One Night - Forbidden Hearts Series Book 1

26. The Fine Print

I glanced at the clock again after I hung up the phone. I had called to order some dinner for a Jackson myself after he told me he was headed back over. I was hoping he would be able to talk to Ryan and make sure he was okay.

After I left my parents house, I made a stop at a local FedEx store to print out the pictures that I took. I took a glance at them once they were printed, but it was hard for me to understand exactly what they were. To be honest, I think I was just scared to find out.

Once I opened that manila folder and saw that there was a contract for the merger, there was a terrible pit in my stomach. I knew whatever was on those documents was most likely going to wreck me. I tried telling myself that my parents wouldn't do anything extremely terrible to me, but haven't they already? They're forcing me to marry someone I don't love for their own financial needs. I understand that I'm their daughter and I should do something to help them, but I felt like they were asking too much of me.

On the way back to my apartment, my mom called me. They had just left dinner and, like I suspected, one of her neighbors had called and said I had passed by. My mom seemed to buy my story that I wanted to borrow her jacket.

Then she surprised me even more by asking if I took a look at the wedding dress. Apparently it was hanging up in their spare bedroom. Had I known, I definitely would have looked at it and most likely would have set it on fire.

I explained that I wasn't there long and hadn't seen it. She invited me over tomorrow night for dinner and to come look at it. She also said she wanted to talk to me about some things concerning the wedding. I knew it was something bad and I tried to get her to tell me now so I wouldn't assume the worst.

But, she was my mother, and she kept her mouth shut. Hopefully whatever she wanted to tell me was in these papers that we were going to look at tonight. I was really glad that Jackson was helping me with this. I didn't really know anyone else besides Ryan who might understand the business part of these contracts.

When it came to my parents and Ryan's parents, I'm sure there was a lot of fine print involving this. I wanted to make sure I got all of the information. After all, it was about my future wasn't it? I had a right to know.

I mean, if there was a contract then there had to be stipulations. They wouldn't go into something like this with blind faith. As I got to know Ryan's parents especially, I'm sure there were a ton of little details in there. I wondered if Ryan knew about any of them. I would like to believe that he would tell me since we seem to have a certain respect and understanding between us.

Wanting to think about anything else, I got up from the table and walked into my bedroom. I paused when I saw Jackson's duffle bag on the floor next to the side of the bed where he slept.

It looked so out of place there. I've never had a real serious relationship or even lived with a guy before. I know Jackson's not living here, but he has spent the night here more than anyone I have dated; including Ryan.

That thought alone was a red flag that I needed to be careful with him. I already admitted to myself that I had feelings for him, but I could not let and go any further than that.

The sound of the front door opening startled me and I walk towards the living room.

"Hey, Princess," Jackson said as he came inside carrying a black grocery bag. He set it down on the counter before he added, "I'm sorry it took so long. I made a stop at the store to get us some wine. I figured we might need it when we go over what you found."

"That's probably a good idea," I said as I opened the bag and put the two bottles of wine in the freezer. "I ordered some food for us, too. I figured this would take a while and I didn't feel like cooking tonight. It should be here soon."