Chapter 6
1004 Words
"Is there a problem?" Damien cleared his throat as he stared at Ethan and Grace.
"I-" Ethan stuttered, trying to form a sentence.
"What are you doing with that?"
"Ah ah ah," Damien motioned his finger towards Grace. "Careful, this is my woman. I won't tolerate any foul words."
"But-" Both Grace and Ethan looked at each other dumbfounded. "Tricia! How did you-"
"You heard my man," Tricia played along and planted a soft kiss on Damien's cheeks. "No foul words."
She was confused and wanted to question Damien. She loved the look on their faces. They seemed confused, angry, and defeated, so she decided to play along.
"If that would be all, excuse me and my woman," he said as he tightened his grip around Tricia's waist. As they walked away they could hear murmurs from both Grace and Ethan, but they paid no attention to it.
"What the hell was that?!" Tricia exclaimed as she stopped walking and pulled him into a corner. "Why?"
"Why not?" He snorted.
"It's- I-" She stuttered while he chuckled.
"What?"
"You're Damien, the CEO of M&M corporation?!" She instantly remembered their first encounter and she felt extremely ashamed.
"Omg! You're the CEO of M&M- and I- that day-" she stuttered in embarrassment as she turned her face away in shame.
"I'm not a stranger, come on." He held her hand and dragged her out of the corner.
Immediately they were into the light, the Paparazzi rushed towards him, throwing questions at them.
"Mr Damien, is this your woman?"
"There have been several rumors that you are gay. Is that true?"
"Mr Damien, who is she?"
"Isn't she the daughter of Mr Griffin? Are you two an item?"
Questions flew from every corner and Tricia felt her insides stir as eyes bore into her soul, making her feel uncomfortable.
"Everyone!" Damien cleared his throat as he stood in the middle of the party. "This is my woman, Tricia Campbell!"
Immediately, Grace and Ethan shot death glares at her through the crowd, by this time Tricia was swallowing thick saliva.
"We will discuss this later, don't worry," Damien whispered into her ears.
Damien had been battling with rumors surrounding his sexuality. Many have it that he was gay because he was never seen in public with any woman. However, at first, he paid no attention to it until it came to his parents' notice, and it became alarming.
"Do something about this, Damien!" His father yelled as he flung the newspaper at his face. "I've told you before, you need a woman."
"These are just baseless rumors, father!"
"Rumors that could destroy you and our family!" His mother added. "Come on Damien, do something about this and fast."
He took a deep breath. "Fine then, I will."
Finally, he found his trump card, which was Tricia, daughter of Mr Griffin, who was willing to have a contract with them. If he was able to woe Tricia, everything would go well in his place.
The day he met Tricia at the bar, he then realized that he had found the solution to his problem. She was everything he was looking for and even more. He was more than happy when he found out about her identity and this made him more than eager to proceed with his plan.
Well, as for Tricia, on the other hand, she needed the contracted arrangement to defeat her uncle and help her father's company.
***
While the party still went on, after attending to a few people, Damien excused himself and took Tricia outside, heading towards his car.
On their way out, they stumbled into a drunk Grace.
"Oh hey, Stinky!" She slurred as she walked towards Tricia, but Damien pushed her back, making her stumble.
"What? Can't I talk to her?"
"Sorry, but you seem out of your mind. I'd like it if you excuse us." Damien said, his deep voice sounded like a warning.
"What" From the corner of Tricia's eyes she saw Ethan running towards him. He wrapped his arms around Grace's waist and walked away from them.
Tricia's heart fell immediately when she saw how he rushed over to assist Grace.
"He never for once looked at me like that or helped me whenever I was in trouble." She mumbled quietly, hoping Damien didn't hear her, but he did, loud and clear.
"We need to talk," Damien said as he pulled her arm gently and headed towards his car.
"Agreed, but first of all, thank you for earlier."
"Oh them? It's nothing. If I may ask, who were they?"
Tricia's face fell immediately as she thought about Grace and Ethan.
"You don't have to if the memory is painful."
"Yeah, it just... They are not important." She shrugged.
"Okay, but before then," Damien said as he opened the door. 'Please get in."
"Okay." she got in. He sat down close to her and shut the door.
"So about this. I have lots of rumors going around that I'm gay, which I am not. And it's causing serious problems for me. I need you to be my fiancée until we get this over with it."
"Fiancee? Isn't that far-fetched?" She arched her brow.
"If I'm correct, you also need this contract. Being single won't favor you, would it?"
Tricia let out a low growl, but she cheered up the moment she thought of the advantages behind the offer.
I need to defeat my uncle, but I can't do it alone, neither can I do it being single. She thought to herself.
"Okay, then it's a deal." She brought her hand forward towards him. "But no real feelings attached."
"Why?"
"Do we have a deal or not?" She frowned.
He hesitated for a while before taking her hand. "Deal." He shook it as a small smile curled on his lips.
Even though Damien said it was a deal, in his heart he liked Tricia, but he wasn't willing to push it, so he wouldn't ruin whatever they were trying to achieve.
- Writer
