Henley

“Do you think we could do anything with this footage?” I asked, replaying the video on my phone for the tenth time. The cameras we planted captured Mrs. Calloway striking my cheek clearly. The marks still stung dully.

“You could file for assault,” Lee responded, eyes focused on his own phone. “We have all the evidence we need.”

“That’s probably not enough to make her lose her position though, right?”

“It would be better to have more.” He sighed, dropping his phone onto the coffee table. “It doesn’t help that everyone is afraid of my mother. Even just fighting to get my original position back is proving difficult. If I call a meeting with the board of directors, I doubt any of them would vote to get rid of her.”

“How about a toxic work environment? Didn’t the guy who created Uber get kicked out of his company for that?”

Lee gave me a one-shouldered shrug. “While the environment is toxic for some, it isn’t for all. My mother is smart. She knows how to do her job. A lot of people can deal with strict and unfavorable management if the job is steady and the pay is good. It’s more about surviving than enjoying a job for most of the company.”

“I guess I get that.” Strict and unfavorable described Colin perfectly. And I still didn’t leave Michelangelo’s. Still, if all the employees could’ve come together to get him fired, wouldn’t they have?

“Of course, that’s not saying that Bennett and myself aren’t well respected. There are plenty of employees who would have our back. We just need something else. Something that incriminates our mother in a way that no one can ignore.”

“We’ll have to wait to get something good with the cameras.”

“That’s the best we can do for now.”

“What about Henry?”

Lee pouted. “No idea. He won’t text me back.”

“No, I mean are you going to get his job back? And he said he wants to be alone. I’m sure he’ll respond eventually.”

“I don’t think I’ll be able to get his job back while my mother still has her position,” Lee told me. “Besides, it didn’t seem like he wanted to come back.”

“I bet if you became the president he would.”

Lee smiled a little. “I wouldn’t want to make him work somewhere where he isn’t happy.”

“I don’t think he was unhappy at all, Lee. He loves working for you and Bennett. He probably said that because he knows Mrs. Calloway will try to use him against you and Bennett. Just like how she used you against Bennett and how she wanted to use Ariana against me. Cheap, dirty tactics.”

Folding his arms across his chest, he nodded. “You’re right. Not having Henry be a part of this benefits us. And after everything, I’ll just re-hire him with an offer he can’t say no to.”

“Oh yeah? Like sixty grand and a date?”

Lee whipped his head toward me, eyes bulging. “What? D-d-date?”

I blinked. That wasn’t the response I was expecting. “Um, maybe not?”

“Why would you say that?”

“I just kinda… I didn’t mean to assume. I just thought,” I babbled, heat rising to my cheeks.

Lee’s own face flamed as well. “Was I that obvious?”

“You?”

“I don’t think Henry is into men. I’ve dropped many hints and he’s never taken one,” Lee admitted.

My mouth dropped. “Dude, I thought Henry was the one with the crush on you!”

“You think he has a crush on me?”

“I mean it’s kind of obvious.”

Lee hunched into the couch, a petulant expression on his face. “I don’t think so, Henley. He shows more interest in you than me.”

“No, he definitely shows interest in you.”

“I’ve made many suggestions and he has never once said anything back.”

I pinched my nose. “I see what’s happening here. You both are too insecure to think the other likes you. I bet every time you dropped a hint he just thought you were being friendly and vice versa. Come on! You’re both amazing catches! Get him, Lee!”

Lee picked his head up and I imagined him as a puppy, ears perking. “You really think so?”

“Yes, Lee. What’s the worse that could happen, anyway?”

“He gets weirded out and never talks to me again?”

“Henry isn’t like that. You know that.”

Lee chewed on his lip. “Yeah, you’re right. You know I always thought his book was about us, but it’s a male and female lead.”

“That doesn’t mean anything. Just ask him out.”

“Now?”

“Er, well. Sure, but I was really thinking when you rehire him—”

“No, I have to do it now.”

Lee shot off the couch so fast it startled me. I stepped back, giving him his space. “Are you going to call him?”

Chuckling, Lee shook his head. “Call? That’s amateurish. You have to do these things in person.”

“You’re going now?”

“Why wait? This is life-changing, Henley.”

“Yeah, but—”

“If you want something you have to go and get it.”

I couldn’t help but smile at his enthusiasm. “You’re right, Lee. Sometimes putting things off until later makes it become never.”

Nodding, he smoothed out his clothing and briefly checked himself out in the reflection of the window before giving me a small wave. “I’ll probably be back. Hopefully not though.”

He gave me a little wave and I laughed, watching as he disappeared around the corner into the hallway. Five seconds later I heard the door slam and I wondered if he’d even bothered to put his shoes on properly. Hopefully, Henry would let him in. It’d only been a few hours, but maybe it was enough time to help him calm down. Not that he’d be calm for long.

