ONE

PLACE: CARRINGTON'S MANSION

TIME: SUNDAY 6:45 PM

"Everyone, listen up," William said from the head of the table, tapping the edge slightly to catch the attention of everyone. Williams was a family man, and for that reason, he had the entire family back at his mansion every Sunday for dinner to get away. That way, they could discuss and gloss over the events of the week and give each other updates. 

After dinner every night, the men got together and watched a sport regardless of what was airing at that time. They all seemed to enjoy the time together. The older women would go out to the balcony and have tea while talking; they called it talking, but everyone knew very well that it was gossip. The younger girls would cluster in Lila's room and try to really catch up on what had been going on. 

Everyone raises their head to William at the head of the table. He dropped his spoon to his plate and propped his elbow on the table so he could intertwine his fingers. Seeing his posture, everyone could tell that this was serious business, so they all kept quiet and dropped their cutlery to their plates as well. 

"Lila," he said, calling on his last daughter. She looked at him, trying to decipher what he was going to say. She could not read minds, but she was sure this had something to do with her marriage. Both of her elder sisters had gotten married at the age of twenty-four, and she was already a year late, according to her father's timeline, which made her wonder if he was really going to set up a marriage for her as he did with her sisters. 

"You are going to be getting married to Levi Beaumont," the smile on her face faded. She understood her father's proposition to want to choose space for them because of their position in society. It was best for them to get married to the rich so they could stay rich longer. That was the only way that the Carrington family has been able to stand and stay rich for five generations now. That was the same with the Beaumont family, but it did not make sense for both families to get married. They could say the name of each, so how could her father suggest that she get married to their enemy?

"William?" Eleanor screamed at him with her eyes open. She was his wife, and he did not want to discuss this with her before springing it up on them at this family dinner. 

"Woman, let me be," he said. That was not his usual response, so it made everyone reel in shock. 

"Daddy, you must have made a mistake in the name because surely you cannot ask me to marry a Beaumont," Lila said from beside her sister at the tail end of the table with her cousins sitting there. 

"I have made no mistake; you will marry Levi Beaumont." They all stared at his face. The youngsters expected him to burst into uncontrollable laughter and tell them that it was all a prank, and he wanted to see the expression on their faces. If he did, that would not be out of his character; after all, that was the kind of man that he was. The laughter did not come, and so Elizabeth spoke. She was his first daughter and had been given to marriage to the Ashbourne family; she held the hand of her husband under the tale and cleared her throat. 

"Daddy, we have never been on good terms with the Beaumonts, so how are we supposed to plan a wedding with them?" Elizabeth asked, earning her grunts of approval around the table. 

"That is right, brother; that does not make sense. Are you trying to sell your daughter to the devil?" Carrie said and cleared her throat as well. They could all tell that he was being serious, and that was the reason they were all careful to tread. As much as he was playful, he also had a side to him where he hated to be challenged on his orders. 

"When it comes to saving the honour and name of the family, does our enemy matter? If we have to dance with them just so we can live, then so be it." 

"But dad..." Victoria began but was cut off by him slamming on the table, causing them all to jump a bit in fear. This was not the typical dinner at the Carrington family, and no one liked the turn that this was taking. 

"We got an offer from Skyline," he said, and they all gasped. That had been the goal of Grandfather before he died; he always wanted to do business with Skyline; they were too big not to want to do business with them; doing business with them would automatically put the company in the global space, and that was what the Carrington family needed. "But they only offered to do business with us if we get together as contractors with the Beaumont family," he said, and they all frowned. 

"I cannot let this opportunity slip off my hand because of the Beaumont family, and they want this as much as we do. To make sure that they do not betray us, I came up with the solution of having our children in a contract marriage for a year; by then we would have gotten what we needed from Skyline and we could go our separate ways," William explained. He did not plan to get stuck with them; he planned to keep pitching to Skyline, and he was sure that all he needed to get them all on board was just a year. 

"So you are telling me to get married to Levi Beaumont for a year?" Lila asked, standing up. Her body pushed back the seat she had been sitting in, and the screech rang through the dining room. "I hate Levi with everything I have and own; I have had to come up against him every day, and you think it would be a good idea to put us in the same room and ask us to get married?" she asked. They all looked at her and understood exactly what she meant. 

She was in charge of the food subsidy of the Carrington Group, and Levi was also in charge of the food subsidy in the Beaumont Group. They met more often because they always wanted to, and that made their own relationship even more special. They all knew that there was no way they would survive being in the same house without one of them turning up dead. 

"That is what I want you to do." 

"I can't do that."