8. Chloe

CHAPTER 8

CHLOE

T he second I get home, I fall into my mother’s arms.

She pulls me in tight and kisses my forehead, holding me without a word.

“Mom, I’ve done something stupid,” I say, my voice shaking with the sobs I want to let out.

“What’s the matter, baby?” she says, stroking my head. “We can fix it, whatever it is. You and me, together, like always.”

I squeeze her, breathing deeply. Already, I’m starting to feel calmer.

It might not be ideal to be living with my mother in my twenties, but renting in New York City is beyond expensive, and me and Mom have always gotten along well. We don’t agree on everything, obviously, and sometimes she’s so annoying I want to scream, but she’s always there for me.

I know she always will be.

“Oh, God,” I say, releasing Mom from the embrace so I can cover my face with my hands. Already this morning is starting to feel like a dream, and last night even more.

Mom looks at me expectantly, and I blurt it out. “I think I might just have agreed to get married to someone to get him a green card.”

I don’t know why I’m expecting to get told off for it — I’m an adult making my own choices, after all. But this feels like a teenage kind of stupid mistake to make. I squeeze my eyes shut and wait for the lecture to begin.

Instead, there’s silence. I crack open my eyes. Mom has covered her mouth with her hand, trying not to laugh. “You’ve done what?”

She guides me to the sofa, placing a hand on my shoulder. We sit down with a flop and she looks at me firmly. “Tell me what happened. Everything. I won’t be upset.”

I take a shaky breath, a tear running down my cheek. “I met this guy last night,” I start, and Mom raises an eyebrow but says nothing. “He was cute. I thought it might be a bit of fun.”

“And was it?”

“Mom!” I scoff, not particularly wanting to discuss my sex life with her. Still, unbidden, the memory of Paul’s body against mine flows through my mind, making me shiver. “Yes. But that’s not the point. This morning, I was getting ready to go, and he told me he had been looking for a green card.”

“So he’s not from the US?”

“No,” I clench my fists at my sides. This isn’t going to be an easy conversation in so many ways. “He’s from Bellamare.”

Mom takes a sudden, sharp breath, recoiling like she’s been slapped. “Bellamare?” she whispers.

I nod. “Yeah. Like Dad.”

“They’re handsome, aren’t they?” Mom jokes weakly, and I look away to try and hide my blush, which is probably answer enough.

All my life, I’ve watched my mother doing her best to raise me, and as I’ve grown older, I’ve just got more grateful for everything. I can’t begin to imagine how hard it is to be left alone as a single parent, while grieving for a partner you had loved and lost.

And Mom did love Dad. I don’t remember him that well, but Mom always talks about him with the kind of affection you dream of someone feeling for you. It was sudden, when he passed away. That’s something Mom doesn’t like to talk about, and I try not to bring it up.

That much I do get.

“And this is why this man wants to marry you, I suppose? Because you’re both Bellamari?”

“It’s just a weird coincidence,” I shrug. “He’s already from Bellamare; it’s not like he’s going to get anything out of marrying me for that. He told me he’s a businessman, and that he needs a green card for work.”

“Doesn’t that sound kind of strange to you, honey? Can’t he get a work visa?”

I slouch back into the sofa. “I don’t know. And I’m not stupid, Mom — I did question that already. It sounds like they’re giving him trouble with it, that’s all.”

Mom takes my hand and covers it with both of hers. “Chloe, you know I support you doing anything you want.”

“I know, Mom.”

“But marriage? Even if it’s not for the ceremony, even if you had fun last night… I just don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all. I don’t want you to get trapped in a situation you can’t get out of.”

I lean forward to rest my head on Mom’s shoulder. “I know. But he really did seem like a reasonable guy, and I can always divorce him later on, once his job works out.”

Mom frowns. “Reasonable, maybe. Desperate, absolutely.”

I scoff at that. “I’m sure he was desperate, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t trust him. What kind of person sleeps with someone just to manipulate them into marriage?”

There’s a long pause while Mom thinks, and I know that she’s thinking , Honey, you’re being na?ve. There are a lot of people out there who would do that kind of thing , but I don’t care. I’ve chosen this now.

And I can always back out. It’s not like he’s forcing me into anything. It’s not like he held me under threat and forced me to sign my name. He asked. And sure, he offered me money, but nobody trying to trick someone into doing what they want looks at you like you’re their world.

Do they?

“Plus,” I say, trying to drop the news casually. “He’s offered me a lot of money.”

Mom’s face falls. “How much? Chloe, what are we getting involved in here?”

“A hundred thousand dollars,” I say quietly. “We could do so much with that, Mom. All I have to do is marry this guy. It’s only temporary. And anyway, I did like him. He seemed great.”

“A hundred thousand dollars!”

“Honestly, Mom, you didn’t raise me stupid. I know what I’m doing.”

I’ve jumped on the defensive now, but I can’t explain to her why this feels like the right thing to do. I can barely explain it to myself.

I just know that this isn’t the mistake it looks like.

Mom squeezes my hands again, her concern written all over her face, barely concealed, like the dark circles of stress underneath her eyes. This is why I have to do this. I’ve been given the chance to change her life. I have to take it.

“Promise me you’ll be careful. Don’t do anything without letting me know, okay?”

“Okay, I promise.”

But even as I can see the doubt in her eyes, I grow more and more certain. It’s weird, but this is going to be for the better. I don’t know why, but I know it. Somewhere deep inside, I know that this is right.