Brief recap: An ex-sub of C's waves a gun at A, who manages to distract her until help arrives. Then C decides to 'finally' explain his side of things, and ends up proposing. A, stressed out from a) being held at gunpoint; b) C's revelations; and c) the unexpected proposal, goes off to bed to 'decompress' and think about all that's transpired.
Ch 15:
I believe I ended last week's post with 'please-don't-let-there-be-a-sex-scene-in-Ch-15' but she wakes up; C is 'wrapped around her like a vine'. She gets out of bed and is contemplating everything when C cries out, ala nightmare. She wakes him up and-you guessed it- they have sex. I skipped over it.
Then in the morning, she oversleeps. Finds her boss in a very grumpy mood, and 'forgets' C's warning not to email him from her office PC. After picking up her boss's lunch, she heads out, but instead of eating, spends time thinking about C....and is late getting back to the office. What IS it with this girl and 'forgetting' to eat and losing track of time? Even when I was having boyfriend issues while on my 1st job out of college, I never let it interfere with my work! (Just had too many sick days, but hey....that's MY story not hers....)
Later in the day, she and C again have another e-mail exchange, interrupted by his 'shouty caps' to her to use her blackberry, not the office pc! End of the work day; A 'remembers' she's not eaten all day-does her stomach never 'remind' her? If I go all day w/o food, I'm so hungry I could eat nearly anything in front of me-and goes to the break room. Her boss traps her in there for a little 'chat'.
Ch 16:
O. M. G. Boss 'comes on' to her; tries to blackmail her about her emails to C, but reveals their IT guy can't find the ones C's sent her. He demands to know if she's a spy or what C's intentions/interest in the company are. A remembers her self-defense classes and effectively gets away from him just as C and Co arrive outside. C goes in to confront/fire the boss, then reads A the riot act about WHY she was supposed to use her PHONE to email him, not the OFFICE PC! She's still 'bewildered' by his anger. Does she not understand simple instructions? It baffles me how the Non-Disclosure Agreement sticks with her, but not a 'please use your Blackberry to email me' request does not. Was she dropped on her head as a child?
Crisis averted, he goes off to do some work. She thinks he's acting childish when he says he's not talking to her at the moment. Can she not see he's ANGRY and needs a 'time out'? So she wanders through the house and discovers the 'red room of pain' is unlocked. So she goes inside and explores. He catches her, but instead of being angry, explains some of the 'toys' when she has questions. And yes, they have sex again....
I did have one 'YES!' moment in this chapter. On page 376, she remembers a phone call from photographer J and 'informs' C about where he will be staying; if at her place, then she'll go see him. Or, if it's okay J spends the night as C's guest, then they will both see him. She's not asking permission; she'd Informing C of her plans to see J. C's not happy, but agrees to let J spend the night under his roof.
********
Present Day:
I didn't read yesterday; I spent it with my darling granddaughter and doing laundry. Then 'remembered' I can watch DVD's on my computer, so popped in the 1st season of Mary Tyler Moore. Don't laugh; I was too young to remember the first few seasons, so my father got them for me as a birthday gift. I own Seasons #1, 2, and 6, so have many hours of catching up. I may even own #3 and 4; I'll have to double-check.
Warning: Rant is about to follow. If you have no desire to read family drama, exit this post. Or if you keep reading, I'd appreciate any ideas of how to proceed.
Update on the Daughter:
Unfortunately, after a 12-hour phone call/text session with Her Idiot, she caved and took him back.
"He broke up with X to go back with me."
Does she not see this was just a ploy on his part to guilt her back into being with him again? I've told her I've been there and know EXACTLY what he's doing, but ooooooohhhh nooooooo....I know nothing. If he stays true to form, what will follow will be 2 weeks of 'lovey-dovey' behavior, followed by a week of slowly critical getting-on-each-other's-nerves, and then a blowup.
I'm seriously thinking about calling CPS and warning them about a 'dangerous person' being around my grandchild.
I even asked her, 'So destroying your apartment wasn't the last straw; what will it take? For him to hurt her? Or their daughter?
