CHAPTER SEVEN.

  DANIELLE'S P.O.V

  Upbeat hip-hop blared from the sound system which was connected to a smart tv that hung on the wall in the center of my bedroom. Layla and Sofia choreographed the moves displayed on the tv screen, moving their bodies in tune with the beat of the music, while Sofia and Alisia flipped through magazines, in search of the best hairstyles everyone would wear tomorrow.

  It was the night of my bachelorette party. The night before the deal between both Adrian's family and mine will be sealed in holy matrimony. The thought of running away had crossed my mind severally during the day but dad's voice from the night of the dinner when he told me of his illness, rang in my head everytime I pondered on the thought, successfully keeping me from going through with the plan.

  It scared me that my first and last shot at marriage was a sham. I had always dreamt of a fairytale marriage for myself. A marriage that would be a result of a fairytale friendship that boomed into something deeper;love.

  I tried very hard to see one good thing about my impending marriage to Adrian, but all I saw was a bleak future ahead of me. I would be a house wife and possibly a stay at home mum to two children and spend the rest of my years as a sad and lonely woman.

Instead of a trip to Vegas, I had convinced my friends all I needed was a quiet night spent doing fun things with them. We spent the day receiving spa treatments, manicures, and pedicures. We had a very busy and fun day and in the evening, we were kicking back and relaxing for the big day tomorrow.

My phone rang, breaking my reverie. I checked the caller ID to see it was Chase calling. He had been calling incessantly all day. I declined the call again and threw my phone on my bed.

My phone rang again and Sofia noticed.

"You have a call, Danielle" she said, handing me the phone.

"Thank you" I said with a tight smile.

I picked up the call, dreading what he had to say.

"Dannie, you've been AWOL. I've been trying to reach out" he said.

"I've been a bit busy"

"I want to talk to you, Dannie. It's very important"

"I'm a bit busy. Let's talk later, when I'm less busy"

I hung up the call and sighed in exasperation.

"What's wrong?" Layla asked, as approached me.

"It's nothing. I'm fine"

"Are you sure?" Sofia asked.

"Yes, I'm sure. Thank you, guys" I told them.

"Come on, cheer up. It's your big day tomorrow" Janelle said.

"Big day" I chuckled.

My phone, which hung limply in my right hand, vibrated.

I checked to see it was a notification of a text message from Chase. Why won't he leave me alone?

Curiously, I checked the text.

I'm outside, let's talk. It read.

I was shocked by the message and barely stopped myself from screaming out in anger. I settled for a text instead.

What?!

C- I'm outside your house.

What do you think you're doing? I'm busy.

C- I'm right outside your window. I could throw stones like the old days.

Don't you dare!. I'll be down soon.

C- I'm waiting.

  I sighed and rolled my eyes.

"I'm going out for some fresh air" I excused myself.

The girls nodded at me as I exited the bedroom, closing the door softly behind me. I walked down the spiral stairs and headed for the flower garden that Dad and I used to take strolls in when I was a little girl. I sat on a stone bench and sent a text message to Chase.

I'm in the garden.

  A few minutes later, I heard footsteps approaching.

"Dannie?" I heard him ask.

"Hey, Chase" I greeted.

He walked up to me and took the empty seat beside me. His smell was the first think I noticed; it has changed.

"You changed your cologne?" I asked.

"I did. I'm glad you haven't completely forgotten me" he said.

"How could I?" I sighed.

  Chase Sinclair was my childhood friend. We grew up doing basically everything together because our fathers were best of friends until his father's death about five years ago.

We went to the same highschool alongside Layla, Janelle, and Sofia. The five of us were practically inseparable until I discovered I had developed romantic feelings for him.

Chase was my first love and my girl friends had encouraged me to confess my feelings to him. I had heeded to their advice and I ended up regretting it as Chase flat out rejected me.

I could still remember the words he said to me that fateful evening.

"Oh Dannie!" he had said.

