What is the name of your state?
Massachusetts
OK, this is silly, but …
I had a fling with a woman. When it was apparent that it was over, and despite my having moved to another state, she wouldn’t let it go. When she found out I was having a little financial difficulty because of the poorly planned move, she got my account number and deposited $6,000 into my account – as a gift.
Idiot me didn’t turn it down as I should have, and, as you would imagine, that got me back into her life for a bit. A couple of months later, she basically forced me to take a couple pieces of furniture that she was giving away because of her new home purchase.
By force, I mean I kept saying no to the offer because I didn’t want her to think I could be bought, and the shipping price was too expensive for items I didn’t need. But she was so determined for me to have them; she was going to send them anyway. The only compromise was to pay for it myself. I paid $1,500 to have the items shipped and another $500 to have a contractor tear down and repair a wall just to get the sofa into my apartment. And I gave away my 18-month-old sofa to make room for the new one.
Anyway, shortly thereafter she, broke it off. Now she has sent a demand letter – with the requisite threat of using her vast financial means against me - for immediate repayment of the “loan” and the return of the furniture and other items, like kitchen pictures she previously shipped to me as a surprise.
A couple of days after getting her letter, I received another from her lawyer, which now offered the option of “compensating her for the furniture” which I took possession of.
To be honest, I was going to one day surprise her by giving her the $6,000 back – even after the breakup - though she regularly and continually told me it was not a loan and I should never be concerned about paying her back.
But now, I admit, I’m a bit teed off that she has the nerve to threaten me, and though I don’t necessarily want to punish her, I don’t want to let her bully me or besmirch my reputation. Logic tells me, the furniture is off the table as far as my having to give her anything for that, and I’m definitely not going to pay again to have it returned, and then buy new stuff.
That said, in a her-word-against-mine scenario, I could come across looking like a gigolo because she is wealthy and I’m not, though I have never taken money from a woman and have almost always dated women who’ve needed my help financially, as opposed to the other way around.
Do I negotiate a payment plan with her attorney – an “aggressive” plan according to his letter - or give that money to a lawyer? By the way, her attorney is in Texas, but his letter states he is authorized to retain counsel in Massachusetts where I now reside, and per judgment would seek garnishment if state law allows.
Massachusetts
OK, this is silly, but …
I had a fling with a woman. When it was apparent that it was over, and despite my having moved to another state, she wouldn’t let it go. When she found out I was having a little financial difficulty because of the poorly planned move, she got my account number and deposited $6,000 into my account – as a gift.
Idiot me didn’t turn it down as I should have, and, as you would imagine, that got me back into her life for a bit. A couple of months later, she basically forced me to take a couple pieces of furniture that she was giving away because of her new home purchase.
By force, I mean I kept saying no to the offer because I didn’t want her to think I could be bought, and the shipping price was too expensive for items I didn’t need. But she was so determined for me to have them; she was going to send them anyway. The only compromise was to pay for it myself. I paid $1,500 to have the items shipped and another $500 to have a contractor tear down and repair a wall just to get the sofa into my apartment. And I gave away my 18-month-old sofa to make room for the new one.
Anyway, shortly thereafter she, broke it off. Now she has sent a demand letter – with the requisite threat of using her vast financial means against me - for immediate repayment of the “loan” and the return of the furniture and other items, like kitchen pictures she previously shipped to me as a surprise.
A couple of days after getting her letter, I received another from her lawyer, which now offered the option of “compensating her for the furniture” which I took possession of.
To be honest, I was going to one day surprise her by giving her the $6,000 back – even after the breakup - though she regularly and continually told me it was not a loan and I should never be concerned about paying her back.
But now, I admit, I’m a bit teed off that she has the nerve to threaten me, and though I don’t necessarily want to punish her, I don’t want to let her bully me or besmirch my reputation. Logic tells me, the furniture is off the table as far as my having to give her anything for that, and I’m definitely not going to pay again to have it returned, and then buy new stuff.
That said, in a her-word-against-mine scenario, I could come across looking like a gigolo because she is wealthy and I’m not, though I have never taken money from a woman and have almost always dated women who’ve needed my help financially, as opposed to the other way around.
Do I negotiate a payment plan with her attorney – an “aggressive” plan according to his letter - or give that money to a lawyer? By the way, her attorney is in Texas, but his letter states he is authorized to retain counsel in Massachusetts where I now reside, and per judgment would seek garnishment if state law allows.