Bound to the Enemy

CHAPTER FOUR- BOUND

Ariana

I stiffen behind Eli.

I don't think I heard correctly.

His wife? Is he crazy?

“Your wife?” I move from behind him and look up at him.

“Yes.”

Marcus leans back into his chair, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.

“And if I say no?”

“Then you stay here,” Eli replies.

Disbelief lodges in my throat.

“You came here, you watched everything he did to me, and now you're saying the only solution is to marry you?”

“It makes sense. You're a Hart, and I'm a Coleman; there's nothing romantic about this,” he shrugs.

The words hurt me more than I expected.

So I'll just be moving from one cage to another.

“So this is still revenge?”

“Call it whatever you want,” Eli mumbles.

“Are you guys done?” Marcus asks with amusement in his tone.

I lower my eyes. I'm tired of fighting, tired of begging, and tired of paying for something I didn't do. At least I know Eli wouldn't hurt me. If I stay here, Marcus might actually kill me. “Fine, I'll marry him.”

Marcus gets up and pats Eli on the back.

“We have an agreement then. Your mother will be proud.”

“Don't use my mother to justify this.”

“I'm just reminding you of why we're doing this,” Marcus replies coldly and walks out of the study.

Later in the night, I stand in front of the mirror studying my reflection. My skin is pale, there are dark circles around my eyes, and I've lost some weight.

I think about the little girl who was madly in love with Eli, the girl who had once declared she'd marry him; it feels like another lifetime.

Now she's actually going to marry him, and he doesn't love her; he probably doesn't like her anymore either.

I buried my feelings for him a long time ago after he turned me down, and I tried dating other people, but I never had strong feelings for them as I had for him.

This marriage is probably a very bad idea. What if I fall for him again?

I slide under my duvet, tucking my worries away.

The next morning, my nerves are a mess; we stand in front of two lawyers, the marriage papers lying on the table.

The fountain pen scratches on the thick paper as Eli signs without hesitation. He hands the pen to me, and my palm is sweaty as I sign.

The moment the ink dries, the lawyer stamps the document.

Dread pools in my stomach; I just signed my life away to a man I don't even love.

After signing the certificates, Eli took a copy, and we left the house in less than thirty minutes. The car ride is silent, but I'm occupied with my phone. I finally have it back, and I immediately check on my mom. I assure her that I'm okay, but I don't tell her that I just got married to Eli.

I message our oldest and favorite housekeeper to take care of her and make sure she's eating.

She's grieving my father alone; my chest squeezes at the thought.

I roll down the window, inhale the fresh air, and exhale my discomforting emotions. I look at Eli, and his eyes are focused on the road, his jaw tensed.

“Can we make a stop at Fifth Avenue? I need new clothes,” I ask, looking down at what I'm wearing.

“That has already been taken care of,” he replies.

“How do you know my size and what I like?”

“I know you, Ariana,” he holds my gaze for two seconds, then looks back at the road.

I slump back into my seat.

We drive through a black gate, and the view is breathtaking. There's a long driveway with neat lawns on the left and right; the car stops in front of an enormous mansion, and I step out. My mouth hangs open.

“You live here?”

“Sometimes,” Eli replies as he comes to stand by my side.

I haven't been here before, and it's probably because we've not been as close as we were. After Eli took over his family business, we barely hung out, just occasional visits with his mom whenever we were celebrating something.

Several staff members come out to welcome Eli and me.

I go through the front door, and I'm greeted with a large foyer. There are white flowers on a console table in the middle and a large artwork on the left wall. The polished dark marble floors stretch towards a staircase curving towards the upper floor. My steps echo as I walk into the living room; a huge cream sofa faces the wide television, and below it is a fireplace built into a stone wall. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook the garden and the New York skyline.

Whoever did the decoration did a perfect job.

He announces that he'll be in his study and disappears.

An elderly woman walks towards me, and I immediately recognize her.

“Mabel?”

“Look at you," she smiles warmly and opens her arms.

I hug her and inhale her warm, familiar scent like I used to do when I was younger. I hadn't seen her in years; she used to feed Eli and me whenever we came home from school and scold us whenever we got into trouble.

I draw back a little and look at her.

“You look the same”

“You’ve grown so beautiful,” she cups my cheeks affectionately.

She finally releases me, and a man comes from behind her. He's tall, bulky and dressed in a black suit; he looks a little Italian.

“Welcome home, Mrs Coleman. I am Rio Moretti. I have been assigned to your affairs; if you need anything, you can ask me,” he informs me.

“Thank you, Rio. You can call me Ariana,” I reply with a smile.

“Mr Coleman will definitely not appreciate that.”

“Let me show you your room.” Mabel takes my hand.

We climb the staircase and enter one of the rooms deep in the hallway.

There's a large bed in the middle, big windows, a little sitting area and a walk-in closet. I go through the clothes, and they're really my size and style: pink gowns and a lot of bright colors. I take mental notes of what I still need as I walk out of the closet.

“You can wash up and settle in. When you're ready, you come down for lunch; we need to add flesh to these bones,” she chuckles.

“Can I go out to the garden?”

“You can go anywhere; it's your house, sweetheart.”

Warmth fills my chest. This is definitely not a cage.