Chapter 111 A MARRIAGE???
SLOANE’S POINT OF VIEW.
The polished walls of the living room feel like they’re enclosing me as I sit with my hands tucked beneath my hoodie in an attempt to hide my spiking nerves. My parents sit before me with hesitant expressions on their faces as they avoid eye contact with me at all costs. We’ve been seated here for at least thirty minutes with nothing but silence between us.
It’s almost annoying.
I’ve had to fight the urge to scream, say fuck it, and demand them to freaking open their mouths. Lucien and I have a date tonight, but they’re keeping me waiting here with each second that they fail to let me know what’s up.
My dad finally clears his throat; the sound is awkward, as he clenches his hands together and stares at me with uncertain eyes.
“What is it?” I said, a nervous chuckle escaping my lips.
“Sloane….honey, we have something to tell you.” He says, and coughs awkwardly. “You see, the company is about to undergo something we call a merger, and we’re looking for a couple of partners that would be suitable enough to be a part of this.” He pauses and turns to look at my mother, who also avoids my confused gaze with a sheepish one.
“Sloane, honey….we want you to know that this is for your good. We would never ask you to do something that could ultimately hurt you in the long run. We always have your best interests, okay? So please, try and understand us.”
“Okay….you’re scaring me now. Please just come out with it already. What’s going on?”
“In light of this upcoming merger, a proposition hit my desk last night before I came back home from work. And it had an offer that I think would work well……it was a marriage alliance.”
I looked between them in confusion, not understanding what the hell they were getting at. A marriage?
Who’s getting married?
“I don’t….Whose marriage?”
“Yours.” My mother answers, not meeting my gaze, still.
“What?!” I exclaim, rising to my feet, which forces them to do the same.
“Sloane, please just listen to us.” She placates, but I’m not fucking having it.
“No! A marriage?? I’m barely nineteen, my birthday’s in a week, so no, I’m not even near eligible for marriage or any such alliance. Who the hell even does this?”
“Sloane, in our world, this is how things work. Besides, you know the person; we just want you to consider the offer.”
“I don’t care if I know the person. If it isn’t Lucien, it’s not going to be anyone else. And even if it’s Lucien, I’m too fucking young!”
“Sloane…come on, just give it a thought. There’s a lot the company could benefit from this, and so could you, since you’re one of our heirs. Just give it some consideration.”
“No!” I yell, my hands clenched into fists as my belly twists with disgust at the thought of being with anyone other than Lucien. “Wait…who the hell are you even trying to set me up with? Who is the crazy bastard who thinks it’s gonna be fun to fuck with Lucien?”
“You’re familiar with him, Sloane. He even goes to your school.” My father says, a nervous smile on his face, like that was supposed to make things even slightly easier.
“Who?” I asked, my eyes closed as I waited for the bomb to stop.
“Killian Lemaire.” They said at the same time.
“Killian?!!! Are you both out of your minds?”
“Sloane, it’s a good match. It’s far better than you and that Lucien kid, who’s only bad news.’
“What is your deal with him? Hmm, why do you both hate him so much?” I asked, having had enough of the aggression towards my boyfriend. “Why do both of you fail to see what I see in him?”
“Because he’s the seed of Eldric Ravenscroft!” My father yells, his chest rising and falling rapidly, before he walks further away from me with his hand rubbing on his forehead.
“Hayes, babe.” My mother spat, like the name left a bitter taste in her mouth.
“What are you talking about? Lucien isn’t anything remotely close to his father.” If anything, he’s the very opposite. Eldric and I have had altercations so far….and Lucien was nothing like the bastard, thankfully. They needed to see how much of an amazing guy he was, because Lucien and I weren't breaking up.
“Listen, Eldric is the seed of Hades. He’s a pathetic, spineless, old bastard who slithered his way into Alicia’s life with his web of lies and deceit, trapping her in a horrible marriage that only led to her untimely demise.”
‘What do you know of that?”
“Alicia was my best friend. We attended Ravenscroft High together.” My mother answered, her voice trembling as though she was fighting tears, as she hugged her arms around herself tighter.
My father rushes to her side instantly with one glance at her and wraps his arms around her with a kiss to her forehead. “It’s okay, baby.”
“You knew her?” I asked, shocked at this revelation.
“We were like sisters. And Eldric….he was poison. So I don’t trust you with Lucien; he might be exactly like his father. And I cannot lose you like I did her.” She sobs into my father’s arms, her back racked from the force of her tears.
My chest tightens at the sight, but for some reason, so does my conviction and trust in Lucien. “I’m sorry you lost your friend, Mom. But, Lucien….he isn’t like his father. If anything, he’s better than his father. He stood by me when I had no one else, and he’s still doing that. I understand why you cannot trust him, but I won’t marry Killian or be engaged to him for a second. The thought of it……it makes my skin crawl.
He and I barely share a couple of words, for Pete’s sake!
Besides that, this is Lucien’s friend we’re speaking about, so why the hell would I do that?”
My father turns to me with a sad smile and says, “If he’s really Lucien’s friend, why did he and his father send me the proposition on behalf of the company? Maybe he also thinks his friend, Lucien, is bad news?”
I shake my head in confusion, not wanting to entertain any thoughts related to that. “ I don’t know why, but I’ll find out.”
I said, before grabbing my purse and walking out of the mansion while shooting Lucien a text.
“We need to talk.”