Chapter 4: Dinner (Ace's POV) We were walking back to the table when I heard her dad say, "Let's talk over dinner tonight then." I sat down and she walked around the table, taking her seat. "Dinner tonight sounds great," my dad nodded. "Tonight?" She looked between our dads and then waited for an explanation. "I'm inviting them for dinner tonight. I have some business to discuss with Kieran anyway and we can talk about the rest too," her dad shrugged. The guests all began leaving, some were already gone too. "But… I was going to Aria's tonight," she mumbled. "Go tomorrow, honey. It's business," her dad said to her. She sighed in defeat. "All right." She took out her phone and texted, I'm guessing Aria. Most of the guests were gone by now so we stood up to leave too. Our fathers kept talking while they walked and I walked a few steps behind her. When we entered the house, a very disheveled Cole came downstairs, still in his pajamas while holding his pounding head. I heard her scoff, "Has a date, my ass." I smiled to myself and followed her out. "We shall see you tonight then," her dad said, turning to both my dad and me. I nodded with a polite smile and then turned to her. "See you tonight," I smirked. She gave me a fake smile and then sat in her car, opening the door for herself. We said goodbye to Mr. John and then climbed in our own car, heading back home. "What do you think of her?" My dad brought it up suddenly, more than halfway through the ride back. "Who?" I played dumb. He turned to look at me. "Gianna Phoenix." I stared out the window. "I think she's hiding something." "What do you mean?" I shrugged. "She's secretive. She intrigues me." "Do you like her enough to marry her or not, Ace?" That's the wrong question. Our marriage, if we have one, won't be about how much we like each other if we even do. It would be about how much she truly knows about me because I can guarantee it's more than she's letting on. "I don't think she'll marry me, dad." "Why not?" Because I killed her brother three years ago. "She must have her reasons." "I asked you a question that you have yet to answer. Do you like her enough to marry her or not?" "If I do?" "Then you two will be married." I frowned, "What if she says no?" "Leave it up to her father to persuade her." "But that's wrong." My dad sighed, turning to me. "We've done a lot of wrong things, son. Plus, you're at an age to be married, she's looking for a groom. Of course, it helps if you two get along but even if you don't, it doesn't matter. John is a reliable man when it comes to business. I've been wanting to work with him again. Let's see how tonight goes and hopefully, we'll have a plan." "A plan," I echoed. "A wedding date, Ace," he sighed, punching my arm gently. "Why are you being so sensitive about this?" "I'm not, I just… Fine, we'll see how tonight goes." ☆════ ⋆★⋆ ════☆ I walked out of the car, adjusting the cufflinks on my black button-up. I wore a black button-up with black trousers and kept it simple. I didn't feel like putting an entire suit on, it's just a dinner for four people. I stood at the door beside my dad and rang the doorbell. It chimed and a moment later, a housekeeper came and opened the door, letting us in. "Mr. John is already in the dining room and Ms. Gianna will be right down." My dad walked ahead of me and I lingered behind, looking around. "Is Ms. Gianna late?" I asked, tucking my hands into my pockets. "She had a little nap earlier, she woke up a little late," the housekeeper chuckled. I nodded in understanding and headed into the dining room, sitting beside my dad. We talked briefly about business and then her dad dove right into the conversation we're actually here for. "So, Ace. What do you think of Gianna?" She isn't even here yet. How do I answer this, keeping in mind that he's her father? "I think she's actually-" "I would like to know too." I turned around and looked at the door where she quickly walked through and slipped into her seat. She propped her elbow up on the table and held her chin in her palm. "Tell me," she smiled. Something's off. Okay, I'll bite. We're playing nice tonight. I watched her carefully and thought of an appropriate answer. "I think she'd be an amazing wife." Her eyes narrowed just a bit and she pulled her arm down, pouring water into her glass. "What do you think of him?" my dad asked her. Her eyes flicked up to mine. "I think he'd be an amazing husband," she said. Suddenly she thinks I'd be a good husband? Suddenly the idea of marrying me doesn't have her appalled? Something is definitely not right. "It sounds like you both are more than happy to get married," her dad said, looking between us. "More than happy," she smiled at him while the housekeeper brought