Chapter 3 : The Marriage I Never Asked For

Damon:

I threw my gear bag into the corner of the locker room and pulled off my ice skates, ignoring the reporters waiting outside the doors because I had just finished three hours of morning practice and my father was already calling my phone for the third time today.

"What is so important that you have to call me right after practice?" I asked, putting the phone on speaker while I sat down on the bench to unlace my boots.

"Come straight to my office downtown," my father said, his voice coming through loud and clear without a single bit of room for argument. "We have a family matter to discuss, and it concerns the future of our company as well as your own career."

"I have team meetings all afternoon, Dad," I replied, standing up and heading toward the showers because I had no energy to deal with whatever business deal he was trying to push on me today. "Whatever it is, we can talk about it during dinner this weekend."

"You will come to my office right now, Damon," he commanded, stopping me in my tracks before hanging up the phone before I could say another word.

Thirty minutes later, I walked into my father's office, sitting down in the chair across from his table while he closed a heavy folder and looked directly at me.

"You're thirty-two years old, Damon, and it's time for you to settle down and settle this family obligation once and for all," my father said, leaning back in his chair while keeping his eyes fixed on mine. "We have arranged a marriage for you, and the signing will take place by the end of this week."

I stared at him for a second, then broke out into a short laugh because I thought he was making a bad joke. "You must be losing your mind if you think I'm going to marry some random stranger just because you want to make a public relations move for the business."

"I am completely serious," my father replied, not even flinching at my reaction. "The Bennett family is facing financial trouble, and this marriage alliance will secure our control over their market assets while saving their reputation in the process."

"I don't care about their assets, and I don't care about their reputation," I said, leaning forward with my hands flat on the table as my voice grew louder. "I am a professional athlete with a long contract, I make my own money, and I am not letting you choose my wife like I'm five years old."

"If you refuse this agreement, I will personally strip your board seats from the family firm and freeze your investment accounts immediately," he warned, his voice completely cold and calculated as he pointed a finger at me. "You think you can just play hockey forever, but this family built the foundation you stand on, and you will carry out your duty whether you like it or not."

I clenched my fists, holding back my anger because I knew he actually had the legal authority to block my future assets if I walked out of that room right now. "Fine, tell me who she is so I can figure out how to deal with this nightmare."

My father opened the folder on his table, pulled out a photograph, and slid it across the flat surface toward me without saying another word.

I picked up the photo, looking down at a young woman with dark hair and quiet eyes, and the second I saw her face, a strange feeling hit my chest that I couldn't explain.

"Her name is Claire Bennett," my father said, watching my reaction carefully. "She's quiet, her family keeps her away from the public eye, and she won't cause any scandals for your hockey career."

"Claire Bennett," I repeated, saying the name out loud as my mind tried to place where I had heard it before, but nothing clear came to mind. "She looks familiar, Dad, have I met her somewhere before?"

"You've never met her," my father said quickly, reaching over to take the photo back from my hand and placing it back inside the file. "She grew up out of town, and her grandfather kept her isolated from our business circles until recently, so there is no way you two have crossed paths."

"I don't care who she is," I said, standing up from my chair and stepping back toward the office door. "We can sign whatever papers you want to save your deal, but this is nothing more than a business agreement, so she stays in her space and I stay in mine, and we remain complete strangers behind closed doors."

"That is between you and your wife after the wedding," my father replied, turning back to his paperwork as if the entire matter was already settled. "Just make sure you show up to the city hall on Friday morning to sign the marriage contract."

I walked out of the building, pulling out my phone and calling my assistant as I got into my car. "I need you to pull up every single document on the Bennett family deal and send it directly to my personal email right now."

"I just sent the files to your inbox, Mr. Black," my assistant replied through the speakers. "Is there anything specific you are looking for in the contract?"

"No, I just want to read through the background details myself," I said, ending the call as I pulled up the P*F document on my phone screen while sitting in the parking lot.

I scrolled through the long pages of financial terms and legal conditions, skipping past the corporate numbers until I reached the personal background section for Claire Bennett.

I scrolled down to her personal information page, and my eyes caught her date of birth listed right next to her full legal name.

I stared at the numbers on the screen for several seconds, my chest tightening as I remembered that exact same date from five years ago, the very day I woke up in an empty apartment after the championship and realized the only woman I had ever truly loved had left me without saying goodbye.