Fake Ties Real Hearts: A Contemporary Romance Novel, page 1
Fake Ties Real Hearts
Copyright
Copyright © 2023 by Ella Thomas
All rights reserved.
No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.
Table of Contents
Fake Ties Real Hearts
Copyright
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 1
Jewel
I can’t believe this is happening. I look from my parents to Kyle’s parents and they are all wearing a frown.
At the long mahogany table, my parents sit across from us, their expressions stern and imposing. Kyle, my childhood friend and next-door neighbor, sits beside me. His presence provides some small comfort, but it can't alleviate the dread that clings to the air.
His dark hair which is always neatly combed looks tousled from last night’s party and from constantly pulling his fingers through it, just like he’s doing right now.
My dad looks like he wants my hide. This wasn’t supposed to happen. They weren’t supposed to see that picture. Hell, the picture wasn’t supposed to be taken in the first place.
“You both have no idea the gravity of what you’ve caused,” my father grits.
I try to stifle a yawn and act serious. Even though I really don’t see why they are acting all serious. It was just a kiss and it wasn’t a big deal.
Yeah, so what if some silly reporter took a picture of Kyle and I kissing at the club last night? It wasn’t even real it was a joke; Kyle and I both know it.
The elegant dining room of my family's home now feels like a gilded cage, and I so badly want to be let out.
I admit that I might have taken this a little too far, but in my defense, I had no idea that the kiss was going to be blown out of proportion this way. It was just a kiss, it’s like we had sex in public.
"Jewel, Kyle," my father, a man of few words but immense authority, begins in his characteristic no-nonsense tone, "we’ve all come to a conclusion regarding this situation and we want to let you both know about it."
I'm still clad in the same short Chanel dress from last night's extravagant party, and the weight of a relentless hangover presses down on me. All I crave at this moment is to shed this dress and slip into the welcoming embrace of my bed.
With a wince, I mutter, "No offense, but could we possibly postpone this conversation to another time?" My voice is a raspy groan as I instinctively try to shield my eyes from the merciless glare of the chandelier overhead. My head feels like it wants to implode and the light isn’t helping.
My mother shoots me a glare and I look away. She looks just as pissed as my father.
I already know what this meeting is going to be about. “Jewel, you need to stop partying and act responsibly. You need to start acting your age. Jewel, you need to get a job, blah blah…”
And then my mother would go on to say, “Jewel you need to start acting more mature so you can get a good husband. No man wants a woman who parties, no man wants this, no man wants that…”
My parents act like we’re still living in the nineteenth century. Not everyone wants to get married. And as for the job part, I’ve tried getting a job but I always end up quitting because I considered it slavery to wake up early just to sit behind a desk all day. Nah that lifestyle isn’t for me.
“Jewel, are you listening?” My dad asks bringing my mind back to the meeting.
“I’m sorry, but I really don’t feel so well, maybe this discussion can be moved to another time?”
"No, it can't!” My father barks. “If the two of you hadn't been out gallivanting and causing a mess, perhaps we wouldn't be having this conversation!" My father's voice carries a searing edge of anger, and the intensity in his eyes makes me instinctively shrink back in my seat.
My fingers tighten around the edge of the linen napkin in my lap as I try to steady my racing heart. Kyle, older than me and equally unnerved, shifts uncomfortably in his chair.
“I’m sure you must have seen this.”
My father is now brandishing a picture of Kyle and me caught in a kiss.” From his point of view, it looks like we really had something serious going on between both of us. But trust me that isn’t the case. It was just a kiss and it meant nothing.
"No, it's not what it looks like, I can explain," I stammer, my voice tinged with desperation.
“We can explain.” I turn to look at Kyle, why is he so calm? Shouldn’t he be saying something?
"It's a little too late for that, don't you think?" Kyle's father interjects, his tone surprisingly calm despite the gravity of the situation. His gaze is focused on his son but Kyle doesn’t seem to care as he’s busy staring at the wall in front of him like it’s some interesting piece of art.
"It's not what you think. We..." My words falter, caught in my throat as I struggle to find the right words to explain the situation, knowing that the truth might be as hard to accept as it is to explain.
"It doesn't matter what we think," Kyle's mother, typically soft-spoken, gently interjects. "The picture is everywhere on the internet, and it's what everyone is talking about."
“Why do we have to be so bothered about what people are saying about us? This isn’t the first-time people are talking about us. People will always talk about us anyway. So, this shouldn’t be any different.”
“This is different,” interrupts Kyle’s father.
"We’ve all decided the best way to salvage the situation," my father continues, "is for the two of you should get married."
The words hang in the air, like a dense fog descending upon our heads, mine especially. I glance at Kyle, whose brows are now furrowed in disbelief.
