Mrs Eduardo was keen on finding a wife for his son by herself. She had a cheating husband and a rocky marriage, she couldn't let her son have a bad fate in marriage as well and that was why she had gone to her employee. She had heard that she had a daughter and knowing the woman as an honest and upright person, all the years she had worked for her, she had believed she would be the perfect bride for her son. Surprisingly, she had witnessed her act of help towards her few days ago, and this encounter solidified her belief.
She looked up the Five Star restaurant and saw the girl approaching her. She smiled, hoping her smiling at her would make the girl feel welcomed, she was so happy she had accepted her marriage proposal and had agreed to come to the first date with her son. She only hoped Niklas would come early like she had told him to. Andrea walked up to the woman smiling at her as she saw her approaching. She felt so uneasy, the woman seemed to love her alot, even more than she did love herself. Fred had been the one who had called her. She gave them a contact card which she had not intended to use but after her younger brother had seen the card and called the number on it fixing a meeting, she had felt obligated and compelled to go, since it would be disrespectful cancelling it after setting it up. She wasn't interested in the marriage. She was not. A part of her mind told her she'd be like her biological mother, marrying a man because of his wealth because that was what her marriage would mean. She had nothing to offer, no fame or business they'd merge into one, agreeing to the proposal meant she'd be the parasite. "Andrea, over here" the smiling woman waved at her and she began walking up to where she was. "Oh my, you're looking so pretty" the woman commented her fit eager to make her feel comfortable. Perhaps she was talking about her natural beauty. She thought. She was pretty naturally but same may not be said for the clothe she wore. She had rented it from the store in her Street, she was to return it after the meeting because she couldn't afford paying for such a dress especially in her current financial state. The whole situation had made her feel pressured to do so. "What would you like to order. You can do so while we wait for my son, he'd be here anytime soon" the woman continued obviously trying to make her not concentrate on the fact that her son was running late. The waitress came and she ordered for spaghetti, it wouldn't hurt to feed on the delicacy anyway. It was an opportunity for her to eat away her sorrows while she sat down listening to what she would be told, what she'd be told which she wouldn't be interested in. " Do you like spaghetti as well? I love it and your mother loves making it for me whenever she comes to work" " I love it too ma'am" she said shyly. " A mutual interest then" the lady said and they smiled. She was perfect, the perfect candidate as a bride for his son. "Can you cook as well?" She calmly put, wanting to know. "Of course ma'am, I cook. We're not a weather family having nannies at your beck and call" " That's perfect. My son will really love you, the way to his heart is through food" she exposed and giggled and she laughed. The woman seemed keen on getting her to like her son. " Oh there he comes" she said, signalling to her son. She wanted to turn her head to look at him but contained her curiosity, not wanting to seem too straightforward. Niklas walked over to where they were and took the next seat that was close to her. " Niklas meet Andrea, Andrea meet Niklas" Andrea raised her head to look at him and immediately choked on the water she drank. " You?" He said. "You?" She said too and they said it almost immediately and together. "Do you two know each other?" The woman asked, oblivious to what was happening before her but delighted they seemed to know each other. "Of course mother. I've been looking for her. She and I......." He wanted to continue but his voice trailed off when Andrea suddenly interrupted him, fearing that he might expose what had happened between them in the past. "We met once ma'am. I helped him out with something" she muttered, with her heart in her hands hoping he wouldn't dispute what she had said. " You're such a good girl Andrea. Even my son was looking for you. You help strangers out alot" the woman said and Andrea smiled awkwardly at her. Noticing how the man was staring at her, she couldn't help but wonder why he did so. " Niklas, Andrea was the girl that helped me out then, I told you about it the other time. She helped me out too. What a small world, we all get to meet like this, soon to become one family" " Soon to be huh" he muttered and faced Andrea " Do you really want to marry me?"he shot at her and the tone of his voice made Andrea look at him. She noticed his mother signalling him not to say anything but he did not even look at her. "If you wanted to marry me, atleast you could have had some respect by not being so desperate about it" he continued, staring angrily at her as if she were the lady that had stood him up the week before. " What?" She muttered. "Your dress. Didn't you get it on rent from a store? The tag is still at the bag. Atleast you should have hid it. You just gave out whom you were so cheaply, a gold digger. Your hair isn't properly done either. You want to marry into my family but it seems like you don't even use our products. My company's hair shampoo could have helped you retain the black colour of you hair but like you, it looks so haughty" his melancholic voice said and he took a sip of the wine in his hand, as if nothing has happened. " Niklas!!!" His mother shouted across to him. "What? I'm just telling her the truth. I only came here because you asked me to. Atleast she needs to know these things before we get married" he added, hoping that what he had said