Chapter Seven

Mila’s POV

The sound of my phone ringing woke me up, I reached for it with a tired sigh and saw Anaya's name on the screen. We haven’t been able to talk in a while.

“Heyyy,” I sighed.

“Mila, where are you I’ve been trying to reach you,” she said immediately.

“My father made me move into Ace's house,” I replied. It felt so weird saying that out loud.

“Your fiancé? So soon?”

“I know right, it’s crazy,” I said letting out a yawn. “Everything happened so fast I still can’t believe this is my life now.”

“Are you okay?” She asked, concern obvious in her voice.

I let out a deep breath and closed my eyes. 

“No,” I admitted.

I wanted to lie. I really wanted to pretend like I was okay but the knot that formed in my throat and the tears I tried to hold back suggested otherwise.

“I feel like I don’t belong here, Anaya,” I choked out.

 “I have never felt this out of control before.”

“Is there really no way out?” She asked

“Yes,” I whispered.

“I’m so sorry, Mila. I wish I could come get you out of there,”

I let out a deep breath, “Me too.”

“So, what’s he like?” She asked.

“I don’t know… I’m still trying to figure him out. He seems very controlled, if he’s uncomfortable about this situation then he’s doing a really good job hiding it.” 

“Girllll that is not what I’m asking,” she laughed. “Is he sexy?”

I didn’t know when I let out a laugh. “Girll I don’t know, he seems alright. I’m too focused on my new reality to notice his looks.” 

“I can feel you smiling through the phone girl don’t lie to me,” she teased. 

“He’s okay. That’s really all I can say right now. When you meet him you can tell me if he’s sexy cause I don’t see it at the moment,” I lied.

“Okayyyy,” 

I could feel the tease in her voice which made me let out a small laugh.

“Anyways Mila, don’t worry too much about this. Just try to take it one day at a time. Don’t hesitate to call me if something goes wrong, I’m always here for you,” she muttered.

“Thank you girl,” I said, feeling emotional again.

After we hung up I sat up on the bed and stared at the unfamiliar room, taking it all in over again before getting out of bed. Even though my mind felt heavy, I didn’t want to cry anymore about this. This is my life now and I have to just take it slowly just as Anaya said. 

I took a quick shower and changed into a rose patterned dress I found in the closet. I fixed my hair as best as I could and stepped into the hallway to go downstairs.

The house was so quiet I could only hear the sound of my own footsteps. When I got downstairs, I saw a woman setting up the table for breakfast. She looked kind, older, and her almost completely grey hair was pulled back in a neat bun.

“Good morning Miss,” she said, smiling at me.

“Good morning,” I replied softly.

“I’m Mrs. Helen, I take care of the house.”

“Oh,” I nodded. “I’m Mila, lovely to meet you.”

“I know Miss, it’s lovely meeting you too. Would you like your breakfast now?” She asked.

I hesitated. “Um.. sure, thank you.”

I sat at the marble table quietly and watched as she placed the food in front of me. I wasn’t exactly hungry but it looked and smelled too good to ignore.

Ace walked in shortly after looking neat and serious. His presence seemed to fill the room as he walked in.

He exchanged greetings with Mrs. Helen and sat in the chair across from me leaving a lot of space between us. He didn’t look like someone whose life was forced to take a new shape.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Morning,” I replied, feeling awkward.

“Did you sleep okay?”

I nodded. “Yes, I did.” 

“That’s good, if you need anything you can always ask Mrs. Helen. I’m sure you’ve met her.”

I nodded again. “Yes.”

We ate in silence for a while before he spoke again.

“Did your father tell you?”

“Tell me what?” I asked confused.

“About the terms of the contract,” he said.

“No, we haven’t spoken much ever since he announced the engagement. What terms?”

He stared at me for a while before continuing. 

“I’ll send it to you.”

“Okay,” I replied, still confused. 

I wondered what terms he was talking about. I had been too emotional about the engagement to ask further details about what it entailed. All I know is there’s no way out of this.

“You start work tomorrow,” he said again.

I looked up at him, “Work?”

“Yes, at Garren Enterprise,” he said. “With me.”

My stomach tightened at his words. “Okay.”

“Rest today. I’ll introduce you to the board officially tomorrow, I’ll also send you some documents to look at so you can have an idea of what you’re to do.”

I took in a deep breath and nodded.

“No way,” I blurted out. “Hell no,” I said again while reading the clauses of the marriage contract. My father had sold me off completely to the Garrens.

I couldn’t believe he would agree to cut me out of my inheritance just for this union. I read the behavior clause again and my heart skipped a beat. Any affairs or scandals would lead to losing company shares and inheritance rights.

My mind quickly went back to the night of my birthday and the night with that stranger. If the news of my one night stand with another man got out I would lose everything. I tried recalling the face of the man I had spent that night with but it was a blur.

I let out a sigh and silently prayed nothing would go wrong. Everything suddenly weighed heavily on me and for the first time, I felt afraid. I should never have made such a rash decision that night.

If the details of that night comes to light, it would ruin everything.