Unravelling the Billionaire's Bride

Anna was so elated as she looked forward to the award party being hosted for the art contest participants for two reasons—she was one of the awardees, and she'd overheard Casper (her boyfriend) telling his friend he had a surprise planned for the party. They were about to complete their junior year so maybe he wants to propose, and to no one else but her!

Whatever the surprise is, she was so looking forward to it that she kept smiling as she ironed her dress. She sketched the design herself and had a dressmaker sew it specially for the occasion. She lifted it to check if there was any overlooked crease when she heard a car honk outside her apartment and peeped to see Jessica had arrived. Putting on her dress in a hurry, she stepped out to meet Jessica.

Jessica bent a little to stare at her as she approached the car. "Why are you blushing? You look like someone going for their first date."

She laughed as she sat in the passenger seat. "In case you forgot, I am an awardee and..." She lowered her voice and stared at the car floor. "Casper has a surprise planned for the party, I overheard him telling his friends."

Jessica eyed her, “No wonder you're grinning ear to ear.”

Anna jerked forward as Jessica entered the highway and stepped on the gas suddenly.

“Jess!" She screamed. "You'll be the death of me. Why are you in such a hurry? The party is not starting until the next hour.”

Jessica laughed easily as she navigated the traffic. "I want to get there early so I can snatch a really handsome guy for myself."

Anna rolled her eyes, "Says someone who has two guys fighting for her attention right now."

“I've yet to meet the love of my life.” She shook her head, "You know, like my soulmate. When I do, I'll stop chasing boys around." She parked behind the hall and turned off the ignition.

"I wonder what I'm doing with a crazy boy-chaser like you." Anna said, and they both laughed. 

"Thanks to me, you'll have a lot of college stories to tell." She grabbed Anna's arm, "c'mon, let's get inside."

The fairy lights that glowed in the multipurpose hall had transformed it into a party venue. Small paper lanterns in maroon and white colors were strung on the wall. All chairs and tables were covered in white, with a stripe of maroon tied around the back of each chair and a centerpiece on each table.

A backdrop with logos of different companies who sponsored the contest and the theme of the event written boldly in the middle graced the wall behind the carpeted stage. Students in dresses and suits made small talk and laughed as low, soft music drifted from the DJ booth.

They chose a table with a clear view of everything going on in front. As soon as they were seated, Jessica brought out a bottle of Bacardi's Extra Rare Gold Rum. She eyed Anna as she poured herself a drink, "mind joining me?"

“No thanks. You know I don't do alcohol.”

“But tonight's special. You should celebrate.”

“I insist." Anna said, her gaze fixed on the entrance.

“You are so eager to see him, aren't you?” Jessica relaxed her back on the chair and took a gulp.

“I just can't help it.” Anna smiled and briefly covered her face with both hands. “I can barely sit still.”

“Well, now you don't have to.”

“What d'you mean?” Anna asked, and Jessica jerked her head in the entrance's direction. Casper had just entered. Anna shot up from her seat excitedly, but she had only taken two steps when she halted-a girl was on Casper's arm. She recovered from the shock and maneuvered her way to him, moving between several people because the hall was getting filled now.

On getting near, she recognized the girl as Bella, the contest's overall winner. (Anna was the first runner-up.)

"Casper," she managed a smile, but the excitement in her voice was gone.

“Hi Anna,” he said dismissively. He wanted to say more but Bella elbowed him. She disengaged from Casper's arms and smiled brightly as she extended her hand to Anna for a handshake.

“Hi, congratulations on winning an award.”

Anna looked at the proffered hand for a while before she shook it, "thank you."

“Hope you don't mind, I met Casper just outside and he offered to escort me in. He's such a sweet guy.” She tried to explain their appearance.

Anna didn't want to be seen as obsessive, so she just waved it. "It's okay."

"Thanks. If you'll excuse me, I'd like to find my friends." Bella left them alone. Anna made to hug Casper but he held her back. "You'll stain my suit with lipstick and makeup."

He was actually right because he wore an ash suit and any stain will be obvious on it. She pointed to their table, "that's where Jess and I are seated, would you like to join us?"

“No." His voice was cold. "I'll sit with my guys.”

She searched his eyes, “Casper, is something wrong?”

“Nothing.” He said and started moving to the back before she could ask more questions.

Anna dragged her feet sadly as she went back. She heard the MC tap the microphone and clear his voice to announce the arrival of the chief guest.

Stefan Cole, CEO of Cole Fashion, entered with his secretary in tow. They were ushered to designated seats at the front, close to the stage. His brows furrowed slightly as he scolded his secretary in low tones. "I'm supposed to give you a query for accepting this invite without asking me. You know how packed my schedule is. I keep thinking one of your ultimate goals in life is to see me drop dead from exhaustion.

She made a face of mock surprise. "Why would I want to see my gorgeous boss drop dead?" She whispered back.

"I would love to know too."

She laughed softly. "I'm sorry," she raised her voice so he could hear her above the MC's voice bellowing from the speakers. "But your mother has been on my neck. She said, I must not pass on any opportunity for PR."

“You seem to forget who signs your paycheck. Your loyalty should be to me, not my mother.”

“I know that, but..." He couldn't hear the rest of her words because his name was mentioned, so he turned to pay attention to the MC. The MC was saying that Stefan will present the contest's overall winner's award as the one that made the most impact on their school for that year. On hearing that, Stefan's lips spread in a smile that was their way of saying his company made the highest monetary donation. The MC mentioned other guests that will present to the two runners-up.

Jessica already knew what was responsible for Anna's dampened expression as she came back to take her seat, her eyes darting around to locate where Casper sat.

“Stop obsessing over that boy, I'll get you a date before the party ends.” Jessica gave her one of the two glasses of Baileys Original Irish Cream she had grabbed from a server. "Drink this and cheer up."

When Anna sniffed it suspiciously, she laughed. “You think I'll poison you or something? It's clean.”

Anna smiled. "Why is it I don't trust you despite what you said, my dear friend?"

Okay then, she exchanged the glasses. "Just to assure you, I'll give you mine."

Anna sniffed it again, "what's it made of?"

“Malt, chocolate, and cream.” Jessica answered.

Anna sipped a little and could taste the cream and chocolate. It gave her a velvety mouthfeel, so she drained the entire glass. "It's smooth, I like it." She reached out to grab the other glass but Jessica stopped her. 

"That's okay for now, we don't want to have you swaying to the stage when you are called upon."

"And why will that happen?"

“Take one more glass and find out.” Jessica laughed, eyes glinting with mischief.

Anna's eyes widened in realization, “oh no!” She frowned. "You just fed me alcohol!"

Jessica dodged a blow from Anna. "It's just for you to relax. You'll be okay."

Anna snubbed her and focused on the stage.

The black Mercedes pulled to a halt a few feet from the glittering hall entrance. Lewis Cole remained seated, eyes narrowing at the lit building.

“I still don’t understand why the investor insisted on meeting here,” he said, jaw tight.

Gilbert adjusted his glasses from the passenger seat. “He's one of the sponsors of the event, so he had to be present, and he said he’d only have time to talk if we came here.”

Lewis scoffed. “So we'll be negotiating millions in funding on a school playground?”

“We need this funding badly,” Gilbert reminded him. “The project heartbeat can't go into prototype without that capital. We’ve already burnt through the initial R&D budget.”

Lewis didn't need reminding. He knew all too well what the funds would do for their new product, but everything in him resisted going in there.

“I’m not walking into that zoo,” Lewis muttered, resting his head back against the seat. “Find the man and bring him outside. I’ll speak to him here.”

Gilbert hesitated. “And if he insists you come in?”

“Then... " He wanted to say "screw him," but the thought of their product being unable to reach the target market stopped him. He opened the car door and stepped out. Gilbert followed suit.

Lewis adjusted his suit, listening faintly to the thrum of music and laughter leaking from the venue. "If he fails to invest after putting me through this ordeal, I'll make him smell Hades."

Gilbert smiled and led the way. As they got closer to the back door entrance, Lewis told Gilbert, "I'll stay outside until you locate him."

Lewis hated places with crowds, noise and faces twisted into smiles that rarely reached their eyes. He swore into the darkness as he leaned his shoulder against the wall. Where he stood, he had a clear view of everything going on inside.

“Now to the next item on the program, the moment you've all been looking forward to ladies and gentlemen,” Lewis heard the MC saying, “the award proper. And after that, you all can take turns on the dance floor.”

“I'll now request the awardees to make their way to the front. Miss Bella Smith, Miss Anna Bennett, and Mr. Jones Buffet, please come forward.”

Anna rose slowly and walked elegantly to the stage. Bella was already there, and she saw Casper going towards the front as well. She thought he wanted to celebrate with her; a smile touched her lips.

The MC continued, “I would like to call on Mr. Stefan Cole to do the honors for the contest’s overall winner.”

"So Stefan was here." Lewis mused. If Stefan was there, then there is every possibility Margaret was there too. He hoped their presence was purely coincidental and not another one of Margaret's attempts to double-cross him.

Lewis watched Stefan collect a plaque from an official as he climbed the stage. Stefan presented it to the blond girl and shook her. He pretended not to notice that she held his hand longer than usual and squeezed it lightly before releasing it. He hates it when a lady makes a move on him first. It makes the game uninteresting. Stefan returned to his seat after smiling for the camera.

When Bella was given the mic for her acceptance speech, she said, "I'm glad the judges recognized my lame talent.” She joked, and the hall erupted in laughter.

She continued, “Yeah. I'm grateful to my lecturers and everyone who has contributed to my success. I'd like to share this with a special someone," she paused for her words to settle and draw more attention, "my boyfriend, Casper." She beamed at him as he joined her on the stage to snap with her.

Anna froze where she stood.