Five months ago…

"Will you miss me?" Charlie asked as he rested both of his hands on my shoulders. 

I tilted my chin to meet his eyes. "Of course," I said, pouting my lips. "My fiance will be away for three months. I'm sure as hell going to miss him badly."

Charlie was my boyfriend, who became my fiancé a week ago. We met each other three months ago in the New York public library. 

I couldn't forget the first time we met. I was in the adult section of the library when he approached me and asked for directions. And because I got mesmerized by his face, I accidentally gave him the wrong direction. 

A playful smile appeared on his lips. "Would you come with me, then?" 

I pouted as I played with his hair. "You know I have work, right?" I was working as a children's librarian at the New York Public Library, where we met. 

"Yeah." He chuckled, making his eyes turn into slits. "I'm just trying my luck."

Charlie was half-American, half-Korean. He was so good looking with his mixed Asian and western features.

"Come on, just give your fiancé a kiss."

Fiancé. I repeated the word in my head. Damn. Until now, I still couldn't believe that this handsome man in front of me was going to marry me soon. 

Last week, Charlie proposed to me. We were having our late-night walk in Central Park when he suddenly knelt in front of me and pulled out a ring.

Of course, I said yes to him. Who wouldn't? In the three months that I've known him, I was already sure that he's the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. 

Charlie is everything I had asked for. Aside from his charming looks, he's smart, sensible, and kind. On top of that, he's also a good cook. He's like a lead character cut straight from the romance novels that I used to read. 

I'd had my fair share of boyfriends over the past years. But this was the first time I had felt this deep connection with someone. 

I bit my lower lip as I stared at his handsome face. "We've already kissed back at the apartment."

We were at JFK Airport. He has a flight scheduled an hour from now. 

Charlie was a travel photographer. He works with BBC, National Geographic, and other travel magazines. He's used to traveling the world for his work. This time, he'd be gone to India for two months. 

He licked his lower lip. "You know, I'd never get tired of your lips."

Before I could react, he had already lowered his head and claimed my lips in a passionate kiss. 

I wrapped my arms around his nape and kissed him back. 

"I love you," I said, breathless after he let go of me. I bit my lip when I saw the dark glint in his eyes. Those chocolate brown eyes of his were my favorite. I would never get tired of staring at them.

"I love you..." He kissed the tip of my nose. "When I come back, I'll talk to your father. Then I'll bring you to LA to meet my parents."

From my shoulder, his left hand moved to mine. He took my hand and caressed my fingers. 

I smiled when my eyes zeroed in on the diamond engagement ring he gave me. 

"Looking forward to that, Charlie."

We shared another passionate kiss before he entered the departure area of JFK Airport. 

"Oh my God! He has already proposed to you?" I almost winced when Helen's voice filled my car. 

Helen was my closest friend. We were classmates at NYU. She moved to Texas when she got married three years ago. Her husband was a Texas rancher. 

"Well, yeah." I answered, smiling as I glanced at my left hand on the steering wheel. 

It had been an hour since I drove Charlie to the airport. I was now on my way to Cleaveland to visit my father. After my mother died two years ago, it was only my father who was left alone in our house in Cleveland. 

Yesterday, he called me, and demanded that I visit him. I hadn't been able to visit him for the past two months. So, after leaving the airport, I decided to travel to my hometown. I was excited to tell my father the news that his daughter is now engaged.

I heard Helen gasp from the other line. "I did a search on him on the internet. He's a famous photographer for the BBC. And damn! He's successful and drop-dead gorgeous."

I lightly shook my head. I just told her Charlie's name, and it seemed like she already knew everything about him. Well... what could I expect. That's typical Helen. She loves digging up people. 

I remembered before, she was the source of celebrity gossip at the university. 

I pursed my lips. "I already know that, Helen."

"Did you already know that he's the adopted son of the famous billionaire, Bianca?" she asked. 

My brows shot up a bit. I didn't know that about him. All I knew was that he's adopted and his family resides in LA. He only told me his mother was a philanthropist and that his father and only brother were both businessmen. 

One of the things I like about him is his being down to earth. A smile curled in my lips when I remembered how we ate Chinese takeout on my apartment's rooftop on our first date. 

