"It's our fault, really. Your father and I just didn't have enough. Between the $150,000 for the house, the $27,000 bride price, and the $30,000 wedding banquet, we're tapped out.
Maya needs a place of her own. You're her sister-in-law. Surely you can help a little!"
So marrying into this family had somehow turned them into charity cases?
I'd put up $75,000 of that house money myself, and I was the one living with them, not the other way around.
The $27,000 bride price? I'd matched it with a $30,000 car as my dowry.
The $30,000 banquet? He would've had to throw a wedding no matter who he married.
And yet somehow every last dollar of it had been pinned on me.
"Leila!"
Maya tugged at my sleeve, giving it a little shake, trying to act cute.
I turned off the TV. My voice was flat.
"Sure, I can lend you money. But this is my premarital asset. You'll need to sign a formal IOU with a repayment date and interest rate. I'll also need a guarantor and collateral."
The color drained from Maya's face. She looked to my mother-in-law like a drowning woman reaching for a life raft.
Laurel Henson shot to her feet, bristling: