Chapter 37
Just as they were sitting down for lunch, Kathleen’s phone vibrated. It was a call from Chelsey.
Kathleen glanced at the others and leaned over to Judy. “Judy, I need to answer a quick call.”
Judy nodded, and Kathleen quietly stepped outside.
“Chelsey?”
The other end of the line was silent. However, if she listened closely, she could hear the faint sound of someone crying.
Kathleen’s chest tightened. “Chelsey, talk to me. What’s going on? Don’t scare me.”
“My mom’s threatening to kill herself if I leave,” Chelsey finally whispered, her voice shaky. “Kathleen, I shouldn’t have come home.”
Just hearing those words made Kathleen panic. She couldn’t even imagine the pressure Chelsey was under.
“Even if you just try to reason with her, she wouldn’t listen to you?” Kathleen asked, her anxiety rising. “Why are they forcing you like this?” “Because of their precious reputation,” Chelsey answered bitterly. “They care more about their reputation than my life. I was too naïve.” “This isn’t your fault,” Kathleen cajoled firmly, biting her lip. “So what now? Do you want me to come get you?”
“It’s too far,” Chelsey replied.
“It’s just a few hundred miles,” Kathleen replied, checking the time. “If I leave now, I can arrive there by tomorrow morning.”
“No. Don’t come. Even if you do, my parents won’t let you bring me back.”
Kathleen felt helpless. “Then, what? What are we supposed to do?”
“If this is my fate, I’ll deal with it.”
Hearing the exhaustion in Chelsey’s voice, Kathleen frowned deeply. “You’re just giving up?”
“What else can I do?”
“You’re talking about the rest of your life,” Kathleen reminded her, taking a deep breath and pacing in place. “Calm down. We’ll figure something out.” “There’s nothing left to figure out.”
Kathleen looked up and saw Shawn standing nearby. He’d come out to look for her and caught her pacing in distress.
“I’ll call you right back,” she said quickly into the phone. “Just hang in there.”
She ended the call and rushed over to him.
Shawn stood with his hands in his coat pockets, his expression unreadable.
“Does Colin have a girlfriend?” she asked quickly.
Shawn raised an eyebrow. “Why?”
“My friend Chelsey met her boyfriend’s family yesterday, and it turned out they were completely toxic. When she told her parents she wanted to break up with him, they locked her in and insisted she marry him anyway.”
Shawn listened as Kathleen spilled the beans on everything in a few quick breaths.
“She wants to leave, but her mom’s threatening to hurt herself,” Kathleen added.
“So what do you want?” Shawn asked.
“If Colin doesn’t have a girlfriend, I was thinking maybe he could pretend to be her boyfriend. He looks like the perfect man. If her parents think she has someone even better lined up, maybe they’ll back off.”
Shawn frowned slightly.
“I mean, just pretend,” she clarified. “We just need to get her out.”
“I’m not Colin. I can’t decide for him,” he admitted.
“I know,” Kathleen replied. “But do you think it could work?”
“I told you, I’m not him.”
Kathleen blinked. Then, she quickly pulled out her phone and called Colin herself. She explained the situation and asked for his help.
To her surprise, he agreed without hesitation.
Kathleen barely had time to react. “Thank you. Seriously, thank you.”
As soon as she hung up, she called Chelsey and explained the plan. Chelsey didn’t have many options left, so she agreed to try. She hoped her mother would accept Colin
“Sending you Colin’s photo and info now,” Kathleen said. “You two figure out the details.”
Chapter 37
“Got it.”
Before the call even ended, Colin was already heading out.
Kathleen was amazed by how fast he moved.
“All set? You’ve been away for quite a while,” Shawn reminded her.
Kathleen finally snapped out of it. She had nearly forgotten where she was. “Sorry,” she apologized quickly, stuffing her phone away. “Let’s go.”
