Chapter 4: The Man from the Hotel

Julia's phone pinged, a notification appearing on her screen.

"Chris has matched with you."

Perhaps this was the answer she'd been looking for.

She viewed his profile. He wasn't bad-looking. Blond hair, blue eyes, and an easy smile completed the picture.

His profile said he was thirty years old and worked in finance. Interesting.

He looked respectable. She wasn't looking for love—only a solution.

She accepted his match and immediately got a text from him.

"Hello, beautiful."

A small smile formed on her lips. She found his text odd.

"Hello, Chris. Good day!" she responded to his text.

They exchanged a few messages before agreeing to meet for lunch the following day.

Julia would have preferred to meet immediately, but her schedule was packed. She had already sacrificed enough work time just to make room for lunch.

Satisfied that tomorrow's lunch was settled, Julia set her phone aside, changed into a comfortable lounge set, and returned to the research waiting on her desk.

She reviewed every page of her findings twice, checked the data for inconsistencies, corrected two minor calculations, and finally emailed the report to her supervisor, Dr. Jameson.

By the time she was done, it was already dark outside and the sun had set. She hadn't eaten breakfast or lunch. At some point, skipping meals had become second nature whenever her research demanded it.

She closed her laptop with a sigh and stretched her aching shoulders.

Dinner with her family was the last thing she wanted. But skipping it would only give them another reason to criticize her.

She headed downstairs and to the dining area. Her father sat at the head of the dining table, her mother on his right hand and Devon on the left.

She sat one seat away from Devon. Sitting too close to him never ended well. She had learned to keep her distance.

"Good evening, father, mother," she said as she took her seat. "Devon." she continued, staring him down.

"That is no way to dress for dinner, young lady." her mother ignored her greeting, scolding her as she looked her up and down.

"We're at home, mum. I can dress however I want to." Julia shrugged.

She was in her own home. If there was one place she shouldn't have to worry about appearances, it was here.

"This is the last time you come down for dinner dressed like that. Is this how you plan to impress the Sterlings?"

Impress? Funny. She had no intention of impressing anyone, let alone the Sterlings.

"You've been up in your room all day. I hope you've had time to think deeply about the arrangement." her mother said, reaching across the table to touch Julia's hand.

Julia pulled her hands away, not wanting to make contact with her mother. She said nothing, only stared quietly.

"There's nothing to think about. The decision has been made." her father said sternly. "All she has to do is prepare."

"You're right, darling," her mother spoke, facing Mr. Reid. " Well, I hope you're prepared, Julia." she said, looking at Julia this time.

"I'd rather not have this conversation right now." Julia said flatly.

Just then, dinner arrived. It was grand. Julia knew they were already celebrating their win.

"I think we should hire Sinclair Events to help with the wedding planning. I heard they helped organize the Mayor's swearing-in ceremony dinner, it was beautiful." Mrs. Reid said to her husband.

"That would be rather too much, dear." he responded.

"Oh, please. Mr. Sterling's handling the bill. All we have to do is organize it and show up. There's nothing to worry about."

"What's he going to do with all that money anyway? It's not like he's got much time to live." Devon said, earning laughter from his parents.

Julia sat in stunned silence as her family discussed her wedding as though she weren't even in the room.

Dinner passed by very quickly. Her parents had small conversations while praising Devon for being the best child they could have ever asked for.

"We can finally get Devon that penthouse in Italy," Mrs. Reid said with a smile. "He's wanted it for years."

Julia's fork paused halfway to her mouth. Not once had they mentioned saving the company. Every plan revolved around Devon.

They never even tried to include her in their conversation. It was like she wasn't there.

She ate in silence and the moment it was all over, she got up and headed straight to her room.

Tomorrow, she would meet the man who might become her husband. Whether it would save her life or ruin it, she was willing to take the risk.

Exhaustion settled over her like a heavy blanket. Dinner had drained what little strength she had left.

She took a quick cold shower, changed into her pajamas, and climbed into bed.

Sleep claimed her almost instantly.

***

Julia was up before six a.m. the next morning. She checked her email for new messages.

There was a response from Nature, a few emails from colleagues in her field, and a message from her supervisor acknowledging receipt of her report.

Nothing much to respond to.

She replied to the important emails, packed her bag, showered, dressed, and headed to work.

At twenty seven, she still didn't own a car. Her parents never got her one and what little money she had saved, she'd put into her research.

Her university funding had run out long before her research was complete. When she needed money to continue, she'd asked her parents for access to her trust fund only to discover they'd taken it out and gotten Devon his dream car.

She booked a cab. By the time she stepped outside, the driver was already waiting.

The drive to the university's laboratory was a short one.

The cab pulled up outside the university's research building. She got out hurriedly and headed straight to the lab.

She had DNA to extract, samples to sequence, loads of paperwork to attend to, and a lecture to deliver later that evening. All of that in one day.

Somewhere between DNA extraction and data analysis, she also had to meet the man who might save her from an arranged marriage.

She got straight to work and didn't stop until her colleague had come to tell her she needed to take a break.

She checked her watch. One thirty p.m. She was late.

Her appointment with Chris had been scheduled for one and here she was buried in her work.

The restaurant wasn't far from the university. It was a five minute walk from the campus. She had chosen that spot for accessibility.

When she arrived at the restaurant, she took a moment to calm her nerves.

It wasn't the date that made her nervous. It was what she hoped to ask him.

She barely made it through the doorway before she crashed into someone leaving the restaurant.

The impact forced her back a step.

"Watch where you're going." she snapped, looking up at the person who had just run into her.

Her breath caught.

It was him.

The man from the hotel.

She wondered if she should tell him.

No.

What was she supposed to say? "Hi, we accidentally slept together?"

He frowned for a second. Recognition flashed across his face.

"You..." he said.