"He's the adoptive son of Amelia and business tycoon Darwin Henry. Oh my God, Bianca. Your fiancée is freaking rich!"

During our three months of being together, Charlie only mentioned his family a few times. He said his adoptive parents were both nice, especially his mother. He promised he would introduce me to them after he was back from India. But he didn't mention anything about his brother. 

"It didn't matter if he's from a rich family, Helen. I fell in love with him because he's Charlie. Not because he's famous or he's successful."

"Well, you're right," she agreed. "His looks are more than enough for me."

I just shook my head and stifled a laugh. After five hours of driving, I arrived at my hometown. 

"When did you come back, Bianca?" A familiar old woman greeted me when I stopped over at my father's favorite diner here in Cleveland. 

"Just today." I smiled as I looked at the menu. "I want the usual." I said, talking about the meal my father likes to order here. 

"How's your father, Bianca? I haven't seen him for three weeks now."

My forehead creased. "He hasn't come here in the past days?" 

"No. I thought he's sick or something."

This time, my lips parted in confusion and worry. Was Dad sick? But he didn't sound sick on the phone earlier. 

"Thanks, Frances." As soon as I got my order, I went back to my car. 

I drove down the familiar road until I reached our family's two-story house sitting in the suburb where I grew up. 

I was the only child of my parents. When my mother died, I convinced Dad to come and live with me in New York, but he refused. He said he didn't want to leave our town. 

The moment I parked my car in front of the house, I already knew something was off. There was a lot of unwanted grass on the lawn. It had never happened before. My mother's favorite part of this house was the lawn. One of the reasons Dad never wanted to go with me was because he said he could never leave this house.

"Dad!" I called as I entered the door. My lips parted when I saw the empty bottles of beer on the carpeted floor. This was a familiar scene to me. 

When Mom died, Dad went into depression. But he was able to move past it. After a month, he got back to his old self. 

"Dad!" I worriedly went to my father, who was sitting on the sofa. His eyes were closed. He looked asleep. I noticed the visible wrinkles on his face. He seemed like he had aged dramatically since the last time I saw him. 

His stubble was an inch longer than how he usually keeps it. His white t-shirt was stained with grease. 

He looked like he hadn't been taking care of himself. What happened while I was away? 

Did Dad fall into depression again? But he sounded fine every time we talked on the phone. 

"Wake up, Dad." I tapped his arm. "I'm here."

"Bianca... you're here." A smile escaped his lips when he saw me. "How's your trip? Do you want something to eat?" He stood up from the couch. "I have bolognese in the kitchen. It's still your favorite, right?" 

"Dad, what's wrong?" I said, ignoring him. "You look like a mess." I put down the take out bag on the center table. 

He looked away. "I'm sorry, Bianca. I've been so busy these past days."

My forehead creased. "Busy with what? Dad, I stopped by at Cherry's diner. She told me she hasn't seen you for three weeks now. And the lawn." I pointed at the lawn outside. "It looks like it hasn't been cleaned for weeks. And this mess!" My eyes went to the empty bottles of beer on the floor. 

"Are you having a problem, Dad? Why did you ask to see me?" 

"Nothing's wrong, Bianca." He gave me a faint smile. "I just feel alone here and I wanted to see you."

My frown deepened. "Dad, you know you can't lie to me, right? So tell me, what's wrong?" 

Dad sat back on the sofa. He lowered his head and covered his face with his hands. 

"Dad..." I sat next to him. "What's the problem?" 

He slowly looked at me. My lips parted when I saw the tears in the corner of his wrinkled eyes. 

"I'm sorry, Bianca. I… made a huge mistake. I shouldn't have trusted that man."

"Huh? What are you talking about, Dad?" I asked, confused. "What man?" 

"I'm... going to jail, Bianca."

My lips parted. "W-what…" I held him in the arm. "W-what did you mean, Dad? What do you mean you're going to jail? What did you do?" 

He shook his head and evaded my eyes. "I'm in a huge debt, Bianca."

"Dad, I don't understand." I frustratedly and worriedly ran my fingers through my hair. "W-what do you mean?" 

"Gideon Henry. I owe him two million dollars. And now, he's threatening to send me to jail if I don't pay his money back within a month."