DESTINY
When I entered the house, I stood still in the middle of the entrance hall. I’ve never been in a house this big before. There I was with my two shopping bags of all my worldly possessions standing in this impressive place that smacked of wealth. Gosh, and he said he wasn’t rich! The carpeting on the floor was worth more than my Susy. Not that I know that much about carpets. A chandelier hung from the ceiling. Who has chandeliers, even?
“Hey! What are you standing there for?” James peered down from the banister on the second-floor landing. “Come on up. I’ll show you to your room.”
“Okay.” I started up the stairs to where he waited.
“Jeez, don’t look so scared.” He said, frowning at me.
“I’m not. Do you live here alone?” I couldn’t believe he had all this space to himself.
“Of course.” He pulled me behind him down the corridor. There were four rooms on opposite sides of the passage. He opened one door and pulled me inside. “This is your room.”
“Wow!” I couldn’t help but stare openmouthed. James chuckled.
Sunlight streamed in from the large windows making the room seem larger somehow. I felt lost in that large space. I could actually walk around the huge bed. Why would one person need such a large bed with so many pillows and everything so white?
“Do you like it?” James asked expectantly and I didn’t know what to say, I was speechless.
“It’s very white.” I managed to say.
James shook his head and mumbled something which I didn’t quite catch.
“I’ll leave you to settle in. I’m going to take a shower. Feel free to look around.” He said and even smiled a little.
“Okay.” I said and he left. There was a wall of built-in cupboards on the opposite side of the bed. I stared at my meagre belongings; they wouldn’t even take up a quarter of the space. It felt almost wrong to put them in there. I fished out my cell phone and charger noticing a socket I could use to charge my phone. It was still dead. I left it on charge and found the bathroom. Shocker. The bathroom was almost as big as the bedroom with a bath and a separate shower. Holy smokes!
I did my business, washed my hands and my face. Eager to explore I went out of the bedroom. I wanted to know what the other rooms looked like, so I went to the one across from mine. Mine. I chuckled to myself I’ve never had a bedroom like this one before.
This one was even bigger and not as glaringly sunny like the other. Maybe they ran out of white because the walls were grey, and the furnishings were mostly black and grey. What is it with rich people? Don’t they like color? I was about to walk out when a door opened and out came James, dripping water with only a towel around his waist.
“Oh, shit!” Dear Lord, he was built like a magazine model. I watched the water running in little rivulets down his perfect pecs and abs down to his… Oh my gosh! I was staring. I clapped my hands over my eyes. “Sorry! So sorry, I didn’t know it was your room.”
“Well, now you know. Get out.” James gripped me by the shoulders and shoved me out of his room. He banged the door shut in my face.
How rude! It was an honest mistake.
***
I found the kitchen. It was way past lunchtime, and I hadn’t eaten breakfast yet. The kitchen was even more impressive. Marble countertops and so many appliances I didn’t even know what they were all for. I opened the cupboards in the hopes to find bread, anything would do really. No bread. Lots of other stuff I had no idea what to do with.
I sighed. Could I at least find some coffee? There was a coffee machine on the counter, but I had never used one before. I stood looking at the thing wondering what to do when a touch on my shoulder had me spinning around.
“Are you trying to give me heart failure?” I gasped. At least he was dressed. His hair was combed back, still damp from his shower, but he looked especially fine in tightfitting jeans and black Tee. He sure liked black a lot.
“Find what you were looking for?” he asked, giving me that annoying smirk he had.
“No. I am hungry and there’s no bread. What do you even eat? And I don’t know how this coffee machine works.” I said, all in one breath.
He mumbled something that sounded a lot like ‘incompetent’. He opened a cupboard, and I was astonished to see it was actually the refrigerator.
“Well, I’ll be…”
“Eggs, bacon and cheese. Can you cook?” he asked, placing the items on the counter. “No bread. I don’t do carbs. It just turns to fat.”
“Seriously?” I scanned his body; he was all muscle. Does he expect me to cook for him? My cooking ability was limited to pasta and whatever vegetables I could afford.
“Yeah, seriously.” He mimicked me.
“So what am I supposed to eat?” I loved bread, to tell the truth.
He rolled his eyes at me. “Make an omelet or something. I like my eggs scrambled with a bit of butter and lots of cheese. Bacon must be crispy. Thanks.” He sat himself down at the island counter. The nerve of him!
“Excuse me. Have you employed me as a cook or as a contract wife?” I asked him, hands on my hips.
He smirked. “I thought as much. You can’t cook.”
“I can too! I just don’t want to.”
“Destiny, Destiny… What am I going to do with you?” he sighed. “Fine. Let me teach you.”
He got up and came over to me, getting a skillet from underneath the basin. He brushed my shoulder moving past me to the gas stove. Boy, did he smell good!
I watched as he prepared the food, seeing his lips move but not hearing a thing. I was focused on the way his muscles moved as he whisked the eggs. Gosh!
“Did you hear a word I said?”
“Umm… Yes?”
