Chapter three

All the members of the Barlow family got an emergency text from Madam Rosey, and within less than an hour, the living room got crowded with every one of them.

They all took turns staring at the paper, and Mr. Barlow was the last one to hold it.

Then the room became silent as everyone waited for him to say something.

In the household, two individuals held all the power, and that was Madam Rosey and her husband, Mr. Barlow.

Everyone else was in a power struggle among themselves, and it was a vicious circle with Cathrine and her parents at the bottom of the survival chain.

Mr. Barlow cleared his throat, and everyone's faces became serious except for Rome. He kept staring at Mr. Miller, but his father bore no expression on his face.

“This is my father’s signature, and the Barlow family stamp on this paper is real. My last granddaughter got promised to get wed to Mr. Miller's grandson once she turns eighteen." Mr. Barlow loudly declared.

"But..." Catherine father mumbled.

"The contract got signed between my father and Mr. Miller, and I shall honor it. Catherine is to get married to Rome within four weeks, and that is final. From today onward, Rome Miller is the son-in-law of this family.”

Upon hearing her father-in-law's words, Cathrine’s mother let out a loud cry of disappointment as tears welled up in her eyes.

“Control yourself, woman! How dare you behave in such a manner before father!” Cathrine’s father lashed out in anger.

Mr. Barlow's face hardened as he clenched his fist while glaring at his son.

Suddenly, he stood to his feet and said, “Handle your wife, and let this be the last time she disgraced this family with such a behavior!”

With pity in her eyes, Cathrine stared at her father while he bowed his head in shame. Then she gazed at her mother's grieving face as her heart ached in pain.

After waiting patiently for her husband to leave, it was Madam Rosey's turn to speak, and everyone else maintained their silence. She calmly stared around the room until her sight landed on Rome. Then with absolutely no respect in her tone, she asked, “What quality are you bring into the Barlow family?”

Rome was about to answer when Mr. Miller dropped to his knees, rested his forehead against the floor, and cried, “It is my fault! I did not give him a better life. So please do not hold it against him.”

The was a faint chuckling sound echoing in the room.

When Rome looked to his right, he could see a young lady with dark violet hair struggling to hold back her laughter.

At that moment, he desperately wanted to drag his father out of there. But he knew that it was not what Mr. Miller wanted, so he restrained his anger and maintained a calm expression.

“How annoying! You can’t afford to support your son, so you decided to make him a burden to our family. What a scamming old man you are.” Madam Rosey straightforwardly said as she stood to her feet.

“I beg for pardon,” Miller mumbled.

“Your lack of shame is just disgusting. Stand to your feet. I don’t want rumors spreading that I bully a poor man.”

“Thank you.”

Rome felt like a sore loser as he watched Mr. Miller get off the ground and sat back on the couch.

When madam Rosey's gaze fell on him, she sized up Rome for a while and firmly said, “I don’t like worthless people, so try to make yourself useful while living here. Oh, and Cathrine, since he will be your soon-to-be husband, he’s your problem. Make sure you keep him out of trouble.”

The living room was silent for a moment as Madam Rosey left the room.

Once the sound of her footsteps faded down the hall, a noise rose in every corner of the room.

“Honey, our daughter can’t marry a loser. She is our only child. We can not hand her over to a nobody, especially at such a time.” Cathrine’s mother cried out to her husband.

He then held her in the comfort of his arm and whispered, “Don’t you worry. I will speak to my father. I am sure he too will agree that giving his granddaughter to a valueless man is a terrible decision.”

As her lips curved into a smirk, Chloe approached Catherine, and the moment she saw her cousin walking to her, Catherine’s face darkened, knowing that whatever her cousin had to say was going to be unpleasant.

“So, an underdog for a husband. How ironic! As the saying goes, 'like mother, like daughter.” Chloe teased in a low voice, making sure that only Cathrine could hear those words.

However, Rome was onto her, and even though he didn’t understand what she had said, Cathrine’s sad expression was all he needed to know that Chloe had bad-mouthed her.

“My work here is done.” Mr. Miller said, and those words drew Rome's attention away from the two cousins and onto his father.

“Are you joking? I am not staying here.” Rome mumbled with the utmost seriousness in his voice.

“Stop being stubborn, son. I am in debt, I can’t take care of you. Plus, Mr. Orlando has threatened your life." Mr. Miller firmly said.

"Dad,"

"Becoming the son-in-law to one of the wealthiest families in the country is the only way you can survive. Count it as luck and stop being proud.” 

After letting out a deep sigh, Mr. Miller stood to his feet and walked out of the room, leaving Rome staring behind him.

Hey, you! Let’s go.” Catherine called out, angrily staring at Rome.

It took a second for Rome to snap out of his thoughts and realize that she was speaking to him.

When he noticed that everyone was gazing at him in disgust, he quietly stood to his feet and followed Catherine.

When they arrived in an enormous and elegantly decorated bedroom, Rome shut the door behind him since he was the last to enter before staring at Catherine's cold expression.

“How much will it cost for you to tell my grandfather that your father lied and that the marriage contract is fake?” Catherine boldly asked.