would make her angry and not want to go through with the marriage. He wasn't interested anymore, especially because he had found out she were the one. Was that also why she had come to his room and spent a night with him. A social climber and gold digger she was, he thought. " I'm so sorry" his mom began to say, apologizing to Andrea. She knew what he had said might have hurt her feelings, especially given the family she came from. " My son, he is sometimes thoughtless" she continued hoping her words would pacify her. It couldn't be happening and especially at her presence. If she failed to get them to marry before the month which was remaining a week ran out, the responsibility of finding a wife for him would fall back to her sister in-law whom she loathed so much. She would probably connive with a scheming girl that'd give her son trouble. Andrea was boiling deep within her. She hadn't thought about accepting the marriage proposal. She had just come because of the impromptu meeting her brother's over zealousness had caused her but now she was facing an epic humiliation of her life. He could have insulted her if he wanted to, but with respect and certainly not in public like he did, in the presence of others who could hear his menacing words. On a second thought, the marriage wasn't all a bad idea like her step mom had told her. Her boss was a nice woman and she would take care of her. They had the money which needed the money as well as the connections that would salvage her acting career. Her son didn't like her so like most company CEO's she read in novels, the marriage was bound to be one of convenience, especially for him. She was going to do it for her step mom's treatment, for the family's financial burdens. They had been good to her, this was a opportunity for her to offer them a good life as well, even if it would tell on her, it would be for just a few years before the marriage of convenience would end. "I'm sorry for the embarrassment Andrea. I promise I won't pin it on you nor your mom if you reject my proposal, I'm really sorry" the woman continued apologizing to her, different from her son and obviously sorry for what he had uttered to her. " It's okay ma'am and as a matter of fact, I'd go through with the proposal" she said. It wouldn't hurt to do so anyway but it would hurt him to wake up and see her face, remembering the fact that she was his wife. That would be enough punishment to him for her feelings which he had hurt. "You will?" The woman muttered, thinking she had misheard the girl. "Yes I will. Mother told me you're with the registration form already. Where is it, so I'd sign. You can always communicate with me when you fix a day for the wedding" she said which left the woman stunned. Niklas could only watch. She was something, something different that he couldn't grasp his hand at. But he didn't mind. The marriage was one of convenience for him. He could divorce her anytime he wanted. He just had to get wedded so he could lay claim on the CEO position of his father's company. His father had refused giving it to him because he was single. With their family disease, his parents were scared that he could be affected by it any time, and getting him married was one way they could get him to produce an heir before the disease affects him like it did to his grandparents. But he was not concerned about all that, he was concerned on owning the company. He wanted to take it away from his father, it was what always have him the morale to cheat on his mother. If he were to lose it, he would become a better husband to her, and she seemed to want her to marry the girl sitting in front of her. He looked at her and noticed she was already looking at him, oh how his chest burned because of the way she stared at him with daring eyes.Mrs. Eduardo was furious and couldn't hide her annoyance. The ride home was silent, the tension in the car palpable. As soon as they walked into the house, she didn't waste a moment."Niklas, what was that?!" she demanded, her voice tinged with disappointment.Niklas sighed, clearly anticipating this. "Mother, you can't expect me to marry someone I don't even know. She's a gold digger. Did you see her dress? It still had the tag on it!"His mother took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "And so what if she rented a dress? That doesn't define her character. Andrea is a good girl from a decent family. She has helped us both, and you know it."Niklas rolled his eyes. "Helped us? She helped you ward off a fellow scammer and now she's suddenly wife material?" He asked her missing out the part where she had lied about helping him out, while in real sense they had spent a drunken one night stand together.He didn't want to mention it, lest his mother would freak out and go extra miles t
"We can't keep on waiting, the woman he promised us he'd get married to left him and travelled abroad. The one you said you'd find hasn't been found yet. Why should we keep on waiting? It's been months!!" One of the board members shouted at Mrs. Eduardo who sat listening to them. Her husband had sent her instead to go to the meeting and listen to the complaints of the board members, since she was the one with the task of bringing in his bride. "I'm telling you to calm down, I've found a wife for him, the marriage will happen soon. Just be patient" she said to them but the board that consisted mostly of old men did not seem to take her word. " You keep telling us that and in the end we get no results" another chirped in. " He needs to get married before he can lay claim to the CEO position. Which one of us here doesn't know that some of men in the family do not live long once they clock 30years. Those that do, they're met with amnesia later in their life. We can't keep waiting. Wh
