Everyone was gaping and silent except Nathan, who was all smiles. He had made his choice. He had proposed to me. For most girls, it would be a dream come true, but it was more of a shock for me. It had not even been a day! How could he land on such a big decision in less than twenty-four hours? He did say something about only going through the marriage if we both felt like it at the end of the engagement period. Still, it was a massive decision to give someone your time, heart, and an expensive heirloom.
Two days ago, I was a miserable divorcee, and now I was about to get engaged to a billionaire. I wished John was there to see how far I had come. That asshole must be laughing in his cell, thinking that the mafia must have killed me in his stead.
“I need an answer today, Amelia,” Nathan reminded me, pulling me out of my train of thought. “It would be better if you say something now. Everyone is waiting, including your new man.”
“Yes, I will marry you,” I replied. I showed John my middle finger in my head. Perhaps with Nathan’s permission, I should at least visit him once in prison to share the news of my engagement to a much better man than him.
Nathan smiled with joy, slipping the ring onto my finger. Before I could admire the precious jewel on my hand, he grabbed me by my waist and kissed me passionately for a minute or two. A lot of tongue action was involved in that kiss, which must have made the others as wildly uncomfortable as I was thinking about them.
After sealing the engagement with the kind of kiss that is more suitable in the privacy of one’s bedroom, we turned to the others. They were still shocked, unblinking, with their mouths slightly opened.
“Mother, aren’t you going to congratulate us and welcome your future daughter-in-law into the family?” Nathan said to his mom. “I thought this is what you wanted for a long time. Are you not happy with my engagement?”
Mrs. Sinclair closed her mouth and blinked. She slowly recovered and smiled at us. Her emotions escalated. She grinned and soon began jumping with joy. Her feet didn’t touch the ground for more than a second, and she eventually crashed into Doctor Williams.
He helped her regain balance, and she finally contained her happiness enough to respond like an adult mother. “I have no words. You have given me every joy possible, my dear son. All I wanted was for you to be happy and for our home to have a new heir. I am hoping to hear the news of a pregnancy soon. I don’t care whether you are married when it happens. Do it now! Nathan, impregnate her and make us even happier.”
I recoiled in disgust at her choice of words. Mrs. Sinclair had finally lost it. I could now see where Nathan got his straightforwardness. He wasn’t afraid to say exactly what he was feeling as well.
“Calm down, mother. You are creeping her out. She is not a machine to birth my heirs. We will do it when we both want it. For now, you aren’t getting any babies. So quit pestering us for it,” Nathan spoke.
Mrs. Sinclair gave me a hopeful look. I could see it in her eyes that later, she was about to offer me a blank cheque or other valuables for an early pregnancy. She might as well suggest I poke holes in his condoms or have sex with him without it on my most fertile days without telling him about the risks.
“Alright. Let’s celebrate the engagement for now. I congratulate you both and wish you nothing but happiness from the bottom of my heart. A party is required for a formal celebration. I’ll throw one in one week at our home,” she said.
“No, mother. The engagement party must happen tomorrow evening. I am impatient to share this good news with everyone else.” Nathan put his arm around me and smiled at me from time to time. He made me feel like a couple already. We were technically a couple, but the engagement wasn’t as serious as he made everyone else think. It would end if I didn’t meet his expectations from now on.
“But your health, son. You fell unconscious today. What if you got too excited during the party? I wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself in the middle of one of the biggest moments of your life,” Mrs. Sinclair expressed.
“He can’t faint from happiness, Mrs. Sinclair,” Doctor Williams interrupted. “It must be shock, fear, rage, strenuous physical activity, and intimacy with his partner.”
“Oh well, I see!” Mrs. Sinclair stared into space, thinking about her response. “We can throw an urgent engagement party then. Who do you want as guests, then? And the theme? I must ask my secretary to get in contact with the biggest party planner in the country ASAP.”
“I’ll send you the guest list and any other request through Frank,” Nathan began. “And don’t worry about having the greatest party planner to plan it. Just call anyone who is available on short notice. All I want is the presence of all my friends and enemies. I want to show off my stunning fiancé to them and watch them make themselves miserable with jealousy. That is the biggest present to me.”
