Heartstrings In the Sun: Falling for the Billionaire

I burst through the front door, my suitcase hitting the porch floor with a thud. Georgia clay was caked under my fingernails, an unexpected souvenir.

“Hey guys, I’m back!” I shouted, imagining wide-eyed grins and big hugs. With graduation done and diploma in hand, I had pictured my return as a triumphant homecoming, joy filling the living room.

“What the heck is this?”

My jaw dropped as I turned the corner onto Granny’s porch. There, in the warm orange glow of the setting sun, sat Terrell and Irene, as close as two peas in a pod. Irene’s belly was stretched tight, her baby bump blooming like a sunflower under her sundress. A relative nearby looked shocked.

“Y-you’re pregnant out of wedlock—”

“Hold on, honey,” Grandpa drawled, his voice rich and warm. “No need for any fuss. Come sit here, and I’ll tell you the whole story, straight from the horse’s mouth.”

“Hold up, what the actual heck? Terrell? Why are you here? So, who got Irene pregnant, huh?” My jaw dropped. 

“Calm down, honey. We know you and Terrell are close, but Irene…”

“Whoa, whoa, what’s going on here?” I cut in, my voice shaky.

My laugh faded quickly. Something felt off about this whole afternoon, a bad feeling hanging in the air like smoke. It became clear the moment they started talking.

“Leslie, sweetheart,” Granny began, her voice filled with regret, “I know this isn’t easy to hear, but we’re at a crossroads. We have to marry Irene off to Terrell.”

“What?” I whipped my head around, eyes fixed on Granny’s weathered face. “Why on earth would you do that?”

“There isn’t any other way, honey,” Grandpa chimed in, his voice heavy with sorrow. “It has to be done.”

My gaze shifted to Irene, sitting on the edge of the sofa like a startled doe. 

Grandma stepped in, her hand resting protectively on Irene’s shoulder. “Leslie, honey, you’re young and healthy, with your whole life ahead of you. Surely you can find another men.”

The injustice of it all twisted my insides into knots. 

“And why is Irene always the damsel in distress? Why do I have to bend over backwards? Terrell and I have been together for five years! How could you?”

Granny’s eyes softened, her touch on Irene’s shoulder firm. “Honey, you know Irene has been on her own for ages. She needs a strong man by her side.”

My fists clenched, nails digging into my palms. 

“And I don’t?” I spat, the bitterness clear in my voice.

The air was thick with tension. Grandma sighed, tears glistening in her eyes. “This isn’t about favoritism, Leslie. It’s about survival. It’s about doing what has to be done, even if it breaks our hearts.”

I yelled, “Irene isn’t an orphan! She has family!”

Grandma's hand cracked across my face, snapping my head to the side. The sting spread like wildfire across my cheek.

“I never raised you to talk like that, Leslie!” Her voice trembled with a mixture of anger and shock.

I let out a bitter laugh, tasting copper. “Funny, I don't remember you raising me at all.”

“Leslie... that's enough,” Mom finally broke her silence, tugging at my arm. She'd been a statue until now, watching from the sidelines.

I whirled on her, shaking off her grip. “Why, Mom? Why are you always so quiet? Why can't you stand up for me, just once?” 

My words came out as a low growl, years of pent-up frustration bubbling to the surface.

“Enough, Leslie. You don’t need to act like this—”

"You always placed Irene above me. Are you content now? Are you satisfied seeing her act like this?" I ranted with even more emotion, my voice trembling as I tried to control myself.

“You've gone way too far!” Grandma exclaimed in anger.

“Way too far? Is that what you think? Then what about you? You both stole my money, claiming it was for Irene's useless education. You always treat me, and my mother, as if we were mere servants! Who's gone too far, tell me?!” I retorted, my anger barely contained.

"I know you have helped Irene, but listen! I never stole your money, Leslie! It was your own choice to finance her!" Grandma exclaimed in frustration.

With annoyance, I took out my cellphone, showing her a screenshot of a text from Aunt Mary, begging me to take a job in Georgia to help fund Irene's education.

"Who doesn't know how to say thank you? I've already gone this far, but instead of gratitude, you're stealing my fiance like this." I said, my anger increasing.

Irene looked down shamefully. "It's my fault. This whole mess is on me. Once the baby arrives, I'll leave."

But Grandma insisted, "No, Irene. You cannot leave Terrel."

"Why you gotta be so heartless, Grandma? Why do you always put me aside for someone who's not even family? Why do you treat us so unfairly?" Irene exclaimed, her voice full of emotion.

Grandma tried to interject, "Leslie, let's talk about this calmly and--"

With tears streaming down my face, I confronted Grandma, my voice trembling. "You're truly pathetic, Grandma! You're the most selfish person I've ever known! How cruel of you to do this all behind my back after my family, agreed to your requests? We've been struggling on our own, and you treat us like garbage like this?"

"Enough, Leslie! It's time for you to apologize to Irene!" Grandma interjected.

With a bitter smile, I retorted, "Apologize to someone who's wrong? Why should I?"

All the relatives who were attending the baby shower went silent, surprised by the turn of events. 

"Why should I apologize when I'm being honest, Grandma? Can you explain that to me?" I asked, my voice trembling with emotion.

I heard Terrell step in front of Irene, as if shielding her from me. 

"Leslie, stop!" My grandma snapped at me, her voice getting angrier. 

"If I were someone with a rotten heart, I'd be counting up all the money I've spent taking care of you. But nope, fate had other plans - pancreatic cancer came along, and now you've taken my boyfriend. Do you think you owe me anything for that?" I spoke up, my words laced with anger. "Shame on you, Irene!"