in the food and set it in front of us, leaving once she was dismissed. "Ace?" My dad turned to me, lifting his brows. I nodded. "More than happy." "That's great to hear," her dad said, sounding very happy. I really don't think he knows what I did. He's genuinely just seeing this as an opportunity and he's taking it. An opportunity to make an alliance, an opportunity to marry his daughter into a rich family, an opportunity to have, what he thinks, is a good son-in-law. But he has no idea what kind of person I am. "I'm glad you're both in agreement," my dad said. "He's always been so picky, he's rejected so many good offers. I'm glad he accepted yours. Gianna is a wonderful girl, she'll fit right into our family." Our family is just the two of us. "What about Gianna? I'm sure she got a lot of offers too, no?" She looked at her plate, poking at her food. "Well actually, we didn't tell people she's ready to get married. You were the first I came to. And it worked out perfectly." That's confirmation right there. If he knew what happened with Chase, he would not have come first to me. He would have let the word spread, maybe even waited for us to come to him first. But the fact that he wanted this, that this was his first choice just proves me right. She didn't tell anybody, not even her father. "Let's dive right in then," my dad suggested. "I don't reckon we have time to go slow, it's time he gets married." I resisted an eye roll and ate another bite. "Sure, why not? It's the first of June today. June is a wonderful month to get married. How about the twentieth?" Her face screamed: It's too early. "That seems perfect. We can host the engagement on the fifteenth," my dad nodded in agreement. "We should talk about locations and decorations after eating. You both can chat for a while then, hmm?" Her dad looked between us. She stabbed her chicken and ate another bite. I nodded in response, sipping my water. Another fifteen minutes later, we were all done eating. Our fathers disappeared into the backyard to grab a smoke and chat and that left the two of us alone. She stood up, her chair scraping against the hardwood floor. "I don't think we have anything to chat about. You can look around the place if you'd like. I have to go." As she walked by my chair, I grabbed her chair and pulled her back, standing up myself and she stared at me, impatience etched onto her face. "You don't want to marry me," I stated. "And?" "You said you do." "So?" I blinked, watching her expression. "Why? I doubt your father's forcing you, he easily would have agreed if you refused. Why didn't you?" "My father likes you, for some twisted reason I can't wrap my head around." "Maybe it's because you haven't told him what you know." "And I never will. It'll only ruin his business and he might even criticize me for telling him in the first place." "Criticize you?" She rolled her eyes and freed her wrist from my grasp. "For the record, he never allowed himself to come to terms with Chase's death. It's an unspoken rule, I can't talk about it. Nobody can. And anyway, if he thinks he's doing something right and I'm not at much risk, why should I say no?" I lifted a brow at her. "Not at much risk? Why? You think I can't hurt you just because you're my wife?" "I think you'd have consequences to face if you did." She scoffed, glancing at the door and then looking back at me. "Allister." "Phoenix." "I'm marrying you. That doesn't mean I don't remember who you are and what you did. My father invited you to this dinner, he has high hopes for me, I don't want to be the one to crush them. He thinks he's doing something right. With his knowledge, he is. I'm doing what he would." "And what's that?" "Taking an opportunity." "And what do you gain?" She smiled, "You're filthy rich, apparently you're handsome, and people are terrified of you. That means as your wife, I probably won't have to deal with people like Cady's mom who tell me I shouldn't work a job. Or people who like to throw jabs at me, saying I couldn't do what my brother could have." It's not that she couldn't, it's that she doesn't want to. She doesn't want to be linked to something so corrupt and it shows. But I'm as corrupt as they come. So, why me? "Show yourself around. And if you need anything, don't ask me. Goodnight." She walked out, meeting the housekeeper at the door. She stopped and faced her, saying loud enough for me to hear. "Don't tell anybody where my room is, Ms. Lauren. And please show Allister around if he asks." She turned around, facing me. "See you around, Ace." . . . . . Chapter 4 drop the conspiracies before I drop the next chapter- why do ya'll think she agreed to marry him? I think it's obvious but maybe that's just cause I'm writing it lmao