“This has to be a joke, right?” He asks, speaking for the first time now looking at both his parents.
"What?" I stammer, my voice barely above a whisper. "Married? But Dad, I'm not ready for that kind of commitment! And why is getting married the best way to salvage this?"
How did they come up with this idea anyway? I’m now looking at their faces wondering if they are in their right senses.
"I have no intention of getting married," Kyle adds, his deep voice conveying his anger.
“Where did that even come from? I don’t want to get married, at least not yet. This isn’t the first time that we’re being talked about on the internet, it will fizzle out just like every other time.”
“This time it’s different,” Kyle’s father interrupts. “You both need to learn to pay for the consequences of your actions.”
“And getting married is the way to do that? This doesn’t make any sense.” I fold my arms across my chest. “I’m not getting married.”
“This doesn’t make any sense,” Kyle scoffs.
“It’s not your decision to make, we’ve decided it’s what is best for both families, you both are getting married,” my father says with a note of finality in his tone.
“No, this can’t be, you can’t force us to get married.” Now I’m pissed as I look at all the faces in the dining room.
“This has to be a joke,” Kyle pushes his chair back and gets on his feet. “If this conversation is over, I would like to get going.”
“It is. You and Jewel are getting married, so get prepared,” his father says. Without saying another word, Kyle stalks out of the room leaving me to face them alone.
Kyle’s parents stand up to leave as well. “We will keep in touch for the wedding preparations.”
My father gets on his feet and shakes Kyle’s father’s hand. “We will get the preparation started.”
Why are they talking like I’m not even here?
My father turns to look at me, shakes his head in a disapproving manner, and starts walking away, I stand up and follow him. “Papa, you can’t do this, you can’t force me to get married.”
“It’s been decided Mija,” he says, calling me daughter in Spanish.
“Marriage is a lifetime commitment; you just can’t go about choosing whom I’m going to marry. This is the 21st century for God’s sake!”
He starts taking the stairs to his bedroom and I follow. “I’m not ready for marriage, and if ever I do get ready to marry, I want to be the one to choose whom I’m going to marry.”
“You brought this upon yourself Mija, you should have thought about the consequences of your actions before going about kissing Kyle at the club last night.”
“It was just a kiss, what’s the big deal?!” I throw my hands up in frustration.
My father stops in his tracks and now turns to face me. “That’s the point, you don’t see anything wrong with all the things that you do, and that needs to stop, starting from now! You’re getting married to Kyle and that’s final.”
I’m left standing on the steps as I watch my father walk away seething with anger. I turn around and go back to the dining room hoping to talk some sense into my mother but she isn’t there. I hear her voice coming from the kitchen so I go there.
She’s giving Rosa our chef instructions on what to make for breakfast, I don’t wait for them to finish speaking.
“Mama, you can’t allow Papa to do this to me.”
“Rosa, that will be all for now.” My mother turns to leave the kitchen and I follow her. “You and Papa can’t force me into getting married.”
“We’re doing what’s best for you,” she says in her usual calm tone as she walks to the living room.
“You can’t choose what’s best for me, I’m not a baby, Mama, why are you both doing this to me?”
“You keep saying that you’re not a baby and yet you go on to act like one.” She takes a seat on one of the plush couches in the living room, picks up a Vogue magazine, and starts flipping through it.
“You’ve been caught on camera kissing two different men just this week alone. Just two days ago, a video of you twerking on a man’s lap at the club was trending on the internet.” She closes her magazine and turns to look at me, her eyes showing her displeasure.
“You are spiraling out of control and it’s tainting our family’s reputation. I brought you up to be better than this.”
“I…”
“You’re getting married and that’s it.”
I want to tell my mother that if only they gave me enough attention while growing up and even now, then just maybe I might have turned out differently. But there’s no need, it will only have us dancing around in circles as always.
Without saying another word, I walk away to my bedroom, closing the door with a loud bang. My phone lying on my nightstand is buzzing with notifications and I know it’s all about the picture of Kyle and I kissing.
I let out a loud groan as my mind travels back to last night.
"Truth or dare?" Jasmine's voice cuts through the lively atmosphere of the club as the bottle comes to a stop, pointing directly at me. We're out celebrating her 21st birthday, and what better way to mark the occasion than hitting the club, getting a little tipsy, and indulging in a round of silly games like truth or dare?
"Dare," I respond, taking a sip of my vodka. I should probably slow down; I'm starting to feel a little tipsy. But then again, that's the whole point of this party, isn't it? To get a bit intoxicated and momentarily forget about the rest of the world.
“I dare you to…”
“Who’s that hottie?” Daisy whistles interrupting Jasmine from what she was about to say. All four of us turn in the direction Daisy is pointing at.
