She's No Beauty Queen

"You got Angelina pregnant," the manager said smugly. "She can't keep the child because it would ruin her career but to compensate for the trauma of having to abort it you need to sponsor her. If not, we'll sue. Your choice. We can discuss our options if you like."

Silence permeated the room for a moment before Eddie spoke up furiously. "Get out."

Angelina finally looked up because she wasn't sure which one of them he was referring at first. His expression was downright deadly as he continued.

"Don't you dare act like you care about her when you did this in the first place. We will discuss this but not with you present. Leave before I call the cops to escort you off my property."

Hang on…why was he acting like he was a victim too? And the manager looked thoroughly abashed. Had Eddie not been involved in this? Had it really been entirely the manager's scheme to blackmail him all along?

She watched him go back outside with her heart in a state of confusion. If Eddie wasn't a part of this then how had it happened? Did the manager drug him too and toss the two of them together? She couldn't remember anything from that night.

"You…weren't in league with him?" Angelina asked softly.

He shook his head vehemently. "Of course not! I hate creeps like him the most. I would never comply with taking advantage of someone on purpose after what I've been through. I get why you would think that though…I'm so sorry Angel.

What an offer! Not even done with high school and being proposed to by the wealthiest man in Monterey. Her manager would be thrilled.

But this wasn't what she wanted! She had wanted to quit the pageants and go to medical school but on her own terms. If she kept the child and married him she would be chained down for the rest of her life. She would never truly be free.

Was it simply her destiny to always be used? To never make any decisions for herself? To have the worst possible options presented to her and be forced to go with the flow every single time?

On top of that…not getting to compete at the adult level meant that losing her childhood had been for absolutely nothing. She would have come this far only to drop out and be forced to become a wife and mother. Always forced to do things she didn't want by someone else.

Angelina looked at him tiredly. "Then what, Eddie? Everything my mother put me through was for nothing? I've come this far to lose my chance right before I make it to the big league? Married women or women with children can't compete."

Eddie replied both quickly and earnestly. "Then we'll wait! My offer doesn't have to happen now. The next major pageant you need to compete in shouldn't be until after the baby is born anyway, right?

"I'll sponsor you. You can take that time to prepare in any way you need to. I'll swear everyone involved in the birthing process to secrecy and we won't get married until after you make it to the Miss Americana pageant, win or lose.

"I'll make sure our baby wants for nothing and support your dream of being a doctor no matter what. Just don't do this. I don't have anybody in this world except for the two of you so please don't take that away from me."

Don't take that away from him? What about all the things that had been taken away from her?

Angelina was forced to weigh her options. She could end up back in the control of that sick psychopath waiting for her outside who would continue to manipulate her by holding her mother's money over her head or she could be stuck with someone she didn't love who would support her at least somewhat in her dreams in exchange for doing what he wanted.

In the end she chose the lesser of two evils but she wasn't happy about it. At all.

Eddie sprang into action immediately, taking her to get all of her things from the house and moving her into his house. He was the only person that attended her high school graduation on her behalf and was sure to take pictures of her with her diploma since no one else would.

He let her decorate a huge room with a luxuriously soft bed any way she wanted, had his housekeeper prepare all of her favorite foods, and took care of hiring a midwife and private doctor who were both sworn to secrecy. He took very good care of her during the difficult stages of her pregnancy but that didn't make a difference since he was the one who got her into this situation in the first place.

Angelina had never been so depressed. Part of it was that she was so sick but she also felt that she had lost all control over her future and had no way out.

She was about to attempt suicide one day when she thought she couldn't take it anymore but Eddie stopped her by knocking the knife out of her hands. He put her in a private psychiatric hospital for a week and her therapist there helped her realize that suicide wasn't a good idea at least.

She was still depressed but didn't try anything like that again after getting out and had therapy sessions at home three times a week because she was too sick to get out of bed most of the time. Her therapist encouraged her to focus on her goals to keep moving forward.