Chapter 11 Right Woman
As soon as Derek left the hospital, he didn’t bother going home. He drove until he reached the only place he always ran to when he needed to breathe; the Club Deluxe, an upscale bar where half the city’s richest men frequented.
The moment he walked in, the atmosphere shifted. Almost everyone turned slightly to look at the newcomer, but Derek paid them no mind. He strode into the VIP section like a storm.
The bouncer parted the velvet entrance for him. "Good evening, Mr. Hemsworth."
Derek ignored him and sank into the semi-dark booth. The waiter rushed over.
"The usual, sir?"
"Make it stronger," Derek muttered. He wanted something to help him forget about his grandfather and his absurd deal for a while.
The whiskey arrived within seconds. Derek grabbed the glass and swallowed the liquor in one burning gulp. It scorched his throat, but the fire did nothing to calm him. He wanted another taste, so he poured another shot.
He was pouring the third shot when someone pushed through the curtain. The footsteps were familiar, steady, confident, and unhurried.
Derek turned to see that it was Ryan.
Derek’s best friend for over twenty years. The only human being who knew the darkest corners of his life.
Ryan slid into the seat opposite him. "Got your message," he said, eyeing the bottle. "And judging by the state of this bottle, I’m guessing the hospital visit was a disaster."
Derek let out a humorless laugh. "You have no idea."
Ryan loosened his tie. "Alright. Tell me what happened before you drown yourself in alcohol."
Derek stared at the amber liquid swirling in the bottle. "He wants me married."
Ryan shrugged. "He’s always wanted you married."
"No," Derek snapped. "Not eventually. Not in the future. He wants me married now. Before the month ends." Even thinking about it was giving him a headache already.
Ryan blinked. "What? He wants you married in a month?"
"Yes, a month."
“Why? What's the rush?” Ryan asked, puzzled.
“I don't know man. He's just trying to frustrate me,” Derek said as he poured another glass for himself.
Ryan watched him gulp the content of the glass before asking, "So, what happens if you're still not married at the end of one month?"
"He’ll take the company away from me," Derek muttered before downing the shot. "The position of CEO. Everything I’ve worked for. Everything he groomed me to handle. It'll all be gone."
Ryan’s jaw tightened. "Wow."
"That old man is insane," Derek hissed. "He thinks marriage will suddenly make me responsible."
Ryan gave a small, knowing smile. "You are responsible, just… emotionally unavailable."
Derek shot him a glare.
Ryan sighed. "Alright, alright. So he wants you married, or you lose everything. Why are you finding it difficult to settle for one of these your women?"
"Because I just can't. You know I will never get married. My grandfather knows that too, yet he just won't let me be," Derek said quietly, his voice dipping into a darker tone. "He knows what I’ve seen. What I grew up with. He knows I can’t do it."
Ryan leaned forward. "Dk… I hope you know thar what you saw growing up doesn’t have to be your fate. There's always a way to go around these things."
Derek’s hand tightened around the glass. He didn’t want to hear this. He didn’t want to think about broken plates, slammed doors, endless fights, his mother crying herself to sleep, his father’s fists hitting walls, the way love had been twisted into something poisonous in his home.
Ryan pressed on gently. "You’re not your parents. You’re not doomed to repeat that nightmare."
“You don't know that...”
“I do because I've seen you. All shades of you and you don't look anything like your father,” Ryan said, trying to encourage him.
Derek stared emptily at the table. "Marriage ruins people, Ryan. Love traps people. I won’t fall into that."
"And yet," Ryan said calmly, "you’ll lose the company if you don’t."
Silence stretched between them as Derek took another slow sip.
Ryan finally broke the quiet. "So… what exactly are you planning to do now? No matter what you think, you know you still have to get married right? You know your grandfather is good at carrying out his threats. You can't lose the company."
Listening to Ryan, a thought crossed his mind and immediately, a flicker lit Derek’s eyes. It was a dangerous, reckless spark that said whatever he had thought wasn't a good idea.
“What’s that mischief in your eyes?” Ryan asked with raised brows, half curious and half worried.
"So, I just thought about something."
"That usually means trouble," Ryan muttered, taking a sip from the half-filled glass on the table.
“So, he only said I should get married, right?” Derek said, and Ryan nodded, while waiting to hear his plan.
"So, what if I don’t have to actually marry for real?" Derek said almost with a chuckle.
Ryan stared. "What?"
"What if I pick one of the women I’ve been with," Derek continued slowly, "and pay her to pretend to be my wife for a month or at least three months? Just long enough for me to have everything passed to me."
Ryan froze. "What? You're not thinking that, Rek."
Derek leaned back, crossing his arms. "Of course I am. I mean, It’s perfect. Grandfather only wants a marriage certificate. Once he hands over the CEO position, I can end the arrangement. She gets paid, I get the company. Clean. Simple."
Ryan blinked twice. "Do you hear yourself right now? This is not a business deal we're talking about. We're talking about marriage and you wanting to deceive the old man with a fake marriage certificate! That's absurd man!"
"So?" Derek shrugged. "People get married and divorce every day. Besides, she and I would be doing everything married people do so it's not like I'm deceiving him."
Ryan rubbed his forehead. "You want to fake-marry one of your flings? One of the girls whose names you don’t bother remembering? And you think it will go smoothly?"
Derek’s expression sharpened. "I’ll pick someone who won’t complicate things. Someone quiet. Someone who won’t get attached. Someone who needs money. Someone I can control the situation with."
Ryan exhaled. "This is insane. Even for you."
"But it will work," Derek insisted. "I know it will."
Ryan shook his head slowly. "I don’t even know what scares me more. The fact that you thought of this… or the fact that you actually sound convinced."
Derek smirked slightly. "I always think clearly when I’m angry."
"That’s the problem," Ryan muttered.
Derek poured another drink. "I just need the right woman."
Ryan groaned. "Here comes the madness."
Derek toyed with the glass. "It can’t be someone loud. Can’t be someone clingy. Can’t be someone who’ll want more afterward. Definitely..."
"Someone who barely exists," Ryan muttered.
Derek snorted. "There are plenty of women like that. There has to be one amount them."
Ryan looked at him. "Alright. Fine. If you’re really going through with this, and you’ve clearly made up your mind, then tell me: which girl are you choosing?"
Derek paused.
Faces flashed in his mind, blurry, half-remembered women he’d danced with, slept with, and flirted with. Names he’d forgotten. Numbers he never saved.
But none of them seemed right. None of them felt convenient enough. None of them seemed safe.
"I don’t know yet," Derek finally admitted. "But I’ll find someone."
Ryan sighed. "This is going to blow up in your face. I hope you know that."
"Maybe," Derek said, leaning back with a cold smile, "but at least I’ll blow up as CEO."
Ryan chuckled despite himself. "Fine. Whatever madness you choose… I’m with you."
Derek nodded, and settled back, as if the decision had lifted a weight off his shoulders.