“I said I contacted my lawyer and he’s coming to see us in an hour.” James repeated himself, staring at me crossly.
“Okay.”
“Then we can discuss what I need from you and what you expect out of this arrangement.” The bacon sizzled in the skillet, the aroma of the meat filling the kitchen. My stomach groaned expectantly.
I felt my face flush and James lifted an eyebrow. “Sounds like you’re starving,” he scoffed.
“It’s been a while.” I was too tired to eat last night and this morning… well…
***
I washed the dishes after we finished our meal. It was the best thing I’ve eaten in the longest time. True to his word the lawyer arrived, carrying his briefcase and looking formal, black rimmed glasses perched on his beaky nose.
“James, nice to see you. What trouble have you gotten yourself into now?” His eyes skimmed over me disapprovingly. I could see the gears revolving in his head, calculating my worth in Pounds.
“Arthur.” James shook the man’s hand, smiling broadly. “No trouble this time, my friend. Meet Destiny…” he clicked his fingers three times.
“Johnson.” I helped him. I haven’t even asked his surname either, I realized.
“Yes, of course.” He took my hand and pulled me behind him to the living room. The lawyer followed. “I need you to draw up a contract for us, old man. But you absolutely must keep this between us. None of my family members has to know about this. Do we have an understanding, Arthur?”
“I already don’t like this at all, James.” Arthur frowned at us over the rim of his glasses as we sat down on the butter soft leather couches. “What are you up to? You know after your latest stunt, you grandfather…”
“Spare us the boring stuff, Arthur. We need a marriage contract, Destiny and me. As soon as now.” James said, squeezing my hand in his own.
“Are you pregnant, Ms. Johnson? I’m sure we can arrange compensation that would be suitable for both parties.” The lawyer said, looking at me, his brows drawn together tightly.
I almost swallowed my tongue. “Heavens no!”
“Arthur, nothing like that. Destiny and I have come to a mutual agreement. This has to be a contract for three years. After that she will receive a sum of money of which we still have to agree on.”
“So, if I understand you, this is to be a marriage in name only?” Arthur said and he seemed relieved. “Is this because of your grandfather, by any chance?”
James grinned, “Naturally. I am sick and tired of their constant yapping about my life. I’m giving them what they want.”
“Ms. Johnson, are you sure about this?”
“I owe it to James.” I sighed, looking at my hands.
The lawyer shook his head. He opened his briefcase and handed each of us a pen and a blank notebook. “Fine. Write down what you expect of this arrangement, and I will draft a contract for you to look over.” He said, his mouth turned down. “I hope you know what you’re doing, James. It will be both our heads if your grandfather and father get wind of this. I value my job.”
“Arthur, you worry too much.” James said, already writing.
JAMES“Well, that’s done.” I breathed a sigh of relief. Arthur left after two hours of trying to convince him I knew what I was doing. We gave him our notes on our expectations, and he promised to have a draft ready by Monday latest.Destiny had a pensive look on her face, she chewed on her lower lip, staring into space. She’d better not be having second thoughts about this.“Penny for your thoughts, Ms. Johnson?” It scared me how much I sounded like my father just now.“Your lawyer friend doesn’t like me much.” She looked up at me with those big olive-green eyes. Actually pretty, I thought.“Does it matter? We need to do some serious shopping. I can’t have my future wife looking like a homeless person, now, can I?” Her sense of style sucked seriously.“Excuse me?” she huffed, “What’s wrong with me?” she sounded miffed.“Where do I start…?” I pulled her up from the couch and twirled her around. I liked the tight jeans. She had a nice ass, and I could tell her boobs were just the size
DESTINYThe way James and Giovanni stared at me made me feel self-conscious. I hardly recognized myself in the mirror. I don’t think I’ve ever looked this good. I used to hate the color of my hair until today. Giovanni really knew his stuff.“Thank you, Giovanni, James.” I blushed like a teenager.“My pleasure, Bella!” Giovanni kissed me on both cheeks like he greeted James. It felt strange to me, I wasn’t used to affection from strange people.James held out his hand for me to take. He looked pleased with himself, a smug grin on his face, like he’d won the Lotto or something.“Let’s go, gorgeous.” he said.Wow! I wasn’t expecting that. I took his hand, and we strolled out of the salon.“Mr. Barrington! Mr. Barrington!” Someone called out and James stopped in his tracks, swearing under his breath.Barrington? Was that his surname? Why did it sound so familiar?James looked over at me, “Can you run, Destiny?” He grasped my hand firmly. “Come!” We ran to the car. He opened the door and