The room was filled with tension as we faced off against one another, the words exchanged adding salt to the wound. 

Grandma interjected, saying, "If you're just after money, Leslie, I can pay you back."

I retorted, "This isn’t about money, Grandma. I’m talking about how you’ve been cruel to me and my mother, treating us like outsiders despite our contributions. This is about the unfairness and injustice I've experienced."

As I faced the cold reality of my family's treatment, the chill of isolation crept in, even among the people who were supposed to be my support. 

I felt like the outsider, the shadow stepdaughter whose very presence dimmed Irene's radiant aura. Terrell, usually so carefree, met my gaze with a flicker of something unexpected in his usually sunny blue eyes - a storm cloud brewing within them.

"My bad. I get it now..." I murmured, my voice filled with resignation.

"I understand if you ignored my messages just for that hussy. You're a d*mn cheater!" 

I managed to slap Terrell, but he stood there like a statue, as I cried. 

"Enough, Leslie! Stop being such a drama queen!" 

I laughed bitterly, holding back my sobs, "Drama queen..."

Terrell spoke up, his voice firm. "Leslie, that's enough. Stop causing a scene at our event."

I felt a pang of disappointment as I realized that Terrell wasn't the one I thought he was. 

The truth hurt, and I couldn't help whispering, "You're just like every other jerk out there."

Terrell looked at me with sad eyes, and I could see the remorse in his expression. 

"I'm sorry, Leslie," he said softly.

I spoke softly, my voice betraying the depth of my pain. "I'm sorry for loving you as hard as I did. I regret ever having known you."

I turned on my heel and walked out, the door slamming behind me like a punctuation mark on the end of my sentence. I left Terrell standing there, looking foolish as he tried to find the words to explain himself.

"Leslie, wait," he called after me. "We need to have a talk, but not here."

I spun around, my eyes narrowing. 

"What possible excuse could you have for this?" I snapped, my voice full of anger and hurt. "You promised we were going to get married. But now I come home and find out you're already hitched to Irene?"

Terrell took a deep breath, looking earnest as he tried to explain. "Leslie, I know this looks bad, but I still love you. I have to marry Irene because—"

But I didn't let him finish. 

"Because what, Terrell? Because you suddenly realized she was the one after all these years?" I interrupted, my voice full of sarcasm.

“Leslie you gotta understand.” Terrel sighed. 

My anger and hurt boiled over as my mother tried to calm the situation. "Leslie, you need to take a deep breath and just talk about this calmly," she urged.

But I was beyond rational thinking at that moment. 

I snatched my hand away from hers, my voice trembling. "No, Mom. I can't do this right now. Not here, not where everyone's treating us like garbage!"

"Mom, we need to leave right now," I said urgently. But my grandmother's voice cut through the air, full of scorn.

"And where do you think you're going, Leslie? You'll never manage on your own. Don't forget that without me, you wouldn't have anything."

Her words stung, adding fuel to the fire of my anger. But I refused to let her have the last say.

"That's where you're wrong, Grandma," I shot back, my voice full of determination. "I can survive without your help, just as I always have."

She cackled in disbelief. "Oh, really? And what exactly do you plan to do? Become a waitress at some sleazy diner?"

"At least I won't be a manipulative crybaby like Irene, always playing the victim card just to get attention. I'll make it on my own, without any of your help." I gritted my teeth, hold back my boiling anger. 

Grandma cackled again, her voice filled with derision. "Oh, how arrogant you are, thinking you can just waltz out here without me."

But to my surprise, my mother spoke up, her voice firm. "That's enough, Mom. Leslie and I have taken more than our fair share of your belittling and unfair treatment."

My grandmother's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting my mother to defend me like this.

My mom stared at my grandmother, her voice firm. "You can belittle me all you want, but don't you dare belittle my daughter ever again. We've both had enough of your unfair treatment."

My grandmother opened her mouth to protest, but my mom held up her hand, cutting her off. "No, Mom. It's long past time for us to stand up for ourselves, and for each other."

My grandmother's anger boiled over, and she began cursing us. "You ungrateful brats! After all I've done for you, this is how you repay me? With defiance and disrespect?"

My mother bristled at her words, her voice cold. "You haven't done us any favors, Mom. You've treated us like a charity case, and now we're done with it."

As we walked away, I turned one last time to see my grandmother's face twisted in anger. I could feel her eyes piercing into us as we continued down the street.

Just as we rounded the corner, I glanced back and saw her standing on the porch, her fists clenched at her sides. For a moment, I felt a pang of sadness, wondering if we had done the right thing. But then my mother's hand reached out and squeezed mine, her voice soft.

"You know we had to do this, sweetie. We'll be okay."

Walking into the bar, my best friend Bianca McHugh took one look at me and immediately knew something was wrong. She put an arm around me and led me to a quiet corner table.

"I can't believe Terrell could cheat on you," she shook her head. "And with Irene, of all people... Your stepcousin, are you serious?"

I shrugged, feeling the weight of disappointment and betrayal on my shoulders. "I never expected it either, Bianca. Terrell and I had been together for so long, I thought I knew him better than that. And Irene... well, I always knew she was the manipulative type, but I never thought she'd stoop this low."

Bianca gave me a sympathetic smile and patted my hand. 

"Come on, let's have some drinks," she said. "It'll help take the edge off."

We both ordered a couple of drinks, the alcohol helping to numb the pain and shock a bit as we sat there talking.

Bianca eyed the tequila skeptically. "Are you sure you w