Chapter Three: the decision
1668 Words
The next morning, Henry made his way to the hospital to meet with Evelyn. He had made up his mind to withstand any embarrassment she might pull at him; after all, he had the wealth, but she got nothing. When he arrived, he was told by a nurse at the counter that the patient he was looking for had been discharged the previous day.
Henry was surprised at first. He wasn't expecting her to be discharged so fast; now, all he needed to do was to meet with her at her house. He tipped the nurse at the counter with a few dollars, and she immediately disclosed Evelyn's home address to him.
Immediately, he made his way to the garage, which was below the building; he pulled out a key, clicked on a button below, and the BMW M8 coupe competition was back to life; a soft sound from the car filled the air. He opened the door, slid into it, and stepped on the pedal; the car moved slowly before shifting away.
It was a twenty-minute drive from the hospital to Danforth St. He arrived at the address given to him by the nurse. The car stopped at a white bungalow with a garage by the side of the building and a little garden in front. This must be it. He smiled before stepping out of the car. He walked up to the door and clicked on the doorbell multiple times before realizing that it was broken. He sighed and then knocked on the door.
“Wait a sec,” a voice said, behind the door.
Henry didn't look worried; he was ready to wait as long as he got to speak with Evelyn.
The door opened. Mr Ben was standing behind it, looking surprised at Henry; he might have been wondering what brought him to his house, recalling how embarrassing Evelyn was to him. Or was he here because of the message he sent the other day?
“Oh my goodness, Mr phi–Philips ho -how,” said Mr. Ben. His voice was light, and the confusion on his face was obvious. “Sorry for keeping you waiting," he added. "Please come in,” he pleaded. He regretted keeping him waiting that long. To him, it was an honor to have a member of the Philips visiting his home.
The living room was smaller than what Henry was used to; it had an old torn sofa, a sunflower at the center of the table, and an old painting hung on the left side of the wall.
“Nice House,” Henry said. Walking to take a seat in the living room.
“Thank you,” Mr. Ben replied; he was happy that Henry liked the features in the living room. He was thinking of removing some of the old furniture, but now he had changed his mind after hearing such a recommendation from Henry.
“Please, what would you like? "There are some beers in the fridge,” said Mr. Ben.
“I guess some other time,” Henry replied, “His Evelyn home?” He asked boldly; he knew Mr. Ben would be puzzled that he had come to see her after receiving such embarrassment and insult from her; she should be the last person that someone in his position should think of seeing.
“Yes, she is," he replied. "I will go get her,” Mr. Ben said with a smile before exiting the living room.
He returned with Evelyn minutes later.
“What is he doing here?” She asked when she saw him. She, too, was surprised that he showed up at her house after their last encounter.
“H–he–is he–here to see you?” Mr. Ben stammered.
“I can't believe you got the nerves to come to my house after what you’ve done,” she yelled.
“That is why I am here to set things right,” Henry said. He threw a warm smile at her.
“Not interested.”
She tried to leave but Mr. Ben rushed after her. He pleaded with her to hear him out. Evelyn listened to him. She had always respected Mr. Ben and he had always been like a father to her. Evelyn went back to the living room; she stood adjacent to Henry with her arms crossed against each other.
Henry turned to Mr Ben. He requested a moment of privacy with her. Mr. Ben immediately left the room through a door at the back.
Henry kept smiling at her. He could see how surprised she was that her uncle was on his side.
“I could see you are getting better,” he said.
“You did not come over to ask me how I was doing, right?” She frowned at him.
Henry laughed. He could see how smart she was to find out that he was here for something else.
“I have a job for you,” he said.
“A job?" she shouted. "What kind of job?” She said, looking surprised; Henry was indeed from a rich home but not kind enough to offer her a job, judging how angry he was during their first encounter. What was he up to this time?
“I have connections in the movie industry; they will take you as long as I say so,” he bragged; his words were strong and lacked empathy.
Evelyn narrowed her eyes at Henry; she knew something was behind his offer; what was he not telling her?
“So what is the catch?” she asked.
Henry smiled; she had surprised him twice; she was indeed smarter than he thought. He concluded that with such wisdom, there was no way she wouldn't make it to the audition.
“I will be thirty next year and my family requested I get married, or my inheritance would be taken from me.”
“Okay, I still don't know what this has got to do with me,”
“I…l want you to be my wife,”
“What!!” Evelyn shouted.
“Look, all you need to do is pretend to be my wife for a fixed time,” he said in a low tone.
Evelyn could not believe what she was hearing; she never liked Henry. He was arrogant and never felt remorseful for what he did to her, and now he was offering her to be his wife.
“Are you crazy?" She shouted. "How could you think of such a stupid idea?"
“You should think about it," he said. "It is the best offer you will ever get,” he boasted.
“There is nothing to think about,” she yelled at him. “I don't need you to tell me what is good for me; you have overstayed your welcome; please leave.”
“Are you kicking me out of your house?”
“Of course I am,” she replied. “You can fool my uncle, but not me.”
Henry stood up from the sofa, walked to the table, and dropped a card on it.
“Call me when you made up your mind,” he walked past her. When he got to the door, he turned to her. “I will be waiting,” he smiled before leaving.
Evelyn rushed after he left and shut the door.
“That was a close one,” she said after taking a deep breath. She learned behind the door.
Mr. Ben, who was inside, rushed out as soon as Henry left.
“What was that noise about?” he asked.
“What noise?” She asked in return.
“Where did Mr Philips go?” he asked after finding out that Henry was not in the living room.
“He left,” Evelyn replied.
“Did you two fight again this time,”
Evelyn did not reply immediately. She felt sorry that her uncle had to witness all this.
“Not really,” she said. Mr. Ben walked to the center table and picked up Henry's card. He took a close look at it. She knew Mr. Ben might be wondering why Henry left his card behind. “He offered me a job,” she added.
“Really, that is nice of him,” he said, as he dropped the card back on the table with excitement. He noticed the sadness on her face; she wasn't happy about the job offer; Mr. Ben was surprised because she had been looking forward to this opportunity all her life. “What is wrong honey, you don't look happy about it.”
“Henry wants me…” she paused. “He wanted me to go on a contract marriage with him so that he could inherit some crazy family inheritance.”
Mr Ben was filled with shock. Henry had a high position in society; he could get any lady he wanted, but why ask his niece? Was this his own way of apologizing to her for ruining her audition?
“Jeez! "He told you that?” he asked.
“Yeah, he did,”
“Well, I think you should take the offer,” Uncle Ben said.
“What!--How!--why!”
Evelyn was surprised at his reply. She did not expect her uncle to go along with the idea.
“Look, kiddo, I think this is the only chance you have to get what you want,” he said. “Come on, you have to trust this,” he confidently said.
Her uncle had known of the Phillips family for years, how wealthy they were, and the influence they had on society; he believed that there was no way Henry's offer would be a scam.
“Alright, Uncle Ben… I will think about it,” she said. Before leaving the room.
Her mind was already filled with thoughts. Was she doing the right thing? Or was her uncle using her to create a bond with the Phillips family?
- Writer
