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I could see the disgust on my mother’s face and it killed me that my own family. could do this to me. Emerson stood his ground. He didn’t flinch, didn’t back down. Instead, he calmly faced her, never losing his composure.
“Kristen, listen to me. I respect you, I would hate for us to be at odds. After all, you’re going to be my mother–in–law,” Emerson said, his voice respectful, although I could hear the mocking in his tone.
My mother’s face turned into pure disgust and anger the moment those words left Emerson’s mouth. She recoiled as if the very idea repulsed her.
“Never, never! You will never be my son–in–law!”
“Well,” Emerson responded calmly, “I just asked your daughter to be my wife, and she said yes.”
“Emerson,” she spat his name as though it burned her tongue, “what kind of joke is this? You’re older than me! How can you even think of becoming my son–in–law? Don’t the two of you have any shame? Don’t you feel any embarrassment? The humiliation!….” She pointed an accusatory finger at us, her voice rising with every word. “Can’t you see how you’re going to embarrass all of us, your families, with this… this ‘thing‘ the two of you are trying to do?”
Emerson smiled, meeting her gaze calmly.
“Well, I don’t know about you, Kristen, but I’ve chosen to listen to my heart. I am choosing to be happy, and the person who makes me happy just happens to be your daughter, Mina.” He took my hand, pressing a gentle kiss to the back of it.
I couldn’t help but smile. The warmth of his gesture made my heart flutter, but it also hurt deeply that my mother was making this scene in front of everyone.
I watched her, close and open her mouth in disbelief, struggling to find her next
words.
Then Emerson pressed her further. “Come on, Kristen. Why don’t you really want the two of us to be together? Why don’t you tell us the ‘real‘ reason you’re so against Mina and me?”
A brief flash of something I couldn’t understand quickly crossed my mother’s face before she settled into a cold, hard stare. The crowd around us waited, just as curious about her answer.
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Her lips tightened, eyes narrowing.
“The real reason?” she repeated, her voice a dangerous whisper. Then she straightened her shoulders, and her eyes turned towards me.
“The real reason is because I know you, Mina. You can’t be happy. You destroy everything you touch, and now you’re trying to ruin this family too. Just look what you managed to do here…”
Her words were like venom, sinking into my skin, but Emerson gripped my hand tighter, grounding me. Making sure I felt him and had his support.
“You were never good enough,” she continued, her voice dripping with judgment. Not for Eric, and certainly not for this family. And now, here you are, chasing after an old man for money or revenge or God knows what. You always wanted centre of attention, didn’t you, Mina? Always had to take what wasn’t
to be the
yours.
11
I felt my chest tighten, but before I could find the words to respond, Emerson stepped in.
“Kristen, that’s enough. Mina is a kind, strong, and capable woman, and you’ve done nothing but tear her down her whole life. You don’t have to agree with us, but you will respect her.”
Kristen glared at him, and then at me, her mouth pressed into a tight line. Respect?” she sneered. “She’s lost all the respect she could have ever had from me.”
“Fine. I don’t care if you do not respect her, Emerson said, eyes hard. “But you are not‘ going to insult her any further. You’re not going to speak ill of her ever again. Unless….” he paused, a warning edge creeping into his tone, “you want me to tell her why you really don’t want the two of us together.”
I could feel the shift in my mother instantly. Her body tensed, and she shot Emerson a sharp, angry look. For a second, I thought she might explode, but then she took a deep breath, composing herself. Her face became a mask of cold detachment.
“I suppose acting like she doesn’t exist won’t be a problem,” she finally said, her words clipped. She straightened her dress, trying to regain her composure before adding, “I want you out of this place. This is my‘ daughter’s wedding. You’re destroying it. I don’t want to see you. Your sister doesn’t want to see you. Your ex- husband doesn’t want to see you here. ‘Nobody‘ wants you here. Please leave. You’ve already caused enough trouble.”
Her words stung, even though I had expected something like this. I took a deep
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breath, thinking it might be best to turn around and leave. After all, I had done what I came to do and was more than successful.
But just as I was about to take a step, Emerson’s hand gently rested on my shoulder, stopping me.
“She’s not leaving,” Emerson said quietly but with an authority that silenced. everything around us.
“What?” My mother’s voice faltered, her eyes wide with disbelief.
“I said,” Emerson repeated, “she’s not leaving. I am the groom’s father. I am the groom’s boss. And, by the way, L.paid for this wedding.”
His words came out sharp as a blade, and the stunned expression on my mother’s face was priceless. “I’m not leaving.”
Her eyes narrowed, and I could see her mind racing, trying to figure out how to regain control of the situation.
“I didn’t tell ‘you” to leave,” she snapped, quickly redirecting her attention to me. “I want that little husk…”
But before she could finish her insult, Emerson cut her off, his voice booming, “Stop it right there before you cause yourself more trouble than you already have.”
The room fell silent. Everyone had stopped pretending not to listen to our conversation, openly gawking, waiting to see what would happen next.
My mother’s face flushed with rage
“Okay, I want her out of this place,” she muttered, trying to regain control. “Nobody told you to leave. You can stay. But Mina…” She gestured toward me with a
dismissive wave, her face twisted in disgust. “Mina is my daughter, yes, but she is not welcome here. I want her out.”
“She is welcome,” Emerson said firmly, his hand still on mine. “Mina is my fiancée and my future wife, and she is not going anywhere. If you feel so uncomfortable, maybe you should be the one to leave.”
My mother stayed silent, clearly searching for the right words to argue back, but she found none. Her power in this situation was slipping, and we both knew it. For the first time in my life, I saw her at a loss.
“Like I said,” Emerson added calmly, tightening his grip on my hand as he guided me away, “Mina isn’t leaving.”
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We walked past her, and as we did, I heard her whisper under her breath, “This isn’t over yet.”
I smiled tightly, sweetly, not willing to give her the satisfaction of knowing how much her words still hurt me. With my head held high, I walked away, hand in hand with Emerson, knowing that for once, I wasn’t going to let her or anyone decide my life for me anymore.
