Love found in Billonaire’s house

Audrey “What?!” I screamed like I had been burned alive. My voice rising and echoing through the living room walls. “Your marriage with Noah Williams has been fixed”. My father repeated. “How? Why? I barely know him and I have a boyfriend, Dad.” I couldn’t believe what was happening right now. Noah Williams is the son of Dever Williams, the man my dad worked for for thirty years till he retired, way before I was born. And now, my dad was talking about marrying him. I have never even met him. How could I marry someone I didn’t have any relation with? To make the matter worse, I had a boyfriend who I plan to spend the rest of my life with. My dad looked at me with pain and resolve evident in his eyes. “I know this is not what you want but my hands are tied. Mr. Denver made me sign a contract that if he lent me the money for your mother’s surgery, his son would get married to you. “You got me betrothed to a stranger at eight years old?” my eyes bulged out in disbelief. “He’s my boss’ first son and not a stranger.” “I don’t care!He's a stranger to me!” “Look here, Audrey. The earlier you come to terms with this marriage contract the better.” He said with finality and left the living room leaving me to stand there with trembling legs and racing heart until my legs could not carry me anymore. I slumped on the brown plush sofa with defeat and let the tears fall freely from my eyes. I felt dizzy from the pain welling up inside of me. The familiar ringtone of my Iphone eight brought me back to reality. Reluctantly, I stared at my phone. It was my boyfriend, Michael. I held onto the phone with trembling hands. What should I tell him now? The news was going to leave him devastated. I wiped the tears off my face with my palm and cleared my throat in an attempt to stabilise my voice. I was not going to tell him about the marriage contract yet, at least not over the phone. “He…ll…o” I said when I picked the call, still shaking from the impact of the news. “Hi babe, are you good?” He asked with his deep voice that always seemed to calm me down in times of panic. “Yes, I am. Why?” I said, this time, more composed. “You sound like you have been crying. Are you sure you are fine? Do you need me to come over?” I wanted to see him but I couldn’t bring myself to tell him the truth about why I sounded down. “Yes, babe. I’m fine.” lying through my teeth, I would tell him eventually but right now, I’d rather let the sleeping dog sleep. “Okay…” He sounded like he wanted to push the topic but he didn’t and I was grateful. "I missed you." He said. "I missed you too." 'Michael, the manager wants you in his office now.' I heard a voice say in his background. "Sorry, babe. I have to go now. I'll talk to you later." "Alright, babe. I love you." "I love you too." He ended the call and I let my hands plop down to the sofa. I needed to find a way out of this situation. **** "Audrey." My dad called out softly as he knocked softly on my room door. After the call with Michael, I locked myself up in the room refusing to eat anything. "Audrey. Are you there? May I come in?" "Yes, dad. Come in" I managed out a response. He came in and shut the door with a soft click. He sat gently at the edge of the bed. I read the countenance on his face. I could tell that this was hard for him too. Even if I was hurt about everything, I couldn't stay mad at him for long. My dad and I were pretty close. After my mom's death, I withdrew from the world. I lost myself. It was a hard pill to swallow because I shared everything with her. My dad, however, made time for me, despite how alone he felt. We would go to the movies, eat a nice meal in my favourite restaurant, and take walks in the park. I healed from the trauma because of him and now, as I sat on my bed, pillow on my legs, I couldn't help but feel empathy toward him. "Hi dad," "Audrey, I'm deeply sorry for dropping the news of your marriage contract on you and expecting you to take it easy." As he spoke, tears formed in his eyes, threatening to fall. "When your mom was diagnosed with cancer, I felt like the world was crumbling against me. She was my better half. We made a great team together. I searched desperately for a way to make her stay longer with me, with us so I went to Mr. Denver, my then boss for help. He agreed to help if I signed an agreement to marry you to his son when you were of age.” He took my hand in his, inhaled deeply and continued. “I know it seems hard now, but look on the brighter side. You might learn to love him as your husband.” The word husband stung my ears, I bit my lip from making a remark. I remained quiet for a few minutes, the weight of the contract hanging dense in the air. Why me? Life sure had a way of making me pay for a crime I never committed. It seemed to always take my loved ones away from me. First, it was my mom and now my boyfriend. Could I ever be truly happy? I drew a deep breath. I had no other choice, my dad already did so much for me. “Here’s Mr Noah’s business card, you can arrange a meeting with him. You know, get to know yourselves a little before the day of the wedding. Who knows, you both might have more in common than you can imagine.” I scoffed, as if. “I’ll think about it but I’m not promising anything." “Alright, I’ll leave you now. Goodnight sweetheart.” He kissed me slightly on my forehead. “Good night, dad.” Rays of sunshine seeped in through the blinds and graced my face. I had forgotten to close them yesterday. I kept tossing restlessly around the bed yesterday until I eventually fell asleep. I had made the decision to get married to Noah to please my dad but it still wasn’t easy for me. I stretched my hand to reach my phone that was laying beside the bedside lamp on the mini drawer. It was five minutes past eleven a.m.. Businesses in New York usually had their lunch break between eleven a.m and two p.m. so I picked up the business card on the table and dialled the phone number on it. After a few rings, I heard the most sexy but agitated voice I have ever had. “Hello?” The voice called out and I went mute.