BEFORE THE PROPOSAL

    CHAPTER 2

 

  Amara’s POV 

  Few days before Jude Monroe asked me to become his wife, I thought the biggest problem in my life was finding enough money to keep my mother’s restaurant open.

  

  I was wrong.

  

  That morning, I was standing behind the restaurant counter when a man dropped a letter in front of me.

  

  “Your mother needs to sign this.”

  

  I looked at the envelope.

  

  “Why?”

  

  The man crossed his arms.

  

  “Because you haven’t paid what you owe.”

  

  My stomach tightened.

  

  “I thought we still had time.”

  

  “You did.”

  

  I picked up the letter.

  

  “How much time?”

  

  “Until Friday.”

  

  I looked at him.

  

  “Friday?”

  

  He nodded.

  

  “If the payment isn’t made by Friday, the restaurant goes into another process.”

  

  I stared at him.

  

  “What process?”

  

  He didn’t answer right away.

  Then he said,

  

  “You could lose the place.”

  

  My fingers tightened around the letter.

  

  “No.”

  

  “I’m only telling you what you need to know.”

  

  “This restaurant belongs to my mother.”

  

  “Then she should have paid the debt.”

  

  I felt anger rise in my chest.

  

  “You don’t have to talk to me like that.”

  

  He gave me a tired look.

  

  “I’ve been asking for payment for months.”

  

  He turned toward the door.

  

  I quickly followed him.

  

  “Please.”

  

  He stopped.

  

  “I know we’re behind. I know we owe money. But my mother is trying.”

  

  “Trying isn’t enough anymore.”

  

  He walked away.

  

  I stood there and watched his car leave.

  Friday.

  

  Four days.

  

  That was all we had.

  

  I looked around the restaurant.

  

  The old tables.

  

  The small kitchen.

  

  The faded sign above the counter.

  

  My mother had spent years building this place.

  

  It wasn’t fancy, but it was ours.

  

  And now we could lose everything.

  

  “Amara?”

  

  I turned.

  

  My mother was coming out of the kitchen.

  

  She wiped her hands on her apron.

  

  “Who was that?”

  

  I quickly folded the letter.

  

  “No one.”

  

  She frowned.

  

  “Amara.”

  

  “He came about a payment.”

  

  Her face changed.

  

  “What payment?”

  

  I knew I couldn’t hide it anymore.

  

  I handed her the letter.

  

  She read it slowly.

  

  Her shoulders dropped.

  

  “I was hoping we had more time.”

  

  “How bad is it?”

  

  She looked at me.

  

  “Bad.”

  

  “How bad?”

  

  She sat down.

  

  “I didn’t want you to worry.”

  

  “Mum, I’m already worried.”

  

  She looked down at the letter.

  

  “We owe more than I told you.”

  

  I sat beside her.

  

  “How much?”

  

  She told me.

  

  I went silent.

  

  That was much more than I expected.

  

  “How are we going to pay that?”

  

  “I don’t know.”

  

  For the first time, I heard fear in my mother’s voice.

  

  I reached for her hand.

  

  “We’ll find a way.”

  

  She looked at me.

  

  “Amara, you have already done too much.”

  

  “You’re my mother.”

  

  “And you have your own life.”

  

  “So do you.”

  

  She gave me a sad smile.

  

  “I only wanted to give you and your brother a better life.”

  

  “And you did.”

  

  I squeezed her hand.

  

  “So now let me help you.”

  

  Before she could answer, the kitchen door opened.

  

  My younger brother walked out with his school bag.

  

  “What’s wrong?”

  

  “Nothing,” I said quickly.

  

  He looked between us.

  

  “You’re both acting strange.”

  

  “Go to school.”

  

  “But…”

  

  “Go.”

  

  He picked up his bag.

  

  Then he stopped.

  

  “Are we losing the restaurant?”

  

  My heart sank.

  

  He had heard us.

  

  I stood up.

  

  “No.”

  

  He looked at me.

  

  “Really?”

  

  “Really.”

  

  “But I heard…”

  

  “You heard wrong.”

  

  He didn’t look convinced.

  

  I walked over and fixed his shirt collar.

  

  “You have a test today. That’s what you should be thinking about.”

  

  “What about you?”

  

  “I’ll be fine.”

  

  He stared at me for a moment.

  

  Then he nodded.

  

  “Okay.”

  

  When he left, I watched him through the window until he disappeared down the street.

  

  I had just promised him everything would be fine.

  Now I had to make sure it was.

  

  

  By noon, the restaurant was almost empty.

  

  That was another problem.

  

  Business had been getting worse for months.

  

  Fewer customers.

  

  Higher prices.

  

  More bills.

