Chapter 7
1174 Words
“Who is she?” His mother Evelyn immediately bombarded him with questions. “How come I’ve never heard of her? What’s her name and where is she from?” She glanced briefly behind Nathan. “Why isn’t she with you? Aren’t you supposed to make this introduction when she’s here with you?”
He sighed and stepped back slightly. “She’s someone I met while I was in the military, and before you ask, the reason I didn’t introduce her sooner is that I wasn’t sure I wanted to go down that route. I didn’t think I’d fall in love with her and suddenly end up married.”
The room fell silent after his statement. Even Nathan didn’t quite believe the vivid yet carefully crafted version of events he had just offered. It was better than admitting this was a marriage of convenience—one he still wasn’t sure how he’d benefit from. He’d seen a helpless, attractive woman and, for reasons he couldn’t fully explain, had danced to her tune. It was almost as though they were meant to do this together.
It felt ridiculous, and that’s why he couldn’t say anything like that.
“That’s like… whoa,” his sister Aubrey breathed. “Never did I think I would ever hear you speak that way to someone.”
He chuckled dryly. “Yeah, I didn’t think I’d do that also.”
“I can’t believe you deceived me all this while,” Emma said quietly. “You already had a girlfriend, and you made me believe you were single?”
Her question seemed to poise another question for his mother, so Evelyn turned, awaiting his reply. Nathan sighed and tried to think fast.
“I wasn’t exactly in a relationship with her,” he told them. “We were very good friends and had great attraction to each other. She suddenly popped the question and I could see my future with her, so I agreed. That’s it.”
“You were acting on a whim,” Aubrey gasped, strangely impressed by her brother. “Are you in love? Oh god mom, he could be in love.”
The two of them held each other and giggled girlishly.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” Evelyn said, cupping his face. “My little boy is getting married!”
“And my little brother is getting married!” Aubrey echoed.
“You must introduce her to us immediately,” Evelyn gushed. “When can we see her? What are you doing here, by the way? Aren’t you supposed to be spending time with her?”
Nathan inhaled sharply. “I uh…. I just wanted to inform you guys of the news.”
“You must go back to her,” Evelyn warned sternly. “You must not leave her alone on her wedding night, my boy. That’s the worst thing you can do on your wedding day. What does she do?”
“Uh… she’s an executive manager of a company.”
“Okay well, that manager must be feeling very lonely and wants someone else to manage her instead. Go home.”
He made a face of disgust. “Eww mom I don’t want to ever hear you talk about her like that.”
“Okay well, get out of here.”
“Gladly.”
He began gathering his things while Aubrey and Evelyn trailed behind him, both still firing off questions.
“I can’t believe you had a potential love interest and didn’t tell me,” Evelyn complained. “I wouldn’t have wasted my time trying to pair you with all kinds of girls.”
“I know, right?” his sister echoed, arms crossed in mock indignation.
“Okay, well, I didn’t ask you to do any of that,” Nathan shot back, glancing over his shoulder.
When he was done packing, Evelyn stepped forward and pressed a card into his palm. “You know that’s my life savings. If she’s the girl who stole my son’s heart, then she deserves a diamond ring. You have to make her happy, Nathan.”
Nathan froze, stunned. He quickly pushed the card back toward her. “This is really unnecessary, Mom. I’m going to get a ring... just not now. We’ve already talked about this.”
“Why wait for that long when you can just use my money and buy her something exquisite? Trust me, I have been waiting for this moment.”
Nathan looked helplessly to his sister, but she too shrugged in accordance with Evelyn.
“Do as she says, Nathan. Buy this woman the best diamond she could dream of. This is what mom wants. You can’t say no to this one.”
Nathan took the card reluctantly. He knew that he would not use the money in it. There was no point buying Rosianna a diamond—she did that already.
Nathan took a cab to the city, instructing the driver to head to Rosianna’s apartment. He wanted to take a quick look at things and see if there was any necessities missing so that he could shop for them, only to realize that she had only given him the key, not the building number. Standing outside, he hesitated for a minute before he called her.
The phone only rang for three seconds before she picked it.
“Yes?” Her voice was curt, yet soft.
“I need the building number,” he said.
“4B. It’s on the third floor.”
“Okay.”
Her voice lowered a notch. “Do you need anything else?”
“No, that’s all.”
She hung up without another word. Nathan stared at his phone, marveling at how composed she always sounded, even in the middle of her meetings. How much more professional could she be about their arrangement?
On the other end, Rosianna set her phone down and swiveled in her chair to face the board members waiting silently. She sat at the head of the table, a flowing wedding dress visible beneath her draped jacket.
Sean, her cousin and fellow board member, leaned in with a teasing grin. “You never take calls during meetings, ma’am. Was that the husband?”
The others watched with interest, waiting for her to reveal who it was but Rosianna only glared before tapping her tablet. “What’s the status of our new plan innovation?”
Sean chuckled and leaned back. After the meeting, as Rosianna exited the board room with her assistant, he waited back to chat with another member for a while.
“She came in her wedding dress just to make a statement,” Sean said lightly. “But the way she spoke to him—I wonder how long that marriage will last.”
The board member frowned. “You don’t think it will?”
Sean shrugged. “He won’t tolerate her for long.” Then he thumped the man’s shoulder when he saw that Rosianna was free. “Catch you later. Hey, Rosie!”
- Writer
