"I have a question." I started while playing with Tobias' hand.
"Yes, my love?"
"When I'm old and bald and wrinkled, will you still think I'm beautiful?" I questioned.
"No."
I playfully shoved him.
"Truth be told, you'd always been beautiful to me, but that's not why I fell in love with you."
"You're in love with me?"
"Madly."
I smiled. "I'm madly in love with you, loverboy."
He cleared his throat.
"So why did you fall in love with me."
"Because there's no one like you and I genuinely mean that." He mumbled. "And you as a person sold me."
"Cheesy Landon." I ruffled his hair. "Your mom wanted some input from us."
"On?"
"Our song for when I walk down the aisle and our first dance," I said. "I was thinking and I had no clue. Since your taste in music is so great, any ideas?"
He thought to himself before nodding.
"So many songs, so many." He shook his head. "But when I look at you, a specific song plays in my head."
"What is it?"
"Wise men say."
"Shut up! I was thinking that too." I smiled. "For I can't help, falling in love with you."
He softly smiled.
"You're the cheesy one now." He laughed.
"I've been thinking so much. So much about our future and about how our house will look like. How our kids will look like."
"Kids?"
I nodded. "Yeah, kids."
"You changed your mind?"
"I was scared but I started thinking of the little moments. Like on a Christmas night, us scrambling, trying to wrap presents and assemble them under the tree. Then we hear a noise and get scared that the kids are up so we hide while trying not to laugh. It would crush us if we ruined the secret that Santa isn't real."
Tobias laughed.
"Then when the thrill of it is over, we sit on the couch eating the cookies and drinking the milk that the kids set out. Tired and overwhelmed but happy because we got to bring a little magic into their lives." I said. "Life is scary but you, yourself make it beautiful. It's so beautiful and I want to be a part of it."
"And I want to be there with you, every step of the way."
I smiled.
"Maybe we should get out of bed, I'd love to lay here forever but work calls." I sighed while sitting up.
"We could skip out today," Tobias said.
"You? Missing work? Where has my loverboy gone?" I questioned while kissing his cheek. "Get up my love! Remember your mom invited us for dinner."
Tobias let out a groan.
* * *
"Great. It's raining." I sighed as Anders pulled into the driveway. "Do you think your sister will like me? I'm nervous."
"Don't be. She'll love you."
Anders stepped outside while grabbing the umbrella. He opened the door allowing me to step out.
"Thank you, Anders."
He nodded and walked me to the door. Tobias jogged afterward.
"I'll be outside waiting," Anders said before walking off.
I knocked on the door and Beverly swung it open.
"Help." She let out a loud sigh.
"What's wrong?" Tobias and I walked in. We headed towards the dining room.
Piper was angrily shouting at Mr. Landon with a broken plate in her hands. She tossed it at him and he quickly ducked.
"Woah what is going on?" Tobias furrowed his eyebrows.
Piper angrily took off her shoe before tossing it at Mr. Landon. "This is why I moved away, I come home and you're already putting me into shit!"
"Do something, Tobi!" Beverly exclaimed.
"Piper come here." He grabbed the blonde while sitting her down in the seat. "Can someone tell me what's going on?"
"I come home and he's setting me up for meetings? I wanted to spend time with my family."
"But you don't have to throw things, Piper!" Beverly yelled.
"I do when my father calls me a bitch!"
"You called her out of her name?" Tobias questioned.
Like father like son. Mr. Landon and Brooks had a tendency of calling people bitches.
"Sit down. Everyone sit down!" Beverly yelled.
We did as told. Piper angrily shook her leg.
"Athena, I apologize." Piper flipped her hair.
"We're back," Brooks said while holding the toddler.
I cocked my head.
"Miss Athena!" The little boy cheered before running to my side and hugging me.
"Theo, what are you doing here?" I bent down to hug the toddler.
"With my daddy!"
"What? Theo, I'm not-" Tobias started.
"Come here." Brooks grabbed the little boy.
They sat down in the chair.
"What the hell is going on?" Tobias questioned.
"Oh, I forgot to mention! Your brother has a child." Mr. Landon shook his head while taking a sip of his water. "Where did I go wrong?"
"I'm sorry Tobi, I didn't tell you because you would've gotten mad." Beverly sighed. "And this dinner is a mess, I just wanted us to reunite."
