PROPOSAL ACCEPTED

MACK’S POV

“Sir, your mother has been calling you.”

I opened my eyes and stared at the imploring face of Kevin. His hand was stretched out with my phone in it.

“Kevin, how many times do I have to tell you to ignore that woman? She just wants to nag me. You already know that so why do you keep answering when she calls?”

“It sounded urgent, sir. I couldn’t ignore it.” I sighed and snatched the phone from him, then I dumped it in the ice bucket. I knew that wouldn’t do much damage to the phone, but it was my way of telling Kevin that I couldn’t give two shits about how desperate she sounded over the phone.

“You and I both know she’s calling about the blind date that I cancelled. Just continue to live like she doesn’t exist.” Kevin stood in front of me for a few more seconds, as if contemplating whether to try and convince me to respond to the woman that gave birth to me or let it be. When the plane started to shake a little, he took that as a sign to leave and strap on his seat belt.

My grand plan to woo Claire Moore by offering her a marriage proposal instead of the job that she was told she was being interviewed for backfired. To be fair, she was surprised by the sudden change in plans so it was understandable why she left the way she did. But I was certain that she was going to agree to it especially after last night’s escapades.

When I went to that club last night, it was just to try and get a general idea about how she was outside the office. I had no idea that she’d be that beautiful, irresistible and DTF. Pretending that I didn’t know what she was doing in my office didn’t also help as much as I thought it would. I mean, who doesn’t like surprises?

“Sir, I’d like to remind you that if this doesn’t work, you’ll have to fall back on plan A,” Kevin said after a while. I looked at him with all seriousness and responded, “There was never a plan A to fall back on, Kev. It’s either this, or nothing and you and I both know it can’t be nothing.”

***

“Sir, I thought we came to Portland to get your bride.”

We were standing in front of a cottage-like house with white picket fences and fairy lights strung around them. I stared at the average building and snickered, feeling the sickening anger I always felt whenever I had to deal with something relating to him.

This was what he left home for? After all that fuss he made he settled for Snow White’s cabin?

“We are here to get my bride, Kevin. It just so happens that she also came here to find her groom. Unfortunately, at the moment, I can’t say that that’s me.”

I pried open the little wooden gate and walked down the short pathway leading to the front door. On getting there, I met the most beautiful woman I had ever laid my eyes on standing on the porch, her suitcase by her side, while she banged repeatedly on it like a deranged woman.

“Liam, please, open the door. I just want to talk.”

I frowned, feeling the acid level in my stomach rise. It irritated me how she begged him, like he was worth the attention and love that she meted to him. If only she knew what kind of bastard he was.

“And here I was thinking that I ruined you for other men.” She spun around quickly and let out an audible gasp. Other than the redness around her widened eyes and the puffiness associated with crying one’s eyeballs out, Claire Moore looked as gorgeous as the day I first laid my eyes on her.

“Wh-what are you doing here?” she asked in a whisper. Her eyes reverted to the front door as if Liam was going to come out any second and catch her in the act of making love to me.

“I realize after you left that I did not relay the information I intended to relay to you properly. You see, I want you to marry me.”

“I heard you the first time, and just like then I think you’re insane and I’d like for you to leave before my boyfriend calls the police.” I laughed then, like a deranged man because I found it so funny that she still considered him her boyfriend despite the fact that he dumped her in the most ungracious manner just because…

“I’d have sworn you weren’t the type of woman to rely on a man to fight her battles for her. I personally think you don’t need him to call the police. You can do that all by yourself. But before you do that…” I beckoned to Kevin who was standing behind me to come over. He did so and handed me the file that I had prepared. If this didn’t change her mind, then I was going to move on to plan C, and she was not going to be happy about that.

She was staring at me with curiosity in her deep-set blue eyes. She wanted me to leave, but at the same time she was curious about what I had to show her.

“I strongly believe that this marriage will be in your favor, Claire. Like I said earlier, there was someone I didn’t want holding an equivalent level of control and influence as myself, and you my dear, are the perfect person to help me out.”

“I don’t know what kind of sick game you’re playing or what kind of society you come from, but where I come from, you have to be in a committed relationship with someone before you can even begin to think of marriage. I have a boyfriend.”

“Had, a boyfriend,” I said, enunciating the past tense. What I said seemed to her like a slap in the face and she squirmed. “You had a boyfriend, Claire, and by God, he is the dumbest human being on the planet for him to have given you up. But his mistake is what’s going to make me dominate him while you sit by my side as queen.”

