Deal to Marry, Deal to Divorce

“Here is Ms. Diana Ramiro’s file that you've been asking for, President,” Clarence's assistant said as soon as he got inside his office. His personal assistant, Alan, happens to also be his best friend. He was his childhood friend, attending the same school from kinder to college. And their history was one of the main reasons why he trusted his assistant a lot, even with his current matter. “What did you find out about her?” he asked without looking at the file. When he said he was preoccupied with work, he was really drowning in documents, but unfortunately, this matter seemed to be somehow more important and Clarence just did not want to admit that, hence, the not-looking-at-the-file attitude. “I did not find anything special, really. However, I was able to dig up the fact that she is living with her grandmother in a suburban area.” “Then why did Grandpa insist that I marry that woman? How could she save the company?” Clarence’s forehead creased even more. “How could an ordinary woman become the savior of the company?” He put down his phone and looked at the file that was at the top of his desk. “I don't know either, Pre—” Alan was not able to finish his word when the door suddenly opened. “So… you're digging into Diana's file, huh?” Clarence's grandfather said as soon as he got inside the office. Clarence did not even hide his real emotions and that fact, and answered, “Yes, Grandpa, because I don't seem to get it. Why are you persisting with me to marry this woman?” And just like him, his grandfather did not hide the irritation he felt at the moment. A week ago, when he came back from Singapore with his new model girlfriend, he was surprised to hear that their company was facing bankruptcy. He admitted to himself that he did not take the company seriously, and let his subordinate work on it. His grandfather gave him the position of president of the company, which had been vacant since his father's death. He was then in the position three years ago, and everything was fine not until the next week, he was surprised to hear that they were facing bankruptcy because the investors were pulling their investments and some of the shareholders started to sell their shares. They were in crisis and even though he had the biggest share, still that was not enough for the company to survive. And now his grandfather was asking him to marry an ordinary employee, and he did not understand at all how this woman could help him solve their company’s problems and save them from bankruptcy and total closure. It was the last thing he quite imagined since this company was built before his birth. The company that he was going to inherit from his grandfather since his parents died when he was young. It’s his company, so he should get to decide what will happen to it, and not depend on marrying an ordinary employee just because his grandfather said so. “You will find out once you marry her.” His grandfather sat comfortably on the couch before facing Clarence’s assistant. “Alan, son, please serve me a cup of tea.” As respectful as he is, Alan even bowed and smiled. “Yes, Grandpa,” he replied and left the room. Once his personal assistant was gone, Clarence opened his mouth to continue his complaints and repetitive questions. “But still, Grandpa, I want you to tell me, what's with this woman? How will she save the company from bankruptcy? How did you even pick her and decide to make her your grandson’s wife?” Unluckily for him, his grandfather did not want to spoil anything. “Stop with the questions, Clarence. You will find out when you finally approve of marrying her,” the old man even took a pause before calmly uttering words that irritated him to the core, “or else I will take this company from you and prefer to give it to her voluntarily with or without you marrying her.” “What? That’s just ridiculous! I’m your only grandson.” His veins were close to popping out as he spatted words in pure irritation. “How could you say that? Has someone completely lost their mind? How on Earth could an ordinary employee inherit this company?” This is my company that we’re talking about! Mine! Clarence thought to himself. His mind was filled with a lot of questions that his grandfather seemed to choose not to answer. As Clarence tried to think of possible answers, he caught a glimpse of his father’s photo and sardonically smiled. Ah… of course. Always the reason. He got up from his swivel chair and sat next to his grandfather. A seemingly devilish smile was plastered on his face. “Grandpa, don't tell me you like this woman just because she climbed into your bed.” A strong slap then took Clarence by surprise. “You're insane!” his grandfather shouted in a furious tone. His face was red with rage and Clarence could not comprehend well just how important was the woman compared to his own flesh and blood — me! Clarence ended up staring at the old man in bewilderment for a longer time. The pain, the shock, and the questions were all present in his head and shown on his face. He never experienced this thing in his entire life. His grandfather has never laid his hands on him, since he was young, only today. This made him feel angrier towards Diana Ramiro. This all happened because of her. She was all there to blame. “How dare you say that to me? To Diana? Listen to me, Clarence. Whether you like it or not, you have to marry Diana. End of the discussion.” His grandfather stood up from where he was sitting and walked away, but before he could reach the door he turned back and spoke. “I'm giving you two weeks, Clarence. To persuade Diana to marry you. Do anything to convince her to marry you.” He then continued his journey. Clarence thought his grandfather would be done and finally leave the building, but unfortunately, he still did not. He even approached Alan, who just finished preparing the tea, and Clarence frowned upon hearing his grandfather’s words. “Give that to your boss before he loses this company and lives in the street.” He even asked himself, "What's the connection between the tea, the company, and living in the streets?” “President, are you going to drink the tea?” Alan asked, making him roll his eyes. He flatly looked at him. “Seriously, Alan?” His assistant let out a side chuckle. “I'm just kidding. I know you don't like tea. I just wonder what happened to the chairman. He just left without drinking it.” Alan was curious because it was the first time that his boss’ grandfather left without having the tea that he made for him. Clarence raised an eyebrow but his face showed no interest and was just tired, opposite to the chaos he had inside his head. “You want to know?” “If it's okay because this tea was made full of love,” Alan smirked. He obviously knew the reason already but he wanted to mess with him a little. “Because I disagreed with marrying that woman,” Clarence replied in a low voice with his forehead knitted, remembering the discussion he had with his grandfather. Alan slowly nodded, understanding his boss s***h friend’s problem. “President, why don't you talk to Diana? Perhaps, make a deal with her.” Clarence’s eyes squinted at his assistant. “Alan, are you serious?” Despite being a weird idea, it could somehow work in Clarence’s situation. His mind began to think of ideas. “What deal should I prepare for her? I don't mind marrying her, but as you have searched she's nothing but an ordinary employee. So how could she save the company from bankruptcy aside from marrying her? Unless she's a princess, a sole heir of a well-known company, or at least from a wealthy family, then there’s nothing special about her,” he explained looking at the teacup, lying down on top of the center table. The man could still not process everything. He’s smart, but this situation turned him a little dumb and that could not be accepted. He is Clarence Thomas, the sole heir of the C.T. group. He is well-known for being a womanizer, because of his good looks and of course, his family’s wealth was one of his advantages. But now… with the current situation of their company never crossed his mind. He had never seen it coming — that it would face bankruptcy. Even though his grandfather was the chairman of the company, he was given the full authority to manage it. His grandfather was obviously upset about the outcome of his three years sitting in the position. And, now, the only solution for this maddening dilemma is to marry an ordinary employee. If this isn’t ridiculous, then I don’t know what it is.