JAMESShe really had no idea what she was doing to me. Damn, what have I gotten myself into? I can’t remember when last I had a girl as innocent as Destiny. I think when I was thirteen. No, scrap that. That girl took my innocence, and she was three years older than me. She was no innocent little virgin that’s for sure, I remembered and grinned. What was her name again?“James?” Destiny broke me out of my thoughts.“Yeah? Sorry, I spaced out for a moment.” Watching me with those big olive-green eyes of hers while sucking on her milkshake… Oh, my God, James! Stop it! This girl drove me nuts! I wanted her, that thought sobered me enough to choke on my beer.I spluttered and coughed, tears stinging my eyes.“Gosh! Are you alright, James?” She got up to pat my back, her cleavage almost in my face. God, she smelled amazing. I wanted to press my face against those pretty mounds.“I’m fine…just fine.”She handed me a napkin to wipe my face, trying to hide her smile. She had no idea how gorgeo
DESTINY“Good afternoon to you too, Grandfather. Let me introduce you to Destiny Johnson, the girl I am intending to marry.” James said just like that, beaming a smile at me.The two men stared at me as if I came from another planet. I was dumbstruck, hanging onto James’s arm like he was a lifeline. “Good afternoon.” My voice managed to slice through the heavy silence that seemed to press down on us.James’s father was the first to react. He stood up and reached out well-manicured hands towards me. His grip was firm enfolding my hand in both of his.“I must say, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Destiny.” He was an older version of James, but more polished. It was clear that James got his handsome looks from his father.“Yes,” the grandfather drawled, wrinkling his nose as if he were smelling something unpleasant. “More like surprised to see you actually exist.” He placed his newspaper down on the table next to his chair.James pressed my hand reassuringly. He did warn me his grandfather
“Oh, my God that was exhausting.” I told James when we were on our way home.“You did well, Sugar.” James chuckled, “Sorry about that South Africa thing, I don’t know what came over me. It just slipped out.”“Your grandfather is scary. And your father knows we’re lying. I’m sure of it.” I wasn’t being paranoid.James laughed it off. “Don’t worry about it. Even if he does, he can’t stop us.” James turned a corner so fast I was thrown towards him. My hand landed on his thigh to steady myself.I pulled it away so fast like he was hot metal. “Sorry, sorry.”James glimpsed at me a cheeky smile on his lips. “You have nothing to apologize for. If you want to touch my leg it’s fine by me.”“Oh, get over yourself, will you.” I stared out the window and he chuckled.“By the way, I got a text from Arthur saying he’ll see us tomorrow with the draft of our agreement.”“Really? Wow, that’s fast.”I was sure that Arthur didn’t like me at all. He must think that I was after James’s money.“Have you t
Driving to town he had the car radio on full blast playing alternative rock, his fingers drumming to the beat on the steering wheel. He seemed to be in a good mood. He winked at me when he caught me staring.“First were going to fill our tummies and then I’m going to find you the biggest, shiniest rock I can.” He said waggling his eyebrows at me.“You really don’t have to.” I grumbled.He laughed, “You can choose whatever you want, Sugar. Don’t pout unless you want me to kiss you. You have such an irresistible little mouth.”“Ugh! Stop it!” I slapped him on his thigh, and he grabbed my hand and held it there, the heat of his skin warming my palm. When I resisted he just chuckled.“Practice, Sugar. If we’re going to convince people, we need to feel comfortable touching each other.”“When you say it like that it sounds dirty.” I snapped at him. Why is he doing this? He is playing with me, must have some idea how I’m crushing on him.He looked hurt. “No, nothing like that. Jeez!”My chee
JAMESOf course, I should have known Arthur would go to my father. The backstabbing rat. But this leaves me no choice to sign the contract because I had run out of time.“Your father thought it was unfair to Miss Johnson that you be allowed to carry on with your (he cleared his throat) … wild ways and she had to stay faithful to you.” Arthur said, carefully studying his glasses.“We could change it to an open marriage.” I tried.Arthur shook his head. “Not an option. Your father stipulated that any changes made be run by him before they could be implemented.”Of course he would. Sneaky bastard. I looked at Destiny who so obviously enjoyed my predicament.“I don’t believe you James. Wanting me to remain at home like the good little wife while you go on as usual?” She looked at Arthur. “I should actually thank Mr. Barrington personally.”“No need, Ms. Johnson.” Arthur said.“Don’t be angry, I did it to save your reputation, Destiny.” I said. “Let’s just sign the damn thing and get it ov
DESTINYThere was someone in the house. James had left for work so I was sure it couldn’t be him. I clutched my phone to my chest uncertain if I should call the police. Where I grew up the police never got there on time anyway, so I decided not to. I mean, I wasn’t a coward, and I could defend myself if I had to.Armed with a heavy statue – a bust of some woman – I snuck down the stairs. For a moment I stood halfway, listening. I heard a commotion in the kitchen. Tiptoeing and raising the statue above my head I was ready to deck the intruder when…“Ahh! God preserve us!” a woman screamed.I dropped the statue and it fell at my feet narrowly missing my toes and it rolled away.“Shame on you Lass! Scaring an old woman like that.” she held her hand to her bosom. “Didn’t know young master Jimmy had guests.” she had a lilting Scottish brogue which I liked.“Sorry, so sorry. I though we were being burgled.” I hastily retrieved the fallen bust, noticing her nose had broken off in the fall.