They all stood in tense silence.Maria was not going to offer them a chance to sit down.She’d seen the way Suzanne had gazed at their furniture.She could stand all night in her spiky heels for all she cared.
“She’s seventeen,” George said.“The marriage isn’t valid without parental consent.”
“We didn’t sign anything,” Francisco said.“I would’ve said no.”
Absolutely, they would have told Nicole no and probably locked her in her room.
“Then we file for an annulment.”
“And keep them apart,” Suzanne added.
Deep in her heart, Maria knew that would not be enough to keep these two kids separated.“Not enough.Once they leave for college, they’ll get in touch with one another.”
It was true, she knew her daughter, and the girl kept saying she was going to be a lawyer, and Maria could see that stubborn determination in her child.And these two would find a way to be together.
“Not if we’re smart,” George said.“We’re taking Tripp to Europe in the morning.No contact.No phones.It will look like he abandoned her.”
These two must never have experienced true love.
“She’ll still wait for him,” Maria said softly.“She loves him.”
Maria knew that look in her daughter's eyes.It was the same way she’d felt about Francisco all those years ago.It was young love, and it was dangerous.
“Love.Those kids don’t know the meaning,” Suzanne said.
Maria glanced at Suzanne and glared at her.Nicole was her pride and joy, and she didn’t deserve the hatred radiating from this woman.
“We have to end this permanently,” Suzanne said.
“Another woman,” George said.
“Another man,” Francisco said.
“A realization that he doesn’t love her,” Suzanne replied.
“The realization that he’s not good enough for her,” Maria said.
There was a moment of silence as they all stood there thinking about how to put their plan into action.
“What if Tripp were to send her an email saying that he realizes they’ve made a mistake.That he wants to spend his college years chasing other women,” George said.
“Why does it have to be Tripp’s fault?Why can’t Nicole do the breaking up?”Suzanne said.“Our son has put up with so much.”
Her son had put up with what?He’d married her daughter, taken her virginity, and now he was going to break her heart.Thank goodness, the parents were ending this marriage, because her daughter deserved a much better family.One that would see her brilliance and appreciate her.
“What if we do an email from each one.You send one from Nicole to Tripp, and we’ll send one from Tripp to Nicole,” George, the practical one, said.“Can you get into your daughter’s email?”
That was one thing that Maria had insisted on with all her children.Occasionally, she glanced at their emails and texts to ensure they were safe.
“Yes, I can get into Nicole’s email,” she said.“What about you?Can you get into your son’s?”
“Yes,” George said.“He doesn’t know it, but I can.So here’s the plan.We’ll each send an email from the other one saying that they’ve had second thoughts.Then we’re going to whisk our son off to Europe until he goes to college.By then, your daughter will be in school.”
Shaking her head, Maria knew they were missing out on the opportunity to help Nicole.“No.I’m not going to do this.We’ll just let the kids work things out between themselves.”
Francisco glanced at her like she was crazy.
George sighed and shook his head.“I’ll give you fifty thousand dollars to help with your daughter’s education and to keep her away from my son.”
