Another two hours of fake tears and gossipy whispering pass at an excruciatingly slow pace. When the last guests leave, only Daniel, Vincent, my grandmother and I remain. I asked Dominic to stay and be there with me when the will is read, but he told me he needed to drive Lucy home. I didn’t have the energy to beg for a bit of consideration. He’s made it clear where I stand in his life now. I can’t keep clinging to him the way I have been. The small amount of pride I still have won’t let me.
Daniel leads us to my father’s home office as though it’s his own, navigating my house with ease. It should be weird that he’s been in there more often than I have, even though I live here, but it’s not. It’s what Daniel and my dad were like.
He walks to the little bar in my dad’s office and pours us both a shot of whiskey. He hands me the glass and we both empty them in one go. My throat burns as the liquor goes down, and my discomfort must have been obvious because Daniel chuckles. It’s the first time I’ve heard him laugh in weeks.
I roll my eyes at him and walk towards the plush sofa in the corner. I plop down unceremoniously and wait for Daniel to sit down next to me.
“All right. Let’s get this over with,” Vincent says, sounding tired. I know this isn’t easy for him. My dad has always been a close friend of his. Dad was one of Vincent’s very first clients before he made him our legal counsel. Vincent runs a hand over his face and then inhales deeply before speaking.
“Mr. Moriani is leaving the cottage in France to his mother. Everything else goes to his only daughter, Alyssa Moriani.”
He clutches the will in his hands, indicating that things aren’t as simple as that. He’s about to elaborate when my grandmother jumps up, her eyes flashing with anger.
“That can’t be all he left me. That little cottage? What about money? Who is going to pay me my monthly stipend? I assume he expects Alyssa to be responsible for that now?”
My heart sinks with disappointment. I’d been trying to convince myself that she was here to mourn her son and to be with me. I’d been hoping I was wrong about her, even though every sign told me she was just after my father’s connections and money. She disgusts me. I’m trembling with anger and can’t wait for her to leave. She should count herself lucky my dad left her anything at all.
Vincent stares at the will for a few seconds before responding. “The only thing he left you is the cottage. There is no request for Alyssa to pay for your maintenance.”
She stares at me with a calculative look in her eyes and I can guess what’s on her mind. She’ll try to milk me for all I’ve got. I’ll be lucky if she returns to France at all.
She smiles to herself and nods. “Very well,” she says. She glances at me one more time and then walks out of the room, slamming the door behind her. She’s undoubtedly hatching some sort of plan.
Vincent sighs and shoots me a wary look. I tense, bracing myself for the worst. “There’s a clause in the will, Alyssa. It’s about your father’s shares in the company.” Vincent speaks carefully, and it only worries me even more. I freeze, mentally preparing myself for whatever bad news he’s about to spring on me.
“The clause states your shares are to be given to your grandmother unless you marry the man of your father’s choosing within a month from now.”
Daniel inhales sharply and closes his eyes in resignation. He leans forward and holds his head in his hands. This news is as bad for him as it is for me, worse perhaps. If she gets her hands on those shares, she’ll run my father’s company to the ground. Everything Daniel and my dad have worked for will be for nothing.
I shake my head. “That can’t be,” I whisper. “I’m only twenty-two. I just graduated from university. I can’t get married. My dad always discouraged getting married too young. There’s no way he’d ask it of me now. No way he’d put his company on the line to make it happen.”
I stare at Vincent, half expecting him to smile and tell me that this is his weak attempt at a joke, but I’ve never seen him look so grim. He hesitates and looks at Daniel before continuing.
“Your father’s wish is for you to marry Daniel. There isn’t anyone he trusts more with his company and his daughter.”
I sit there in shocked silence and slowly turn to Daniel. He looks distraught and furious, but he doesn’t look surprised.
“Did you know about this?” I ask, my voice dangerously soft.
He shakes his head. “Lately your father had been making some strange remarks. He kept pushing me to take you out for dinner and continuously insinuated that he thought we’d make a good couple. I never expected this though.”
“I can’t believe this,” I murmur. “You’re ten years older than me. And he knows. He knows I…”
He knows how I feel about Dominic, so how could he ever expect me to marry his older brother? How could he do this to me?
I start pacing the room, a million thoughts running through my mind. I feel the rage course through me and embrace it. I latch onto it and let it drive away the pain I’m feeling.
“Show me that,” I snap, ripping my father’s will out of Vincent’s hands. He looks at me apologetically, even though it isn’t his fault, and I instantly feel bad about snapping at him. I pause as I read through the will, my heart sinking. Daniel reads through it over my shoulder and curses. The will clearly states that my father’s last wish is for me to marry Daniel and to continue my training to take over my dad’s role as CEO as soon as the board and Daniel deem me ready.
