2. Mr. Arrogant, Much?

-Leia-

My boss is thrilled to hear my answer, of course. He will pay the ten million to me quarterly, with the first payment after I sign the papers. I doubt I’ll even need any more after the first payment, but if I’m going to be married to that ass, then I think I deserve it.

“Thank you for this, Leia. I’m sure Christian will come around under your care,” he says with a soft smile.

Oh, shoot. I forgot about that little part of the agreement; I have to literally tame his unruly son! Crap, how am I going to do that? I don’t know the first thing about getting an arrogant jerk to heel.

What the hell have you let yourself in for, Leia!

“I’m sure he will,” I say with a withering smile and immediately regret saying yes to this. I don’t like Christian one bit and he doesn’t exactly have a soft spot for me since I literally threw scalding water on his crotch. 

Maybe Delilah will have some tips for me.

“Oh, I forgot to mention. Join us for dinner tonight at the estate so we can go over the agreement with Christian and what it entails. Olivia and I will be delighted to have you over,” he says and my heart literally drops into my stomach.

Dinner with the Moores. What a great way to spend a Monday night.

“S-sure!” I answer way too happily and wishing the ground would swallow me whole. This day just gets better and better.

“Perfect! I’ll send a car over to collect you at 7 pm. Thank you again, Leia.” 

The sincere smile on his face makes me feel a little guilty about all of this. He only wants to help his son get on the right track and is counting on me to help him out. What did he see in me that made him think I’m the right candidate for this?

I wish I could see it too. 

My stomach is in tight knots the rest of the day and by the time 7 pm rolls around, I’m dressed up and ready to vomit. I’m so not prepared for this, so not prepared to face these wealthy people to sign on the dotted line and give my life away for ten million.

But I have to do it. I have to do it for her.

“Well, what do you think, Klaus?” I ask my black cat while staring at him in the mirror. “Does this scream ‘wife’ to you?”

Klaus lifts his head, licks his paw, and proceeds to look at me with his tongue still out. “Yeah, that’s what I thought,” I say and roll my eyes before giving his head a scritch and heading downstairs. 

A fancy as heck car picks me up at my apartment soon after and we make our way to the Moore Estate. 

It’s beautiful, of course. A stately villa situated in the middle of sprawling gardens, an actual stone angel fountain, a cobblestone driveway, and twin staircases leading to the villa doorstep. It’s not too over the top, even the interior design is stately, but modest. The epitome of Alexander Moore.

“There she is,” comes the voice of my boss just as I shrug off my coat to reveal a figure-hugging black above-the-knee dress. 

I didn’t want to overdress tonight, so I chose my best dress, a pair of platform heels and light makeup with my hair done in an elegant braid over my left shoulder. The dress itself shows no cleavage, but it doesn’t need to. 

Alexander walks out to greet me with his beautiful wife, Olivia. She’s his second wife, his first one passed away a long time ago, but he dotes on her. She’s the sweetest, most kind woman too, and owns a bespoke interior decorating firm. 

“Good evening, Mr. Moore, Mrs. Moore,” I greet them with a light embrace and kiss their cheeks. “You have a lovely home.”

“Why thank you, Leia, all Olivia’s work, of course,” he compliments her, and she gushes, a little blush forming on the balls of her cheeks. 

“Oh, Alex,” she chuckles and waves her hand about, then gestures to the dining room area. “Please, Christian shouldn’t be too long now.”

What? He’s not here yet?

I nod and give an uncomfortable smile while she leads us to the dining room. Alexander takes the seat at the head, while his wife sits to the left of him, they set a place for Christian to sit next to him and me next to Christian. 

But an hour into the dinner and he hasn’t even arrived yet.

Alexander pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs. “I apologize for my son’s tardiness, Leia-”

The whirlwind that is Christian Moore saunters in, looking devastatingly gorgeous in his signature Tom Ford suit. Dark blonde hair, blue eyes, day-old stubble, the obviously gorgeous body underneath everything, and when he sits down next to me, he smells as good as he looks. Woodsy, with a mix of spice and dark leather; no doubt a Tom Ford fragrance. 

“Apologies, I had a conference call that ran late,” he says to his father and nods towards him. Then he turns to me, regards me with a dismissive gaze, and looks away.

Wow. What an ass.

I see the annoyed tick underneath Alexander’s eye and know that he’s not too happy with his son, but he decides to bite the bullet and leave him be. This dinner is supposed to be about our marriage and the terms and conditions attached to it. Showing up late just proves he doesn’t want this any more than I do.

The dinner passes in uncomfortable silence, and after the four-course meal, Olivia guides us to another room for a few drinks. 

Alexander hands me a glass of wine and takes a seat opposite me. “Now, we’ve spoken to both of you and you’ve agreed to this-”

“Not by choice - you’re literally dangling my inheritance in front of my face,” Christian quips, pouring himself an amber-colored liquid. “And as you know, my company is in its infantile stages and cannot afford the expenses without your help.”

Wait, what? Alexander is threatening to cut him off? It doesn’t look like this will be a happy marriage after all, not that I was counting on it, anyway. But threatening to cut off his inheritence? Man, that’s rough.

Alexander sighs and shakes his head. “This is for your own good, Christian. You’re reckless and running our name into the ground. Leia, who you’ve ignored the entire evening, has offered to help get your life on track!”

Oh, gosh. I feel a family fight coming on, especially when Christian scoffs and downs the glass of alcohol. 

“I’m sure her help comes with a price. Am I right, Red?” he says, finally acknowledging me with a scowl. “How much did he offer you, hm?”

I blink at the venom behind his tone and choke out, “Ten million,” to which he chuckles darkly and shakes his head.

“Wow, that wasn’t cheap at all. Ten million to sort your son out over the course of two years, father?” he says, downing another glass. “Fine, you get what you want. After two years, I want nothing else to do with this.”

When he says ‘this’ he gestures towards me, then turns on his heel and storms out of the room. The front door slams and for some reason, I swallow my pride and follow him out.