IN LOVE WITH MY FRIEND'S FATHER

THE PAST

Before I answered her question, she stopped me. "I take it you and your Ex have a past? I only ask because you've made a face every time I've mentioned his name, and the night we went to his club I noticed you wandered off every time he came around. Just so you know, he and I are just friends. He's too much of a manwhore for us to be anything else, so if you tell me he's the king of assholes, you won't offend me."

I fidgeted in my seat. "When I was sixteen and a sophomore in high school he was a senior and pretty much the most popular boy in school. I'd heard rumors about him, even back then, but he was so attentive." I rolled my eyes because his game was so clear to me as an adult woman.

"To make a very long and painful story short, we dated, it ended badly, and I haven't seen him since until the night the three of us went out. I was so consumed with avoiding him I didn't see Emily rush out with a panic attack. I still blame myself for her getting lost and ending up in the hospital with hypothermia."

Sonja bit her lip. "I'm so sorry. I know there's another side to him, but maybe only because we grew up together. Our dads were in the same fraternity in college and stayed best friends to this day. I knew your Ex when he ate paste and had a bug collection. If I met him today, I don't think I'd like him very much."

I found myself nodding as she spoke. I didn't want to dwell on Mervin though. He was still a threat looming in the shadows since he told me we needed to speak. If he was determined, he would wear me down eventually. That didn't mean I'd make it easy on him.

Not wanting to focus on him a second longer, I changed the subject. "Let's save any discussion about Mervin Graham for when I've had a few drinks. You wanted to know what my cousin's plan for that party was? I don't know if I understand it myself. He kept going on and on about making a viral campaign."

"What did your father say?" she asked.

I exhaled. "He was livid. He demanded I fix it, even though he still planned to replace me with Chad. He insisted I could train him and everything would work out fine."

"And what did he expect you to do after you trained your replacement?"

I leveled her with a gaze and she flopped back in her seat. "No s**t? He expected you to be an assistant, didn't he?"

I nodded. "He didn't take my refusal well. I sort of dropped my keys at his feet, but it felt like a mic drop moment."

"Since I found you walking around in the rain, I'm guessing that he lost his s**t?"

"You could say that," I confirmed. "Bryan and Emily dropped me off after the disastrous launch party. They left when I went inside, but there was no way for them to know that my father had me locked out of my apartment."

Sonja gasped. "No!"

I lifted one shoulder. "I underestimated his pettiness. I also forgot he was the trustee on my trust fund, which had his name listed on the deed to my apartment as co-owner. He used his power of attorney to manage my accounts to freeze my bank accounts, investment accounts, and credit cards."

"He did all that in the time it took you to leave the club?" she asked.

I tossed up my hands. "Honestly, it doesn't seem possible to me either. I can't fathom why, but I think he had it set up to seize all my assets already."

Sonja reached across the table and grabbed my hands. "How can I help?"

Squeezing both of her hands, I offered her a weak smile. "This is helping."

"That's not all I was offering. What can I do?" she asked, letting go of my hands to drink her coffee.

"I don't know. Arnold has his lawyer working to get my assets back. I've got the new company, so I'll make money."

"New company?" she asked.

I nodded. "Emily and I are starting a boutique advertising firm. We only have Anderson Global as a client now, but that'll pick up."

"Okay, so you have a job. And you'll let me know if you need an event planner?"

"That's what you studied?" I asked.

This time she nodded. "Yeah, I haven't really gotten a chance to use it, but the knowledge of how the business world operates will help me when I go out on my own."

Realizing what I was doing, she waved her hand to brush off my attempt to change the subject. "Where did you stay last night?"

Looking down at the table, I replied, "I stayed with Arn in his guest room."

When I looked up I saw she was fighting a smirk. I held my hand up to stop the questions I could see she was dying to ask. "Look, I don't want to say anything mean because I know you and Mervin are close. I know you said you don't care, but I would care if someone bad-mouthed someone I care about, and you obviously care about him."

She seemed like she was going to argue, but her expression revealed she agreed with me.

"I waited outside my apartment building for a long time. I sat down on a bench and after I couldn't think of what to do, I sort of zoned out. I have no idea when it started to rain or how long I sat there, but I was soaked when Mervin came and found me."

"Yikes, well I can only imagine how seeing someone you dislike as much as him was like rubbing salt in a wound. I still don't understand how you ended up with Arnold."

"Well, I couldn't call my parents since my dad is the one that made me homeless. I didn't want to call my pregnant best friend, especially since I was sure she was sleeping soundly by then. Mervin offered, but that was not an option."

"You could have called me," she said softly.

"I felt weird. For some reason, Arnold is the first person who came to mind as an actual possibility."

"You could move in with me though. I understand turning to Arnold. He's different than his public image, but that doesn't mean you want to keep living with him."

I ignored her comment and focused on her offer to move in with her. "I don't have any money. At least, not yet." Was this how Emily felt every time I tried to get her to move in with me? Could that mean that Sonja was as lonely as I had been? For me, my offers to help Emily were also a silent plea to end my loneliness.

"Extra money would be nice, but I don't need it at this exact moment. This month's bills are paid. It's not charity. I know you get sick of living alone too."

"Thank you," I agreed. I wouldn't do the back-and-forth Emily and I did for nearly a year. "My pride tells me to say no, but I can't afford to be proud right now. Not just because I'm broke, but also because I can't stay with Arnold.