Defy his father's wishes

13 - Unlucky - Isaac

"I heard the cold-hearted heir of the Saunders Group is tying the knot." The mockery in his friend's voice was evident as he confidently strode to his office as if he owned the place.

"Should I start marking the date on my calendar?" Ivan continued while taking one of the vacant seats and making himself comfortable.

"Not if I can help it." He silently muttered, clearly irritated. But he ignored his friend's taunting, keeping his attention on the paperwork before him.

But honestly, he had been working for an hour on the same damn page, but nothing made any sense. The letters and numbers had just kept floating inside his head, but his mind was busy thinking about something else.

I'm not marrying whoever my Dad had set me up with.

He stubbornly refused to give in to his father's demand. He believed he could still find another way to inherit his father's company without marrying a stranger.

However, he was aware he did not have the luxury of time. He had to act fast or else he might lose everything he had worked hard for. Or he could end up playing house with some woman his father chose.

"But seriously, man, I did not see this coming. My friend is getting hitched." His friend tried hard not to show how much he had found his situation amusing, but failed miserably.

"Stop acting like you are not enjoying this." Isaac finally accepted that he would not get anything done while his head was in total disarray.

He haphazardly dropped his pen on the table, closed the file, and reclined his chair backward while facing his friend with a foul mood.

"Ok! Ok! But can you blame me?" His friend lifted his hands in surrender.

No! He could not.

If they reversed their situation, he would probably act the same way as his friend.

"Anyway, who's this lucky lady who captured your heart?" Again, with the taunting tone.

"How would I know?" He tried to sound indifferent, hoping to ascertain that he did not care. "At any rate, it doesn't matter who she is since I'm not falling for my father's trap."

"You meant to say..." His friend scrunched his nose, looking baffled by his statement. "You haven't met your fiancé." He blurted, ostensibly flabbergasted.

"A certain Ms. Charlene Preston?" Again, his friend raised his right brows in question as he checked the file he held in his hand. "Doesn't the name even ring a bell?"

"Nope." He nonchalantly responded. "I don't know her, and I don't intend to get to know her."

Charlene Preston?

He was absolutely and undoubtedly certain this was the first time he had heard the name. Bluntly, he had no idea where his father picked up his bride-to-be.

"Well, I don't know about you, but your father seems determined to make this nuptial happen." His friend told him.

"As your family's lawyer, Mr. Saunders asked me to prepare your marriage license and a prenup agreement." Ivan, who had been his childhood best friend, business partner, and personal lawyer, informed him.

His friend dropped the folder onto his table. If he had to guess, he believed that would be the documents his father had requested.

"Remind me who's your friend, and who you work for?" Isaac crossed his arms across his chest, slightly annoyed with his friend for pointing out his frustrating situation.

"Of course, I'm your friend. But your father is still the CEO. Until you inherit the company, I'm still working for him." His friend answered, shrugging his shoulders as if he had no choice.

"Fine!" He could not deny that his friend was right. Until his father turned over the company to him, he was still just an employee, just like his friend.

"Still, instead of working on that, you should be looking for ways for me to get out of this ridiculous arrangement." He ordered.

"If that is what you want." His friend nodded, agreeing with his plan. "But for now, aren't you even curious about what your prenuptial entails?"

He might already have an idea of the content of the contract. But knowing his father, he should expect the unexpected.

"I'm sure you are just dying to tell me." He did not bother to look at the file, knowing his nosy friend would be more than willing to spill its contents.

"First, your father insisted on compensating your future wife a million dollars after she signed the marriage contract.

Furthermore, she will receive a hundred thousand monthly living allowance during your marriage. Then..." His friend paused as if recalling the clauses on the contract.

"Ah, yeah! She had to stay married for a year and act like a devoted wife to you during the marriage in public. In return, she would receive a bonus, in the amount of ten million dollars, after your divorce."

Damn! Who is this woman?

He could not help but wonder where his father found this woman as he listened to his friend enumerate what was on the contract.

But then again, he always thought arranged marriage was just another business transaction. Therefore, he could not expect his bride to agree to marry him for free.

"She certainly strikes a hard bargain." Whoever this woman was. "So, what business is she offering in return for this marriage proposal?"

"That is the weirdest thing. Your father is not asking for anything in return except for her to stay married to you within the year." Ivan said, seemingly puzzled by his father's behavior.

His father was a shrewd and ruthless negotiator. Therefore, for him to agree to such a deal was quite shocking.

It seemed she had his father under a spell if she had manipulated him to agree to such an agreement.

"That's interesting." He was suddenly curious. "What can you tell about this woman?" Although he initially said he did not want anything to do with this woman, he could not help but be intrigued.

"Nothing much." His friend said. "But I can check it out if you want." He offered.

"Anyway, should I continue?" His friend interrupted him as he discussed the rest of the content. "She will also receive a house, a car, jewelry, clothing..."

His friend continued to enumerate the rest of the contract, but he barely heard them. He was not concerned about the money, but more about this woman's motive to marry into his family.

Was she only after their family's money or something else? Why did his father choose her?

"Hmm?" He could not help but question his father's current state of mind. "What is it about her?" He mentally asked as his mind delved into his situation. "Who is she?"

For some damn reason, his mind kept pushing the image of that woman from the other night. He knew he should not even be thinking about her.

She's just another gold digger.

That woman did not deserve his time, he kept telling himself, remembering how she fooled him and robbed him blind.

"Did you even hear what I said?" His friend knocked on his table, snapping him back from his private reverie.

"Anyway, it is all there in the contract that your father wants you to sign." He pointed again at the folder before him.

"I'll review it later. Just leave it." Isaac told his friend, pushing the document aside.

"By the way, your father also ordered me to draft his new will." From his friend's expression, he could already tell that his father was not bluffing.

"He's truly going to do it." He mumbled more to himself as he thought of his father's threat.

"He said he wanted to sell the company and leave half of the proceeds to his chosen charity and half to Ms. Preston if you failed to comply with his conditions." His friend informed him.

"What the hell!" He finally exploded as his fist landed on his table with a loud bang.

He could not contain his outrage. The orphanage, he understood. But that woman? Why would his father leave half of his inheritance in her hands?

Again, who is she?

"Do you think your father would leave you with nothing if you don't marry this woman?" Ivan tentatively asked.

He already knew the answer to that.

But the real question was, could he defy his father's wishes?