Standing in the massive living room of the Martin Family, Chloe Davis felt cornered for the first time in her life.
The two young Martin heirs were staring her down, dressed in floral shirts, with smug and disdainful looks. Their intense gazes made Chloe uneasy.
The second heir, Michael Martin, wrinkled his nose and turned to his lounging brother, Liam.
"This is the fiancée Grandpa picked for us?"
Liam nodded. "Yep, Grandpa gave me a photo, and I checked. It's definitely her."
Michael clutched his head and dramatically beat his chest.
"Did I offend the universe? How did I end up with such a tacky woman? I'd rather be single. I can't deal with this!"
Michael didn't bother hiding his disdain for Chloe.
No surprise there, with Chloe's outfit today, even a wild boar would steer clear.
A floral shirt, dark blue shorts; the shirt tucked into the shorts' waistband.
And that wasn't the worst of it. Her face was smeared with some kind of dark makeup, and she had two pigtails with straw stuck in them, making her look like a cavewoman.
Michael's reaction was just like his younger brother Liam's. He covered his face, stared at Chloe for three seconds, then grabbed a trash can and started puking.
As he vomited, he complained, "Ugly, truly ugly! She's uniquely ugly. If Grandpa hadn't made me pick you up, I wouldn't look at you even if I were dead."
Seeing their reactions, Chloe felt secretly pleased. Did they think she wanted to get close to them?
She was only here out of respect for her grandfather and for the future inheritance.
They found her repulsive, but Chloe didn't want to spend another minute with them either. If not for their decent looks, she would have walked away.
Her grandfather had made it clear: if she didn't stay with the Martin family for a year, she wouldn't get what she wanted. So, Chloe had to compromise.
Seeing that Liam had almost finished vomiting, Chloe rolled her eyes and approached him.
She said to Liam, "Throwing up so much, are you expecting?"
As soon as she said this, the living room fell silent for three seconds, then Michael, holding his head, pointed at Liam and laughed.
"Liam, she said you're pregnant. She actually said you're pregnant..."
Hearing Michael's voice, Chloe raised her face and said to him blankly, "Isn't that how it goes on TV?"
Liam was infuriated by Chloe's words. He threw the trash can and shouted at Chloe, "Idiot, I'm a man. How can a man be pregnant?"
"Oh, so you're a rooster that can't lay eggs?"
Chloe's quick retort made Liam want to punch her in the face.
But remembering his grandfather's words, he reluctantly lowered his raised fist.
"Are you trying to drive me crazy?"
Chloe looked at the fuming Liam and cheerfully asked, "Is there a law against driving someone crazy?"
Liam was speechless.
Chloe kept pushing his buttons, "Besides, did I make you mad? You're the one choosing to be angry."
"You've got a sharp tongue!"
"And you've got a foul mouth!" Chloe shot back at Liam.
Just as things were about to get physical, Michael, who was enjoying the show, decided to step in.
"Liam, it's her first day here. We shouldn't get physical with her. If Grandpa finds out, he'll chew us out again. Didn't Grant say we should treat her well?"
Taking Michael's advice, Liam finally cooled down.
Michael pointed to the room upstairs and said to Chloe, "Your room's on the second floor, at the corner. You've been traveling for days, so go rest for a bit..."
Chloe mischievously rolled her eyes, grabbed her suitcase, and headed upstairs.
Before leaving, she made sure to give the two brothers downstairs a parting shot, "I need to buy some daily necessities. I'll give you a list later. Make sure to get everything for me. Thanks."
Seeing Chloe's bossy attitude, Liam couldn't help but grumble, "Michael, look at her. She's treating us like servants. Look how smug she is."
"Oh, Liam, quit whining. Grandpa set it up for her to be here. We gotta put up with her attitude. 'Cause one of us brothers will end up marrying her."
Michael laid out the situation.
Liam pouted. "I'll say it first. I'd rather die than marry her."
Michael agreed, "Same here. She's so ugly, she makes me sick..."
"So what do we do?"
Michael said, "What else? We'll have to push her onto our big brother, Grant!"
"What? If Grant finds out, he'll kill us."
"Don't worry. It's Grant's job as the oldest to look out for his brothers. I've already sent this ugly chick to Grant's room. If nothing goes wrong..."
Michael and Liam shared a sinister and cunning smile.
Chloe carried her suitcase to the upstairs bedroom, took off her dirty clothes, and enjoyed a hot bath.
The long journey had indeed worn her out. She pulled up the light blue quilt and unceremoniously crawled into bed.
She took out her smartphone and texted her best friend, Zara Jenkins.
Zara: [How's it going over there? Did the young heirs of the Martin Family give you a hard time?]
Chloe quickly replied: [The little Martin Family? I handled it easily!]
Maybe because she was too tired, Chloe didn't even bother with dinner. As soon as she hit the bed, she was out like a light.
In the dead of night, she felt a man's presence in her room, jolting her awake from a deep sleep.
The room was dark, and the man didn't seem to notice Chloe's presence.
He took off his clothes, put on a thin robe, and walked straight to where Chloe was sleeping, lifting the quilt.