I want to be angry at my dad. I want to shout at him and ask him whether he’s lost his mind. I want to ask him what day and age he thinks we’re living in and why he doesn’t trust me enough. Why he feels the need to entrust me to Daniel, rather than trusting I can stand on my own two feet. But I can’t ask him any of those questions, because he’s gone. I’ll never get the answers I’m seeking.
Daniel runs a hand through his hair and closes his eyes. “What was that old man thinking,” he whispers to himself. He walks back to my father’s bar and pours himself a tall drink and empties his glass in one go. He turns and leans back against the drinks cabinet, his eyes on me. He looks at me with a pained expression as his eyes trail down my body before he looks away. He clenches his teeth and inhales deeply.
I’m suddenly overcome with an intense sense of rejection. It’s clear the mere idea of being with me disturbs him, and whether I like it or not, I’m instantly reminded of Dominic. Does he feel the same way when he looks at me? What will he say when he finds out about the will? I wish he’d been here with me. He would’ve known what to say and do.
“We can’t lose those shares. If they fall into her hands, the company will never recover. It’ll never be the same.”
I stare at my feet, knowing that he’s right. How could my father do this to me? To us. Did he have no faith in me at all? Did he do this because he didn’t trust me with his company? How could he possibly have trusted my grandmother more than me?
“He always wanted you as his son. I guess he’s getting his wish granted in death,” I say bitterly. I feel hurt, and part of me blames Daniel for what’s happening. He glances at me and starts pacing like I had been.
“We can do a paper marriage, Alyssa. We can both keep our lives. Nothing needs to change. You won’t have anything to worry about. We’ll have an iron-clad prenup, so you’ll be protected. Whatever you own, you’ll keep, including your shares. I won’t take advantage of you in any way. We’ll divorce in a year and you’ll have your estate and anything you might have earned during our marriage.”
Daniel sounds unwilling and detached, as though he’s discussing a minor business deal that’s a waste of his time. His attitude annoys me even further.
Vincent clears his throat and looks at us with a cautious expression. “There’s more,” he says. I look at him, wariness clouding my vision. Of course there’s more. This is my father we’re talking about, after all. If he wants us together, he won’t make it easy for us to escape his wishes. When my father wants something to happen, he’ll get it done.
“The two of you will have to live together and stay married until Alyssa either becomes CEO or turns twenty-five. If you two separate or divorce before then, the shares are still to be given away. We could potentially contest the will, but I’ll tell you now that I won’t be the one to take that case on. I won’t disrespect your father’s last wishes like that.”
I always thought my father loved his company more than he loved me, and this seems to prove it. What was he after when he wrote his will? He raised me to be independent, yet his last wish is for me to get married to a man I didn’t choose. A thousand questions flash through my mind, each making me feel worse than the last.
Daniel and I both sit in my dad’s office for what feels like hours. Neither one of us knows what to say or what to do. I didn’t even notice Vincent leaving.
“I can’t believe he’d do this to us,” I whisper for the third time. Daniel runs a hand through his hair. I look up and stare at him for a couple of seconds. He looks so tired and sad.
“I know you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place, Alyssa. You either marry me and lose a part of your personal life and a chance to make that unrequited love of yours work. Or you lose the company that’s rightfully yours. It’s a tough situation, but it’s no walk in the park for me either. The last thing I need is to be saddled with a teenybopper for the next few years. However, I will marry you if you’re willing. Even if it’s just to honour your father’s last wish. He’s never asked anything of me before today and I won’t let him down now.”
I cross my arms and glare at him. “Teenybopper, really? Okay, boomer. Don’t forget that you’re getting something out of this too. If you don’t marry me, the company is doomed and so is most of your fortune.”
I ignore what he said about pursuing my unrequited love. I didn’t know that he knew about that. If he knows, who else does? I thought I kept it hidden really well. Have I been making a fool of myself the entire time?
Daniel looks at me with an amused expression. “Yes. I won’t deny that there are benefits for me too. The last thing I want is to lose the absolute control your father and I had over the company. We had a vision that I intend to realise, but I can’t do it without major interference. And yes, if your grandmother were to interfere with the way the company is run, the share price would likely drop, which would indeed affect me financially.”
My dad always told me how important it is to him that I never sell his shares, so why is he now choosing to give them away to the one person he ruthlessly cut out of our lives? Did he regret cutting her off in the end?
Daniel and I are at an impasse, and neither one of us seems to know how to move forward.
“I guess we’ll have to get married,” I say. Daniel looks away and nods. He stares out the window and sighs, a wistful expression on his face.
“I guess there’s only one thing left to do.”
He walks to me and drops down on one knee. I’m so startled that I freeze in disbelief. He grabs my hand and looks into my eyes with an intensity I’ve never seen before.
“Alyssa Moriani, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?” he asks, his voice soft but clear.
I inhale deeply and nod, praying to god that I’m doing the right thing.
