Emily' POV:
We made eye contact and I saw his eyes widen in surprise. Wait? He didn't know who he was marrying either? Why did he even agree then?
"Patrick! Morgan! What a pleasure to meet you again!" my mother exclaimed, greeting my 'future in-laws'.
"The pleasure is all ours, Stella."
Are my eyes playing tricks on me or did Jason just flinch?
"How are you holding up, Steve?" Mr. Stag asked.
"I'm surviving. For how long I don't know. That's why I'm rushing things a bit."
"I understand. I understand."
“Emilia, Grayson come here,” my father called.
We moved forward.
“You already know our son Gray who is currently running the company,” my mother introduced while the men shook hands. Gray then kissed Morgan’s hand.
“This is our daughter Emilia, your future daughter-in-law.”
“Pleasure to meet you and please call me Emily.”
“The pleasure is all ours. You are even more beautiful than the last time we saw you.”
I was surprised, they knew me from before?
“You probably don’t remember us. You were very young, the last time. We regularly visited your parents. You absolutely loved to play with my hair.”
“As for me you loved my beard,” Patrick added, laughing.
Now that they mention it, I do remember them. It’s been so long though.
“I apologise I didn’t recognise you at first. It’s been quite long.”
“That’s fine. We’re surprised you even remember us.”
“You can never forget silk hair,” I replied with a smile.
They both smiled back.
“We almost forgot. This is our son Jason.”
Jason barely nodded at us. Is he alright? Is he silent because our parents are here?
"Why don't we move to the dining room? We can talk over dinner."
"Of course."
They all filed in. I was about to follow but Gray held me back.
"Em! What's going on? I thought you were supposed to scream bloody murder."
"I didn't make the connection when you said Stag earlier. I am marrying Jason Stag?" I whispered back.
"I thought it was obvious. They only have two sons but the older one recently lost his girlfriend, obviously it wouldn't be him. So it only leaves Jason."
"You do realise while I was away, I was NOT following the New York news, right?"
"Oh right. I might have forgotten that tiny detail."
I sighed.
"Whatever. This is actually good news. We might not have to go with the plan."
"What? Now that you know you are marrying New York's most eligible bachelor, you're considering marriage."
"What? No! We know each other. I'll persuade him not to marry me. But is he really New York's most eligible bachelor?"
"Em! Focus on the matter at hand!"
"Right, sorry."
"How are you even going to persuade him? You can't just say, hey Jason! It's been a while. Please don't marry me," he said in a high-pitch voice.
"One: I don't speak like that. Two: That was my plan, yes."
"What?! Are you nuts?"
"No. I'm Emily! And I'm also kidding. Just trust me, little bro."
"Not the moment!"
"Oh, you know you love it. Now follow me."
I walked towards the opposite of the dining room.
“Um, where are we going?”
“Anywhere but the dining room.”
“What? Are you running away? I do think ‘The Runaway Fiancée’ is a much better heading than whatever the press might write if you two do get married.”
“No, I’m not running away and I won’t marry him either.”
“What are we doing here? The library, really? I don’t think books can help you with this one."
"Books always help but that’s not why I came here. We can go now."
"What? We barely spent a second in there. What’s your aim here?"
"Nothing much. Now when we enter, I want you to try not to look surprised."
"Okay?"
We entered the dining room.
“Finally! What took the two of you so long? If Jason was late I would assume he got lost. You two live here.”
“Lived. I haven’t been here in three years, mother. I mistook this room with another one and Gray redirected me here.”
I don’t lie. Half-truths are ok though.
“It’s fine, Stella. We have plenty of time to chat. The kids have to get to know each other after all.”
That will be my best chance to dissuade him. I took a seat beside Gray which was right in front of Jason. I smiled at him but he flat out ignored me and looked away.
“Let’s eat first!” my mother exclaimed. She clapped her hands twice and maids brought food to the table. There were several dishes but none of what I had texted her. I sighed. I should have known. She was just trying to play nice because of the engagement.
“So, Gray! How’s business?”
“It’s doing great. Thank you for your investment by the way.”
“Oh that was all Jason. I only found out about it after the procedures were done.”
We both looked at our father. He kept eating, not looking up even once. He was telling the truth after all. Why didn’t he argue further? He hated being blamed unnecessarily.
