Chapter 1

"You have to do this, Ava. It's the only way," my mother’s voice was loud and clear, cutting me off as I argued with her, insisting that I didn't agree to the sudden arranged marriage. "Your father has already spoken to them, and it’s settled."

I stared at her, wondering if this was a dream. I just couldn't understand why she... they were doing this to me. "I don’t have a choice, do I?"

She didn't even flinch. "No, you don't."

"Mom! You know I haven’t recovered from what James did to me! You saw what I went through, emotionally and mentally!" I took her right hand and pleaded.

She looked at me, almost softening, then turned her head away. "Ava, we have concluded, and that’s final." She withdrew her hand and left my room, closing the door behind her.

I fell to the floor in tears. Why was this happening to me? The words she said echoed in my head, each one sinking deeper into my chest, making me hurt even more. A proposal. A marriage. An arrangement with a man I didn’t even know, to save my family from the mess my father had gotten us into. Not caring about the fact that their daughter is still traumatized.

I crossed my arms over my chest and tried to breathe normally, though it felt like I couldn’t. I stood up, left my room, and went straight to my father in the parlor. "I can't believe this, Dad. You’re asking me to suddenly marry a stranger."

He looked at me, tears still rolling down my face. 

"Not just any stranger, Ava. His family is well-established. His company can save us. You’ll be in good hands." My mother interrupted, answering instead of my dad, her eyes not meeting mine.

She didn't look at me as she spoke, she focused on some spot on the floor, like it was the most interesting thing in the room. "This marriage is the only solution."

I glanced at my father, sitting silently in the corner, his hands folded neatly on his lap. I could see the weariness in his eyes, the helplessness. This wasn’t his idea. "Dad?" I said, my voice quieter now. "Don’t you think this is too much? Do you even love me?"

He sighed heavily, rubbing his temples. "Ava, don’t say that. I love you... we both love you. I actually don’t want you to do this, Ava. But I can’t fix this on my own. We need this."

I didn’t respond. There was nothing more to say. The weight of the situation was suffocating, and I couldn’t bear it anymore. I suddenly walked toward the window to escape their gazes. I looked out, my mind racing. While crying my lungs out, my younger sister Priscilia came and rubbed my back to console me.

After a while, I calmed down, wiping the tears off my face and turning to face my parents. “So, what’s his name? This guy I’m supposed to marry?”

My mother hesitated. "Nathaniel Hargrave."

I froze at the mention of his name. “Nathaniel Hargrave?” I repeated. “Wait... the Nathaniel Hargrave? The billionaire heir?"

She nodded, not even looking at me. "Yes. His family owns a huge company. One of the biggest in the country."

I laughed, though it sounded more like a nervous chuckle than amusement. “Wow, just great. This is exactly how I imagined my life turning out... you guys really sold me off!”

The silence that followed was thick, uncomfortable. I could feel my frustration building, but there was nothing I could do to change what was happening. My sister couldn’t say a word either.

“So, what now?” I finally asked, turning back to face them. “Do I just show up at his house, and we get married?”

My mother raised her eyebrows. "Not exactly. First, you’ll meet him."

“Great. A blind date,” I muttered sarcastically. “You know, it’s actually funny how I didn’t even realize I was in this kind of desperate situation."

My mother ignored my sarcasm, her face serious. “Yes, a blind date. But don’t make it sound like a choice. You’re meeting him in two days’ time, in the evening. Be ready."

I didn’t know what to say anymore, so I just nodded and walked back to my room, aggressively throwing myself on the bed as if it had offended me. I started thinking. What else could I do? I was trapped. Trapped in a situation where my life no longer felt like mine to control.

The fact that I didn't have a say in the man I was to marry made me start resenting Nathaniel even before meeting him. Life was easier for men. He could have me for himself without my permission simply because he was a billionaire. This thought disgusted me.

A knock on the door distracted me. "Hey! Do you feel a little bit better now?" Priscillia peeped through the small space she had opened while still holding the door.

"Oh, Priscillia! Yes, I feel better but not happy," I responded, signaling for her to come in and sit beside me.

"I'm so sorry all this is happening. I wish I knew about this earlier; I would have offered to do this instead of you," she said with a sad face.

"Oh my god! Don’t say that. You’re younger than me. I won’t sit back and let this kind of thing happen to you." I used my hand to hold her face up and then hugged her.

"I want you to find a good man and fall in love. My love life and emotional health are already a walking disaster. I don't want the same to happen to you."

Tears started dripping down her face. "I'm sorry." I tried holding back my own tears; I didn’t like seeing my little sister cry.

“Crybaby, I'll be fine as long as you come check on me, share all your gists, and we hang out together. Promise?”

"Yes... I... I promise," she said, starting to wipe her tears away.

"By the way, do you have any idea how our parents were able to get this deal with such a wealthy family? We’ve never had connections with them," I asked Priscillia, knowing our mum must have spilled some tea or that Priscillia had eavesdropped—as that was her hobby.

"Actually, Mum met Nathaniel's mother recently. Turns out they were classmates in college, but Mum never told us. They hadn’t kept in touch until now."

"Hmm... that sounds fishy. And they suddenly agreed to an arranged marriage?" I said, my face showing my suspicion.

"I thought so too, but I couldn’t get more information," Priscillia added.

"Okay, that's fine. I will find out one way or the other." I stood up to pick a dress. "I need to prepare for an interview for an article I’m working on. I’ll be going out in about an hour and 30 minutes. I don’t want to be late."

"Oh, okay! I’ll prepare those snacks you like so you can take them along," Priscillia said, standing up and heading toward the door.

"You know we could check online to see what your future husband looks like," she teased.

"No thanks, I’m not interested. Knowing his name is enough. Talking about it is already ruining my mood," I said, getting annoyed.

"Please, let’s avoid talking about him for now. I’ll know what he looks like during the date," I added.

"Oh, okay," Priscillia nodded and left the room.

I needed to focus on my work—the only thing that could keep me sane. As I was about to head into the bathroom for a shower, my phone rang. It was an unknown number. I picked it up reluctantly, expecting yet another work-related call.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Ava Collins,” came a deep voice that sent an odd shiver down my spine. “This is Nathaniel Hargrave. I believe we’re about to meet soon.”