Chapter 4

Killian

I knew my grandmother was up to something shady. For the past two weeks she visited the hospital, so when she came back and said I would marry someone, I knew I had no choice but to do it. I knew she was doing it to stop the rumors that were being spread about me and Tanya.

The truth was Tanya was a friend, my childhood best friend who lost her parents at fourteen, and I've been her only support all these years. 

Nova Vale was now a new development. The name sounded soft, but the woman was anything but soft. I had expected someone pliable, maybe nervous, ready to sign and retreat. I expected an accessory. I got a fucking paradox.

She was short; her 5′0" made her seem impossibly small against the backdrop of this estate, but her stature was instantly irrelevant. Her hair was a fierce, slicked-back platinum blonde, emphasizing the delicate but sharp angles of her jaw.

When her eyes met mine, the air shifted. They were a vivid, impossible pale amber, like a predator's, and she didn't flinch, even under my gaze that made grown men cower. There was no social mask, no deference to the room, or to my title. She was perfectly, unnervingly still. She was contained.

The raw competence and unbending pride in her posture was startling. She moved with a contained energy that suggested she was used to fighting for every inch of ground she occupied. She signed the papers without looking up, with no hesitation, and with no tremor. When she returned the pen, the deal was done, but the problem had just started.

Later, when she shot that dismissive comment at me, "I have no interest in men like you," I didn't hear an insult. I heard a liability.

She was a small, perfectly contained bomb of pride, fearlessness, and competence. She wasn't here for money, and she certainly wasn't here for me. She was here for a motive she guarded fiercely, and that lack of simple leverage made her the most dangerous variable in my contract. This was not a passive partner. This was an active, unexpected threat.

When I got back to my house, I instructed Martha to prepare the room for her. I was in the living room when Tanya walked in. 

“Hey, Killian,” she said, dropping onto the couch next to me casually, which she has always done.

“Done strolling around?”

“Yea, the girls are heading to the spa; I don't feel like going,” she said with a sigh. From where I was sitting, I could see the front gates. I saw the car coming in and knew it was her.

When the car pulled up to the door, Pascal got her suitcase out. She had changed; she was now wearing a pair of jeans and a tight-fitting shirt that was stretched across her breast, making it stand out on her petite frame.

“Who’s that?” Tanya asked, confused. 

“Give me a minute,” I said, standing up. When she walked in and saw me and then Tanya, she didn't even take a second look. I made my way over to her, and Tanya was right beside me.

“Your room is the first on the right. Martha will handle everything. This is Tanya Davis. My best friend. Tanya this”

“No one of importance; I’m just here because I needed a place to crash, and Camille was kind enough to let me stay with Killian. Now please excuse me; I’ll leave you two alone,” she said, heading towards the stairs.

“She is my wife, Tanya,” I said, and she stopped. She turned and looked at me. 

“I’m sorry, what?” Tanya asked, looking confused and sounding shocked.

“Well, your decision,” she said, shrugging her shoulders and walking up the stairs. Tanya was looking at me. “Don’t ask,” I said with a sigh. “I’ll be back.” 

I headed up the stairs and knocked on the room door; she opened it and looked at me. I walked into the room, shutting the door with my foot. 

“You do not speak to me like that. You do not disrespect my staff or Tanya. Out of this house we are strangers. You will not use the Ashford name for any reason, do you understand me?”

“Yes, Master,” she replied, staring at me. 

I walked out of the room and stood there for a second. This fucking girl could unnerve me. No one dares to look me in the eyes, and she does it so effortlessly, as though I'm just another person to her and not billionaire CEO Killian Ashford. 

When I headed back downstairs, Tanya was gone. I called her, but she didn't answer; she probably decided to go to the spa. I was in my office, and Pascal was in front of me. “Nova Vale, every detail by tonight.”

“Yes, Mr. Ashford.” 

My mother would not take this news well; she was banking on me getting married to Amelia from the Carrons family. Why the fuck was everyone trying to dictate some part of my life?

I was there going over some contracts when Martha walked in with two other women. “Mr. Ashford, this is Mandy and Cici, the new additions to the house staff,” she said. 

I looked up and found two women who looked to be in their late twenties staring at me wide-eyed. 

“Fine. My room is off limits; that is Martha’s job alone.”

“Yes, Mr. Ashford, they have been briefed. I have spoken to the young Ms. She is allergic to nuts. All types, so I will make necessary adjustments,” she said. 

“Fine”

She appeared at eight that night for dinner; she was wearing a dress now. I swore every time I saw her she looked different. She didn't say anything during dinner, and I preferred that. Her phone began ringing, and she checked it immediately and stood up. 

“Excuse me,” she said, walking off. I could hear parts of her conversation. “Yes. Really? Okay, I’ll be there tomorrow. Thank you.”

When she returned, she sat down and continued eating. Halfway through dinner Tanya walked in; I saw the way she was walking and knew she had been drinking. 

“She came straight over and sat down, leaning on my shoulder. I could smell the alcohol. 

"You know you can’t stomach alcohol; why did you drink?"

“Because I wanted to; your wife looks pissed,” she said quietly. I looked at Nova, but she was busy eating. 

“Nova, you’re not mad at me for being here, are you?” She asked. Nova looked at her, her face neutral. She then looked at me.

“You set your rules; now I will set mine. Have your friend refrain from speaking to me. I have no interest in your business, your relationship, your friendship, or anything. I will not disrespect her as you asked, but make sure she knows there is a line she shouldn't cross either.”  She said before standing up and walking away. 

Tanya started crying. “She hates me,” she said, and Nova turned around.

“Hate you? Why would I hate someone I don’t know, nor do I want to know?” she retorted, and I was left looking at her.