“What about you Emily? How was your trip?”
“I really enjoyed it. I learned a lot.”
“That’s great! What is your plan career-wise? Your mother mentioned you modelled. Do you plan on continuing now that you’re back.”
“No. Modelling was only a part time job until I finished my studies. I’ll continue running my company.”
“Oh! I didn’t know you worked in the family business.”
“I don’t. I run my own company. You might have heard of it. Comfort & Style.”
“I thought it was owned by Rose Jones.”
“She’s my vice and was replacing me while I was on my trip. We had just started when I left and had not attracted the interest of the press yet. I was long gone by the time they started enquiring who was behind our rising company. When they revealed Rose's identity we both decided to let her be the face of the business. But I’m the one who takes the final decisions.”
“Well maybe you two can merge your companies after marriage,” Morgan suggested.
“We’ll see.”
“On the topic of marriage, we were thinking of performing the ceremony next week. Steve has been growing weaker by the day. We want to do it as soon as possible.”
“Next week will be fine.”
No, it’s not. Gray nudged me, telling me to bring it up but I just couldn’t yet. I had to talk to Jason first.
“Is it okay if Jason and I had a talk privately before we decide the date of the wedding!”
Jason finally spared me a glance. My mother sent me a pointed look but Morgan replied before she could say anything.
“Of course, dear.”
“Excuse us.”
I stood up and waited for Jason. His mother glared at him and he glared back before eventually standing up. I led him to the porch outside.
“Finally, some fresh air,” I said, taking a deep breath. I was met with silence. He was looking at the stars, completely ignoring me.
“We’re alone now. No need to be formal.”
He looked at me before sighing. He then continued staring at the stars. Okay…
“I’ll be honest. I only found out I was getting engaged today and I didn’t know to whom either. It was only when you came that I found out.”
He nodded. I sighed. This was not the reaction I was expecting.
“Look, I didn’t agree to this and I’m sure you didn’t have much of a choice either. How about we tell them we want to cancel.”
“We’re getting engaged whether we like it or not. End of story.”
Jason’s POV: A FEW DAYS AGO: Shots were flying around. A high pitch scream. Pieces of conversations. A broken whisper. “BANG! NO! Please… don’t… forget… past love.” I jolted awake out of breath, beads of sweat sliding down my temple. I was panting heavily and took some time to situate. I threw the covers to the side and walked to the bathroom. I repeatedly splashed my face with water. Grabbing a towel, I applied as much pressure as I could. The urge to scream overtook me and I just- “Aaaarrrggghhh!!!” I sighed in relief. Much better. I stared at myself in the mirror, now I get how she must have felt after Art’s death. I sighed. Art… I know I should check on him but the guilt just won’t stop taunting me. I stepped under the shower and everything came rushing back. Flashback: We were gathered in the waiting room. It had been hours since they brought Ela in. The doctor said there was close to no chance but we still had a little hope left. Finally, the door opened and his expression
Jason’s POV: Now here I was in front of Emily. The one girl that managed to catch my attention three years ago was the one I was about to marry. I did not even get the chance to tell El about her. We had been so busy the last few weeks after the fundraiser I didn’t get the chance to bring it up. I could have proven to her that I was able to get a girlfriend after all. Emily and I were currently on the porch. She was currently trying to persuade me to call off the engagement. How do I explain to her that I equally don’t want to marry a stranger but I don’t have a choice. I promised her father and I don’t go back on my word. I sighed. He practically saved my life this is the least I could do to repay the debt. I simply couldn’t refuse when he asked me the other day. “We’re getting engaged whether we like it or not. End of story.” “What?” I turned to head back inside. “Jason? Jason? Come on. Help me out here.” I ignored her and continued to walk. “Listen to me for God’s sake!” she
