Raymond’s POV
For a while, we simply smiled and drank, the low clink of glasses filling the silence. The whiskey burned pleasantly as it slid down my throat, grounding . No one spoke, but the tension in the air was thick, anticipation coiled and waiting. It was Liam who finally broke the silence, as I knew he would.
"If we are going back, at least we need to have a plan." He turned to look directly at .
"Rember, your father favors your stepbrother over you. He knows you will abhor this marriage and might even refuse it outright. I bet you he’s the one pushing for it, so you can say no and the company will go straight to his favorite son."
Liam didn’t bother beating around the bush. He never did. He had hit the nail squarely on the head.
"They are the reason I’m going back. " I spat.
"Not because I need anything from them. I already have more wealth than they could imagine. Most of them don’t even know how much Hyacinth Hove is truly worth." Damon and Liam nodded in agreent. "They don’t know how rich I am on my own, without their precious family inheritance."
I smiled lazily, swirling the liquor in my glass.
"They think I would do anything just to get the inheritance," I said, my tone amused. "That’s where they’re wrong. I’ll let them think they have cornered, just to see how far they’ll go. What’s wrong with playing along with their little charade for now?"
Damon, clearly enjoying this new course of action, jumped up and clinked his glass against mine. "I’m so in. Please, the floor is yours. Tell us how you plan to unleash this great man."
Liam rolled his eyes dramatically.
"Don’t be dramatic, Damon. And to think you just confessed a few minutes ago that you’ve changed."
Damon scoffed. "People evolve. That doesn’t an I can’t enjoy chaos when it’s well deserved."
I leaned back slightly. "First off, I can’t leave Lena here in this city. I don’t trust her father not to do sothing terrible to her before I return. And I don’t want her to be alone or miserable when the news about my relationship with Cynthia breaks on the internet."
"Wicked and Dangerous." That was exactly how this sounded and how I liked it. But Damon narrowed his eyes at .
"So you’re still thinking about Lena," he said slowly. "You want to keep the relationship going with her."
"Of course I like Lena," I replied calmly. "I don’t know if it’s love yet. But for the next two years, we will both honor the contract we signed."
"What contract?" Liam and Damon exclaid at the sa ti.
"I have a two-year contract with Lena," I said casually, as though it were nothing.
"You what?" this ti only Damonshouted again, Liam realizing what I was talking about continued drinking without saying anything.
I smiled. "You don’t expect to blindly trust a woman I found on my bed, do you?"
They stared at like I had grown two heads. I sighed, already tired of explaining. I had previously done the sa explanation with Liam and it was exhausting
"When I found her on my bed, I thought Liam brought her. Then I found out he didn’t. There were too many inconsistencies at the ti. And I wanted her." I paused, then continued, my voice steady. "That contract was the best solution I could co up with."
I glanced at both of them again. "And I don’t even
know if I’m cut out for marriage. I don’t want to raise anyone’s expectations. This is the cleanest way to end things later without hurting her."
I shrugged. "It’s a win-win. She stays with , I give her protection and luxury. When the contract is over, she walks away with a huge sum of money."
"Wicked and dangerous," Damon muttered, chuckling. "Here I was thinking you’d grown soft."
"You don’t actually support this, do you?" Liam asked him.
"If it makes him happy and secure, then I’m in."
I turned to Liam with a lazy grin. "You’re acting like you were not the one that had the contract prepared for ?"
"On your command," Liam interjected quickly. "But I never agreed with it and I didn’t know you later went ahead with it. This won’t end well. Soone will get hurt."
I simply shrugged. Warnings had never stopped before.
"Well, back to my plan," I said, and both of them straightened, listening closely.
"I’ll relocate Lena’s company to Vegas City. And I’ll publicly accept Sophia as my fiancée."
"You’re kidding, right?" Damon exclaid
"No," I said smoothly. "I kid you not."
Their eyes widened, and I smiled darkly. "I plan to publicly humiliate Sophia at every opportunity. She will regret ever doing what she did. When she can’t take it anymore, she’ll either leave quietly, or I’ll make sure she leaves the hard way."
"Wicked and dangerous," Damon repeated.
"Does lena know the real you?" Damon asked seriously.
I shook my head and continued drinking.
"Do you think she would leave if you? If she finds out about your way of life ? "
I don’t know"" I replied. "Hence the reason for the contract."
Liam nodded, his grin wide. "Oh, the social scene when this begins. I can already see the headlines. What a ti to be alive."
As if on cue, the three of us clinked our glasses, united by one goal, the downfall of Sophia, and it had to be spectacular.
"My family is easy," I continued. "I’ll let them show their hands first, then deal with them accordingly."
They both nodded.
"I won’t go looking for trouble, for my grandfather’s sake. His wish is for to forgive my father. That will never happen. Not in this lifeti, or the next." My voice hardened. "I’ll pay him back for everything he did to my mother and . I’ve just been waiting for the right ti."
"Coming back to York City is about regrouping," I said. "When the call ca for to return ho, I hesitated, not because I was afraid. I was just deciding what to do that would hurt them the most."
A dark chuckle escaped .
"They won’t know what hit them."
They joined in laughter.
"Of course they won’t," Liam and Damon chorused.
By early morning, Roman arrived. Liam opened the door to let him in. I noticed he’d showered, he looks clean, fresh, and composed.
"How did it go?" I asked, gesturing for him to sit.
"Boss, everything went well."
He explained how Ashley was dealt with, along with the n who dared touch my kitten. I listened, nodding in satisfaction.
"You did well," I said, pouring him a drink. He accepted it, officially joining us. I still had instructions for him about our plans so I let him stay
Then Damon glanced at , eyes sharp.
"Raymond," he asked quietly, "are you sure you don’t love Lena?"
User Comments
0 comments from readers