"I don't see you that way. You're the sister I never had"

The shame of being rejected and family zoned had felt like a slap on my face. I had withdrawn from him after that, in an attempt to get over the three year old crush I had nursed for him. After he went away to college in Europe, we lost contact and I had not bothered to reach out.

Now, he's here to reopen wounds that should be left closed.

"You've been avoiding me" I heard him say.

"I've had years of practice" I said.

He sighed.

"We should not have lost contact. I'm sorry I didn't keep in touch"

"I'm not sorry." I said.

"Why are you so angry with me?" he asked.

"I don't care enough to be angry"

"Ouch! I guess I deserve that"

"What do you want, Chase?" I asked, going straight to the point.

"I heard you're getting married" he said.

"It's no secret" I retorted.

"Do you love him?" Chase asked.

I looked into his eyes as I said "I do".

His face morphed into an expression I could not quite place.

"I'm busy, Chase" I said standing to my feet.

"Dannie, wait" he said grabbing my hand.

"What do you want?" I asked, exhausted with the drama.

"Don't get married to Adrian Valentino" he said.

"What?" I asked.

I was getting really annoyed and at this point, all  I wanted was to go back to my room, crawl into my bed, and get this marriage thing over with.

"What do you mean?" I asked again as he hesitated in giving me an answer.

"Don't get married to him" he repeated.

"Yeah, I heard what you said. I'm asking you why I should not get married to him"

"He's not good for you, I promise"

"Not good for me?" I laughed.

"Dannie, I'm serious. He's not the right person for you"

"Pray, do tell. Who is the right person for me?" I asked.

"Me"

"What?" I asked, incredulously.

This night was taking a more dramatic turn than I expected.

"I promise to take care of you, Dannie"

"Are you in your right mind?"

"I've given it a lot of thought, Dannie. I realize that I love you"

"What happened to me being the sister you never had? Have you conveniently forgotten what you said to me all those years ago?"

"I wasn't thinking then. I was overwhelmed by your confession, so I said those things stupidly. I didn't mean it. I've always loved you Danielle, always."

The night felt like a dream. For years, I dreamt of Chase Sinclair confessing his feelings for me and when he finally did, I could not bring myself to feel the happiness I always thought I would feel from hearing that my first love reciprocated my feelings.

"You're five years late, Chase. Good night" I said coldly.

"Dannie"

"Please leave the premises"

"Danielle, hear me out. I'll make it up to you. I'll do anything you want me to."

"If you do not leave, I'll be forced to ask the guards to escort you"

"Okay, fine. I'll leave"

I heard his footsteps recede as he left the garden. I ran my shaky hands across my face and felt my shoulders shudder in a silent sob. I felt so tired.

"Dannie?" Alisia called.

I was startled by her voice.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yes, yes I am" I replied, as I wiped away from my face the evidence of my crying.

We sat in silence for a while and I wondered how long she had been outside and how much of my conversation with Chase she heard, if she heard it at all.

"I know you and Adrian don't love each other" she said.

Her statement shocked me. It's not like it was a secret that we did not like each other, but I thought we did a good enough job at playing pretend.

"Is it that obvious?"

"You're great at pretending in public, but I know my brother very well. Besides, I know all about the business arrangements between our fathers."

"Oh" I said from lack of a better thing to say.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked.

"Sure, you can"

"Why did you agree to this sham?"

I hesitate for a while before deciding on what to say.

"I did it for my father."

"You must be a good daughter" she said.

"I try"

"This might sound selfish, but I'm happy you're marrying my brother"

"Why?"

"I've always wanted a sister and I can finally have one through your marriage"

"Really?" I asked.

"Really. I want to be your sister as much as I want you to be my sister in law. I know you don't love my brother, but I hope you'll come to love our family" she said.

She smiled at me and for the first time since we started making plans for the wedding, I felt reassured and suddenly, the idea of my marriage did not seem so scary anymore.