Chapter 1 — The Proposal

They say storms are only temporary, but the lives they cross never remain the same. You either perish or grow so inured that even the mighty storm is enamored by you.

Ember's POV

I blew out a long sigh and turned to park my dad's car in our front yard. Another day of job hunting in vain. My previous workplace had shut down due to bankruptcy, and new places didn't want an employee with less than a year of experience. If they wouldn't let me have the opportunity how was I supposed to gain experience?

My parents ran a bakery shop. After my dad had an accident while working in the King's factory as a mechanical engineer, he couldn't work anymore. They started a small bakery, but it wasn't enough. So, I needed a job to support them.

My foot slammed on the brakes as a black limo parked in our driveway caught my eye. My brows furrowed, and I racked my brain for any possible relative who would hire a limo, but nah, none came to mind. Curiosity gnawed at my tummy as I parked the car by the side of the road, ignoring the protests of our aged neighbor. Speeding inside the house, I tip-toed near the drawing room and peeked in from behind the door frame.

Oh, blast manners! This girl needs to know!

A man in a white suit sat on the main sofa. The gray roots of his hair and beard were beginning to peek through his dyed hair. “Let's cut to the chase, shall we, Joseph?” he said, authority lacing his tone.

“Err...sure, Mr. King, sir,” Dad replied, sitting across from him, accompanied by mom.

Mr. King? As in Mr. Bryan William King? The billionaire businessman and Dad's former boss? But what was he doing here?

“Splendid! I want your daughter to be my daughter-in-law.”

The gaps in my parents' mouths could fit a whale. As for mine, well, that whale with its baby and baby's dad, and many more babies could fit, and they wouldn't even have to squirm.

I know, I know. I exaggerated, but that's how it actually felt.

The King’s wanted me to be their daughter-in-law by marrying their son Hunter William King, the most eligible, most handsome bachelor of New York? But why me when there were so many prettier women on earth dying to be his? Heck, he could even marry a princess.

Mr. King laughed at their expressions. “Now, now, no need to give me that look, Joseph. I just want a fair, decent girl to be our daughter-in-law, not one of those—” his face contorted into a grimace, “gold-diggers my son dates.”

“B-but sir...Y-your son...He doesn't really have a good reput—oomph!” Mom nudged Dad, which stopped him from completing his sentence.

“Oh, come on, Joseph! All this time we've been acquaintances; don't you want to make my wish come true?” His lips stretched into a sweet smile, but his eyes glinted with tacit demand.

For the next few minutes, Mr. King kept pestering dad. It seemed he made up his mind and wouldn't take 'no' for an answer.

My stretched brows creased to a frown. The reason he gave for choosing me didn't seem harmful, but the uneasiness in the pit of my stomach didn't thought otherwise. Marriage was a big step of someone's life, and I needed to think.

Inhaling deep, I sauntered inside. “I appreciate your proposal, Mr. King, but I need time.”

All heads turned towards me. With a sweet smile on his face, Mr. King got up. My parents looked concerned and stood up too.

“You have a beautiful daughter, Joseph, and intelligent too,” he stated striding towards me, power radiating off of him. “I hope you'll make the right decision, darling.”

Then he was gone.

To marry Hunter King would be a dream come true for most girls, including me, but getting married like this was never my plan. What about my responsibilities? I couldn't just leave my parents to be on their own when they needed me the most. I had always wanted to build my own identity, get a decent job, move into a bigger home. But most of all, I wanted a better shop where my mom could bake as much as she wanted, and dad could mess the batter up trying to help.

I looked at my parents; there was a visible tinge of hesitation etched on their foreheads.

What if I said no?

“Be safe, Dad!” I stood on our porch and waved Dad off. We were out of groceries, so Dad decided to go shopping. He waved at me and started walking down the street. Dad didn't want to bother his recently polished baby car since the shop wasn't far from home.

I smiled at our neighbor's dog playing in their yard. Turning on my heels, I took a step to head inside, but stopped as I heard alarmed barks. Whirling around, my eyes landed on the bulky figure in all black on the street. The man glared at the animal, and cowering, it ran away. He directed his gaze ahead and resumed walking while pulling something out of his jacket. The bright glint the object reflected hit my eyes causing them to close and open two times wider. I followed the direction of his gaze, and my heart almost jumped out of my chest.

“Dad...”

Without any delay, I dashed towards my father.

“Ember! Where are you going?” Dad asked upon seeing me.

“I just remembered I-uh...I need to buy some things as well,” I replied, breathing hard. Gazing behind us, I found no trace of the man anymore and let out a sigh of relief.

Phew! Always overthinking, aren't you?

After buying all the necessary stuff, we got back home with dad cracking jokes and me laughing, not because they were funny, but because they were just so terrible one had to laugh. Our laughing ceased as we entered the house and saw mom with her phone, a crease in her forehead.

“What's the matter, Sofia? Who was it?” Dad inquired, leaving the shopping bags on the floor and walking to mom.

“I just...got an email from the IRS. They said...we have three years of bills due,” hesitation laced mom's voice.

“What? We already paid it all!”

My heartbeat accelerated. What was going on? First the strange man and now the IRS?

“Maybe...it’s a prank?” I offered, hoping to lighten the tension.

“Could be.” Dad nodded. “Fucking jobless morons got nothing better to do.”

“Joseph! No cursing in the house.”

“Yeah, yeah. Sorry.” Dad pecked mom's cheek quickly as all the creases vanished from her face, and a blush appeared.

I chuckled at them. Their relationship was something I always dreamed of having when I got married. At the thought of the word, my mind wandered to Hunter; I doubted I would happen to have something similar with him considering his reputation.

Shooing the thoughts away, I picked up the groceries and headed to the kitchen. Maybe someone was indeed pranking us.

I only had to be proven wrong.

A couple of days later, I sat in the public library going through job circulars and filling in applications. A sudden discomfort in the stomach stirred me in my seat. Pulling out the emergency granola bar, I looked around at the few other people present, all minding their own businesses. Shrugging, I munched on the bar, sighing in content.

Happy tummy, happy mind.

My happy mind was disturbed when the bench beneath me dipped. I turned my head to the side. A tremor ran down my spine as I observed the bulky man in black from the other day sitting right beside me. I shot to my feet, ready to run.

“Sit,” he ordered.

“Wh-what do you want?”

He slid a black envelope across the table and got up. “Mr. King says hello.”

At the mention of the name, my eyes widened, and I picked the envelope up sliding the paper out. Unfolding it, I scanned my eyes over the letter, and my stomach churned. This could make me lose jobs before I even got one—a negative reference letter.

“What the hell! He can't do that.” I looked up but the bench was empty.

I flopped back down, my mind a swirl of questions and confusions. Why?

In the following days, similar things kept happening. I started seeing the strange man following my parents, phone calls and emails for bills kept flooding us, even my job applications were being refused. I couldn't bear seeing the line of permanent worry on my parents' foreheads. I couldn't sleep at night, the constant fear that the dangerous man would end up doing something horrible to them.

So, at last, I made a decision.