Chapter Seven
858 Words
“Hmm, Mr. Van Doren. What is this supposed to mean? I doubt that I am understanding you correctly,” Adeline fixes her sitting position and listens attentively to Haynes.
“You heard me right, Miss Everleigh. We are to get married as proposed by our families. I don’t think you like the idea, do you?” he asks her, not giving her enough time to respond.
She simply nods.
“Especially since you can’t leave that boyfriend of yours,” he continues.
Adeline is shocked. She wonders how he knows about her boyfriend.
“You… how…?” she stutters uncomfortably, struggling to find the right words. Haynes interrupts her.
“So, Miss Adeline Everleigh,” he continues while she just stares at him, “let's agree to get married for just six months, and then everything will be over. No one gets to change their mind in the process after this decision has been made.”
Adeline thinks of this as an opportunity. While she has no interest in marrying Haynes, marrying him to keep her inheritance and then getting divorced later isn’t such a bad idea after all.
“I like that, Mr. Van Doren. In fact, I love it,” Adeline beams, the corners of her lips rising.
He leans back in his seat and observes her joy. “I expected this response. We shall sign the documents soon, then our families can proceed with the preparations for the marriage ceremony.”
“That works.”
She pours him a glass of wine.
****
Adeline returns to the hospital to see Seraphina and finds Ivy there already.
“Phina!” Adeline calls out as she approaches Seraphina's bedside and gives her a gentle side hug.
“Don’t squeeze me too much, madam. I’m still wounded and hurt,” Seraphina jokes.
Adeline glares at her.
“Addie, thank goodness you’re here. Phina has been stressing me out. She kept asking when you would be back. I wonder how I’m supposed to know that,” Ivy says as she stands up.
Adeline turns to Seraphina and smiles at her.
“Don’t mind her, Ivy. She can’t live without me.”
“The doctor said she will be discharged soon. Anyway, since you are here now, I’m out,” Ivy says as she picks up her purse.
“Yes, leave,” Seraphina groans at Ivy.
“I’m leaving. Take care, grumpy,” Ivy says as she exits and shuts the door behind her.
Adeline sits beside Seraphina.
“How was your meeting with Mr. Van Doren?” Seraphina asks anxiously.
“Look, that man is something else entirely. He proposed that we sign a contract. One that states we get married and then divorced after six months.”
“Are you for real?”
“He even knew about Alex, which is surprising. No one other than you knows about Alex being my boyfriend. In fact, you’re the only one that knows I have a boyfriend, and I think Ivy does too,” Adeline says. “Or did you tell him?” She studies Seraphina's face suspiciously.
“Of course not! What are you saying? I barely spoke to him,” Seraphina responds. “Did you agree? Because I think it’s a very bad idea. You never know his true intentions,” she continues.
“I did agree.”
“What? Aren't you getting yourself into trouble?”
“I don’t know about that, but what I do know for sure is that I'm not spending the rest of my life with that man, and neither will I forfeit my inheritance for anything in this world. But I am still worried.”
Seraphina tries to reach for the jug of water, and Adeline helps her with it.
“That’s right, Lady A. You are just as tough as he is, so he won’t have any negative effect on you,” Seraphina jokes.
Adeline picks up a pillow and playfully hits her with it. Seraphina pretends to be in pain, and when Adeline pauses to check on her, Seraphina bursts out laughing.
Realizing that Seraphina had deceived her, Adeline picks up the pillow again and playfully hits her once more.
****
“You have met Adeline, right?” Altagracia, Haynes’s mother, inquires as she walks into his study.
He looks up from the papers he’s been working on.
“She is perfect. I like her. We agreed to move forward. Proceed with the arrangements.”
“Good. With her family’s influence, we will be able to work on the big plan and achieve our goal,” Altagracia says, her voice filled with conviction and a hint of something darker.
She steps closer, her heels clicking sharply against the marble floor, lowering her voice. “Once the engagement is official, no one will dare challenge us. The Van Doren name will be solidified.”
Haynes looks at his mother, his expression revealing no emotion, though a flicker in his eyes hints at an underlying tension. He leans back in his chair, tapping his fingers on the desk—a gesture that reveals his uncertainty. “And what of Evelyn?”
- Writer
