Chapter 2

Claire’s POV

I went to my usual spot, a place far from home even at this hour of the night. I didn’t care; I needed some space from the toxic environment I was in. It took me an hour to drive to this place. It was a city view, a place where there weren’t a lot of people at this hour. I opened the back of my car and sat there quietly. I needed this after a long day.

The cold breeze touched my skin, and I looked around the place. There were a few couples having their date, and I was here alone, but I didn’t mind. I was craving the silence and peace I had at that moment. I needed this space from people.

It was already one in the morning when the couples around me started to leave. I opened a bottle of soda from my car to drink. I was lost in my thoughts.

Some people think that if they have money, they won’t have any problems, but that wasn’t true at all. When you have money, you have tons of problems. Why won’t problems just go away? They are always there.

Because of money, my family was a mess. My dad thought he could get anything with his money, and because of that, we were always stressed from business and family drama.

Because of money, Gina became a leech to our family. She’d been using her son to leech off Dad’s money, even though Cole was not a minor anymore. She felt so entitled. I think she believed she deserved a portion of the company just because Dad had a child with her. I would never let her have that, and I knew Caleb wouldn’t let that happen either.

While I was lost in my thoughts, a car suddenly parked beside mine. As soon as I saw the plate number, I knew exactly who it was.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Your mom called me. She couldn’t reach you. She mentioned what happened and thought you were probably upset about it, so I’m here. I knew exactly where you would be,” Arlo chuckled.

“Thanks for being here,” I smiled at him as he sat beside me.

“So? Aren’t you going home yet?” he asked, and I shook my head.

“I understand. This place is really cool. It’s really nice to be here. The cold breeze and the serenity make it almost perfect to clear someone’s mind,” he chuckled.

“I need this almost every day, Arlo,” I chuckled. “Being at the office with a lot of people can be really draining,” I added.

“So what exactly happened?” he asked curiously, and I told him everything.

“Really? That woman is really thick-skinned,” he scoffed.

“You can’t be wrong about that, Arlo,” I said. “Dad is really at fault for why this is happening to us. He’s stressed because of that woman too.”

Arlo and I continued talking about Gina and my family drama that just wouldn’t stop. Arlo had been my best friend since college. Some even thought he was my boyfriend, but we were just really good friends—no romantic feelings involved.

I was more relaxed with Arlo than with any of my other friends. I felt like I would always need him in my life. There were no dull moments with Arlo, and I loved every moment spent with him, especially times like this one where we just sat and had deep talks about adulting and life.

We were so engrossed in our conversation that we didn’t realize it was already three in the morning. We decided to head home and rest for the day. When I arrived at my apartment, it felt so lonely. Living alone could be overwhelming yet fulfilling sometimes. But I was already at the age where I didn’t need to be by my parents’ side all the time. I needed to practice being independent because I knew they wouldn’t always be there for me.

I took a quick shower and rested. I decided not to go to work today, hoping that Mom would understand.

I woke up at 11 in the morning to three missed calls. I looked to see who it was, and of course, it was Mom. I called her after seeing the missed calls.

“Hi, Mom,” I said.

“What time did you get home?” she asked, clearly not amused, judging by the tone of her voice.

“Four in the morning,” I said, and she sighed.

“Come to work immediately. Caleb and I are waiting for you,” she said.

I still didn’t want to get out of bed, but I had to. Caleb was waiting, and I was sure he’d be pissed if I kept him waiting too long.

As soon as I got ready, I drove to the office where Mom and Caleb were. I found them arguing with Dad. Could this day get any better? This family had been arguing almost every day.

I dropped my bag on the table to let them know I was there.

“Why didn’t you go to work? How irresponsible of you, Claire,” Caleb lashed at me.

“Can’t you say good morning first?” I rolled my eyes at him, even though deep inside I was afraid of him.

“Did you drink alcohol last night?” he asked me again.

“No! I don’t drink,” I said, and he glared at me.

“Why are you arguing?” I asked, furrowing my brows.

“I’m just telling Dad not to give Gina any money. She’ll get used to it. She may think she still has some sort of control over Dad,” Caleb explained.

“He’s right, Dad. Let Cole handle his mom,” I said.

Dad sighed. “I feel bad for Cole. He can’t save because his mom keeps taking all his money and spending it on luxuries,” he said.

“Luxuries she can’t afford without her son’s money. Anyway, it’s not your problem anymore. We have bigger issues in the company that need to be taken care of,” I said.

I looked at my dad, who seemed concerned about Cole. Gina was a controlling woman. If you couldn’t control her, she would end up controlling you.