CHAPTER 4

AMELIA'S POV

“What condition is that?” Clara shouted, walking forward and ready to negotiate.

He snapped his fingers, and the young man from earlier appeared again, placing a document in his hand. “Here is the condition,” he muttered.

I took the paper, glancing through it with my heart racing. Clara leaned in on my shoulder, stretching to see the content of the paper. I never realized I was still standing until I saw something shocking on the paper - a contract marriage with rules attached.

I looked up from the paper, his gaze locked into mine and he seemed to have read my mind correctly, seemingly answering the question that lingered on my mind. “Yes, be my wife for two years and I'll handle A-L-L  of your expenses,” he grinned.

For seconds, I was torn between surprise and indecisiveness. Then it began to make sense to me; he had probably inquired from Leo about the reason for my sad countenance earlier.

“And the rules?” Clara asked.

“Yes, the rules must be strictly adhered to: No unpermitted outing, assume all wifely duties, use every other place in the mansion but not my bedroom and finally, pregnancy is prohibited.”

The feeling of admiration I felt earlier suddenly evacuated, I felt seriously disdained at just the mere sight of him. 

“So you actually wanted to help me so as to turn me into a slave In return?” I asked, trying to maintain moderacy in my anger.

He shifted comfortably on his seat, deliberately revealing his bare chest, “Well, I'm afraid so but I only said wife, not slave,” he flung his hands.

“I do not care what you think, man, I'm not going to…” Just then Clara pinched me, forcing me to swallow the rest of my words. 

“We really appreciate your kindness and support…errm, sir. You know this is not a decision that could be rushed, she would think about it and get back to you,” she said, giving me a sort of look that says, “keep quiet.”

“It's alright. I'm always here and I have all the time, but she, on the other hand, has limited time,” he taunted.

To be honest, I wasn't sure if my actions at the moment were right or wrong. I wasn't sure if I should be grateful and utilize the opportunity or be patient and have faith according to Clara.  But then, it was too late, I had already shown a tough side and I won't back down now. “Meet me outside when you are done negotiating,” I barked at Clara before storming out of the lounge.

“Hey, babe. Let's go but seriously you need to consider the proposal. I mean for your dad. We're running out of time,” she said amidst sympathy after leaving the lounge.

I didn't say anything even while we journeyed back to her place. Deep down, I really appreciated Clara. She was the only one aside from my father who could keep up with my anger. ‘ I'll be a better friend once I get out of this trouble,’ I promised myself.

Back at the hospital, I rushed into my father's room. His body still laid almost lifeless, his hands still pale and his eyes tightly shut. The silence in the room was being filtered by the continuous beeping of several machines. My heart beat intensified with each beeping sound, each sound seeming like a countdown to my fate. 

Just then the doctor walked into the room, "Any development, Amelia?" he asked.

"None yet but I'm making efforts," I stuttered, dashing out of the room.  I walked towards the reception, trailing closely behind the doctor.

“His condition keeps getting worse and the surgery needs to be done earlier than previously stated,” the doctor said again. He looked into my eyes for a response but I was too weak to open my mouth, “You have 12 hours to raise the money,” he finalized.

The world around me suddenly crumbled. My arms folded beneath my breasts as I stood there dejected, my tears dripped rhythmically on my bare arms. I needed to raise $30 million in 12 hours for my father.  

Just then, my phone buzzed, looking at the screen it was Clara. Just at the right time, I thought. 

"What's the latest, girlie? Have you gotten any money yet?" she asked in a somber voice. 

"It's complicated, Clara. I need to get the money in 12 hours," I sobbed. 

"12 hours? That's bad! What do you think now?"

"About what?" I questioned. 

"Errm… I'm just thinking if you could consider the marriage proposal," she stuttered, unsure. 

"I'm not going to do that, I'd rather die than agree to those conditions," I affirmed categorically. 

"Then you have made your choice. If your father dies, know that you allowed it by not making the right decision as at when needed. Suit yourself!" the line went dead. 

Silence engulfed the room once more,  the only sound coming from the tickling of the wall clock, which reminded me of the countdown to my fate.  With Clara's words sinking into my head, I knew I wouldn't forgive myself if I allowed my father die. 

"I'm ready," my voice laced in uncertainty as I called Clara again. But then, I remembered  something and my heart sank afresh, "I don't have any means of contacting him," I said, voice clouded  in regret. "I never thought I would need to do this, I would have collected the business card."

"Come to my place right away. I got that covered!" she barked. 

*****

NELSON'S POV

"The young lady seemed unyielding," I said to Leo, who seemed uninterested in the conversation. 

"Yeah,  I know. Amelia is quite adamant but she has a good heart," he said empathetically. "But are you sure this is what you want, Nelson?"

"What do you mean by that?"

“ I mean, is it just a contract or you're drooling over Amelia?” he questioned further.

My lips parted, letting out a warmth breathe as I tried to conceal my intentions. “My mother has been weighing me down. . I need to do something to get what rightfully belongs to me,” I paused, casting a glance towards him, hoping he didn't see through my lies.

“Ohh…that's a brave decision you've made, man.”

Just as he finished talking, my phone's sound pierced through the silence of the VIP section of the lounge- the same lounge I had met with Amelia earlier. I flipped my finger across the phone, waiting patiently for the voice from the other end since it was an unknown caller.

“Hello, Mr Nelson. This is Clara, Amelia's friend from earlier,” the voice came.

“Oh!” my face lit in expectation, but my voice remained unyielding,“Has she accepted that she has no way around my proposal and willing to agree to my terms,” I said.

“Yes, I'll hand the phone over to her.”

“I told you, you'd come back to me. Are you ready now?” I asked when I heard Amelia's voice.

“No…” her voice trailed off.