She merely giggled “You’re just jealous. We both know,” she said, narrowing her eyes and looking at me cattily “that once you’ve divorced Johnathon you’re going to end up as nothing more than a dried-up nobody who has nothing but her pathetic yoga job to keep her company. You think anybody is going to want somebody who looks like you and is already a divorcee?” she taunted.
I swept my eyes up and down her body and raised a brow. “Has it ever occurred to you that Johnathon is only with you for your money and your connections?” I asked bluntly.
She flipped her hair over her shoulder “Oh please” she scoffed “I wouldn’t have had to chase him so badly if that was the case. Your man tried so hard to be loyal to you” she smirked at me, her lips curving into a wide smile “he tried to resist my advances at first, but I wanted him and when Charlotte Deluca wants something, she gets it. No matter who else is in her way” she said with deliberate emphasis.
It stung. The notion that Johnathon had tried to resist initially only to succumb to Charlotte when she continued to persevere. If Johnathon had truly loved me, he never would have slept with Charlotte, no matter how much she tried. He lacked self-restraint and willpower. I would never have done the same to him. But Charlotte’s eyes were glinting and she knew she had scored a direct hit against the armor I used to shield myself with.
“Sign the papers Flair” she advised me haughtily as I blinked back tears “Sign the papers and do everyone a favor. Johnathon’s never going to come back to you. He’s mine now. Delaying the inevitable, just to be spiteful is pathetic and beneath you” she added frostily “and if you keep delaying, I will ensure that I use a different method to persuade you and if that happens, well let’s just say you’re not going to like that method very much,” she said cryptically.
“Is that a threat?” I asked and she blinked her big eyes at me, feigning ignorance.
“No sweetheart” she drawled, licking her lips “merely some friendly advice. It’s up to you whether you take it or not.”
It was a threat. I cleared my throat and grabbed my handbag, swinging it back over my shoulder. I tidied my hair. Charlotte smirked “I wouldn’t stress, the man who’s silly enough to have brought you here, is expecting one thing in return. For you to spread those legs afterward in exchange. He won’t be looking at your hair,” she said rolling her eyes.
I maintained my composure, calmly smoothing my dress, and then opened the bathroom door. “Oh Charlotte,” I said sweetly as she looked over at me, still smiling “that lipstick really clashes with your hair and makes you look like a circus clown” before shutting the door behind me, cutting off her shriek of indignance abruptly.
I walked back to the VIP room and slid the door open, Grayson was waiting patiently and stood up, ready to sit me back down. My fury was still simmering beneath the surface. Charlotte’s remarks did not sit well with me. Grayson frowned, sensing the change in my mood.
“Is everything alright?” he asked me, sitting back down and observing me critically.
Was everything alright? I fought back a bark of laughter, feeling as though I was beginning to lose control. I was gripping the side of the table tightly, so hard my knuckles were turning white. Whether Charlotte knew it or not, she had just done me a huge favor. She had managed to dispel all my doubts and help me to make a decision, something I was certain hadn’t been her intention at all.
I took a deep breath and inhaled slowly, exhaling loudly. Grayson continued to frown. I gave him a slow smile. “I’ve made a decision with a few provisions of my own,” I told him with a scowl “I agree to this contract marriage but I want you to promise me that you’ll help me get my revenge on your half-sister. I want her and I want Johnathon to be humiliated. I want them both to learn a valuable lesson in decency” I told him between gritted teeth “and I want assurances that you will never lift a hand against me or our child, now or in the future. Give me that and I will sign any contract that you give me. I don’t even want your money” I told him sincerely “I just want revenge.”
Grayson POV
“I just want revenge.”
The words repeated themselves in my ear. I had her. I hadn’t anticipated she would come back and give me her decision quite so easily. I had expected her to mull it over, to think it over and get back to me in a few day’s time, but instead, she had done the opposite. I fought to contain my grin, standing up abruptly and grabbing her coat, calmly putting it on her as she continued to look up at me, with those fluttering eyelashes and those big brilliant eyes of hers.
“Not here Miss Flair,” I said inclining my head and grabbing her arm, as I left the room and with her in tow.
“The bill” she protested.
“Has already been taken care of in advance” I assured her calmly.
I did not divulge that as part owner of the restaurant, I was not required to pay for our meals. She kept stride with me as I assisted her downstairs and led her into the awaiting limousine, ensuring she was seated comfortably before I looked over at her.
“First, let’s make something clear” I growled “I would never lay a hand on a woman, let alone a helpless child.”
She nodded, looking slightly apologetic.
“Second, the terms of the contract can change in agreement with both parties. If we wish to extend the contract or make the marriage a real one, then that is easily done” I added stiffly.
She looked slightly more relaxed.
“However, please do not delude yourself into thinking that I’m going to fall in love with you” I added sharply “While it is true that we have amazing chemistry for each other, there have been many women who have thrown themselves at me and haven’t lasted longer than three dates at the most. I don’t believe in true love” I said honestly “I’ve seen firsthand what that does to a person. My mother committed suicide after she discovered my father willingly married somebody else and he was forced to take me in, the bastard child he never wanted. Sad to say, my stepmother and half-sister made my life a living hell, so I have no objections to helping you get your so-called revenge against Charlotte” I said evenly.
Her eyes filled with pity. I turned my head away, not wishing to see it. My tone was slightly bitter as I continued “My grandfather is the only person who has had even an ounce of pity for me. My father softened over the years, but he too is now dead and I won’t accept my stepmother or Charlotte getting their hands on the family company. So I ask you” I said turning my head and pinning my gaze “are you willing to give me an heir? Are you willing to go through with all that entails? Think carefully Miss Flair, because once you sign the wedding papers, there is no going back on your word.”
She bit her lip and considered me. I raised a brow and waited. Gone was her bravado from before and now she looked vulnerable and uncertain. The limousine sat still, the driver remaining silent, the blockade still up to retain our privacy.
“If I were to agree to give you an heir, then what happens to the child? Do we divorce, then who gets custody?” she said sounding tearful.
Ah. So she was concerned about the child. Her maternal streak was shining through. I frowned. “Naturally we would share custody. I have no desire to keep the child from it’s mother and I would expect to take on my rightful duties as father. You will not be required to raise the child alone. I will take full financial responsibility for it.”
But her eyes were still suspiciously shiny. She leaned forward, looking at me closely. “But, will you love them?” she whispered, her voice shaking slightly.
Will I love it? I considered the question. It was one I had not thought of until now. But the prospect of a child, born of my DNA, a miniature replica of me, or Flair, was enough to bring a genuine smile to my face. I could not deny my child the love it rightfully deserved from either parent. I might not fall in love with their mother, but it would still have my unconditional love from the very moment they were born. I coughed.
“Any child of mine that is born from my genes will be loved wholeheartedly by me” I swore to her and saw something in her expression shift, her eyes softening for a brief second.
“Have I answered all your questions, Miss Flair? Is there anything else you need to ask?”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.