can you let him go? Can you accept it if he marries someone else?”

Groaning, Emily shook her head. “I can’t! It will be too much! What should I do?”

Pauline was quiet for a while. Afterward, she said, “Let me come to your place. It’s better to talk about it directly than through the phone.”

“Sure! Come quickly!”