“With all your recent actions, I am awfully surprised that that girl chooses to stay with you. She must love you a lot,” Brad said thoughtfully, and he took a swig.
“And she is just plain stupid. Heck, if it weren’t for the bigger picture, I wouldn’t be with her. For someone who is anheiress, she is quite stingy with her money. No matter how many times I slap that face of hers, I can’t get her to give me anything large. All I get are the change in her wallet and the apartment has dried up. The bitch! This better not be how marriage with her will be.”
“Aren't you worried she might tell someone of your abuse, and you might get into trouble?”
“Relax, man. She loves me too much to hurt me. And she is also scared I’ll leave if she tells on me. If I leave or I’m arrested, bye perfect family for her baby. So, I get to continue doing as I please.”
“Wasn't she the one you were speaking to? You can’t continue like this forever, man. Why did she call?”
“The bitch wants me to go to her graduation. What on earth am I going to do there?”
Brad quirked a brow and he set his bottle down, “Aren't you supposed to be there to give her support? You say you want to get into the family, yet you aren’t going to be there? Isn’t her grandfather going to be at her graduation?”
John’s head shot up and he looked at his friend as realization dawned on him. “That’s true man. Damn, I never thought of it that way. How could I be so stupid?”
John slapped his forehead and started searching around for his sneakers.
“I take it you are hurrying over there now?”
“Of course, man. I have neither spoken to nor met the man since I got together with Emma. She rarely speaks about him, so I think he is really strict. But I am going to blow throughall of that till I get to him. He has to be coming over for his only grandchild’s graduation. This is my chance. I was so dumb to forget this. I’ve got to go.”
“See ya, man!” Brad called after John who was flying out of the apartment.
John had to make a stop at Emma’s apartment to take a shower and wear something more decent and again, he flew out of the building. He arrived at the university during the conferral of the degree awards. He closed the doors loudly and all eyes turned towards him. As quietly as he could, he settled at the back and his eyes flitted around the large auditorium, searching for who could be Emma’s grandfather but it was a hopeless mission. From the name that was being called at that moment, they were at 'L'. He would have to wait for clues.
“Emma Price!” as the name was called and Emma walked forward to get her degree, there were cheers. She was graduating and it pissed him off how she was being hailed. A few people stood up and he looked around, finding a man next to a woman. He seemed too young to be her grandfather. Still, it was the only lead he had.
As soon as the awards ceremony was over, John made a beeline for the man he presumed to be Emma’s grandfather. As he got closer to the man, he adjusted the cuff of his shirt. He cleared his throat and the man turned around, quirking a brow.
“Can I help you??”
“I’m John, sir. John Rollings.” He stretched out his hand and the man kept eyeing him.
“Do I know you? Oh wait, I do know you.” A smile was forming on John’s lips but the next words the man said let it slip,“You are the young man that created a ruckus earlier by arriving late for an event whose exact time was given.”
Before John could reply, he heard an all-too familiar voice which always created knots in his stomach.
“What are you doing here, John? Emma said you couldn’t make it because you had some important work to do.”
John turned around and forced a smile, “Hi there, Carrie. How are you?”
Carrie walked towards the man John had been talking to and the man placed his arm around her.
“You know this man, Carrie?”
“He is John, dad, the father of Emma’s kids.”
“Oh, I see…” the man said and as he spoke, his blue eyes went steely. “What do you do? Whenever Emma comes over, she says you can never make our dinner invitations because you are always busy.”
In that moment, realization dawned on John, and he understood who the man was. He was Carrie's father, Mr. Grant Jones. So many times, Emma had told him about the dinners and he had hissed and walked off. What was the man’s business in knowing him? He had thought. Now as he stood before the towering man, he swallowed hard.
“I've wanted to meet this boyfriend of Emma’s for a while and now, as I see you...” the man was interrupted by a petite woman wrapping her hand around his waist. John noted he had seen her standing earlier when Emma was called. He was amazed that such a huge man was with such a small woman, but he kept his words to himself.
“It’s nice finally meeting you, John. I am Carrie’s mom, Didi.”
“Hello, ma'am,” John greeted.
“Dear, where’s Emma?” Didi asked Carrie.
