6: Everything

A calmness settled between the duo as she picked up the file. Her toes wiggled. He liked how the green polish blended with her pale skin. At one point in her reading, she released the band keeping her hair in a ponytail. Jet black hair fell to her shoulders, brushing the top of her breasts. He shoved his hands into his pockets to stop himself from pushing closer to run his hands through it.

Sex was part of the contract, but it would be on their terms. Consent was important to him.

“Oh, you want kids with me too?” she asked.

“Yeah. I mean, that was how it worked in the past with arranged marriages, right?”

“Wouldn’t that make it more complicated?”

“I’m committed to going all the way,” he told her.

“Hmm.” Leilani flipped to the next page, and her lips lost their smile. “No. No allowances.”

“Why not? This is an inconvenience for you.”

“As it is for you, Kelvin,” she pointed out. He hated how she said his name without a trace of affection. She placed the file on her lap. “See, I really don’t need you to spend money on me. My work might be hectic, but the pay is fine.”

Her disapproving pout showed this would not be easy for him. But he tried. “It will be a shame if I can’t spend on my wife, okay?”

“Thanks for the offer, Kelvin. But I can handle myself.”

He crossed his legs, mimicking her position as they engaged in a stare-off. He couldn’t lose her. Not again. Determination burned in her eyes, and he accepted the challenge.

“How about this?” he started, forcing the muscles of his face to work into a smile. “Spend your time on me, and I’ll spend my money on you.” The moment she tried to interrupt, he commented, “Sounds fair, yes? Yes. That way, we are both spending on each other.”

She huffed. “Fine.”

Resuming her reading, she choked at a particular line. He couldn’t see what page it was, so he waited impatiently for her to confront him.

“Fifteen percent of your net worth?” she whispered. “No.”

Kelvin tensed. Amara had been too worried about that line, but his wife-to-be was flat-out refusing it without asking questions about the actual net worth. He was doing her a favor.

“Did you read the complete clause?” he asked.

Their marriage must have lasted a certain duration for that clause to hold. And if she didn’t stay for that length, she would have to pay a fine. That part was more for his sake, so she wouldn’t think of breaking the agreement earlier. He didn’t need her money, just her presence.

“I don’t need to. It’s a no.”

“Leilani,” he called. She gulped audibly, and he nodded at the file. “Finish. Reading.”

A few minutes passed before she spoke again. “So it only comes to pass if you cheat?” she asked. He nodded. “What constitutes wrong treatment or potential reasons to leave?”

“That will be determined by you.”

She shut the file, color rising to her cheeks. “Aren’t you giving me too much power?”

“No.”

“What if I abuse it or take advantage?”

“Will you?” he whispered. She shook her head, and he bridged the gap by half. “Did you read the whole contract? You’re fine with everything you see? The duration? Courthouse wedding? I’ll provide the witnesses we need.”

“Yeah.”

A strange feeling welled up in his chest. He had a tough time keeping his smile hidden.

“Think we can order now?” he asked.

Her reply prompted him to ring the waiter. When the man walked away with a promise to be back in a few minutes, he picked up his phone. The game he had been playing was still on his screen. He flicked it off, but she had already seen it. “You play games?”

“Yeah,” he answered. “Do you?”

“Sometimes. But nothing like that one.”

Laughter rumbled in his chest. “That one? What? You have something against guns?”

“Yeah. Against all the shootings.”

“What kind of game would you prefer?”

“Something more homely.” Her posture had grown more relaxed. If he knew this was what it would take to put her at ease, he would have started the conversation with this. She flipped a hand. “I know it’s too much to ask from gamers, but something simple. Many people will appreciate it. I might not have a happy life in reality, but I could have it in games. I want to go on dates and get the perfect man. Pick my own house and picket fence. Those silly things.”

Her eyes lit up as she spoke. He wasn’t sure when he covered the gap or when the words rushed out of his lips. “I’ll give it to you.”

“What?”

“Everything,” he replied.

Confusion settled in her eyes, but he didn’t care to explain. Thankfully, the waiter showed up with their orders, putting an end to that conversation. They ate in silence. But one thing was certain. He would marry this woman.

* * *

The courthouse wedding took place on Monday, the fifteenth, exactly a month after their meeting at Total Gardens. Kelvin wasn’t a superstitious man, but he believed it was fate.

Everything happened as planned except the part about Leilani moving into his new apartment after the wedding. He had given her the rest of the week to herself, but she was expected to be at the house today. Amara had handled the move since his new wife didn’t want him to know her old place.

Did he do the right thing? It was a question that would always plague him. If he asked Amara, she would have a different answer, but he wanted to believe he was on the right track. Maybe not right now, but soon, it would pay off.

Right? he murmured to his bracelet. It had stood the test of time with him while he searched the earth for her. Nightfall Hills, California, was the last place he expected to find her.

A door opened, cutting through his thoughts, and his assistant walked in. The thickness of the file in her grip was enough to give him a headache. Why did he choose to do this instead of selling off the company?

The answer was simple. Leilani. She lived in Nightfall Hills, and he wasn’t sure she would have followed him to another part of the world if he asked them to move.

“Sir, they will be here soon,” Amara spoke.

In usual Kelvin McKenna style, he was quiet as she gave him a rundown of the people to expect. Harsh decisions had been made based on the reports and surveys they had scrutinized over the past weeks. Instead of selling, he was making an unlikely merger.

Some departments and everyone in them would be gone by the end of the day. A few would be merged and their leaders dismissed. For Tech Valley, he would only let the leader of the sales and marketing department go, so Samantha from the game company would head the team. Her records were better.

At 7:58 am, the door to the conference room opened and a few people filed in. On the long table was the list of everyone entering. They weren’t late, but they might have scored some good points in his book like Leilani did by arriving fifteen minutes early.

Amara stood behind him while they made themselves comfortable. On the wall was a projector she would use to lead the presentation showing their latest performances in their departments. Four men and a lady settled into the rows of seats to his left. The chairs on his right were for the department heads of Tech Valley. The name would stay because it had a nice ring to it.

“Where are the others?” Kelvin asked no one in particular.

“On their way, sir.”

Anger brewed in his chest, but he kept his face a mask of complete indifference. At 8 am, the door opened and a few other staff walked in. He waited two more minutes for any latecomers and started the meeting.

“Some of you know me already,” he began. As the words left his lips, he sat straighter, his gray eyes roaming over everyone in the room. The staff from Game Ox squirmed, except Samantha. If she attacked her job with this same viciousness, he could see why her department did so well. “But I’ll reintroduce myself. Kelvin Kyle McKenna.”

All the staff of Game Ox were familiar with him. They had met when the company went under and he bought it. Looking at the other side of the table, he frowned at the empty seat. There should have been seven people from Tech Valley in this room, but there were only six. Quincy, the team leader of their marketing department, was missing. Perhaps it was a good thing they were letting her go for Samantha to take over.

That thought had barely formed when the door burst open and someone rushed in.

Leilani.