Just Between Us

Chapter 12

Stefani's POV

"Could you be anymore- god why are you so difficult?!" My dad roared this morning.

"Ugh, you yell too much. I'm pretty sure any decent fiancé wouldn't want their soon to be wife to be cut short of her beauty sleep. Don't you think it's big enough of a burden she has me to be alone with all day?" my voice was calm and collective as my dad throws a tantrum I'd only imagine Lillian having for me being a pain.

My dad growls at my remark and mumbles lowly to himself.

Yeah yeah yeah whatever. I don't care- truly.

"You said you'd cooperate this time," he packs up his suit case with a rushed grunt.

"Remind me when I said that," I scoffed a laugh and he groaned in annoyance.

"I mean- dad. Come on... I'll take Lillian seriously when you take her seriously," I leaned against the kitchen counter with a smug look.

"Stefani, for the last time, the ring on that woman's finger is gonna have a wedding band around it in four months just you wait. That woman is the woman I love," he points his finger at me in a warning manner.

"You can't possibly mean that, especially with the assistant I ran into a few months ago- who May I also remind you was next in line as potential step mom candidates, but you kept her in the reserves. I bet she's the reason why you come home late- admit it, she's kinda cute," I teased and he becomes more angry.

His voice was the only one that was loud in the pent house until he stepped towards me.

"What the hell are you talking about?" He growled.

"Well, you can't seem to help me remember being cooperative. I'll help you remember that you didn't get the ring. You specifically sent a picture of Lillian to my phone one day out the blue. You told me she was a former nurse blah blah blahhhh and I pretty much went to a jeweler, described the kind of woman Lillian was and we made a custom ring that is solely for her," I shoved my dad off of me and I turned away from him with my arms crossed.

He doesn't love her. I made the ring because he went and used the money that was suppose to cover the expenses for the ring he had originally picked on a five thousand dollar in season lingerie from Dior in fucking France with his assistant. I took one for the team and Lillian is cluelessly walking around in a damn near 2.5million dollar custom made engagement ring thinking my dad "picked" it out and that she's actually going to marry him. I'm still paying it off.. I'll be done around Christmas... this is June.

I let out a stiff groan.

I'm never investing into a relationship.

With a heavy sigh, he reaches for me but I turned from him and he inhaled sharply from frustration.

"You didn't pick the ring. A ring like that isn't something to be picked. That is a rose gold and 24karat blend to make a braided band of 0.25ct in between the loops and a 1.75 pear cut diamond in the center. Her wedding band is a custom made matching band that cups the back of the pear cut diamond with embroidered diamonds as an outline. That ring is custom made- not by you, by me," I snapped but kept my voice low.

"Where are you going with this?" My dad gets lost and I won't lie... I'm lost too in a sense.

"Don't act like you love her. You and I both know you're panty sniffing another woman," I snarled.

"Are you- Stefani, give me chance Jesus," he explains.

"You're asking me for too much. One day you're asking me to give a woman I hardly know a chance to be my mom and you've yet to give her a chance your own damn self to let her be your wife, and now you want me to give you a chance to give her chance?" I tilted my head to the side trying to understand what my dad is saying.