  

  My mother tried to hide how worried she was, but I could see it every time she opened another unpaid bill.

  

  I took out my phone.

  

  There had to be something I could do.

  

  I called three people.

  

  One said they couldn’t help.

  

  Another didn’t answer.

  

  The third told me they were also struggling.

  

  I lowered my phone.

  

  Nothing.

  

  Then someone knocked on the restaurant door.

  I looked up.

  

  A woman I had never seen before walked inside.

  

  She wore a neat black dress and carried a folder.

  

  “Good afternoon,” she said.

  

  “Good afternoon.”

  

  She looked around.

  

  “Is your mother here?”

  

  “Why?”

  

  “I have a few questions about the property.”

  

  My stomach tightened.

  

  “What property?”

  

  “The restaurant.”

  

  I stared at her.

  

  “What about it?”

  

  She opened her folder.

  

  “I was told the land may be available.”

  

  “It isn’t.”

  

  She looked at me.

  

  “You’re sure?”

  

  “Yes.”

  

  “Your mother owns it?”

  

  “Yes.”

  

  She closed the folder.

  

  “That’s interesting.”

  

  “What is?”

  

  “Nothing.”

  

  She smiled politely.

  

  “I’ll speak with her another time.”

  

  She turned to leave.

  

  I stopped her.

  

  “Wait.”

  

  She looked back.

  

  “Who sent you?”

  

  “I don’t think that’s important.”

  

  “It is to me.”

  

  She smiled again.

  

  “You’ll find out soon enough.”

  

  Then she walked out.

  

  I watched her leave.

  

  Something about her bothered me.

  

  Why was someone suddenly asking about the land?

  

  And why now?

  

  I grabbed my phone and called my mother.

  

  “Mum, did you speak to anyone about selling the restaurant?”

  “No. Why?”

  

  I told her about the woman.

  

  There was silence.

  

  Then my mother said,“Don’t talk to her if she comes back.”

  

  “Why?”

  

  “Just don’t.”

  

  Her voice sounded different.

  

  Worried.

  

  “Mum, what is going on?”

  

  “I’ll explain when I get home.”

  

  The call ended.

  

  I stared at my phone.

  

  Now I had even more questions.

  

  That evening, I went to Ivy’s apartment.

  

  The moment she opened the door, she looked at my face.

  

  “Something happened.”

  

  I walked inside.

  

  “Everything happened.”

  

  I told her about the debt.

  

  The deadline.

  

  The woman asking about the land.

  

  When I finished, Ivy sat down.

  

  “This is serious.”

  

  “I know.”

  

  “What are you going to do?”

  

  “Find money.”

  

  “From where?”

  

  “I don’t know yet.”

  

  She looked at me.

  

  “Have you asked Ethan?”

  

  I shook my head.

  

  “I don’t want to bother him.”

  

  “Amara, your family is about to lose the restaurant.

  

   This is the exact moment you should bother him.”

  

  I laughed.

  

  “That’s not how it works.”

  

  “Yes, it is.”

  

  She grabbed her phone.

  

  “Call him.”

  

  “Ivy.”

  

  “Call him.”

  

  I sighed and took out my phone.

  

  I found Ethan’s name.

  

  Before I could press call, my phone rang.

  

  Ethan.

  

  I stared at the screen.

  

  Ivy raised an eyebrow.

  

  “Well?”

  

  I answered.

  

  “Hello?”

  

  “Amara?”

  

  “Yes.”

  

  “Are you free tomorrow?”

  

  I frowned.

  

  “Why?”

  

  “I want to talk to you about something.”

  

  “Is everything okay?”

  

  There was a short pause.

  

  “Yes.”

  

  Then he added,“But I think I may have found someone who can help you.”

  

  I sat up straight.

  

  “Who?”

  

  “My boss.”

  

  I knew exactly who he meant.

  

  “Jude Monroe?”

  

  “Yes.”

  

  I looked at Ivy.

  

  She was already watching me closely.

  

  “What does he want?”

  

  “I’ll explain tomorrow.”

  

  “Ethan…”

  “Trust me.”

  

  The call ended.

  

  I slowly lowered my phone.

  

  Ivy leaned forward.

  

  “What did he say?”

  

  I looked at her.

  

  “Ethan says he found someone who might be able to help us.”

  

  “Who?”

  

  “Jude Monroe.”

  

  Her eyes widened.

  

  “The billionaire?”

  

  I nodded.

  

  She smiled.

  

  “Then maybe things are finally looking up.”

  

  I wasn’t so sure.

  

  Because I had no idea why a man like Jude Monroe would care about my family’s problems.

  

  And I had no idea that meeting him would lead me to the most unbelievable offer of my life.