Suddenly faced with a quiet house, I debated on what to do. It was a rare occasion lately to be left alone. Brandon didn’t get out of work until midnight, leaving me ample time to take a bath and relax. I hadn’t been able to try out the tub yet and Anna had bought me some bath bombs.

As I turned to head toward the bathroom, I heard the front door open again. “Forget something, Lee?” I asked.

But instead of Lee, Bennett burst into the living room. “Henley!”

“Bennett? What are you doing—”

“There’s no time,” he said, marching up to me and taking my hand in his. “Come on.”

“What? What’s going on?”

He tugged on my arm with urgency. “We’re going to run away.”

My eyebrows shot up. “What? Why?”

“My mother plans on having Cara and I get married tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” I repeated. “She can’t force you to get married! That has to be illegal!”

“That’s why we’re going to run away.”

I planted my feet into the ground to keep him from pulling me. “Wait, wait. There’s gotta be another way.”

“I thought about it,” he told me. “If I’m not around she can’t force us to get married. We can come back when everything is settled.”

“No, Bennett, we can’t just leave. We need to bring your mother’s actions to light. How could we do that if we’re gone?”

Bennett’s mouth formed an o. “Oh, that’s right. I’m getting too ahead of myself.” Finally letting my arm go, he let out a breath. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” I responded, taking his hand. “What happened?”

“Sebastian and I found what we need to take my mother down. Cara’s father is the owner of the car that Lee crashed. He helped my mother pin the blame on Brandon. Then my mother offered my hand in marriage in return.”

For a moment, I was at a loss for words. As impossible as it sounded, I believed it. Mrs. Calloway could orchestrate something like this easily. “But why would she go so far just to cover up an accident? It’s not even that big of a deal. Lee hadn’t injured anyone. He probably would’ve just had to pay a fine. Why go through all this trouble?”

Bennett shook his head. “It isn’t about Lee. It’s about her reputation. Lee would’ve tarnished it. People would’ve questioned his actions and I’m sure they would’ve found out the truth. My mother couldn’t have anyone knowing her children had something wrong with them. The one thing it doesn’t explain is Lee’s injuries.”

“That’s… I think I can fill that blank. Your mother wanted to silence Lee. Henry and I were talking, and after the things I’ve witnessed, I believe it too. She was there at the scene of the accident. She must have run her car into Lee. Maybe not with an intent to kill him, but definitely to keep Lee quiet. Which unfortunately worked.”

Bennett’s facial expression didn’t change. “I thought the same thing when Sebastian mentioned Lee’s injuries matched someone being hit by a car. If only Lee could remember that night. We’d have my mother pinned down. We could go to the police right now.”

“Did you tell Cara? Maybe her father is more reasonable. Maybe her father doesn’t understand the depth of the situation—”

“Cara had no idea what her father did,” Bennett said. “I don’t think she’ll be on our side for this.”

My heart dropped. “What? But that’s not fair! You have proof. Her father framed my brother. She doesn’t care at all?”

“I don’t know, Henley.”

“I’m sure we could convince her.”

“We don’t have time.”

“You can’t get married!” I said.

Bennett dropped his gaze. “I know, but…”

“What if we get married first?”

His head shot up. “What?”

“What if we got married first,” I repeated, my pulse quickening. I grabbed his shoulders, squeezing them. “You can’t legally marry two people. Her promise with Cara’s father would be broken and there Cara’s father would have no reason to continue protecting her. Then we could pin her down and prove my brother’s innocence.”

Bennett’s eyes grew round. “Henley.”

“We could go right in the morning— we could hop on a flight to Las Vegas right now. We can’t let her win, Bennett. We can get married. It’ll put a cog in her plans.”

Bennett placed his hands over mine, gently lowering them to our sides. “No, Henley.”

“No?”

“We can’t get married,” he said firmly.

I stared at him. “What…? Why not?”

“Because you deserve more than that.”

“We’ve had this conversation, Bennett. I don’t want anyone else. I love you—”

“No, I mean you deserve a better wedding. You deserve an elaborate engagement. You deserve a ballroom and a beautiful gown. You deserve going to wedding expos and cake tasting and choosing a hairstyle and our first song. We can’t get married in a courthouse. I won’t allow it. I only want the best for our wedding.”

“Bennett…”

Bennett smiled softly. “But most importantly, you deserve a choice. You shouldn’t marry me because it’s our only option.”

My throat grew thick and I swallowed hard. “Y-you’re right.”

“Your face is completely red.”

I ripped my hands from him, pressing them to my face. “Don’t point that out!”

“I was kind of romantic there, wasn’t I?”

“I was just caught up in the moment. Getting married now would be a terrible idea. I don’t know if I can put up with your cheesiness for my whole life.”

Bennett chuckled. “Well, that’s your decision.”