Emily's POV: An hour after the Stags’ departure, Gray and I were laying on my bed staring at the ceiling. What to do now? If it was a family that I did not know, I would have made sure they deemed me unfit but I have a great respect for the Stag family. Although we have not met for quite a long time, I still have good memories of them. “Em?” I hummed in response. “What’s your plan now?” “I have to think.” “Why are we not going for the already formulated plan again?” “Because I respect them too much and I’m glad we’re back in touch. I just wished it was in a different way.” “So what now?” “I just said I have to think.” “Well think fast. You only have one week.” “Oh really? I didn’t know that.” “Now is not the time to be sarcastic. We have to be strategic.” “Why are you so adamant on me not getting married? You seemed so interested in my non-existent love life earlier, you should be happy I have someone.” “I want someone whom you love and makes you happy. Not someone mom
“What?”His whole demeanor changed.“Why? I thought we were rebelling together!”“What if I don’t want to rebel?”“What do you mean?”“Remember the sparks guy…”“Don’t tell me- ““It’s Jason,” we both said at the same time. The only difference was his tone was one of disbelief and mine was of resignation.“You gotta be kidding me.”“Unfortunately, no.”“Are the feelings even mutual?”“Unfortunately, no.”“So he does not love you?”“Unfortunately, no.”“Can you stop saying ‘unfortunately no’?”“Unfortunately…”“God dang it!”“I was going to say yes. I’m trying to improve my mood by ruining yours. Let me have this.”“I love you a lot sis but I’m not going to entertain this.”“Party pooper,” I said pouting.“There’s no party.”“It’s a pity party.”He sighed and I smiled.“See it’s working. You’re sighing and I’m smiling.”“What did I do to deserve this?”“A lot of good obviously. You’re so lucky to have me,” I said flipping my hair like a diva. Even I’m cringing at my actions.“Luck? You
“Here! All done!” the make-up artist exclaimed. “Thanks,” I replied with a small smile. I’ve been trying to make myself seem happy but I just can’t. As you must have guessed, I’m getting married today. Yay! What was supposed to be the happiest day of my life was turning out to be the worst. Nothing was of my choice. Neither this extravagant venue, nor this annoyingly fluffy dress, nor these thousand of strangers as guests and definitely not the groom. What did I ever do to deserve this life? A loveless life. I was not loved by my parents and I would not be loved by my husband. He made it very clear. “I can provide you with anything you want but don’t ever expect me to love you.” If we would have been strangers this would not have been anything new but if after only one meeting I felt so many sparks, what would happen if we live together. “Emily! Let’s go! It’s time!”I mustered my most convincing smile and nodded. Time to sell my life away. I stepped out to find my father waiting
Emily's POV: I woke up to my alarm, I rolled onto my back staring at the ceiling. It felt so great waking up alone in my brother’s guestroom, one day after my wedding. Note the sarcasm. I never dreamed of the grand wedding and all the fairy tale bullsh*t. The one thing I dreamed about was someone to make a house our home. I guess it was too much to ask. I heard a faint knock on my door. “Em? You awake?” “Yeah, come in,” I replied my voice void of any emotion. He cracked the door open and peeked in. “Welcome to the kingdom of the unlovable.” “Don’t be like that. I love you.” “You might be the only one.” He sat on the side of the bed looking at me, worry flooding his eyes. “He’s a jerk for not even trying to love you. You’re amazing.” “Thanks, little bro.” “No fair! I can’t even tell you not to call me that.” “You can but it’s not like I would listen.” He gave me a look. I was about to talk but he cut me off. “Don’t you use the ‘I’m low’ card.” I grinned but it soon faded.
