The Cold CEO's Funny Wife

Chapter 6: The Contract Marriage Proposal

Two weeks passed.

Every morning at 8:05 AM, Cassian came to Sunny's Cafe. Black suit, cold face, Table Four, black coffee no sugar hot, free bread roll. And every morning, Savi was there, yellow or blue t-shirt, messy bun, funny and hard-to-get.

"Good morning, Sir Iceberg! Ready to pay rude tax?" she would say.

"Good morning, hard-to-get waitress. Ready to give me free bread and say you don't like me?" he would reply.

They had a routine now. A funny, cold, warm routine. Everyone in the cafe knew them. Mrs. Sunny called them "the cold and the funny."

Savi's fever was gone. Her rent was paid because CRA_Buyer kept buying her shirts. Her small room now had a cool air conditioner humming every night. And every night, she thought about Cassian's words: "I like you, even though you are hard-to-get. I can wait a long time."

Her inner thought every night:

*He likes me. He said he likes me. He smiles now, a real smile, only for me. He feels that I like him through my actions. But I still say no. I am still hard-to-get. I will be hard-to-get for a long time. But... I like our routine. I like seeing him at 8:05 AM. I like cleaning Table Four for him. I like giving him free bread. Is this love? If this is love, it feels... warm. Like his coffee review.*

But on this Monday, Cassian didn't come at 8:05 AM.

8:10 AM. No Cassian.

8:20 AM. No Cassian.

8:30 AM. No Cassian.

Savi kept looking at the door. The bell didn't ring. Table Four was empty and clean. She had cleaned it extra this morning.

Her inner thought worried:

*Where is he? He always comes at 8:05 AM. Always. Even when it rained, even when he had meetings. He always comes. Is he sick? Is he... did he get bored? Did my hard-to-get work too well and he finally got tired of waiting? No, he said he can wait a long time! He promised! Where is Sir Iceberg?*

At 9:00 AM, her phone rang. Unknown number.

"Hello?" she said.

"Savi? It is me, Cassian," said the cold voice, but it sounded tired, not cold.

"Where are you? Why didn't you come for coffee? Table Four is waiting! The rude tax is increasing! One thousand extra for being late!" Savi said, trying to be funny, but her voice was worried.

Cassian was silent for two seconds. "Can we meet? Not at the cafe. At my office. Alcantara Tower, 30th floor. It is important. Please."

Please. He never said please before. He was a CEO who gave orders, not please.

Savi's heart beat fast. Important? Office? What happened?

"Is everything okay? Did something happen?" she asked.

"I will explain at my office. Can you come at 2 PM? After your shift?" he asked.

"Okay... okay, I will come at 2 PM," Savi said.

At 2 PM, Savi stood in front of Alcantara Tower. It was huge, glass, shining, cold. Like Cassian. She was wearing her best clothes - a clean white second-hand dress and small sandals. She felt small and poor in front of the big building.

She went to the 30th floor. The elevator was fast and made her ears pop.

The office was huge, cold, expensive. Everything was black and white and grey. No color. Like Sir Iceberg's heart before he met her.

Cassian was sitting at his big desk, wearing his black suit, his face more cold than ever. But his eyes were tired, red, like he didn't sleep.

"Savi, you came," he said, standing up.

"Of course I came! You said please! You never say please! What happened? Are you okay?" Savi asked, worried, forgetting to be hard-to-get for one second.

Cassian pointed to the chairs in front of his desk. "Sit down. I need to tell you something."

Savi sat. Her hands were sweating.

Cassian sat too. He took out a folder and put it on the desk. On the folder, big letters: CONTRACT MARRIAGE AGREEMENT.

Savi stared at the folder. Contract Marriage Agreement?

"What is that?" she asked.

Cassian took a deep breath. His inner thought was heavy:

*How do I explain this? How do I ask her to marry me, even if it is just a contract? She is hard-to-get. She will say no. She will say "I don't like you, Sir Iceberg, why would I marry you?" And she is right. Why would she marry me? I am cold, I am busy, I am... I like her, but this is not about love. This is about business. My grandfather... he is forcing me.

But I want her to say yes. Even if it is contract, I want her to be near me every day, not just at 8:05 AM in the cafe, but at home too. I want to come home and see her messy bun and funny t-shirt. I want to feel her actions every day, not just in a cafe.

But she will say no. Because she is hard-to-get. And because this is crazy.*

He opened the folder.

"Savi, my grandfather is sick. He is in the hospital. He is 85 years old. He built this company from nothing. And his last wish is to see me married before he... before he dies. He said if I don't get married within one month, he will give the company to my cousin, who is... not a good person. He will ruin the company and fire thousands of employees."

Savi listened, her eyes wide.

"So... so you need to get married? In one month? To save your company?" she asked.

"Yes. I need a contract marriage. One year. We will marry, we will live together in my house, we will pretend to be a real couple in front of my family and the public. After one year, when my grandfather is... stable and the company is safe, we will divorce. I will give you... money. A lot of money. Ten million pesos. And a house. And I will pay for your future. You can stop working at the cafe and selling second-hand clothes. You can study if you want," Cassian said, his voice cold and business-like, like he was in a meeting.

