Chapter 2–He Wants You, Natasha

Natasha’s POV

I woke up to a throbbing headache. My head felt heavy against the pillow. The dull pain reminded me of the whiskey I had insisted on drinking last night. Sunlight pierced through the half-closed blinds of my bedroom.

I groaned softly, pressing my palm against my forehead as fragments of the previous night returned in pieces.

The nightclub. Ananya’s voice yelling over the music. The drunk bastard who had grabbed my waist last night. And then… those piercing grey eyes.

I frowned slightly and turned onto my back, staring at the ceiling.

“Ugh! That arrogant prick,” I groaned.

He looked like the kind of man who walked into a room like he owned everything in it.

Just thinking about him irritated me. I shook my head. He was another rich man who probably thinks the world revolved around him.

I pushed the thought away and reached for my phone on the bedside table.

It was twelve thirty pm. Several notifications lit the screen. Missed calls from my dad and my sister, Victoria. Voicemails from her. Several messages from Ananya.

“Are you okay, Tasha?”

“I guess you’re still in bed.”

“Just checking in on you.”

“Call me when you wake up!”

My dad rarely called me twelve times in a row. That was unusual.

Victoria and I don’t even talk that much, so I don’t understand why she would be calling me.

I listened to her voicemail.

“Nat, do not tell me you’re still in bed. Dad has been trying to reach you for a while now. Call him as soon as you can.”

Okay… that wasn’t normal.

I scrolled to my call log and dialed my father’s number. It rang once, twice. He picked up on the third ring.

“Hello, Da—”

“Natasha, I need you to come to the office now!” his voice cut through me—not loud, but firm.

“What’s wrong, dad?” I asked, sitting upright now.

“Not over the phone. I’ll explain when you get here.”

The line went dead before I could say anything else.

I stood up too fast. The movement made my head spin a bit.

I held the wall for support.

After steadying myself, I went into the bathroom to get ready.

I turned on the shower, the cold water hitting my body and sending a chill down my spine.

I didn’t spend as much time in the bathroom as I would have. My father’s tone was still getting to me.

I walked out of the shower, went into my closet. I dressed quickly, throwing on a silk blouse and pencil skirt, with black heels to match.

The drive to the office wasn’t long.

The lobby of Whitmore industries felt heavier than usual as I stepped inside the sleek glass building.

A few employees moved through the corridor. Some employees were speaking in low voices near the reception. The conversations stopped the moment they noticed me.

I didn’t care. I walked toward the elevator without stopping.

Minutes later, I stepped out of the elevator. I bumped into Victoria in the hallway leading to my father’s office.

“What’s happening?” I asked.

She sighed a little.

“I’m guessing it has to do with the company. You’re aware that the company is facing a major challenge right now,” she paused.

“Stocks are plummeting, investors are backing out… and it’s just a lot to handle,” she said. “And you would know that if you weren’t too busy grieving your dead boyfriend.”

“Damn you, Tori,” I said, walking out on her.

I stepped into my father’s office.

He stood near the large window behind his desk, his back turned as he looked over the city.

He didn’t turn immediately when I entered.

“Natasha.” His voice was way too calm.

“Yes,” I replied, surprised he knew it was me. Had my perfume given me away?

The silence was loud.

He finally faced me.

The exhaustion on his face surprised me. I’d never seen him like that since my mom—

“Sit.” He gestured at the chair opposite his desk. He rubbed a hand over his face before speaking.

“Dad, out with it now,” I said. I remained standing, arms folded tightly over my chest.

“The company is in trouble.”

I said nothing, waiting for him to continue.

“It’s the kind of trouble that doesn’t disappear with a few adjustments,” he continued. “It could take months, years even.”

There was a brief pause.

“We’re drowning in debt.”

The words hung in the air.

I stared at him.

“How’s that possible? How did it get to this?” I asked.

I knew the company had been struggling, but I didn’t realize it had gotten to this point.

“It is possible. The investors have been pulling out one by one for months. Creditors are already pressuring us harder every day .” he said. He moved toward his desk and picked up a folder.

I shook my head, now pacing his office. This couldn’t be happening. The company had been in existence for years. My grandfather had started the company, and it would hurt to see it go down this way.

“So you’re saying the company is—“

“Close to bankruptcy.” He completed the statement.

The word landed heavily between us.

“This is a lot to process. It just doesn’t make any sense,” I said. “You would have told us.”

“I was trying to fix it.”

“But you didn’t.” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

The silence was sickening.

I swallowed hard, forcing my voice to stay steady.

“There has to be something we can do. Loans, new investors—“

“Someone offered a solution,” he cut in. “Someone with the capital to clear the debts and stabilize the company. Enough to make it stronger.”

Something cold settled in my chest. An offer like this is hard to come by.

“What’s the catch?” I asked.

My father hesitated for a moment.

This wasn’t good. I could tell.

“He… he wants you, Natasha. The man is willing to save Whitmore industries… on the condition that you have to be his wife.”

My eyes widened as my father spoke.

The words landed like he had hit me, because he just did—not physically.

“Marry him?” I asked in disbelief, my voice rising. “You can’t be serious, dad. Who is this man, and why the fuck would he want to marry me?”

“Language, Natasha!” My father snapped.

I let out a dry laugh. “You can’t possibly be worried about my language. Are you kidding me, Dad? You just said a stranger I don’t even know asked me to marry him in order to save the company, and you expect me to just take that on the chin?” I fired back.

“Now I’m curious, Dad… what did you say to him?”

He didn’t respond.

The silence told me everything.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I whispered.

“You agreed to this, didn’t you?”

“Natasha, that’s all he’s asking for. A marriage to save the company your grandfather had spent years building.” he said.

“Who is he?” I asked, my voice dropping.

“It’s Tristan Castillo.”

“Hell no!”