Chapter 3 - The Ballroom

Savannah's pov

I smoothed down the skirt of my black dress for the hundredth time while keeping my posture perfectly rigid. I felt entirely out of my element in a gown and I would choose my pants and t-shirt over this any day, but for the sake of my parents, I had to attend this gala.

We were in the corner of the ballroom, which was filled to the brim with billionaires of all walks of life, who were dressed elegantly in insanely expensive clothes, trying to look better than the other.

To my left, my parents stood facing Richard and Eleanor Montgomery, and the two families looked totally different. My father was hard, his hands calloused and his face lined by decades of hard, honest work under the scorching sun, while Richard Montgomery, on the other hand, was sharp and possessed a cold aura that made me want to avoid him at all costs. His hands were smooth, a clear sign he had never had to experience hard labor.

“The final deeds are officially locked in the escrow account,” Richard Montgomery stated, his voice calculated as he swiped his fingers across a tablet screen. “The moment the marriage license is registered in a few days, the development freeze on the Nine Mile Falls mountain plot activates for one year, Marcus, as it is in our agreement.”

“We keep our word, Richard,” my father replied in a steady but authoritative tone. “The ranch will host them, but your boy better be ready to pull his own weight as we don't tolerate idleness.”

“Speaking of the groom,” my mother murmured, her eyes scanning the ballroom. “Where is he?”

Right on cue, the doors at the back of the lounge opened and Julian Montgomery walked into the room, looking sharp but completely exhausted. He wore a tailored suit, but his tie was slightly loosened and his dark hair was perfectly disheveled, as if he had spent the last forty-eight hours getting no rest. He looked cold and strict as his piercing, icy blue eyes drifted slowly toward me, looking me up and down with a calculating glare.

“You are late, Julian,” Eleanor Montgomery hissed.

“I was finalizing my remote work parameters, Mother,” Julian answered stiffly in a cold and entirely professional tone but he did not look at her. Instead, he stepped closer to me, his jaw tightening. “So, this is the ranch heiress.”

A spike of irritation flared in my chest at his cold tone. I stood my ground, staring right back into his eyes with an unimpressed glare because who the hell does he think he is?

Our parents murmured their quick excuses and walked away to finalize the press statements, leaving the two of us standing in the secluded corner of the ballroom and the moment they were out of earshot, Julian crossed his arms and looked down at me like I was some waste of time.

“Let us make one thing clear, Savannah,” he said, his voice dropping low. “I know why your family structured this deal and it is because you need our signature to lock down your land rights. For your own good, just play the part of the cooperative partner for twelve months, stay out of my way so I can focus on my work, and we will get through this contract efficiently.”

I let out a short, unbelievable laugh at his arrogance as I took an intimidating step toward him to face him head on.

“Let's get one thing straight, Julian,” I said, my voice filled with defiance and stubbornness. “I don't need your money, and my family doesn't need your pity. We are protecting a legacy that actually means something.”

“So why the hell am I being dragged into this? I honestly don’t care about your family so why the hell do you think I care about your little big girl speech that you probably took hours to recite in front of your mirror?”

Anger filled me at his silly words but I was better at words.

“The difference between us is that I am doing this for my loving family but you, on the other hand, are only here because your parents held your career capital hostage. You think you are a brilliant businessman, but you are just a corporate climber who got cornered and I feel nothing for you.”

Julian’s eyes darkened with a flash of anger and I could see it by his body language that he was used to being the smartest analyst in the room, but over here, I did not care about his business metrics.

“Watch your mouth,” he snarled, stepping into my personal space. “You have no idea how hard I worked to build my independent ventures. I am dealing with global logistics, while you are managing a dusty plot of land. This entire arrangement is an administrative delay for me which I am going to overcome.”

“An administrative delay?” I countered with a mocking smile. “You think you're a big man because you can analyze a spreadsheet? Let me tell you what I see when I look at you, Julian. I see a man who thinks he is too smart for the dirt but you’re even far lower. If your family didn't hold the keys to your trust fund, you would just be another broke tech founder begging for an investor.”

Julian actually flinched but it only fueled me to continue.

“You think moving to my ranch is just a remote working vacation?” I whispered fiercely. “You think you are going to lounge around in your room and type on your laptop all day? Think again because the dirt doesn't care about your business goals, and neither do I. So if you are living under our roof, you will contribute to our operations or go back to wherever you came from.”

“How dare you—”

“Tch, just stop talking already, you’re pathetic.”

He opened his mouth to fire back, his face red with a mixture of shock, rage, and humiliation, but I didn't give him the chance to speak because I was already certain anything coming from that mouth of his was absolute trash.

I leaned in slightly, my voice dropping low but loud enough for him to hear clearly. “Enjoy your fast cars and your remote work for the next few days, Montgomery because the moment you step onto my land, you belong to the ranch and I assure you, you’re going to sweat out all the royal blood in you before you can say Jack Robinson.”

Without waiting for his response, I turned on my heel and swirled my dress behind me as I walked away into the crowd, leaving the great Julian Montgomery standing entirely alone, frozen in absolute shock.

By the time I joined my family, I was already convinced this marriage was going to be tougher than anything I’ve ever encountered.

“How was it?” My mom asked with a bit of excitement. “Did you guys get along?”

“Yes mom,” I said in a calm tone. “We got along really well.”