Prologue

I swirled the wine in my glass, glancing around the restaurant in boredom. I'd been waiting for over thirty minutes and there was still no sign of my parents. It's funny how punctuality was one of their favorite lectures. Yet here I was, alone. While they were thirty minutes late.

"Elena!" I looked up to see them finally approaching. My mum wore a ridiculously over-sized hat paired with dark sunglasses, her appearance drawing a few stares from the nearby tables. My dad, thankfully, had kept it simple in a dark suit and blue tie.

"Hi Mum. Hi Dad."

"Hi, honey." Mum replied as Dad pulled out her chair. Neither of them acknowledged their late arrival. And I didn't mention it,  just took another sip of my wine and waited for my dad to settle in.

"Elena, have you heard from your sister?" No greeting, no small talk. Straight to the point, as expected.

"No, Dad. I haven't."

"Are you sure?" His tone made me bite down on a snarky remark.

Eleanor, my older sister, had more or less, run away. And honestly, I couldn't blame her. My parents had arranged a marriage for her without her consent, the worst part being that she didn't even know the guy. It was Dad's brilliant plan to save the family business and Eleanor, who was being used as bait, had no say in it. 

She felt trapped and had confided in me a few times. But what could I do? Talking to Dad was pointless and Mum always backed him up. So Eleanor did the only thing she could do at the moment, she disappeared. That was nearly two weeks ago.

"Elena, sweetheart." Mum leaned forward, her voice low but firm. "You have to tell us if you've heard anything. This is a serious matter. Your sister embarrassed us and the Sinclairs. And to think it was just a week before the wedding."

I stayed quiet. It was clear they weren't worried about Eleanor's safety. They were upset that she had ruined their great plan. How pathetic.

"I met with Mr. Sinclair yesterday." Dad continued. "We talked through the situation and came up with a solution." I raised an eyebrow. What kind of solution? Were they planning to track Eleanor down with the FBI and drag her back here?

"You're going to marry the Sinclair boy." Everything seemed to stop as the words left his mouth. I stared at him, completely stunned.

"W-what?"

"You'll be marrying the Sinclair boy." he repeated, firmer this time. My hands trembled as I set my glass down, trying to process his words.

"Elena, honey, please say something." Mum's voice was soft, almost pleading, but her sunglasses and stupid hat made it hard to read her expression.

"I can't get married. You can't do this to me." I said, my voice rising as the words rushed out.

"The decision's been made. You're marrying him. That's final." Dad's tone was cold, his expression unreadable. I felt helpless. Angry.

"No!" I said it loud enough to draw attention from the nearby tables. Of course they'd chosen a public place for this conversation, probably hoping that I wouldn't make a scene. Well too bad.

"You think you can force me like you did with Eleanor?"

"Elena, lower your voice,. Mum hissed, her embarrassment clear.

"No!" I snapped. "I'm not doing it. Leave me out of this." I grabbed my purse and stood up, ready to walk away before I said something I'd regret.

"I knew you'd be difficult." Dad said calmly. "So I'm giving you a choice." I turned to face him. He looked composed, while Mum sat stiffly beside him. "If you refuse, we'll cut you off. Completely." I gasped, nearly stumbling before grabbing the back of my chair.

"We'll block your accounts, cancel your cards and don't expect to be in my will either."I stood frozen, his words echoing in my head. Was this really happening?

"You'd cut me off because I won't marry a stranger?"

"Elena," Mum sighed, finally removing her sunglasses and placing them on the table. Her eyes looked tired. "Please don't make this harder than it already is. Besides, it's only for a year at least. After that, you can get a divorce."

"How do you expect me to spend a year with someone I don't even know? This is insane!"

"The decision has been made. And if you don't go along with it, you'll face the consequences."  Dad said, his voice clipped. "Now sit down, let's discuss things further."

I didn't sit down. I just stood there, heart pounding, eyes tearing up as my mind filled with a million questions at once.

The restaurant buzzed around me, clinking glasses, murmured conversations, the occasional burst of laughter. But I blocked that all out, my blurry gaze settling on my parents who had just given me the worst news imaginable.

"Elena." Dad said again, his voice sharp. "Sit."

I met his gaze, refusing to flinch at the icy stare I was receiving. "No."

"Elena, please." Mum tried again, her voice softer now. "We're doing this for the family."

"For the family?" I let out a bitter laugh. "You mean for the business and for your reputation. You don't care about the family. Because if you did, you would have considered my feelings in all this. You wouldn't be sitting here threatening me to marry someone!"

"Feelings don't keep companies afloat." That was it. My dad's words had delivered the final blow. I felt something inside me snap, like a twig under too much pressure.

I couldn't hold back the tears any longer.  It hit me at that moment that this was how Eleanor must have been feeling too...miserable and all alone. I really couldn't blame her for running away.

"You're being awfully dramatic Elena." My mum's voice brought me out of my thoughts. "And you're causing a scene. Like I said, it's only temporary. After everything you can get a divorce and move on with your life." The way she spoke sounded so... indifferent. Like marrying a stranger and spending an entire year with him wasn't a big deal.

"Also, you won't be going back to your apartment until the wedding is over. You'll be staying at our place, so that we can keep an eye on you. And Elena," Dad paused, the cold look still not leaving his face. "Don't even think of running away like your sister did."