“Isn’t that your hot neighbor?” Lilian says swiping her tongue across her bottom lip. My eyes fall on Kyle Anderson. He’s sitting in the company of his two friends in one of the VIP sections not far from ours.
“You know that guy?” Daisy asks with excitement.
“Yeah, his parents live next to mine.” Kyle moved out of his parent's house immediately after he graduated from college and that’s a long time ago.
“Hmm, it’s been a while since I saw hot Kyle,” Jasmine has mischief dancing in her eyes as she looking at me. “I dare you to go and kiss Kyle.”
I snort. “Seriously? You want me to kiss Kyle?”
"Yes, it's either him or that." I follow the direction of Jasmine's hand, and I see she's pointing at a guy who's been chugging down beer as if his life depends on it. I've never been a fan of the smell of beer, and Jasmine knows it all too well.
No offense to breweries but I think that shit smells and tastes like cow pee, don’t ask me how I know what cow pee tastes like, I just know.
“So, which is it going to be?” Daisy asks daring me with her eyes. They are all looking at me waiting for my response. I’ve never been one to back down from a challenge and they know.
“Fine, let’s do this.”
I adjust my dress as I stand up and then start walking up to where Kyle and his friends are seated.
“Hey, J, I didn’t know you were here,” he says the moment he sees me, a cute smile dancing on his lips. I’m familiar with his friends so I say hello to them before going to sit beside Kyle.
“Are you here with your friends?” He takes a sip of his champagne.
“Yes, and they dared me to do this.” Without warning, I draw closer to Kyle and kiss him on the lips. He was caught off guard at first but soon, he starts responding.
There’s a low gasp of surprise among his friends, and I can hear my friends cheering me on but their voices seem like a blur in the background.
This was supposed to be a game, a dare, so why the hell am I enjoying it?
Chapter 2
Kyle
“This has to be a fricking joke, right?!” I say to my parents the moment we get back to their mansion, resisting the urge to scream at them.
“Kyle, language,” my mother warns as she takes a seat on one of the couches in the large living room. I can’t believe she's trying to tell me about language right now.
“You guys have to be joking about what you just said out there because there’s no way that is ever going to happen.”
Malcolm, my father, moves to sit beside my mother, signaling for one of the domestic staff to fetch him a glass of scotch, a routine he follows whenever he returns from wherever he's been.
“It’s been decided, you are getting married to Jewel,” Malcolm says with a note of finality.
“And what makes you think you can make such a decision for me? The last I checked, the choice of who I marry is entirely up to me. I’m not getting married to Jewel and you can’t force me to do that.”
My father’s scotch arrives and he takes a sip before responding, my mother on the other hand doesn’t seem to have a say of her own, anything my father says goes. It has always been like that since I was a kid.
“You’re right about us not being able to force you into marrying Jewel, after all, you are an adult.” He pauses to take another sip of his stupid scotch. I take a deep breath waiting for the other shoe to drop.
“But as you know, I will be retiring soon from Anderson and Corp and I would need you to take over.”
“Hasn’t that always been the plan?” I ask, my voice conveying my impatience.
“The plan has changed, if you don’t get married, you can’t become the CEO of Anderson Corp.”
A humorless chuckle escapes my lips. “And what is that supposed to mean? Who else is fit to run the company apart from me? Besides what has been married got to do with my ability to run the company.”
“If you don’t get married within the next three months before my retirement, the position of the CEO will go to James, your cousin.”
“What? James? That guy doesn’t even know how to run his household talk more of a company!”
I’m trying my best to keep my anger in check. How can he think of giving my position to James? The only thing that bastard is good at is sticking his dick in every hole he finds available. Not only is he incompetent to run a company like Anderson Corp, but he’s also a fool! A big one at that.
My father signals for staff to bring him the bottle of scotch instead, clearly in the mood to drink himself into a stupor. My mother on the other hand is busy on her phone pretending not to be concerned with what we are talking about.
I'm pretty sure she's indulging in her favorite pastime: online shopping and loading up her cart with all the Botox products she can get her hands on, as that seems to be her latest obsession these days.
“James is inexperienced, you can’t hand over the company to him. That would be a recipe for disaster!”
My father nods. “Yes, you are right about him being inexperienced, but he will learn and I’m sure that in no time will master the ropes.”
“You’re seriously considering handing over the company to that moron? He will run the company down!”
“It’s my company, no? So let me worry about it.” He turns to look at me. “Though I won’t have to give him the company if you agree to settle down and get married.”
“What has been married got to do with being able to run a company? Marriage doesn’t make you responsible, James is a testament to that.”
My father makes a refill of his drink before answering. “You and I know this has nothing to do with responsibility.”