"You slept with Jalena?" Tobias questioned.
"Amber too." Brooks smirked. "Oh and Lauren."
Brooks cleared his throat.
"Maybe Miss Athena is next." He laughed. "If she's lucky."
"In your dreams." Tobias quickly stood up.
I grabbed his hand. "Just don't, please."
He sighed before sitting back down.
"Brooks! Apologize right now!" Piper grabbed his ear before twisting it. "Right now!"
"I'm sorry."
"Watch your mouth, bitch boy. We don't want a round two." Tobias crossed his arms. "I shouldn't have come here. Athena, we're leaving."
"I shouldn't have come home. Can't we just admit it? This family that you're forcing mom is never gonna happen." Piper rolled her eyes.
"I try so hard." Beverly shook her head. "I try so hard to love you guys. We can't have one night? One night where you guys aren't so wrapped up in your worlds? I blame myself for not putting a stop to your tendencies earlier, but now I am. So if you can't show your mother some respect, then get the hell out!"
She paused before eyeing Tobias and Brooks down.
"The language you use in front of me. The way you two tear down each other. The way you guys come at each other, it breaks my heart and I'm tired of seeing it."
She stood up while wiping away tears.
"I try to love you guys unconditionally but I'm tired. I'm tired of being disrespected and walked over." She threw down the napkin. "I'm done."
Beverly said before walking off.
"Mom." Tobias sighed. "I'm sorry Athena, I'll be right back."
"Athena, let's go for a walk, shall we?" Piper stood up.
"No don't take her! We just reunited." Theo pouted.
"It's okay. I'll be back, okay little man?" I questioned while standing up. He nodded.
Piper and I walked towards the back door before following the stone path. She sighed.
"I didn't like you when I first found out about the engagement." She said while playing with her fingers. "Mainly because I'm the protective older sister."
I nodded.
"But when I saw pictures of you two, he was always smiling and Tobias never smiles." She chuckled. "And I cursed myself for ever disliking you mainly because you didn't do anything."
She stopped in her path.
"But then my mind goes back into sister mode. As an older sibling, you're the third parent. Sometimes I felt like his actual mom since ours wasn't so loving until now. He's been hurt many times by his own family and I had always been there to wipe away those tears. I just want to be that protector for him because his dad was never that. I want to protect him from any outsiders that could break him." She huffed. "He poses as strong, which he is, but he's sensitive."
Sensitive?
"Tobias puts everyone's needs before his own. If his back hurt and someone needed a boulder to he carried, he would do it." She laughed. "I remember when we were younger and it rained, and I didn't want to get my new shoes dirty so he took off his shirt just so I could walk on it."
She sighed.
"And yeah, he makes mistakes, a lot. He can be cold and mean, but deep down he doesn't mean it. He builds up walls because he shows his vulnerable side too much. He's just scared. He's a scared kid who needs someone to show him that it's okay."
Piper shook her head.
"I'm rambling, but what I'm saying is that Tobias will forever have you covered, even if he doesn't show it. Give him time. Just promise me that you'll provide the same coverage? I know you're a sweet girl, but I'm just being the protective older sister."
I smiled.
"I promise," I said.
"And I'm sorry that you have to be involved with our family drama. Some things will never get solved."
"Tell me about it." I laughed.
"I just wanted to speak with you, to get to know you and go officially welcome you in as a Landon."
"Thank you, Piper." We began walking back to the house.
"Do you have a bathroom near?" I questioned.
Piper nodded. "It's by the stairs."
"Thank you." I nodded before walking off.
I opened the bathroom door. Brooks was washing his hands. I quickly apologize while trying to shut the door.
"Don't worry about it, I'm done." He said. "Where's my son?"
"I don't know."
"Wanna know something?" Brooks questioned.
"What Brooks." I rolled my eyes.
"It was supposed to be me and you getting married, not Tobias." He smiled while grabbing a paper towel.
"What do you know about the contract?"
"I know a lot. You know, I would've gone through with it but there were too many strings attached." He said while drying his hands.
"What strings?"
"Tobias didn't tell you? When you two split, which you'll have to because it's in the contract, Tobias will owe you money."
"I don't want his money and we're not splitting."