An unknown number had called her and told her to come outside before the call went off. She glanced at the clock on the wall of her room, and she still had forth five minutes before she'd begin preparing for her next part time work. She picked her purse and began to walk out of the room. On reaching outside the gates of her house, she saw a car parked at the front of it. The car was not belonging in her Street and it was very obvious because the neighborhood children had all gathered admiring the car and chattering yo themselves how they would buy one like it when they'd become adults and successful. A young man was standing by the side of the door waiting for her to come, as she stepped closer to where the car was, he opened the front seat for her to enter before he went back to reenter the car, which he appeared to be the driver of. She wondered what it's use had been for when she had her own hands to open the car with. The familiar scent that filled her nostrils needed no t
Andrea's father, dressed in a simple suit, tried to maintain his composure as he took a chair in the large table of the lavish surrounding. Her mother, visibly nervous, clutches her handbag tightly, while her younger brother gazes wide-eyed at the splendor before him and how empty everywhere had been, looking as if the whole place had been rented out for the occasion. "Finally decided to show up" Niklas sneered, not bothering to hide his disdain as he looked at his wrist watch."I was beginning to think that you got lost" he added.Andrea's cheeks flushed but she held her hand high determined not to act bothered by his taunts."We're here now" she replied evenly, keeping her voice steady despite the nervousness she felt inside her. "So, you're the family we've heard so much about." Claudia said, letting out a derisive chuckle. "An aspiring actress and a factory worker. Quite the humble background." " She's not the factory worker mother. Her father is. I told you she was a part ti
As Claudia walked out to the front of the hotel, her face remained a mask of calm composure. Inside, however, a storm of emotions brewed. She felt humiliated and angry at being rebuked so openly by Mrs. Eduardo. Her carefully superiority had been shattered in front of the lowlifes. She stood stiffly by the entrance, her daughter close by her side, and fished her phone out of her bag to call someone as she waited for her driver. "Go through with the Plan B. Plan A just failed" she muttered and ended the call. As she waited, she replayed the scene in her mind, her anger growing with each recollection. How dare they humiliate her in such a manner, reminding her of her past failures? Her marriages had ended badly, true, but she still had strategic moves she could use to secure a future at the peak for her son. The driver arrived, but before getting in, she turned to her daughter with a steely gaze. "Remember this, never let anyone make you feel less than what you are. They may have
Andrea paused at the doorway, her heart sinking as she heard her father's angry voice echoing through the house. "I can't let my daughter marry into that family. Didn't you see how they were? Their father didn't even come, he didn't find us Worthy of his time and you're still trying to convince me to let Andrea marry their son?? You disappoint me!" Her mother responded "You're not being fair. You know why Mr. Eduardo couldn't come—he's ill. Mrs. Eduardo was welcoming and would be a good mother in-law to Andre. It's only Claudia who caused trouble." " Hear yourself Maria. Marriage is a sacred sacrament. I can't let my daughter enter one that would break her later. Only Claudia?" He continued. "Did you hear the things she said? She's a part of that family, and she showed exactly what they think of us. They think we're beneath them!" His voice was loud, echoing with his indignation. Andrea's legs could not move, she knew the argument would not end anytime soon and that her step moth
Andrea Eduardo looked at the white gown she was wearing and a tear dripped down her eyes. Only a few minutes remained before she'd walk down the aisle to the altar so as to be wedded to Niklas Eduardo, the true owner of the surname, Eduardo. Raising the overflowing gown with it's intricately beaded designs as much as she could, she walked over to the window of the dressing room she was in. She stole a stare out of the glasses and saw her mother. She looked out again and saw her, she was smiling and wore clothings that worth millions. Clothing's that even in years to come, she was not sure she would be able to afford buying for her. This was the dream she had planned and promised her family but now , someone else was fulfilling it instead of her. A girl came to the room to inform her that it was the time for her to arrive at the altar. Heaving a sigh, she went . The venue was designed by a perfectionist, she could tell because there was no way a normal person would achieve
The priest, standing under a canopy of flowers, began the ceremony with solemnity as Andrea and Niklas reached and stood opposite, facing each other in front of him. His voice echoed through the hall, reciting the traditional vows. The flower girls and boys performed their roles flawlessly as if they had been trained before hand, adding to the picture-perfect scene that felt hollow to the couple. The priest began,"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of Andrea and Niklas in holy matrimony. This is a day of great joy and celebration." The words seemed to hang in the air, unacknowledged by the couple. Andrea’s mind wandered to her past, to her lost love and the dreams she once held, her plans for the future as well as how she sought to become the best known actress. Niklas, on the other hand, was mentally plotting his next move in the business world, his heart hardened by years of ambition and bitterness. "Do you, Niklas Eduardo, take Andrea to be your l