The Lost Heiress

Chapter 3

This was bad, very bad, she needed to speak with Jordan as soon as possible but he already told her he wasn’t going to be with his phone most of the time. They had planned to tell their families together but she knew she had to tell her family soon if not her life was going to turn upside down. If her father mentioned it to the supposed future husband, it would no doubt create an even bigger rift between Jordan and his brother, Caleb, no matter who she ended up marrying. Yes, her father was also looking into the same family, just a different son. She decided to buy time until she could speak with Jordan.

Knocking on the door of her father’s study, she had his voice telling her to come in and she went in.

“Dad, can I talk to you for a moment?” she asked and he sighed

“Ivy if this is about the potential future marriage, don’t bother to even start, before you even think of rejecting, go on dinner with the boy first. I spoke with his father just moments ago and you will be seeing this guy, if I think that he is not good enough, I’ll stop the entire thing but so far the boy has a clean record and that’s more than enough”

“Dad, just listen will you, you didn’t even ask my consent you just sprouted that kind of news in my face the first night I come home in so long and you even go ahead to confirm it without my input and now you wont even listen to me. How is that fair Dad?”

“Listen Ivy, you know the tradition of this family, you knew that this was bound to happen sooner or later, so what’s the big deal?”

“What’s the big deal? You’re really asking me that? You’re planning on marrying me off to mister I’ve-never-met-before and you ask what’s the big deal? And why are you so hell bent on this guy?”

“Because he’s the best suitor so far and he’s closer to you in age so you both will be able to relate better with each other”

“But Dad, I love someone else”

“You what?”

“I love-“

“Don’t even think of completing that statement young lady, you have no idea what you’re talking about and I’m not about to listen to the crap coming out of your mouth so if you know what’s good for you, you better cut off all communications with whoever that man is, I gave into you when you wanted to stay on your own, I didn’t hold you back, I gave you more freedom than any daughter of this family has ever had, I didn’t watch your every movement like I should have because I trusted you to make me proud by following the traditions of this family which I need to remind you of at this point, No Stewart falls in love, we have too many responsibilities on our hands to add falling in love to it. A Stewart who falls in love ends up living a miserable life, it’s much safer to have an arranged marriage that way you won’t get hurt”

“Dad, I know all about that and it means absolutely nothing to me, I love my man and no amount of age-old tradition is going to change that”

“How dare you” he raised his hand in pure fury after listening to the way his own daughter degraded the family tradition but caught himself just in time. Closing his eyes, he sighed and tried to calm himself down.

“Go to your room Ivy, before I do something I will regret, and tomorrow, you are meeting up with Caleb Quinton and if you know what’s good for you and the so-called lover of yours, you’ll end it all before I step in”

She didn’t say anything else, still in shock at the fact that her father raised his hand to her also she recognized the tone which he used to speak with her, if she dared to protest any further, she won’t be going on any dinner tomorrow, rather, she would be walking down the aisle and meet her husband for the first time at the altar. Without another word she left his office quietly and with tears rolling down her face. Opening the door, she walked away from her father’s office and towards her room when she saw her mother and she looked down and silently passed by, she didn’t want her mother’s pity or her brother’s. She knew no one would be able to help her not even her brother, no one could change her father’s mind once he set his mind on something but she wasn’t one to give up and certainly not on Jordan or the love they shared.

Entering her room, she threw herself on her bed and cried, not long after, her bedroom door went open and she knew who it was.

“Who’s the boy?” her mother asked after standing at the entrance of her room for a little while and Ivy sniffed before looking up surprised that her Mom knew.

Her mom chuckled “don’t look so shocked darling, I’ve known for quite a while now, I just wanted you to come out clean on your own but you look like you’re stuck so who’s the boy?”

“Caleb’s older brother, Jordan” Ivy responded

“Oh dear” her mother whispered “does he feel the same way?”

“Yes he does Mom, we love each other, I’ll die before I think of spending the rest of my life with someone other than Jordan, he’s the only one for me”

“Does he know of this new development?”

“No Mom, he’s out of the country and he already told me that he might be out of reach for most of his time there”

Her mother thought for a while before speaking “Go on the date with the person your father has in mind” Ivy’s eyes bulged out and she stood up from beside her mother.

“What are you telling me Mom? Did you hear anything I said at all? Go on a date with him?”

“Listen to me before you flare up again and mess up everything again, you made a very huge mistake trying to tell your father that you love someone else especially after he told you of a prospective suitor, if you utter one more word against his decision, he’ll drag you down the aisle tomorrow and get you married immediately.” She told her daughter.

