Mr. Darlington's Ex Wife

Amara Nicholas; I was in my room when I heard a knock on the door. I walked up to the door and pulled it open, and I saw my mother's maid, Agnes, smiling at me. Agnes was dressed in a blue gown; she was light-skinned and a young lady about my height. I was 24 years old. I was wearing a blue nightgown, too, as it was nighttime at around 11:45 p.m. on the 31st of December. We were waiting for the crossover celebration, and I had pulled my hair into a bun shortly after drying it from taking my night bath in my bathroom. "What do you want, Agnes?" I asked, looking at her face, and she smiled "Sorry to bother you, but your father sent for you downstairs," Agnes said. "But we just finished having our dinner in the dining room. What does my father want to say to me again? I am not interested in the New Year celebration." Agnes smiled and replied, "I don't know, but he's downstairs with your mom, and the guests had all gone outside, preparing for the fireworks." "Okay. Tell my father I will be downstairs soon. Let me go and ease myself; I'm coming," I said, and Agnes turned and left my corridor. I sighed and went back into my restroom to relieve myself. I got out and went downstairs to the living room of my father's enormous white mansion. We live on the outskirts of the city, precisely in the countryside. My father is a chief there and is involved in agricultural farm produce. I am like a princess at home. My mother is the center of admiration, and my people love me, as my mother taught me to be kind and helpful to those around us. We were preparing for the cross-over night to a brand new year, and I did not know how to feel about it. I am the only child of my parents. I am still single, and my parents are not pressing for me to get married. My father is an understanding man, but a few bachelors have come to ask for my hand in marriage. Even my crush, Charles Wilfred, but my father refused. His reason, I do not know, but my mother assured me that my father wanted the best for me, and he could not just give me away to any male suitor who would probably treat me poorly in the future. I understood and sighed, going downstairs to the living room. We live in a standard duplex house surrounded by many trees and gardens. My father's mansion was fenced, and now that the celebration was ongoing, we had many visitors, and the guest rooms were packed with my cousins and aunts. I finally walked into the living room, and Agnes stepped out of the kitchen and said, "Your dad requested that you meet him in his office." "Okay," I said, then went to my father's home office to see him. I suspect what he had to tell me was private so that none of our relatives would eavesdrop on our conversation. Finally, I arrived at the front of my father's home office. I gently knocked on the door and heard my father's calm response, "Come inside." Quietly, I pushed the office door open and walked into the office, which had two guest seats and a set of four blue couches. There, my parents sat on a blue couch, and my father smiled and said, "Come, Amara, come have your seat before the fireworks start. Your mother and I have something important to say to you." "Okay, Dad," I said, then walked into the office. Shortly after, I was seated on another blue couch across from my parents. My mother was clad in a red nightdress, and my dad wore a white garment and black trousers, beneath which I could see the trousers because he was sitting on the same blue couch as my mother. My dad smiled and said, "Amara, it has come to the point that your mother and I need to inform you about our arrangement. We have been keeping it from you, but now is the time to inform you about our decision. Well, I am sure you are familiar with my friend, Mr. Joshua Briggs." I smiled and replied, "Yes, Dad. I know Mr. Briggs; he lives in the city and visits here sometimes." "Good. Well, you are married to his only son, Darlington Briggs, and you will go to the city tomorrow to live with him." My father said. "What?" I gasped. "Dad, I don't understand. How can I be married to your friend's son? When? I cannot remember getting married to any man, or did I have a memory loss?" I was staring at my parents in shock. Like, how did I get married without remembering it and also wishing to settle down and have my own home? My father sighed, and my mother smiled understandably at me. "Amara, it was an arrangement I had with Mr. Joshua Briggs a long time ago. You are not fully married to Darlington Briggs, but you will live with him to see if you both can get along to become married as a true couple," my father said. "Dad, I do not understand what you are saying. You mean I will visit them, or I am already married to the man you are saying is your best friend's son, and sleep with him?" I asked my father, wanting to understand him better. "Amara, as I said, you are married to Darlington Briggs as of now, and you should be of good behavior when you get to their house in the city. You don't have to worry about anything; Darlington's father has already paid all the necessary dues for your hand in marriage for his son. So, you are Darlington's wife now. The only difference about this marriage is that Darlington did not come down here to marry you, nor did you wear a wedding dress to walk down the aisle with him. But you are officially Mrs. Amara Briggs now, and Darlington Briggs is your husband, traditionally by our custom," my father said. "What? Dad, I cannot marry a man that I don't know. I cannot go to the city to be with him. Mom?" I looked at my mother's face, wanting to hear her opinion about all these arrangements. My mother sighed; she looked at me and said, "Calm down, Amara. It is for your good." "How, Mom? I cannot go to the city to live there, Dad. I do not like the bustling lives of city people. I want to remain here, on this side of the country where there is no noise and wild lifestyle," I protested and wanted my father to have a change of mind about these sudden arrangements. "Amara, I can understand your complaint, but I trust Mr. Joshua's son to take care of you, so you are going to the city tomorrow," my father concluded.