I HATED EVAN PRICE!
I hated his arrogance, his rudeness, his stupid perfection even to the last detail.
I hated the way my body reacted to him. The way my pulse kicked as his hand encircled my throat. And I hated how he always made me feel small, insignificant and inconsequential. How he always made me doubt and second-guess myself.
I was a confident woman but Mr. Price was digging up that low self-teem teen whom I had buried a long time ago.
UN-DER-STOOD? His maddening voice still echoed in my head hours after he left. It was infuriating that he talked to me like that father of a rebellious teenager. I forced myself t breathe away the anger, counting from one to twenty and ten backwards.
Only when the anger receded did I bring myself to approach the night stand and true to his words, there was a business card with his assistant's number and a velvet ring box.
I picked up the ring box, popping it open to reveal a six-carat diamond ring. It sparkled and gleamed under the light of the room.
I should have been thrilled – if this was another occasion, maybe I would have. The ring was stunning and looked horridly expensive, worth at least a hundred thousand dollars. I doubted Mr. Price had gone out of his way to buy this for me.
No, I wasn't that special. He'd have ordered one of his many employees to do it. Still, I couldn't deny that employee had a good eye. It was the type of ring many women would kill to have.
I plucked it from the box, slipping it into my finger then waited – for anything, but I felt… nothing.
No thrill, no rush of excitement. Nothing.
The ring sat heavily on my finger like a prison rather than a promise of love, happiness and commitment.
Strange tightness gripped my throat. For a minute, I imagined his fingers were around my neck and this time, they squeezed tight.
I sank into the bed, feeling like a fraud and a loser.
A soft knock interrupted the chaos of my thoughts.
I sucked in a lungful of air and smoothened my expression into one of politeness before I answered. "Yes. Come in."
The door opened to reveal a young man in pressed black suit. I had met him before when I first arrived at the house. I believe Mr. Price had introduced him as Raymond, his butler.
"Ms. Madison, Mr. Price wanted me to inform you that you both will be meeting his grandfather tomorrow," he said with a British accent that was as crisp as his clothes. "They are dresses in the wardrobe. He wants you to pick the best one and make sure you're ready."
I forced a smile.
"And, breakfast is by seven a.m. every morning. You are required to join him for that. Dinner is by eight."
My smile slipped. Perfect.
Raymond slipped away after that, leaving me to cuss inwardly at Mr. Price. After more than half an hour of cussing and hating Mr. Price's perfectas, I decided it was time to take a shower and go to bed. Preparing for whatever meeting with his grandfather could wait till morning.
That night, I slept restlessly and dreamt of perfect men standing in a line on the beach. All stark naked.
When I woke up in the morning, I looked as bad as I felt. Thankfully, I had woken up pretty early – I was always an early bird – took a minute to freshen up and appear – a little – perfect, before joining Mr. Price in his lavish dining hall.
That morning, we ate our first meal together as a couple – and arranged marriage couple who hated each other's asses.
"Did the butler inform you about the meeting later on today?" he asked, barely lifting his eyes from his plate of misery. "We are meeting my grandfather by three and then, you can do whatever you like with the rest of your time."
He chewed like a robot, wiped his mouth and made sure he swallowed his food before continuing. "Maybe I need to remind you again, but whatever you plan on doing with that free time should not affect my public image or that of my empire in anyway."
My teeth clenched, but I swallowed my irritation.
I needed to learn how to… compartmentalize. Figure out a way to handle my emotions around him before I forget my had in his perfect face. I was stuck with Mr. Price whether I liked it or not – for two whole years – and I had to make the most of it.
But I wasn't sure I could make the most of anything if we continued like this.
My stomach tightened with unease, before I took a sip of water to calm my nerves. "What are your expectations in private?"
His knife and fork – I still wasn't sure why he felt the need to eat waffles with a fork and a knife – paused over his plate. "Excuse me?"
"Well… earlier, you said we'll play the part of a loving couple in public but we haven't discussed what our private lives will be like. I have a job. It's not very well paying like yours – but it gives me something to do and I'm not one to sit around twiddling my fingers or whatever."
He raised a brow. "What are you asking?"
"I'm asking of I can continue working. The contract agreement did not address that issue, unfortunately."
"No, you will not." Came his direct answer. "Marrying is your job from now. I don't care what you used to do before you entered this contract, but for the duration of this contract and the sole fact that I pay you, this is the only job you're allowed to have."
An icy claw of sock snatched the breath from my lungs.
"If you had the audacity to go into an arranged marriage with a stranger for money, then you should also be able to ace the consequences that arises from it."
How did this man always know how to hit me in the ugliest, painful part of myself?
"Now I understand," I said calmly. "An arranged marriage was the only way your grandfather saw to get someone to marry you. That was why he settled for someone as… lowly me who would do anything for money. Its because of one thing, Mr. Price. You are so horrible and disgusting even a beggar would not touch you with a ten feet pole."
It wasn't my best work, but it'd have to do.
"If I accepted this farce because of the money it'd get me, then why did you accept it?" I tilted my chin up, holding his gaze. "Then why did you? Obviously, you have all the money in the word and couldn't care for someone like me. so, what is it?"
His eyes stared back at me icily. But then, the ice gave way to amusement. "Impressive speech, but let's not pretend I'm gaining too much out of this than the gold digger. If I'm so horrible, then call my grandfather and tell him you want out of the contract."
He nodded at my phone. "Call him now. We'll continue our separate lives like this never happened."