Emily’s POV: I sat there watching everyone crying and I sighed. Am I a horrible daughter if I’m not shedding tears? The only thing making me sad is seeing Gray sad. “Son, thank you for coming.” I looked up to see my mother hugging my ‘husband’. I’m tired of the self-pitying so might as well ignore him. “Emily come greet him. He had a long flight.” I internally rolled my eyes. It’s like she does it on purpose. I stood up reluctantly and walked to him. I plastered my fakest sad smile. Seeing he was holding a briefcase, I turned on actress mode. “Let me take that for you.” I grabbed the briefcase from him and our hands brushed sending sparks through my hands. Bad idea! Abort mission. “Get him settled in the guestroom.” I nodded and gestured for him to follow me. I made eye contact with Gray on my way out and he sent me a sympathetic look. I walked up the stairs and the sound of his footsteps assured me he was following behind. Unlike what I expected the silence between us was c
A series of shots rang out and Ela dropped to her knees.“NO!” Art’s scream pierced through the building. Ela slowly brought her hand to her stomach and blood covered her fingers. She fell onto her side and Art quickly bent down bringing her onto his lap. Jason took her hand in his.“Come on El! Stay with me! The team will be here soon! Just a few more minutes. Stay with me, please!”“You can’t do this El! We have to celebrate our victory! You promised! You freaking promised me!”Tears were flowing down their faces and they were struggling to speak. Suddenly, Ela’s face morphed with anger. Everything around faded. It was just the two of them now. She stood up and pushed Jason away hard.“I saved you but you couldn’t save me. I trusted you!”“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”“You’re pathetic and weak! How could you let me die? You should have tried harder!”“I did. El please-““You never could do anything useful, could you? Why are you still here? I shouldn’t have saved you! You should have di
Emily’s POV: I sat there watching everyone crying and I sighed. Am I a horrible daughter if I’m not shedding tears? The only thing making me sad is seeing Gray sad. “Son, thank you for coming.” I looked up to see my mother hugging my ‘husband’. I’m tired of the self-pitying so might as well ignore him. “Emily come greet him. He had a long flight.” I internally rolled my eyes. It’s like she does it on purpose. I stood up reluctantly and walked to him. I plastered my fakest sad smile. Seeing he was holding a briefcase, I turned on actress mode. “Let me take that for you.” I grabbed the briefcase from him and our hands brushed sending sparks through my hands. Bad idea! Abort mission. “Get him settled in the guestroom.” I nodded and gestured for him to follow me. I made eye contact with Gray on my way out and he sent me a sympathetic look. I walked up the stairs and the sound of his footsteps assured me he was following behind. Unlike what I expected the silence between us was c
Emily's POV: I woke up to my alarm, I rolled onto my back staring at the ceiling. It felt so great waking up alone in my brother’s guestroom, one day after my wedding. Note the sarcasm. I never dreamed of the grand wedding and all the fairy tale bullsh*t. The one thing I dreamed about was someone to make a house our home. I guess it was too much to ask. I heard a faint knock on my door. “Em? You awake?” “Yeah, come in,” I replied my voice void of any emotion. He cracked the door open and peeked in. “Welcome to the kingdom of the unlovable.” “Don’t be like that. I love you.” “You might be the only one.” He sat on the side of the bed looking at me, worry flooding his eyes. “He’s a jerk for not even trying to love you. You’re amazing.” “Thanks, little bro.” “No fair! I can’t even tell you not to call me that.” “You can but it’s not like I would listen.” He gave me a look. I was about to talk but he cut me off. “Don’t you use the ‘I’m low’ card.” I grinned but it soon faded.
“Here! All done!” the make-up artist exclaimed. “Thanks,” I replied with a small smile. I’ve been trying to make myself seem happy but I just can’t. As you must have guessed, I’m getting married today. Yay! What was supposed to be the happiest day of my life was turning out to be the worst. Nothing was of my choice. Neither this extravagant venue, nor this annoyingly fluffy dress, nor these thousand of strangers as guests and definitely not the groom. What did I ever do to deserve this life? A loveless life. I was not loved by my parents and I would not be loved by my husband. He made it very clear. “I can provide you with anything you want but don’t ever expect me to love you.” If we would have been strangers this would not have been anything new but if after only one meeting I felt so many sparks, what would happen if we live together. “Emily! Let’s go! It’s time!”I mustered my most convincing smile and nodded. Time to sell my life away. I stepped out to find my father waiting