And when I saw her FB status after returning from our family Christmas, I was both hurt and angry. How did this lovable little girl get so hateful? Where the hell did I go wrong as a mother? I can trace some of her anger back to '06, when I had to uproot her and move her to a new town and new school. But maybe I should have taken the neighbor's offer to keep her with them that year. But the spouse was having none of it, so she came down here, gave up her saxaphone, and began dyeing her hair black.
I'm just going pray about it, and see what today brings. If it's too alarming, then yes, I'll contact CPS. And hopefully my oldest won't give into HIS anger and go after Idiot #2 with a ball bat. I don't need a child (or spouse!) in prison for murder.
10 comments:
Molly, kids are both heaven and hell. The best of luck to you. Love your comments on the sequel. You've kept me from wasting money on it, not that I was really tempted.
You are braver than I am reading the sequel.
I'm sorry about the problems with your daughter, either she'll wake up and see the jerk for what he is or she won't. Unfortunately the more you try to interfere the tighter she will cling to that lout. Let her know that the door is always open and you'll take her back at a moments notice. That way she'll always have an exit strategy.
Janice~
Molly, sometimes people become addicted to the abusive relationships. I've watched my Mama go from one bad marriage, to a worse relationship, to a disastrous second marriage.
I'll pray for your daughter and granddaughter to stay safe. Until she faces the fact he's a creep and she deserves better, that's all we can do.
Years ago, Mama called CPS on sister's hubby. Sis found out {through step mom} that it was Mama who called and all hell broke loose!
She refused to speak to Mama for over a year, even hated Mama her.
In the end sis and her hubby and kids moved all the way across the USA to get away from Mama because of it.
It's been seven years, and 2 kids since then. She's finally back on good terms with Mama, but also still married to the man Mama called CPS about.
@Jean: Thanks you for coming back week after week!
@Janice: That's exactly what I've been trying to get through my husband's thick skull. His solution would be to tie her up and lock her in a safe room while he beats the b/f to a bloody pulp. And now blames me for using my counseling skills on her. He forgets, I've Been There, and know EXACTLY what's in her head. But noooo....since I went to college and he didn't, then that automatically means no one listens to his 'school of hard knock wisdom' (wrong attitude) and my BSW degree 'ruined' her. Yes, as if years of research in dealing with teens have been totally wrong for the last 50 years....did the man not remember Romeo and Juliet? Geez....
@Kitty: Thank you Kitty! At this point, prayer is all we have left. I did plant some 'seeds' in her brain this afternoon; when she tells me to 'Quit talking and go take your shower, MOM!', that means she's tired of hearing 'truth' and it's time for me to leave her alone and let the seeds take root. Maybe sometime this week she'll see I'm not that stupid after all?
You can't blame yourself on where she is. Everyone makes choices. At some point, people have to own that the choices they have made are their own, so the life they have is the life they chose. They can't blame Mom or Dad anymore. Who's to say that leaving her behind would have been any better?
I don't know what you've tried on her, so it's hard for me to give you advice. (Not that I'm an expert.) I'm just going to ask a few questions:
1. Have you tried future pacing her? You know, ask her where she wants to be in 6 months, a year, 5 years? Or how she sees her life and her daughter's life in 6 months, a year, five years if she stays with him? Is it where she wants to be? Let her think about it and answer.
2. She gets something from being with him. What is it? Only she can answer that. He's fulfilling some need she has.
There are numerous things to do, but ultimately, she has to want to change for it to stick, and that's scary, especially for a loved one watching it.
Hang in there!
Thanks Marci:) I'll try that.
I know what she's 'getting' from him...S-E-X. She's stated she doesn't want to live by herself; I keep pointing out Alex is also there...but her self-esteem is so low at the moment. Where did my confident daughter go, the one who didn't back down from confrontation?
But she's getting more than just sex from him, Molly. She's getting connection/love/something through the sex. He's derided her enough that she believes him. You have to help her change her inner dialogue. That's what's keeping her there, along with all of these other things.
And hang in there! This is tough. I've watched family/friends self-destruct, and it's frustrating, scary, and upsetting.
Thanks for your reviews of this story. Like you, I can't imagine forgetting to eat. I've never forgotten a meal in my life.
So sorry about your daughter. I don't know what advice to give except to pray and to let her know you'll always be there for her. I know it breaks your heart to see her doing this to herself.
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