The choosen bride
1220 Words
Later that day, Bella cried until she fell asleep.
She didn’t know the man she had agreed to marry, she didn’t know what kind of life was waiting for her.
Margret quietly got into her room and closed the door.
As soon as she got in, she picked up her phone and called Gloria.
Gloria answered after the phone rang a little.
“Hello?” Gloria asked.
Margret smiled.
“The stupid girl has finally agreed.”
Gloria laughed.
“I knew she would.”
“I knew saying it was for Ethan, it would work perfectly.”
Margret nodded.
“It worked perfectly.”
Gloria became more serious.
“I’ll call the Sterling family lawyer right away.”
“Please do it quickly. Ethan needs the money now so the doctors can proceed with the arrangements of flying him abroad.”
“I understand,” Gloria said.
“I’ll take care of everything.”
Margret looked towards the door, and a smile spread across her face.
“By this time tomorrow….”
“She’ll be out of my house.”
She ended the call.
***
The Sterling Global headquarters was so busy.
Employees walked through the hallway with files in their hands. Phones rang from different offices and people hurried from one meeting to another.
At the top floor everywhere was quiet.
Luca Sterling sat behind a large wooden desk. He was wearing a dark suit with the sleeves of his shirt folded to his wrist.
Several files were neatly arranged in front of him.
He read each page carefully before signing it.
Every movement was just calm and careful.
Then a knock came on the door.
“Come in,” he said without looking up.
The door opened.
Daniel Reeves, his personal lawyer, walked in with a brown envelope.
“I think we’ve found the perfect woman, sir,” he said.
Luca finished signing the paper in front of him before looking up.
“Put it here.”
Daniel placed the envelope on the desk, and Luca opened it.
The first thing he saw was a passport.
A young woman with gentle eyes looking back at him.
He turned the pages one after another.
Her school records, medical reports, work history, and information about her family.
He read everything quietly and after a while he looked at Daniel.
“Any criminal record?”
Daniel shook his head, “None.”
“Any scandals?”
“Nothing.”
“Any unpaid debts?”
“Only hospital bills.”
Luca looked back at the file.
“Daniel continued.
“We did a proper background check.”
“She has never been arrested.”
“No court cases.”
“No connection to any of your family’s business rivals.”
Luca closed the file halfway.
“Then why did she agree to a contract marriage?”
Daniel’s face became serious.
“Her younger brother is very sick, and he needs surgery in Italy.”
“Her family doesn’t have the money.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Luca looked at the picture again.
“So she’s not doing this because of greed.”
Daniel nodded.
“She’s only trying to save her stepbrother.”
Luca quietly closed the file.
“Please prepare the contract immediately.”
“Call the legal team, and make sure every document is properly checked.”
“I don't want any mistakes.”
Daniel smiled, “I'll contact her family right away.”
After Daniel left.
Luca kept staring at Bella's picture.
He had never met her before, he didn't even know how she would sound, he was just confused about what to expect.
But yet in a few days……
She would become his wife.
**
At the Hart family house, Margret could hardly hide her happiness.
She hurried into the sitting room.
“Samuel!” she called.
“I have good news.”
Samuel looked up from his chair.
He looked tired.
“What is it?”
“They accepted Bella.”
Samuel frowned.
“What do you mean?”
Margret quickly told him about the contract marriage, and before she could even finish talking, Samuel shook his head.
“No.”
“I won't let my daughter marry a man she doesn't know.”
Margret folded her arms.
“Oh, really?”
“Now you want to act like a good father?”
Samuel ignored her.
“This doesn't feel right.”
Margret walked closer.
“Did you find twenty million naira?”
Samuel stayed quiet.
“What about one million?”
Still no answer.
“One hundred thousand nkor?”
Samuel lowered his head.
Margret sighed.
“That's what I thought.”
She sat beside him slowly.
“You can't save your son, but Bella can.”
Samuel closed his eyes.
“Is it only for one year?” he asked quietly.
Margret nodded.
“Yes.”
“When the year is over, she'll come back, and Ethan will be alive, then everything will go back to normal.”
Samuel didn't speak for a long time.
He looked tired and broken.
Finally, he spoke,
“Do what you think is best.”
A smile appeared on Margret’s face.
“I knew you’d agree.”
**
At Sterling mansion, Victor Sterling stood by the large window in his private study.
The city lights were shining below him.
He poured a glass of wine for himself and took a sip slowly.
A smile spread across his face.
“Ten more days,” he said softly.
“Just ten more days.”
He lifted his glass into the air.
“Then Sterling Global will finally be mine.”
He laughed to himself.
“Luca…..”
“My poor nephew.”
“You had years to find a wife, and you failed.”
Victor smiled again because he imagined sitting in the CEO’s office.
He imagined removing Luca from the board and selling his shares, taking complete control of everything Richard built.
Victor couldn’t stop smiling.
Then he looked at the framed portrait of Richard hanging on the wall.
“You made one big mistake, old man,” he said.
“You trusted your useless grandson instead of me, you said I was too wayward.”
He carried his glass and took another sip.
“You really thought Luca could do it.”
“But, he couldn’t, even when he had plenty of time.”
“You gave him years to find a wife, and yet what happened?”
“Nothing!!”
Victor laughed to himself loudly.
“The board of Directors has already started losing faith in him.”
“They’ve only been waiting for your will.”
“But, once the deadline is over, they won’t have any reason to wait again.”
He smiled.
“The Sterling Global will be mine.”
“I’ll be the new chairman.”
“I’ll be the new CEO.”
“I’ll be the one in charge, fire anyone who goes against my wishes.”
He took another sip slowly.
“As for your useless grandson, he’ll lose everything.”
“He’ll start all over again.”
He looked at the picture and smiled again.
“Maybe then you’ll understand what it feels like to be a loser.”
He laughed loudly.
The laughter filled the room.
- Writer
