CHAPTER FOUR: IS THIS A PRANK?

Winnie.

"Will you marry me?" He asked. 

There were a million words I imagined were about to come out of Ares Masters mouth. The most persistent thought I had had though was that he was about to proposition me for sex to which I was going to give him a very sound no and shame him for being such a creep.

I was already having a shit day, the last thing I needed was for some man to start making gross attempts to get me into his moldy bed.  

I would never have imagined that this was what he was about to say though. Not even in my wildest dreams was this a possibility. 

"Excuse me?" I asked. 

I waited for him to laugh or brush it off, but his expression remained serious and determined. 

"I don't like to repeat myself, but I'll excuse you because you don't know any better. Will you marry me, Miss Hugh?" 

I let out a peal of deranged laughter. "Are you messing with me?" 

He didn't dignify the question with a response and I just knew that this man was dead serious. Or crazy. One of the two. I was leaning more towards the second option though. 

"How do you know I'm not married already?" I asked in challenge. 

"Are you?" He cocked his head at me. 

"No, but-"

"Now I know, that's settled." He cut in. 

I bit my tongue to hold back the retort that was threatening to burst out. He was so arrogant. Who did he think he was interrupting me and acting all high handed and mighty. Just because he was rich, it didn't mean that he owned the whole world and me. 

"What does me being in debt and homeless have to do with it? Why did you lead with that?" I asked curiously. 

He looked at me like I was obtuse. I wanted to claw his gorgeous eyes out. 

"Because I have money and you need money. What I need, however is a wife, and you are a single woman. It's practically a done deal." 

I scoffed, hating the way I came off as being desperate to him. 

His eyes narrowed at me. "Half a million dollars." 

My mouth dropped open soundlessly. Half a million dollars? What? That was more money than I had ever made or handled in my life. Was this normal? Ares looked wealthy, but the way he had just uttered the sum, in a slightly bored tone like such an amount meant nothing to him was staggering. While I was over here feeling my head go woozy from the sum.

I laughed hysterically. I had no idea why I was laughing. This must be a dream. This didn't happen in real life. Men that looked like they had just stepped out the pages of a GQ magazine didn't go around offering money and marriage to strange women. 

He studied me intently, I couldn't tell what he was thinking but I felt like a rab lat under his gaze. Did this man ever show any emotion? It was disconcerting how blank he looked all the time. Like he had locked up all of his feelings and emotions in a steel vault and thrown away the keys. 

"A million then." He said. "That's my final offer. But we'll have to get married tomorrow and you'll move in with me. Don't worry, I don't expect you to be shackled to me for life. The marriage will be dissolved after a space of a year." 

What the hell was he even talking about? Marriage? Moving in together? Divorce? 

Ares could have anybody he wanted, I was sure women were lining down the block in all directions to propose to him. A man like him wouldn't ever be lacking in female company and attention. He looked like a freaking Greek God, and if he actually had a million dollars to throw away, then he could practically have his pick of almost anyone in the world. 

So that begged the question, why exactly was he asking me? It was extremely suspicious, and I had just come out the other side of trusting a man with a kind smile, I wasn't falling for this. 

He continued speaking. "While we are married, I'll foot all your bills and cover all of your expenses. We'll have to attend a few occasions together and be seen in public for a while. It's a marriage in name only so you can stop looking at me like I want to steal your virtue. I'm not interested in bedding you, but you'll have to stay faithful for the duration of the marriage. I wouldn't want anybody blackmailing me because of a cheating scandal. I've covered everything. Do you have questions." 

I shook my head, convinced without doubt that this man was crazy. 

"Perfect then. We can-" 

"There's no we. There's me, Winnie and then there's you, Ares." I said. "Once those doors open, I'm going to walk out of here and you're not going to follow me. I don't know what kind of crazy shit you're into, but I'm not interested." 

"You're not?" He looked truly baffled and I couldn't help but laugh. 

The elevator groaned and began it's descent at that perfect moment and I sighed in relief. I couldn't wait to get away from this man. 

"You will not marry me?"

"No, thanks for the offer, but no." I clarified. 

He dug out a cheque book from his breast pocket and immediately scribbled something on it before ripping out the single page. The doors began to slide open and just as I turned to scurry away, he folded the paper and tucked it into the pocket of my jacket. 

"Yes, you will Miss Hugh." He stepped past me. "I'll find you." 

I stood frozen for a second and by the time I whirled around, he was gone like he had never been there. I wondered if he was a figment of my imagination, a product of my stressed brain making up fantastical conversations. But when I dug my hand into my pocket and pulled the paper out, I knew it hadn't all been in my head. 

There had really been a mouth wateringly attractive man stuck on that elevator with me. He had really asked me to marry him, and he had truly written me a cheque for a million dollars.