Chapter Three

  

  Lucas was in a meeting when his assistant interrupted: “Mr. Wellington, Mr. Rhodes is here. He says it’s urgent.”

  

  Lucas excused himself, irritation and worry warring in his chest. “Damien, you can’t keep showing up here”

  

  “I have a proposal for you,” Damien said, closing the office door behind him. His casual demeanor from yesterday was gone, replaced by the sharp, calculating businessman Lucas rarely saw. “A business proposal. One that would solve a lot of problems for both of us.”

  

  “What are you talking about?”

  

  Damien sat down, steepling his fingers. “My father’s been on my ass about settling down, finding a wife, proving I’m mature enough to take over the company. Your father, meanwhile, has been trying to secure a partnership with Rhodes International for what, five years now?”

  

  Lucas felt ice forming in his veins. “Damien…”

  

  “I want to marry your sister,” Damien said bluntly. “In exchange, I’ll bring my father to the table. The partnership deal he’s been refusing? I’ll make it happen. Rhodes International and Wellington Enterprises, the merger everyone’s been talking about. Billions in combined assets. Market dominance. Everything your father’s been dreaming of.”

  

  “Are you insane?” Lucas stood up. “She’s not some business asset you can trade for”

  

  “Isn’t she?” Damien’s smile was cold. “You treat her like one. Your mother certainly does. At least I’m being honest about it.”

  

  “No. Absolutely not. I’m not even entertaining this…”

  

  “Think about it, Lucas.” Damien’s voice took on a persuasive tone. “Your father gets the deal of a lifetime. Your family’s company becomes unstoppable. And Miriam? She becomes part of one of the wealthiest families in the country. It’s a win for everyone.”

  

  “Except her,” Lucas said through gritted teeth. “She doesn’t want you. She made that very clear.”

  

  “She doesn’t know me yet.” Damien’s confidence was absolute. “Women like her, need time. They need patience. But I can wait. And once we’re married, she’ll see”

  

  “You’re talking about forcing her into a marriage she doesn’t want!”

  

  “I’m talking about an arrangement that benefits everyone involved.” Damien stood, buttoning his jacket. “Think about it. Talk to your mother. She’ll understand the value of this proposal.”

  

  “My mother has nothing to do with…”

  

  “Your mother controls everything in that house,” Damien interrupted. “We both know it. And she would do anything to secure this kind of opportunity for your family. Even sacrifice Miriam.”

  

  The words hung in the air like poison.

  

  “Get out,” Lucas said quietly.

  

  “I’ll give you forty-eight hours to think about it,” Damien said, heading for the door. “But Lucas? I’m going to marry your sister. The only question is whether your family benefits from it or not.”

  

  -----

  

  After he left, Lucas sank into his chair, his mind racing.

  

  He should tell Damien to go to hell. Should protect his sister from this nightmare.

  

  But God help him, the offer was tempting. Not for him, but for the company. For his father, who had been pursuing Rhodes International for years. For the legacy they were all supposed to be protecting.

  

  And he knew that if he mentioned this to his mother, she would jump at it.

  

  Lucas found Margaret in the sitting room that evening, scrolling through her tablet.

  

  “We need to talk,” he said, closing the door behind him.

  

  She looked up, sensing his tone. “What’s wrong?”

  

  “Damien Rhodes made me an offer today.”

  

  “What kind of offer?”

  

  Lucas took a breath. “He wants to marry Miriam. In exchange, he’ll get his father to agree to the partnership deal with Rhodes International.

  

  ”Margaret’s eyes lit up like she had just been handed the keys to the kingdom.

  

  “No,” Lucas said immediately, seeing her expression. “Mom, no. This is insane. Miriam would never agree to…”

  

  “Your father has been pursuing that deal for five years,” Margaret interrupted, her mind already calculating. “Do you have any idea what that partnership would mean for Wellington Enterprises? For our family?”

  

  “Miriam is family!”

  

  “Miriam is a complication we’ve been managing her entire life.” Margaret stood, pacing with predatory excitement. “This solves everything. She moves out, stops being a daily reminder of your father’s first marriage, and we secure the business deal of the century. It’s perfect.”

  

  “She’s a person, not a problem to be solved!”

  

  Margaret turned on him, her expression sharp. “Don’t be naive, Lucas. This is how dynasties are built. Through strategic alliances, through beneficial marriages. Miriam should be grateful she would be marrying into one of the wealthiest families in the country.”

  

  “She doesn’t love him. She doesn’t even like him.”

  

  “Love is irrelevant.” Margaret waved a dismissive hand. “Your father and I didn’t marry for love. We married because it made sense. And look how well that worked out.”

  

  Lucas thought about Miriam’s face at dinner yesterday. The devastation. The betrayal.

  

  “I don’t think we should do this,” he said weakly.

  

  But Margaret was already planning. “I’ll talk to your father tonight. He’ll see the value immediately.”

  

  “Mom…”

  

  “This is happening, Lucas. And frankly? It’s the best thing for everyone involved. Including Miriam, whether she realizes it or not.”

  

  -----

  

  Margaret cornered Thomas in his study after dinner.

  

  “Darling, we need to discuss an opportunity. A rather extraordinary one.”

  

  She started slowly. “You remember Rhodes International? That deal you’ve been chasing for years?” She watched his face. “Imagine finally getting it. The billions. The market share. Wellington Enterprises would be unstoppable.

  

  “But what’s the catch?” Thomas asked, because he wasn’t stupid. “Why would Rhodes suddenly be willing to broker this deal?”

  

  Margaret smiled. “His son is interested in Miriam. He wants to marry her.”

  

  Thomas’s face went pale. “What?”

  

  “Think about it, Thomas. Our daughter married the Rhodes heir. The company merger that would cement Wellington Enterprises as an unstoppable force. Everything you’ve worked for, everything you’ve built, secured for generations.”

  

  “Miriam would never agree to an arranged marriage.”

  

  “Then we convince her,” Margaret said smoothly. “We show her how beneficial this would be for the family, for the company her mother helped build. We remind her of her duty.”

  

  Thomas stood, shaking his head. “No. This is too much. After yesterday, after the promotion situation, I can’t ask her to…”

  

  “You can,” Margaret interrupted, moving closer. “You can because you’re her father and you know what’s best for her future. Damien Rhodes is wealthy, successful, and handsome. Any woman would be lucky to have him.”

  

  “But Miriam…”

  

  “Miriam has spent her entire life resenting me for taking her mother’s place,” Margaret said, playing her final card. “Maybe it’s time she had her own life, her own family. Away from all this tension. Away from constantly comparing herself to Lucas. This could be good for her, Thomas. A fresh start.”

  

  Thomas walked to the window, staring out at the manicured grounds. Margaret watched him, knowing she had him that his ambition, his desperation for that Rhodes deal, would override his paternal instincts.

  

  It always did.

  

  “Let me think about it,” Thomas said finally.

  

  Margaret smiled.

  

  She had already won.

  

  Because when Thomas thought about things, he always came around to her perspective.

  

  It had worked with the promotion.

  

  It had worked a hundred times before.

  

  It will work now.

  

  Upstairs, Miriam slept, unaware that her fate was being decided without her.

  

  Unaware that the people who should have protected her were about to sell her to the highest bidder.