“What are we going to do though?” I asked, flopping onto the couch. “I know she’s probably threatening you with Lee, but is there no possible way to avoid this? We just need a little more time. We have her on camera hitting me and—”

“She hit you?”

“Yeah, but it’s—”

Bennett stooped down in front of me, gingerly touching my cheek. “When did this happen?”

“Today. It must have been before she went to see you.” I gasped, sitting up. “Wait? Did I agitate her? Is that why she moved up the wedding date?”

Bennett leaned down and kissed my cheek. “No. I’m sure she’s had this planned. She’s smart. I think she realized we were catching on. You said you have evidence of her hitting you?”

I nodded. “Yes, we planted cameras.”

“As angry as it makes me hearing this, we can use it.”

“I know. I’m okay though. I actually was aiming for it to happen.”

Bennett paced in front of the couch. “We need more time.”

“Well, what if you get married?”

He stopped, whipping toward me. “Henley!”

“What? If you get married to Cara then she doesn’t have any reason to threaten you. Then we can finish gathering our evidence and take her down.”

“I’m not getting married.”

“You can just get divorced.”

His mouth hung open. “Marriage is sacred!”

“Bennett… you’re not even religious.”

“So? I still respect marriage. I’ll never get a divorce. You’re the only person I’ll marry. Marrying Cara isn’t an option.”

I held up my hands. “Okay, okay. Sorry. I didn’t realize you felt so strongly about it.”

“You don’t?”

“I mean. I like the idea. It just isn’t so serious to me. It just makes breaking up a hassle.”

Bennett frowned. “You think we’ll break up?”

“No! You know what? Marriage is actually really amazing. Showing the world it’s us for life.”

He recovered quickly. “Exactly. Also, I have amazing health insurance you could benefit from.”

I laughed and gestured for him to come sit with me on the couch. He did so, pressing his face into my neck and sighing. I pet his hair, leaning my head against his. “How about you write a fake name on the paper?”

“That’s an idea.”

“I could have Tala kidnap Cara.”

“They both are illegal.”

“Maybe you can just buy some time. Tomorrow morning you can go with your mother and Cara. I’ll call Sebastian and have him go to the police station with Brandon and I. I’ll show them the video. If we can just start with something…”

Bennett chewed his lip. “I don’t think it’s enough. They won’t come to arrest her.”

“Then I think you should refuse to go. Your mother really doesn’t have anything on Lee. She can’t do anything permanent to him.”

“I think she’s already proven she can.”

“You’re not being very helpful,” I said, pulling away from him. “Stop thinking it’s already over. We’re winning. We are, Bennett. If we could have one more day. You can even go and stay with Lee. Keep an eye on him.”

“I have to go back to my mother at midnight.”

“Seriously? Are you Cinderella?”

Bennett rolled his eyes. “I knew you would make that comment.”

“Fine. I’ll keep an eye on Lee. Don’t get married tomorrow, Bennett. Just stall. We’ll figure something out.”

“You’re right, Henley. She can’t force me to do this. Her threats are empty. I don’t know why I got so flustered early.”

“Because you’re used to it. Used to her manipulation. But this time it’s not like that. Stay strong. Don’t let her convince you otherwise. Cara doesn’t want this either. Work together with her.”

Bennett pulled me into a hug, squeezing me. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Being my support. I know I’m inadequate.”

I rubbed his back. “You’re not, Bennett. We’re all with you. We’ll end this, okay? I’ll meet up with Sebastian in the morning with Brandon and Lee. You delay things as much as possible.”

“Okay. I will. Where is Lee, by the way?”

“He went to Henry’s.”

“For what?”

“To ask him out.”

Bennett wrenched back. “Ask him out?”

“Yep.”

“About time,” he said, bemused. “I never thought it was going to happen.”

“You knew too?”

“I suppose feelings are obvious to everyone except for those involved.”

I laughed. “Isn’t that right? I hope it works out well for them.”

“It will,” Bennett assured me.

“How much time is left until midnight?” I asked.

Bennett glanced at the watch on his wrist. “We have a few hours.”

“Interested in a bachelor party?”

His face went white.

“Bad joke?” I asked. “Sorry. I just meant maybe we could order a pizza and watch a movie. Relax a little. Tomorrow might be rough.”

“Oh. Yes. That sounds good.”

“I was also planning to take a bath before Brandon got home, so…”

“Why don’t we do that first?” he suggested, scooping me off the couch. “You know, I specifically asked Sebastian to find a place with a bathtub big enough to fit two people.”

I gasped. “You didn’t! Bennett!”

He smirked. “My plan worked out well.”

“I can’t believe this.”

“Well, you’ll find out the benefits momentarily.”

I pressed my face into his shoulder, cheeks burning. Bennett was an idiot. Yet somehow, my idiot. He couldn’t get married tomorrow.

We had to stop it.