“What?”His whole demeanor changed.“Why? I thought we were rebelling together!”“What if I don’t want to rebel?”“What do you mean?”“Remember the sparks guy…”“Don’t tell me- ““It’s Jason,” we both said at the same time. The only difference was his tone was one of disbelief and mine was of resignation.“You gotta be kidding me.”“Unfortunately, no.”“Are the feelings even mutual?”“Unfortunately, no.”“So he does not love you?”“Unfortunately, no.”“Can you stop saying ‘unfortunately no’?”“Unfortunately…”“God dang it!”“I was going to say yes. I’m trying to improve my mood by ruining yours. Let me have this.”“I love you a lot sis but I’m not going to entertain this.”“Party pooper,” I said pouting.“There’s no party.”“It’s a pity party.”He sighed and I smiled.“See it’s working. You’re sighing and I’m smiling.”“What did I do to deserve this?”“A lot of good obviously. You’re so lucky to have me,” I said flipping my hair like a diva. Even I’m cringing at my actions.“Luck? You
Emily's POV: An hour after the Stags’ departure, Gray and I were laying on my bed staring at the ceiling. What to do now? If it was a family that I did not know, I would have made sure they deemed me unfit but I have a great respect for the Stag family. Although we have not met for quite a long time, I still have good memories of them. “Em?” I hummed in response. “What’s your plan now?” “I have to think.” “Why are we not going for the already formulated plan again?” “Because I respect them too much and I’m glad we’re back in touch. I just wished it was in a different way.” “So what now?” “I just said I have to think.” “Well think fast. You only have one week.” “Oh really? I didn’t know that.” “Now is not the time to be sarcastic. We have to be strategic.” “Why are you so adamant on me not getting married? You seemed so interested in my non-existent love life earlier, you should be happy I have someone.” “I want someone whom you love and makes you happy. Not someone mom
Jason’s POV: Now here I was in front of Emily. The one girl that managed to catch my attention three years ago was the one I was about to marry. I did not even get the chance to tell El about her. We had been so busy the last few weeks after the fundraiser I didn’t get the chance to bring it up. I could have proven to her that I was able to get a girlfriend after all. Emily and I were currently on the porch. She was currently trying to persuade me to call off the engagement. How do I explain to her that I equally don’t want to marry a stranger but I don’t have a choice. I promised her father and I don’t go back on my word. I sighed. He practically saved my life this is the least I could do to repay the debt. I simply couldn’t refuse when he asked me the other day. “We’re getting engaged whether we like it or not. End of story.” “What?” I turned to head back inside. “Jason? Jason? Come on. Help me out here.” I ignored her and continued to walk. “Listen to me for God’s sake!” she
Jason’s POV: A FEW DAYS AGO: Shots were flying around. A high pitch scream. Pieces of conversations. A broken whisper. “BANG! NO! Please… don’t… forget… past love.” I jolted awake out of breath, beads of sweat sliding down my temple. I was panting heavily and took some time to situate. I threw the covers to the side and walked to the bathroom. I repeatedly splashed my face with water. Grabbing a towel, I applied as much pressure as I could. The urge to scream overtook me and I just- “Aaaarrrggghhh!!!” I sighed in relief. Much better. I stared at myself in the mirror, now I get how she must have felt after Art’s death. I sighed. Art… I know I should check on him but the guilt just won’t stop taunting me. I stepped under the shower and everything came rushing back. Flashback: We were gathered in the waiting room. It had been hours since they brought Ela in. The doctor said there was close to no chance but we still had a little hope left. Finally, the door opened and his expression
Emily' POV: We made eye contact and I saw his eyes widen in surprise. Wait? He didn't know who he was marrying either? Why did he even agree then? "Patrick! Morgan! What a pleasure to meet you again!" my mother exclaimed, greeting my 'future in-laws'. "The pleasure is all ours, Stella." Are my eyes playing tricks on me or did Jason just flinch? "How are you holding up, Steve?" Mr. Stag asked. "I'm surviving. For how long I don't know. That's why I'm rushing things a bit." "I understand. I understand." “Emilia, Grayson come here,” my father called. We moved forward. “You already know our son Gray who is currently running the company,” my mother introduced while the men shook hands. Gray then kissed Morgan’s hand. “This is our daughter Emilia, your future daughter-in-law.” “Pleasure to meet you and please call me Emily.” “The pleasure is all ours. You are even more beautiful than the last time we saw you.” I was surprised, they knew me from before? “You probably don’t rem
Flashback: I was sipping my wine, leaning against a wall, trying to attract the minimum attention possible. JAE often organised fundraisers which I only attended to be able to make donations under my name without drawing the attention of the press. I could easily merge in the crowd. Having the opportunity to meet investors is always a plus but most of the men approached me because of my looks. That’s why I was currently hiding. Not a very good hiding spot I know but it’s the best I could get. One step into the bathroom and I almost suffocated with the amount of perfume in the air. So, the next best thing is merging with the wall. My gown being beige was an advantage as all the walls were the exact same hue but it was extremely comfortable. Even having been a past model, dresses were never my thing. I’m mostly in jeans and pants for the office. Why did we even have to wear ball gowns? We ran businesses, not kingdoms! They could have gone with normal professional attire. “What’s a be