The Billion-Dollar Marriage Contract(27)

She looked at things as though it was her first time seeing it. She enjoyed the little things the most, as though she’d never encountered them before!

All the while, he thought it was an act.

How could an heiress not have been to one of the finest art galleries in Greece? How could someone like her not know how to act in a five-star restaurant?

He immediately pinned it down as something like a ploy to look innocent. And he hated her for it.

But now...he was slowly rethinking his judgment. She had not seen him yet but she took note of her surroundings as though the sights were the most fascinating things in the world. He also noticed the look of regret in her eyes before it was replaced by something like anger.

Her searching gaze finally found him and her features hardened. Gone was the awe in her eyes and now coldness took its place. She took quick steps towards him and before she was able to reach the table, he stood and held out the chair for her.

“Nikos,” she greeted.

“Happy anniversary,” he told her and handed her the huge bouquet of flowers.

“How thoughtful,” she said with a hint of sarcasm, fully aware that it was James who chose it.

But Nikos was unaware of her sarcasm. She glanced at the huge bouquet of roses and sniffed the elegant blooms. She couldn’t help it and a smile touched her lips at its beauty.

A waiter approached to take the bouquet and she gave it to him.

Nikos waved his hand and another waiter approached them and handed them menus.

“Have you been here before?” Nikos asked in order to start a conversation.

“No. Not yet. But I have heard of this place,” Cassia replied distractedly as she perused the menu.

“Then, let me order for you. The lady will have the Crab Salad. And I will have the KindaiMaguro,” Nikos told the waiter.

“Excellent choice sir.And for dessert? Or shall I ask again later?”

“Later will be fine.”

“Err…wait. Cancel the crab salad and I’ll just have the Kobe Beef, please,” she said with a smile.

“Excellent choice also, madam,” the waiter grinned.

“Their crab salad is the best,” Nikos pointed out with a frown after the waiter disappeared

He was used to ordering for his female companions and they always loved what he chose for them. Today, he chose the crab salad for Cassia because it was one of their best dishes. Also, he took in the fact that women usually were very conscious of their weight and tended to eat less.

“I can order for myself, thank you very much. Plus, I can’t eat that because I'm allergic to crabs,” Cassia said in a flat tone.

Once again, Nikos was struck with the realization that he knew nothing about the woman he was married to for ten years now.

“I apologize. I’ll keep that in mind.”

For a long while, there was silence between the two of them. They had nothing in common and they did not know each other at all. This was how their past dinners were.

The waiter came to their table and poured some white wine. Cassia took hers and sipped it slowly as she stared around the beautiful interior of the restaurant.

“So how’s your business?” Nikos asked.

“It’s going great. I’m opening a new shop in California soon.”

“You should put some in my malls too. I’ll check for open slots and I could give you a call,” he offered.

“That’s nice of you. But I think I have more than I can handle right now.”

“Alright, just tell me if you need anything."

“Alright,” Cassia replied.

But what she said inside her head was ‘I’ll ask Nikos Demakis for help when hell freezes over.’

Over the years, she learned to be self-sufficient.

Whatever happened, she was never going to ask Nikos or her grandfather for any help.

She’d rather suffer than beg.

Once more, silence reigned between them.

Cassia took a deep breath and then exhaled. She tossed back the entire content of her wine to boost her courage.

“Nikos—“

“Cassia. I have something—“ they both said at the same time.

“Uhh...you go ahead,” Cassia told him.

“Thank you. I was just thinking. It’s our tenth year anniversary and we barely know anything about each other. To each other, we are practically strangers,” Nikos began.

Cassia resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

“I know we didn’t start out at the correct footing. But past is past and I think it’s the perfect time to move on.”

At his words, Cassia grinned.

Could it be that he was now thinking about the divorce too? Then it would be perfect! He would just need to sign the papers today and she would be filing it tomorrow. Within a short span of time they would both be free!

“I know exactly what you mean,” she agreed.

“And in order for us to start our lives together...I suggest, we start getting to know each other, build a good relationship between the two of us and start living together as a wedded couple. I have decided to cut down on my traveling and spend more time in Greece. I will be giving you the choice of which house I own that we would turn into our permanent home.”

Cassia’s jaw almost hit the floor at his words.

This guy truly had some nerve! How dare he think that he could just say some words and they’d act like a true wedded couple?

At the same time, a sense of impending doom along with a giant burst of anger filled her.

“Say that again...” she said in a whisper thinking she just heard him incorrectly.

“Well...I’d say it’s past time we set aside our differences. We are married after all and we should start acting like a married couple. Maybe even start a family someday. We’re not getting any younger and I think that this is the perfect time in our lives for this. Personally, I am ready to settle down,” Nikos said in a tone that stated he meant business.

Acting like a married couple? Starting a family? Settle down?

Was she going crazy or did she actually hear him right?

A bubble of hysterical laughter welled up inside her. She then leaned across the table and released everything. Her stomach cramped and she had difficult time breathing as she was consumed by her fits of laughter.

“What’s so funny?” Nikos asked.

She saw that he was scowling and that his hand was holding his wine glass very tightly that his knuckles already turned white.

“You. You make me laugh, Nikos. You think you can just invite me to dinner after everything that’s happened, after all the pain and the humiliation. And after ten years! You think you have the right to waltz into my life and announce that you are ready to settle down. And it follows that I must drop everything and run to you with tears of joy in my eyes? Is that how you envisioned this to be? It’s absurd!” she ranted and then laughed once more.

“Which part of this do you not like, Cassia? This is what you wanted right from the start isn’t it?” Nikos wore a frown as he asked her this.

He leaned forward and placed his arms on the table. He regarded his wife with a confused expression.

“Hell no, you arrogant bastard!” Cassia shouted loud enough that it shocked the waiters hovering around the place.

Nikos stood up and glared at her.

“Calm down," he ordered.

“No! This is preposterous!” she threw her napkin down and stood.

“What?!” Nikos hissed.

“You—You—“ she stammered as she tried to find the words in the middle of her rage. “Ten years and you’ve not changed one bit!” She threw her hands up in exasperation. It was better than her doing what she really wanted to do at the moment: to beat the arrogance out of Nikos Demakis.

“What? Isn’t this what you want? Isn’t this what you asked your grandfather for ten years ago?” Nikos repeated in a condescending tone.

Cassia shook her head and laughed hysterically.

“And like what happened all those years ago, you’re still wrong Nikos. I never wanted to marry you in the first place. It was my grandfather who arranged it. I blindly went along with his wishes because I thought you wanted me. On the day of our marriage, I found out that he forced you. What I planned was to marry you and then get our marriage dissolved the next day so that you would have your company back and my evil grandfather would have nothing, like I told you all those years ago. But I think you know what happened next.”

“You lied to me and caused a scene!” Nikos exclaimed.

“No, Nikos. You did. You started that by going to your own wedding drunk. But I let all that pass because I would be having my revenge on my grandfather the very next day. I took the humiliation thinking that when morning came, I would be free of it all. And that was why I came to you and your mistress’ room. That was what I wanted to talk to you about. Looking back on it now, it was a pretty stupid thing to do.”

Cassia laughed once more. But this time, it was a bitter kind of laugh.

Nikos’ entire body became taut with tension.

How dare she lie again? Did she think he was a fool to believe the words coming out of her mouth?

Yes. That was what all of her words were. Lies.Nothing but lies. After ten years, she still decided to stick with that story. Was he wrong about thinking she changed at all?

“You will cease speaking nonsense this instant!” Nikos commanded.

“No. You cease that nonsense. Ten years is quite enough, thank you very much. Now let me tell you why I actually agreed to this dinner.”