Chapter 1: Arranged Marriage

A man with elegance and a strikingly handsome face entered a grand cuisine and walked straight to the area specially reserved for him. He was wearing a cocktail slim fit tailored dark suit paired with a dress shirt, a slim tie, and polished black shoes. He sat down with flair as he splendidly stretched his left arm and looked at his watch.

His exquisite brown eyes darted from side to side. He moistened his lips and swallowed hard. He took a deep breath as he was starting to get impatient already. It was now exactly seven in the evening but his date was still out of sight. His knitted eyebrows released a cold aura emanating a powerful brooding air that outmoded the warm atmosphere of the cuisine.

Andrew Bradford is the most perfect man that a woman would ever meet. A man of a complete package - rich, young and handsome. It’s his 28th birthday, and as far as he was concerned, his date was the one who initiated to have dinner with him on this special day.

Right, he was waiting for Amanda Collins. The daughter of her mom’s best friend that was destined to be his wife. 

His memory two years ago flashbacked in his mind. It was his 26th birthday when they announced the arranged marriage to Mandy.

“I don’t want to get married!” The seventeen-year-old Mandy screamed. Her face flushing in anger.

“Mandy, listen to me.” Her mom, Janeth Collins, was trying to pacify her.

“No, Mom. How could you do this to me? You know well that I don’t want to get married.” Pain and disappointment were written all over her face when she learned that she’s going to marry Andrew Bradford, the only son of her mom’s best friend. 

“I was just thinking of your future, sweetheart. Please-” Janeth Collins was trying to explain, but Mandy interrupted her.

“No!” Mandy screamed once more as she shoved the glasses and plates on the table before she ran out of the house.

She was so mad. She couldn’t believe that her mom would arrange a marriage for her.

Andrew's phone suddenly chimed that returned his thought. He gritted his teeth. It's been more than an hour already. He fretfully stood up and walked out of the place full of resentment.

Amanda Collins or Mandy is a stunningly gorgeous, and smart college student. She was known as ‘beauty and brain but heartless’, a man-hater, playgirl, and a spoiled brat. However, she doesn't care whatever names they want to call her.

She’s playful and never really wanted a commitment. She has a lot of suitors but she never took them seriously because she hates every man. She only dated them to play with their feelings.

For her, only a loser fell in love. That love was only between a mother and her child. It was all because she grew up without a father.

According to her mom, Janeth Collins, she loved her father so much. However, it was a one-sided love affair. Since she was deeply in love with her father at that time, she did not mind even if he did not love her. She just hoped that he would learn to love her in the future.

Unfortunately, after her mom got pregnant, her father left with another woman.

Yes, she was born out of wedlock. She never saw her father even once. That’s why she hated every man. 

Although her mom told her that not all men are the same, she did not believe her especially when her mom found another man when she was eleven years old. It was the time when her mom thought that she needed a father. Thus, she tried to enter into a relationship again.

In the beginning, everything was smooth and well between her mom and her stepfather. They seemed to be a happy family although she was not close to her stepfather.

Until one day, Mandy caught her stepfather kissing another woman. She saw them with her very own eyes. She was crying back then telling her mom about what she saw. She was so mad that she said to her mom to never find another man again, that she does not need a father anymore.

Since then, her mom did not look for another man. She just focused all her attention on her.

Everything was fine up until she learned that her mom entered into an agreement with her best friend. That she would marry Andrew Bradford. She told her that she was thinking of her future.

Mandy was so furious at the time when she learned about the arranged marriage. Consequently, she did not face her mom for a month. However, her mom got sick. She learned that her mom was suffering from stage 2 liver cancer and had only a maximum of five years to live.

It's the main reason why Janeth Collins decided to announce to Mandy the arranged marriage so soon. It was because she was afraid that she was not able to witness her daughter's wedding.

Eventually, Mandy agreed to marry Andrew once she finished college. She had no choice as she did not want to give her mom any more worries.

Yet, she was still hoping that Andrew would oppose the agreement entered by their mothers. Hence, she tried everything just to offend him. But after all these years of several attempts, she failed. She never heard anything from that man.

Andrew Bradford is a billionaire that every woman dreamed of. He has almond-shaped eyes with thick eyebrows, a hawkish nose, thin lips, and a concrete jaw that complement his wide shoulders and masculine body, making him so attractive to all women.

Ever since he graduated from college, his father trained him to manage their company, the largest real estate business in the country.

Later on, he became even more famous to women when he received the title of being the Most Promising CEO at the age of twenty-five. Thus, several women are desperate to get associated with him except for one lady, Mandy.

Andrew was only nine years old at the time his mom told him about the arranged marriage. It was still clear in his memory the first time he saw the baby Mandy who looked like a lovely doll.

Mandy looked so adorable and fragile. He could not help but stare at her angelic face, tiny pink lips, and beautiful eyes with thick long eyelashes. He felt an indescribable warm feeling deep inside his heart while staring at the baby. It seemed that he wanted to protect the baby no matter what.

However, all these feelings gradually turned cold as time passed by as Mandy used to play a prank on him whenever their families had a get-together after she learned about the arranged marriage.

The most unforgettable prank that Mandy played was when she gave him a sandwich only to find out that she put chopped chilis along with the ketchup that burned his tongue. Since then, he has never eaten anything with ketchup.

Then on his 27th birthday, she even gave him a disgusting birthday cake that looked like poop. His face used to become sour every time he recalled the image of the cake.

And on his 28th birthday, when she set a dinner date with him. He thought that she finally accepted the fact that he was her future husband. However, he waited for more than an hour but she did not appear.

‘What a spoiled brat!’ He said to himself.

One day when he attended a client meeting, he saw Mandy together with her friends in a cafe. She was sitting next to a guy. He was observing them and not able to focus on his meeting. He saw that the guy sat closer to her and was taking advantage of holding her waist every time he had a chance.

It was obvious that Mandy was trying to distance herself and looked disgusted but the guy seemed willful.

Andrew was not able to control himself, he pulled the guy from the chair through his collar and brought him outside the café. Since then, Mandy has become more distant than before.

Because of that incident, he secretly assigned a bodyguard, Nathan, that would follow her wherever she goes. At the end of the day, Nathan would report to him everything she did.

He learned from Nathan that Mandy has a lot of suitors in the university. When Nathan informed him that she started dating, he felt restless. Only to find out later that she dumped the guy. He was not able to count how many guys she dated that later she dumped mercilessly. He couldn’t help but smile whenever Nathan informed him about the good news.

Subsequently, Andrew learned that Mandy was dating a 27-year-old doctor. He ordered Nathan to keep an eye on her and to report to him immediately every time they go on a date.

  

“Mandy, let’s have a date. I found a restaurant in the countryside which offers your favorite seafood dishes.” Marco excitedly invited Mandy. They were dating for quite some time already so he was aware of her favorites.

Marco Taylor, who owned the biggest hospital in the city, met her in the emergency room when she sprained her ankle. He’s tall, handsome, and looks cool in his white coat while treating his patients.

“Okay.” She agreed, lacking excitement. She thought that it would be the last time that she would accept his invitation.

“Alright, I will pick you up at six o’clock in the evening,” Marco said then they hung up the call.

Mandy was just enjoying her last moments of being single. She would graduate soon and would marry Andrew. She thought that it was not bad to date someone for the last time.

What a heartless woman!