“Splendid. I’ll get to that right away,” said Mrs. Sinclair. She was so used to her son’s behavior that she wasn’t bothered by his villainous answer. He wanted to make others miserable instead of enjoying his happiness.
Why would he be happy? It was more like an accomplishment for him. We weren’t getting engaged out of love. If love were to ever bloom in our hearts for each other, it wouldn’t be less of a miracle.
“Let’s get out of here and give the newly engaged couple some privacy.” Mrs. Sinclair pointed at the door. “And Amelia, please come to me when you are free. I have another priceless family heirloom and some precious advice for you.”
“Sure,” I replied, knowing exactly what she would say. I looked down at my flat stomach. It would soon get huge because there was no way I could say no to an unhappy mother and a lifetime of security for myself. If Nathan left me, I needed something to support myself and stay alive from the evil of my ex-husband and the mafia.
Mrs. Sinclair left the room like a giddy child, and Frank followed her, giving me a double thumbs up on the way. He had wanted me to succeed due to his selfish reasons. I couldn’t blame him for it. We are all selfish. I wasn’t doing anything noble myself. I had broken so many rules I had set for myself just to survive.
Doctor Williams stayed behind even after the other two had left. He must have something to say about Nathan’s health. If he was going to stop us from having sex, I wasn’t sure how I was going to keep Nathan happy for so long. That man lost his mind over the littlest inconveniences.
“Nathan, you need to stop pushing the limits of your body,” the doctor started. “I already warned you about your health, but you ignored me. Now, you must make a choice. Either stop going to the gym or don’t have sex. It’s up to you.”
Nathan removed his hand from my back and approached the doctor in an intimidating manner. “Doctor, you’re brutal for asking me to keep my hands off my beautiful fiancé. You have sex several times a day. How can you stop your patients from enjoying even a little?”
Doctor Williams pursed his lips. “I am not the one suffering from any health problems. Again, my personal life has nothing to do with you. By now, you must have checked all the footage of the camera you installed in my office. I don’t care if you put a dozen more, Nathan. You have no right to interfere in other people’s lives and point fingers at them. Hopefully, you’ll focus on your life now that you have someone. My heartiest congratulations to you both. Goodbye for now.”
Williams walked away with confidence after saying that. He should be careful before provoking the lion. If Nathan could lie so smartly to get the truth out of him, I wondered what else he could do.
After the doctor shut the door behind him, Nathan turned to me with a smirk. “Don’t worry about him. He is worthless and extremely jealous of me. I bet anyone he is involved with isn’t half as attractive and fine as you.”
I looked away. It was hard to agree to that, knowing the bitter truth. Nathan would suffer a heart attack if he ever found out who the doctor was actually involved with.
“Forget about him. I am more worried about your health. I wouldn’t have agreed to get in the tub with you if I had known. Why didn’t you tell me, Nathan?” I asked.
“I was too ashamed and unsure if you could make me feel anything. Either my health is improving, or you are an irresistible goddess sent from heaven for me,” he said. Nathan leaned in to kiss me.
I covered his mouth with my hand. “Doctor Williams has asked you to make a choice. What’s it going to be? You can’t have both, Nathan. I want you to take your health more seriously from now on. I am your caretaker and your fiancé.”
Nathan pushed my hand away and stole a kiss from my lips. “I would pick you over anything. I want you close to me day and night. Why don't you start sleeping in the room next to me?”
Next to him? Why didn’t he want me in his bed? I chose not to ask. “Your mother wants a child so badly. What are we going to do about that? Do you ever want to have kids with anyone? Would it break you to have one now?” He looked at me in confusion. “I am only asking so that we can give your mother a more logical answer with valid reasons.” Again, I was lying. However, I truly wished to know his thoughts on that. I wouldn’t accept any kind of money or anything else if he were that against it.
Nathan took some time before responding. “Some day, I want kids. I want someone to look like me or at least have some resemblance to me. But I am not sure if I am ready to do it right now.” He caressed my cheek. “I do like the idea of putting a baby in you, but I am not sure of taking the responsibility of one. How about we start with the practice of making a baby? Practice makes perfection, and we got interrupted in the middle of the act.” He finished with a wink.