WHY ME?

"A few days ago you were so eager to repay my kindness of saving your life but today you couldn't even listen to my plight before rejecting me," Daniel said sadly to Ivy.

"I am sorry but I cannot repay you by providing sexual favors," Ivy replied. "I may be poor and not good enough but I'm not that kind of girl."

"Is that what you think of me?" Daniel asked as he looked at Ivy in disappointment. "You know what? Forget it. Sorry, I brought this up. When Doc comes he will arrange a more suitable job for you. There's no need for us to ever meet each other again. Take care."

As Daniel got up and walked out of the room, he felt more anger toward himself than Ivy. "I should have explained it better to her," he thought. "I’m such an idiot. "She obviously misunderstood me. Why did I even get angry?"

Meanwhile, Ivy felt bad when Daniel walked out the door. "I should have allowed him to finish speaking before explaining my stand," she thought.

Fearing that he will be added to the list of people who hated her, she ran after him and asked him to stop.

Daniel was surprised to see Ivy running after him, he stopped and asked her what she wanted.

She said, "I am very sorry for the way I spoke and for not waiting for you to explain to the end. Please tell me why you want to sign a one-year marriage contract with me.

Okay."

"Let's head back to the room first," Daniel said.

When they were both seated in their initial positions, Daniel continued. "First of all, let me tell you about my identity so that you can understand my situation. As I already said before, my name is Daniel Raymond, my father is King Charles Raymon.

I am the crowned prince and only heir to the throne. I've been schooling in London for the past seven years and came back a few weeks ago when I completed my program. My coronation is a few months away and as per tradition, I have to get married before I ascend the throne. I've never considered marriage before, in fact, I haven't been close to any woman before. Except for my mum, you have been the closest so far."

Ivy initially thought he was joking but when she recalled the way everyone treated him downstairs, she realized he was being serious. She remembered the things she had said earlier on and felt like laughing at herself.

Here she was thinking he wanted to take advantage of her when she was worthless. A man like him could get any girl he wanted. Beads of sweat formed on her face when she thought of the possibility that he could still be mad at her for speaking out of turn.

She immediately went on her knees and bowing to him, she said, "If I have in any way offended you, your Highness, please forgive me."

Daniel frowned, "there's no need to be unnecessarily dramatic. I especially dislike all these formalities, more so from people close to me so, I don't want to ever see it again."

"Yes your Highness," Ivy replied.

"And please, revert to calling me Daniel," he added. "It makes me more comfortable."

"Yes your highness, I mean Daniel," Ivy said before sitting back. "But, someone like you can get any girl to sign your one-year contract. Why would you pick a worthless person like me who has been a slave all her life and was even rejected by her husband?"

"That is enough," Daniel replied. "I never want to hear you describe yourself that way again. You are not worthless. You were just unfortunate. As I was saying, I don't want to get married but since it is necessary for me to have a bride, I want you to act like my fiancée. I'll take you to my parents and present you to them, then we will get married. A few months after I become king, I'll pretend to be extremely upset with you and we'll get divorced.

That will be the end of our contract. After which I will pay you the sum of ten million dollars and set you up in a fashion school in Paris. It's a three-year course. After you are done with the course, I'll assist you to set up your own fashion business, that way you will become your own boss.

You will never have to work for anyone ever again. You can travel to any country of your choice, whenever you want. All those who have looked down on you won't even be able to stand before you.

And, during the time we are married, you just have to act in front of others like my parents, other family members, and friends. Between the both of us, there will be no relationship other than friendship and definitely no intimacy so you can be rest assured that my intentions toward you are not impure. So what do you say?"

Ivy stared at him for a while before asking, "Why me? I'm sure there are much better options out there. Besides, I don't know how to lie, I can't pretend before all those people. You've also forgotten the fact that I'm uneducated and my fashion sense is zero. People will easily discover my background and I'll bring disgrace to you."

Daniel smiled before saying, "First of all, I choose you because you have the personality I require for this role, as for the other excuses you gave, I already told my parents that you were schooling in Paris so I have almost three months to prepare you to appear before them.

Even though you are uneducated, you still speak very well so I'll get someone to brush you up.

Within these three months, you'll be given a full makeover, you will be taught important etiquette, how to speak more eloquently, how to dress elegantly, and how to act. Do not worry, you will feel very adequate when I'm done with you. So, do you still refuse to help me?"

"How can I bear to refuse?" Ivy asked. "Still, everything seems so surreal."

"So, can I take that as a yes? Daniel asked.

"Yes, I'll do it," Ivy replied.

"I promise that you won't regret it. For these three months, you will stay here in Doc's house and this will be your room. After your training, you will move to the palace where you will begin your Job. I'll get the contract drawn up tonight and bring it over tomorrow for us to sign after which your tutors will begin your training. And also, I'll visit every day to check on your progress."

When Daniel finished speaking, he got up and began to leave. When he got to the door, he turned and said, "Remember, Ivy; Whatever you need, do not forget to let the maid who has been assigned to you know in my absence. I am really counting on you, please don't let me down."

Ivy thought about the future that Daniel laid before her and felt extremely fortunate. Aby had told her that she would never amount to anything in life and she will never be more than a slave but today Daniel was giving her the opportunity to become a Queen.

Even though it was a farce and for a short period of time, she was aware that she was least qualified. She could not understand why Daniel had picked her, a pair of broken shoes but more than that, she felt guilty that she was going to lie to Daniel’s parents; the King and the Queen.