The brown folder I was holding was handed over to her. She looked at it, as if scared to take it from me, turned her eyes back to the quiet house and then back at the folder. Slowly, she took it from my hand but didn’t open it.

“I know what it feels like to be betrayed, Claire. I know what it feels like to give someone the best part of your years, yourself, and then have them treat you like an item that can be discarded whenever they pleased. If you feel angry, that response is natural, and frankly most appreciated. I need you to be angry for this to work out.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said lowly. Her eyes were getting misty and her fingers pressed down tightly on the folder. She claimed she didn’t know, but something told me she did, which was why she was here in the first place, to get confirmation from him.

“Whatever you want, I’ll give it to you. Wherever you want to go, I’ll take you. You can have as many properties and cars and clothes and jewelries as you want, all the while getting your revenge on the bastard who broke your trust and treated you like trash. I can make you into anything you want to be, Claire. All I ask of you in return is that you be my bride.”

Her eyes wavered and I could see tears begin to form. Even without looking at the contents of the folder, I believe she knew what was inside. Her hands trembled as she slowly pried it open, and her breathing was almost non-existent. She knew what she was about to see, but no amount of warning could prepare her for the images that were covered in the little album inside the folder.

Silence. That was what followed after uncovering the photographs. No gasps of shock, no cry of anguish, not even a dramatic “This is not real! It’s obviously AI generated!” Just silence.

She looked at the images one after the other, carefully examining the two people in it. After a very long time, the door to the front door opened and the owner of the house emerged from inside.

“Fancy seeing you here,” I said cheekily. Liam’s eyes turned cold and he glared at me.

“I should be saying that to you. This is my house you’re in. The hell you doing here?” He didn’t get an answer from me because in that moment, he turned to face Claire as if just aware of her presence, like she hadn’t been banging on his door all night.

“Why did you break up with me, Liam?” Her question caught us both off-guard. I was honestly expecting her to rage and bitch and reign hell on him after finding out about his infidelity, but here she was, still trying to see if her relationship could be redeemed. At this rate I was going to end up going with Plan C.

“Claire I…” Liam’s face turned pale just as his eyes landed on the photos in his ex-girlfriend. He was about to say something to her, when his countenance changed to that of murderous rage and he looked at me instead.

“You hired an investigator to follow me around?”

“All’s fair in love and war, brother. Don’t hate the player, hate the game.”

He scoffed and ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

“Claire, I can explain…”

“You broke up with me after insulting me and making me feel like shit when you’ve been out and about with other girls? How dare you do that to me?” Her voice was seething, her eyes cold and menacing.

I have to admit, Claire was making me proud by not crying. Now she knew about him, she would want to accept my proposal.

She looked like she wanted to murder him, but at the same time she wanted him to give her a very good reason why he cheated on her and maybe, just maybe, she’d be able to forgive him. I couldn’t have that happening and ruining my plans, so I leaned in and whispered something in her ear, the thing that was sure to seal the deal.

The moment she heard what I said, she froze. If I hadn’t just witnessed her talk a while ago, I’d have assumed she was a statue. There was no sign of life; no eye wavering, no shallow breathing, no trembling. She just looked at Liam, the shock paralyzing her and making her incapable of doing anything but stare unblinkingly at the man who hurt her.

“Claire…” Liam reached for her hand, but I came and stood between them before he could do so.

“Touch her and you’ll discover that the useless armored tank that you had developed last year isn’t the only thing that can break into a million pieces.”

“I never want to see you again, Liam.” She spoke like she was scared of speaking. If I hadn’t been standing in front of her, I probably wouldn’t have heard what she said.

The fact that Claire didn’t challenge my statement or throw a tantrum stating how false that information was was proof that she knew or at the very least, suspected, and my statement was all the confirmation she needed. Plus, she wasn’t blind; the pictures said it all.

“I can make the pain go away, Claire. I can make you feel a million times better while he struggles to hold on to the end of the rope. I’ll do everything while you wouldn’t even have to lift a finger. All you have to do is be my bride.”

Her eyes shifted to focus on me. I could see how scared she was and how hopeless she felt. She wanted to cry, but she knew crying in front of the enemy was not an option. Showing one’s weakness, especially in front of the enemy, was never an option.

Her entire being trembled and I put my hands on her shoulders to calm her down. She opened her mouth to speak and her voice came out like a squeaky toy.

“Okay. I’ll marry you.”