Breaking Down

Chapter 18

18

Gabi

I didn’t see Tyler on Sunday, though I went out again in the afternoon, lying to my family I was meeting Tyler somewhere. I walked around the neighborhood, feeling as if I was hiding a bomb inside my purse that could explode at any moment.

On Monday, he sent me a text letting me know which apartment he had liked the best. Again, when I left Gui’s place to meet with the real estate agent, I lied I was meeting Tyler instead. That afternoon, I signed the papers for the apartment, and to make sure Tyler didn’t bother me about rent at all, I paid a full year in advance. There, now he wouldn’t be able to argue about it.

Then, on Tuesday, Tyler picked me up at 9:15, as agreed, and drove us to the immigration lawyer’s office. There, the secretary told us to sit down in the waiting area until someone came to get us.

I took a spot on a loveseat and Tyler sat in an armchair, not too far, but not close to me either. He stared at the news show on the TV and didn’t utter a word the entire twenty minutes we waited. In fact, I realized that besides the “good morning” when I entered his truck earlier, he hadn’t spoken a single word to me yet.

I was about to ask him what was going on when a tall woman with black hair pulled in to a tight bun stepped into the waiting area.

“You two must be Tyler Reid and Gabriela Fernandes. I’m Anita Wyatt, nice to meet you.”

After greeting her, Tyler and I followed the lawyer back to her elegant office. She stopped at the door and offered us water or coffee. When we declined, she closed the door and took the seat behind her desk.

“So, what can I do for you?” she asked, clasping her hand together over her desk.

“Well,” I started. In a couple of minutes, I told her about our wedding last week and when I started telling her about how we met, she interrupted us.

“I can smell a fake wedding a mile away,” she said, making me cringe. Tyler, finally, showed some emotion. He straightened in his chair with a big frown between his brows.

Actually, I had no dreams we could trick the lawyer. I was hoping she would help us trick the government, as bad as it sounded.

“I can explain.” I told her about our situation, about why we decided to get married and why I wanted a green card—to play polo here. At that, Tyler looked at me from the corner of his eyes. I guess we hadn’t talked about that yet, had we?

Like Tyler and I, the attorney didn’t think we were harming anyone, though she had one condition. She didn’t want us tricking the government any further, which meant, she wouldn’t let us fabricate a history with photoshopped pictures of us together from before our wedding date, or fake older messages and emails. She explained to us the consequences if we were found out by the government—deportation for me and jail for Tyler.

“That’s an exaggeration, of course,” Anita said. “I think I only saw one man go to jail for a marriage-based green card before, but that was because he was marrying the daughter of a powerful international criminal. Her father had plans to smuggle weapons and drugs into the country through her. Most of the time, there’s a hefty fine.”

Tyler’s jaw popped at that. I knew he didn’t want to go to jail—no one wanted to—and money was already a problem for him. He couldn’t have yet more debt.

I turned to him. “It’s okay if you want to give up,” I said in a low voice. I knew the lawyer still could hear me, but speaking in hushed tones made me feel a little less awkward. “We can get the marriage annulled and we can forget this ever happened.”

He stared at me with those intense hazel eyes, his jaw even harder than before. “No, I’m not giving up now.”

I wanted to ask him if he was sure, but the look he gave me, a depthless glare, made me shut my mouth and nod.

The lawyer, after stipulating a hefty retainer, finally agreed to help us with the green card application and the process.

“All right, you two have to move in together right away and take lots of pictures together,” Anita said. “All the time. Selfies everywhere. Always smiling, always happy. Oh, and study the interview questions. Know them by heart.”

We knew that was a part of the deal, but being close together and pretending to love each other was still our biggest challenge.

The lawyer gave us a few forms to fill out, an invoice to pay, then told us she would have it all sent out before the end of the day. She probably would receive confirmation that the government received our application by Friday or the beginning of next week.

Tyler and I left the lawyer’s office a little before noon, and for some reason, I felt heavy. Concerned. Defeated.

And he was still tense and hard like a damn rock.

“Hey, what is it?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know, just not a good day, I guess.”

I glanced at my phone. It was almost noon. “Are you hungry? There’s this sandwich place I like around the corner.”

He looked at me with his eternal frown and said, “I have some stuff to do.” He ran a hand through his hair.

“Do you want some company?”

“No, it’s fine. I can drive you back to your brother’s apartment, though.”

I shook off the shock. I hadn’t truly expected him to say no to both offers. I was trying here, damn it. “No, it’s okay. I’ll walk.”

“Okay, hm. I pick you up Friday morning.”

I nodded. “Yes. We’ll get the apartment keys and start moving.”

He nodded. “Okay. See you, then.”

Then, he just turned around and walked to his truck before I could say anything. Because I had plenty to say, but when I tried, he either left in a hurry or the words got stuck in my throat.

I walked back to the guys’ apartment, trying not to think too hard about Tyler and our current situation.