Forgetting Prince Charming.

CHAPTER 36

"Uh, what happened?" she asked him carefully. She didn't want to pry but she was desperate to know.

"We had a fight. The biggest we've ever had."

"What happened? If you don't mind me asking."

He lifted his head and looked at her. "Larissa is pushing me for marriage. She says we've been together long enough and she's tired of waiting. The problem is that my parents do not want me to marry her."

Emma was beside herself. "Wait, they don't approve of Larissa?"

He shook his head. "They've never really got along. Larissa is perfectly respectable when we visit but somehow, they've all just rubbed one another wrong. My parents say they can't pinpoint it but something about her is sketchy." He rolled his eyes. Emma mentally high fived his parents. "Larissa says they're too stuck-up and need to get some life in them. Ironically, my parents say she's too immature. They know she's pushing marriage. On Sunday they told her that they will never allow me to marry her."

"Wow," Emma said breathlessly. She'd have loved to have seen Larissa's face when that happened.

"Naturally, because your sister can barely hold her tongue at the best of times, she let everything out. She told them that they're arrogant rich people who want to deny their son of his happiness. She said that they're only against her because she's poor." He sounded bored by the tale which was confusing to Emma. It didn't appear to bother him in the slightest. "She told them that they couldn't dictate who I married, and that it will happen whether they like it or not."

"What did you do?" she asked.

"Nothing. That only made Larissa mad. She said I should have defended her and told them we were getting married regardless of how they felt. I admitted that I didn't want to get married. She went crazy after that. She slapped me and stormed away. I haven't spoken to her since."

Emma whistled. "What drama! So, you don't want to marry Larissa?"

He shrugged. "I don't want to get married at all. Things are fine the way they are. I don't see why I need a piece of paper for us to be together. No one seems to get it though. All Larissa keeps insisting is that she get married before you."

Emma rolled her eyes. "No surprise there," she muttered. "Larissa's only goal is to one-up me. I'm not sure why she's so concerned over it." Emma shouldn't be saying these things, she knew that but she couldn't stop the word vomit. It was nice to express her frustrations to someone who intimately knew the cause of her frustration.

"It's something I've wondered too," he muttered. "You two really don't get along."

"I've tried but it's useless with her. She's always got a vendetta. Anything I say to her is taken as a personal attack or an opportunity for her to belittle me. It's got to the point that I'm not sure how to communicate with my own sister anymore. I always feel like I have to have my guard up around her."

Eamon's eyes were wide. "I had no idea you felt that way."

She shrugged. "There's no point changing it. I've tried for years."

Eamon'sfrown was deep. "Her attitude lately makes me question our relationship."

Hope warmed her chest. "Really? You're thinking of breaking up with her?"

He rubbed at his jaw. Emma noticed for the first time just how tired he looked. "Many of my friends and family have expressed similar opinions as you. They've made it clear that they don't want to visit with me if she's around. I'm not sure I like that."

Emma was ablaze with excitement. She knew. that she couldn't get ahead of herself. Things could still come back and bite her later. She had to be a silent third party with no opinions, despite how eagerly she wanted to tell him to leave Larissa. "I'm sorry. I wish my sister didn't make life so tough."

Eamon seemed pleased with her answer and gave her a smile. "On to better news. My father is being awarded by the medical board this weekend. There's a big fundraiser ball happening. All hospital staff are invited. Since you were, at some point, employed at the hospital, I got you a ticket."

Emma grinned. "That sounds exciting. Thank you."

"You'll be at my table." His smile faltered a bit. "I got two tickets for you. One for Joey too."

Emma smiled. She couldn't wait to see Joey and Eamon interact. She knew it would explosive. Having Larissa there would be the cherry to top it all.

"We'll see you then," she answered.