Savi stared at the contract. Ten million pesos. A house. No more working two jobs. No more worrying about rent. She could... she could go back to college. She could...

But marry Sir Iceberg? Contract marriage? Live with him?

Her inner thought was a storm:

*Ten million pesos! That is so much money! I could pay my mother's hospital debt! My mother died but I still have debt from her hospital! I could pay it all! I could study! I could have a house!

But marry him? Cassian? Sir Iceberg? The cold CEO who I like but I keep saying I don't like? Contract marriage? Live together? Pretend to be a couple?

If we live together, he will see me every day, not just at 8:05 AM. He will see my messy bun every morning, my oversized t-shirts, my funny self. And I will see his cold face every morning, his suits, his almost-smiles.

And he said he likes me. He said he can wait a long time. Is this... is this his way of making me stay near him?

No, Savi, don't be delusional! This is business! He needs to save his company! He doesn't love me! He just... he needs a wife! Any wife! And I am... convenient? Because I am hard-to-get but he knows I care through actions?

Should I say yes? Or should I be hard-to-get and say no?

I am Savi, hard-to-get Savi. I should say no. I should say "I don't like you, why would I marry you, even contract?"

Yes, I should say no.*

She pushed the folder back to him.

"No," she said.

Cassian's cold face... fell. Just a little. His eyes showed disappointment.

"No?" he said.

"No. I don't want to marry you, Sir Iceberg. Not even contract. I don't like you. I told you many times. I am hard-to-get. I will be hard-to-get for a long time. So my answer is no. Find another girl. There are many girls who want to marry a billionaire CEO. Go find one of your business district girls with expensive dresses," Savi said, trying to be hard-to-get and funny, but her voice was shaking.

Cassian looked at the contract. He expected no. He knew she was hard-to-get. But hearing no still hurt, more than losing a business deal.

His inner thought:

*She said no. Of course she said no. She is hard-to-get. She says she doesn't like me. Why would she marry me, even for ten million? She is strong. She doesn't want my money. She wants to work hard herself.

I should respect her no. I should find another girl. But... I don't want another girl. I want her. I want the funny waitress who gives me free bread. I want the hard-to-get girl who I can feel loves me through her actions.

But I cannot force her. I am cold, but I am not that cold.*

He closed the folder.

"Okay. I understand. No means no. Thank you for coming," he said coldly, his CEO mask back on, hiding his disappointment.

Savi stood up. She felt... weird. She said no, she was hard-to-get, she should feel proud. But she felt... sad. She felt like she disappointed him.

She walked to the door of his huge cold office.

Before she opened the door, Cassian spoke again, his voice not cold now, but quiet.

"Savi," he said.

She turned.

"Even though you said no, thank you for... for the free bread. For cleaning Table Four. For eating the soup. For letting me take care of you when you had fever. I will... I will remember your customer service," he said, trying to be funny like her, but his joke was sad.

Savi's eyes became wet. She quickly looked away.

"Welcome... Sir Iceberg. Customer service is my job," she whispered.

She opened the door and left his office, leaving the contract folder on his desk.

She went down the fast elevator, her heart heavy, her hard-to-get mask heavy too.

Outside the tower, she walked three blocks before she stopped and sat on a bench and cried a little, just a little, wiping her tears quickly.

Her inner thought, honest:

*I said no. I am hard-to-get. I said no because I am scared. Scared that if I say yes to contract marriage, I will fall in love for real, and after one year, when we divorce, I will be hurt again. Like with my ex.

But I... I want to say yes. I want to live with him. I want to see his real smile every day. I want to give him free bread every morning at home, not just at the cafe.

I say no with my mouth, but my heart... my heart wants to say yes. But I will not say yes now. I will be hard-to-get for a long, long time. Maybe he will ask again? Maybe if he asks again, I will think again?

No, Savi, be strong! Hard-to-get!

But why does saying no feel so sad?*

In his office on the 30th floor, Cassian stood at the window, looking down at the small figure of Savi sitting on a bench three blocks away. He could see her from his window, even though she was small.

He watched her wipe her tears.

His inner thought:

*She is crying. Why is she crying if she said no? If she doesn't like me, why would she cry?

She is hard-to-get. She says no. But she cries after saying no. That means... that means she wanted to say yes but she is scared to say yes. Just like she is scared to say she likes me.

She needs time. A long time. Just like she said. She will be hard-to-get for a long, long time.

I can wait. I will ask her again. Not today. Tomorrow. Or next week. I will keep asking until she feels safe enough to say yes.

Because I can feel it, Savi. Even when you say no to my contract marriage, I can feel that you want to say yes. Through your tears. Through your actions.

I will wait. I can wait a long time.*

He picked up his phone and texted Mrs. Sunny: "Please tell Savi I will still come for coffee tomorrow at 8:05 AM. Even though she said no to contract."

And he sat back at his cold desk, his contract marriage folder still on the table, his heart warm, waiting for a hard-to-get funny girl to change her no to a yes, after a long, long time.