“But Mother isn’t going out on a date with this new person going to complicate things more?” Ivy asked

“Listen Ivy, we can’t do anything for now until your groom comes back into the country and is available for when you properly can introduce him, so until then we have to stall for time so in order not to put any other ideas into your father’s head you’ll have to follow his orders. On the date, I would have advised you to act in a way that will turn the man away from you totally but seeing as that one way or the other you’ll be married into that house, it’s not a good idea”

“I don’t know how mom but I will stall until Jordan gets back here, then I’ll tell father all about us” Ivy said and then turned to her mother “But why are you going against dad on his decision because for as long as I can remember you’ve always stood by whatever he had decided but-“

“But now I’m seeing history about to repeat itself and I’ll be a coward if I sit back and let it happen.”

“What do you mean by that?” Ivy asked

“What can I say dear? You see, I used to be a very shy woman when I was your age and just like you, I also had my father dictate every aspect of my life to me, I hated it a lot but I never tried to go against any of his decisions but then I met this man who was to speak bluntly, poverty stricken. He was employed as my driver and worked part time in our garden with our other gardener who was getting too old for the strenuous work of the garden. I loved spending time reading in the garden so it just happened that we became fast friends but I made sure to keep it a secret because if my mother had found out, she would have immediately fired him because she believed that every young guy was out to deflower me” Ivy chuckled

“Yeah she warns me against premarital s*x, it’s so embarrassing sometimes”

“I hear when she does, anyways, I grew attached to him and I began to understand that there was life, real life that didn’t consist of always worrying about following father’s orders or trying to look good in mom’s eyes and then slowly I fell in love with him but mom found out and of course chased him away, I couldn’t fight for the love we both shared because I was weak and always scared of my parents and I had this strong urge never to disappoint them, it was just how I was brought up. Shortly after my marriage with your dad was finalized and I was married off with no one to even ask if I was happy or not everyone just kept telling me how lucky I was that I was going to become the daughter-in-law of this family and so I resented your this marriage, the riches, the luxuries, your father and slowly I resented myself for not being able to fight for my happiness. I went on birth control pills so I wouldn’t have children immediately and it lasted for a year after which I got pregnant with your brother, at that time I didn’t have a cordial relationship with your father, we were more like housemates than a couple. I gave him all the control to make all the decisions concerning your brother’s life. But after I had you, my son didn’t even know who I was again, he was so attached to his father he barely knew I existed. Then I knew I had shot myself in the foot. I tried so hard to be involved in both your lives but your father found it all weird since he had always made all the decisions and I found it easier to accept than to give suggestions. So I was left helpless and then I decided to be a silent support to both my children. The extra sweets, extra money, I did all that during your childhood although you never found out neither did your father. I promised myself that whenever you two needed anything, I’ll always ensure that you got it either I had to do it silently or in the open. But you two just grew distant from me and your brother hardly even talks to me. But I always noticed everything going on in everyone’s lives which is how I knew that you are in a relationship and which is why I’m here to render my help because no matter how foolish everyone thinks I am, silently helping my children has always being my way of taking care of my family, the family I was foolish enough to ignore at first”

“Oh Mother, I don’t think you were or are foolish at all, you see its just you always seemed so into your own world it felt as though you never really saw us and father was always present in everything that occurred in our lives so I guess we just saw it as the norm.” Ivy was in tears now and her mother quickly wiped it off.

“Don’t cry, I didn’t tell you all that so you’ll cry, I just don’t want you make mistakes that will make you feel miserable in the future”

“Is that how you feel? Miserable?” Ivy asked

“At first yes, with your father, but having you and your brother took away all that and now I can say that I wouldn’t change my family for anything, I love you all including your father so very much that I can’t see any other future for myself and no its not settling, I am not settling”

“How do you know that it’s not settling?”

“Now baby, that’s a story for another day, and one day, I’ll explain all about my life’s choices to you but for now, we have to get you together with your love and with your father’s blessing going with you”

“How come you are not asking about Jordan? Aren’t you concerned about whom I love enough to defy dad?” Ivy asked her mother as she got to the door and her mother chuckled and turned to her

“Because baby, you’ll be surprised with just how much I know about everyone who is connected to my family, goodnight baby, sweet dreams” with that her mom smiled and left the room.

For some reason, those words felt familiar

Goodnight baby, sweet dreams.