"Did you not read the contract?"
"No."
"It's a business deal, Athena. You two were fools for thinking it could venture outside of that. This isn't a rom-com where y'all fall in love and live happily ever after. Kaelyn Solana doesn't play about her money and her daughters' happiness won't compromise it."
"My mother doesn't own me! Nor does that stupid contract."
"Then say goodbye to everything."
"What do you mean."
Brooks mimed himself zipping his mouth before throwing off an imaginary key. He walked away. I walked into the bathroom and locked it.
I pulled my phone out, dialing a number.
"Hello, my lovely sister," Anteros said in a sing-song voice.
"Those box of records, I need to view them again."
"Okay. Wanna see them tomorrow?"
"Yeah."
"Athena?" Tobias knocked on the door.
I hung up the phone before looking at myself in the mirror. I couldn't be angry at Tobias for not telling me. I should've read the contract.
But at that time, I was an immature fool who did everything my dad commanded. What could my mom possibly take away from me?
S&W? I didn't care. If I had chose my company or Tobias, it would be him any day.
"Athena?" Tobias knocked again.
"Sorry, uh." I paused while looking down at the sink. "Just give me a second."
"Okay, when you're ready, we'll leave."
But my mind was circulating with so many thoughts. What could my mom take from me? I unlocked the door before opening it.
"Let's go."
It was the middle of the night. Tobias was sleeping soundly. I slowly tipped out of the bed before walking downstairs to his office.
I opened the drawer before pulling out the contract.
The marital agreement between Athena Love Solana and Tobias Avery Landon.
I skimmed through it before reading the middle paragraph.
By failure of divorce or falling short of the wedding, the party at fault will be penalized. By signing this contract, the creator of the contract can seek punishment by obtaining any business, assets, or titles the two parties possess.
I placed the contract back in before shaking my head. I could lose my company, but so could Tobias. I knew he cared for me, but I also knew he would choose me over it and I wouldn't allow that.
But the words of Brooks still swarmed my head. What was going on? Something deeper than the business we own seemed to be at a loss.
But what?
~
"We've looked through these, Athena. We know information that is contained on these sheets."
"But something is missing! We're billionaires for fucks sake, losing companies is like dripping a penny on the ground. Well for me." I sighed. "It's something I'm missing."
"There's one thing that I found, but maybe I'm interpreting it wrong." He seemed a bit uneasy. "I hope it's wrong."
"What is it?"
"Let's start from the beginning." He grabbed a piece of paper. "Mom got involved with your uncle."
"Right."
"Then she got involved with drugs and that's when they discovered that the drugs were being laced. Boom, people started dying, that caused a loss in money."
"Right."
"Mom and Beverly did a secret dealing and mom made a fuck up so Beverly covered. Beverly and Brooks Jr. wanted to start up the record label but needed funding ."
"That also explains why the Landon's funded my dad's space company when I first found out about the marriage." I nodded.
"Kinda, I believe this was a cover from the bigger picture." Anteros nodded. "Beverly fell short with the money. She borrowed twenty-four million according to the records."
"But the companies they own are multi-million dollar companies. Why do they need money from my mom?"
"Money laundering."
"Money laundering?"
"It's more than her needing money. They had it, but they used terms. Beverly needed to wash twenty-four million. Beverly was involved with the drugs as well. The deal that's been recorded is between Beverly and Kaelyn."
"And she didn't, meaning Beverly shorted my mom, there was never an investment."
"Ding, ding, ding. This whole thing is about a big fuck up that mom and Beverly made. A failure to wash the money."
"So what, I can get twenty-four million. If that's the case."
"No. It's not."
"Then what is it."
"The principle. They need to wash that money that's been sitting untouched. A lot goes behind producing those fake bills." He sighed. "It's never just about the money, it's always the principle."
Anteros looked around.
"This document." He pulled it out while staring at it. "It's a death note that's been signed."
"By mom?"
He nodded. "She sighed herself and Beverly over as collateral."
"And my uncle he's cutthroat." I shook my head. "So the best they could do was this deal. To disguise the exchanging of the money as a business deal."
"And if mom doesn't pay what she owes..." Anteros trailed.
"Beverly and mom could be killed."
"But not just them Athena." He sighed before looking away.
"Me?"