“Got to go, kiddo, someone’s at the door. Skype me later on in the week okay?” I waved and hung up.
I ran down the stairs and opened the door. There stood Daimon. The moment he saw me, he smiled his sexy smile. He stood in the doorway waiting for me to let him in.
“What are you doing here?” I whispered.
“I'm here to get you,” Daimon winked.
“Daimon, I'm not in the mood,” I hissed.
“You said tomorrow you were mine. I'm here to collect, my sweet, sweet Addie.” He pushed by me and took off his shoes as he headed to the living room, leaving me at the door affronted.
“Mr. Sakis, how are you feeling today?” Daimon asked as he sat down.
“Fine, I'm actually feeling perfectly good,” my father said happily, but I knew he was lying. Daimon couldn’t have known my father had just found out about the business. “So what brings you here? Are you here to take out Addie?” my father asked.
“Not exactly,” Daimon said looking at my father. “I'm here to ask for Addie’s hand in marriage,” he said bluntly. I nearly fell over, thank God for the wall next to me.
“Excuse me?” my father said softly.
“Well, Mr. Sakis, I want to marry Addie and I know how important you are to her, so I'm here asking you for her hand,” Daimon said directly.
“Have you already asked Addie?” My father straightened up from his seat and faced him.
“Yes,” Daimon answered.
“Is that what her ring means?” my father asked, pointing at me.
“Yes.”
“If Addie has already said yes, then there is not much I can say except this, if you hurt her, I will not hesitate to make you feel twice the pain she felt,” my father warned.
“Fair enough. I wouldn’t expect anything less from you, sir, and you don’t need to worry about me. It’s Addie who most probably will break my heart,” Daimon smirked.
“Daimon?” I choked out.
“Yes, beloved,” he replied.
“Can I see you upstairs in my room for a moment?” I asked, but didn’t wait for his reply as I walked up the stairs to my room.
“Well this is bold of you, right here with your father downstairs,” he mocked.
“How could you do that?” I hissed quietly.
“Do what?” Daimon asked.
“Ask for me,” I answered.
“Why wouldn’t I?” he bit out.
“Because that’s reserved for someone who will marry me for love, not for a business transaction,” I said in a hushed voice so my father wouldn’t hear me.
“What?” he said surprised.
“Daimon, that honor is for someone who will marry me for real. Now you took that away,” I gritted out.
“Too bad for him, whoever that might be, because you are now mine and I’m going to do what I want,” he said as he leaned in and glared at me. “Now get your ass ready and meet me downstairs. You and I have a date and a few rules to go over.”
I stood in the middle of my room stupefied at how much he loved power and ownership. I was going to marry this man, he was going to be my husband and I would be subjected to his tortuous bulling for who knew how long.
BARGAINING
“You have to be kidding me!” I cried out as I sat in Daimon’s penthouse. Drako was sitting quietly at my feet, watching our exchange.
“No, I'm not. I want you on the pill,” he hissed.
“Why?” I fired back.
“Because I don’t want to raise some bastard’s son,” he said bitterly.
“What?” I said, shocked by his words.
“Addie, I don’t want unnecessary complications. This is non-negotiable.” He leaned back on the couch with his arms crossed.
“Fine. I’ll go on the stupid pill,” I seethed. “But I want you to pay off the mortgage on the house.” I threw the ball back into his court.
“Not a problem, we already agreed on that,” he said calmly. Fucking asshole was seriously negotiating every single thing in our contract. I had to be home at night, meaning I had to quit the bar, but I told him only after we were married. We were to be married for three years and then we would part ways.
“We share one bed, one room,” he waited for my reaction.
“Absolutely not,” I yelled.
“Addie, we are to be married so stop acting like a virgin. I didn’t ask you to sleep with me,” he fired back.
“Not yet, you didn’t,” I countered.
“Addie, this will be our home. I don’t want to complicate things. So act like a mature adult and get used to the idea of sleeping in my bed.” He shook his head like I was being unreasonable. I sat there narrowing my eyes at him. “I’ll pay for Sofia’s entire Yale experience. I’ll get her a nice little apartment, the best tutors,” he offered. “In exchange for your body in my bed.”