Page 39 of Wretched Choices

Did I? I’ll think about that later. What I want is not what I can have in this life. I made a promise to myself, and I will keep it. This marriage has a deadline.

I smile politely and change the subject. It’s time to get to the point of this dinner. I take a sip of my drink.

“Did you have time to look into my proposals? Or should I pitch it to you?”

“I did. It’s interesting.” He places his fork down and wipes his mouth with the napkin. “I planned on retiring at the end of the year, but since my son caught his fiancée cheating and cancelled his wedding, I need to stay CEO for one more year. Aiden needs to find himself a bride before I can hand him a position as CEO. He would have taken this project without a second thought. He loves building things from scratch. I, however, love to repair things. And starting a hotel chain around the world seems too much for me. I don’t even know if I would still be alive to see it happen.”

“You are still very young, Mr. Clements. Age is just a number,” my wife says, her attention on our conversation. “Mrs. Clements says you have plans to travel, but because of your son’s problem, you need to delay them. Maybe Salvatore’s idea is something he needs to get his head straight. If he loves building from scratch and this project has yours and his interest, you should give it to him. Just tell him you want him to marry before. I heardthat arranged marriages are sometimes better than conventional ones.” She smiles and looks at me with a sparkle in her eyes.

“Arranged marriage? I think I like that.” He smiles.

When the server comes with the rest of our dinner, I can only look at Isabel with admiration. I want to take her home and make her mine no matter what she says. I will change her mind because all I want now is her.

“I’ll be sending your proposal to my son. When he takes his head out of his ass, I’ll contact you.” We shake hands on our agreement. He turns to Isabel, taking her hand.

“It was lovely meeting you, my dear. I surely now know why Salvatore here ended his bachelor days and got married.” The car pulls up in front of the restaurant. “This is us. We’ll be in touch,” Clements says before he and his wife slide into the car. Not a minute after, my car arrives, and I open the door for Isabel. I close her door and walk to the other side of the car, tipping the valet and sliding inside before driving down the street.

The dinner was successful, and I have Isabel to thank for that. I didn’t think I needed a wife to close business deals, but it seems I do. She did leave an impression on both of them. She even came up with a solution to the problem.

“Thank you for tonight. We’ve been trying to find the perfect partners for this for a year.” I interrupt the silence in the car.

“It’s not a big deal. They’re nice people. It was easy to talk to them. And, well, you needed a wife just to get a meeting with the man.” She shrugs.

I take a mental note that I’ll need to thank her properly once the deal is settled.

Just as I turn down an alley to take a shortcut, a car appears behind me, hitting my car hard. I push on the gas pedal.

“Fuck,” I say as Isabel looks behind.

“What’s happening?”

“We’re under attack.” I speed dial Gabriel.

“Sal...”

I cut him off. “Black Range Rover, tinted glass, no license plate. We’re under attack. Track my phone.” I cut the line.

“Under your seat, there’s a gun. Give it to me.” Before she can pass it to me, shots fire at us, making Isabel scream. “Give it to me, quick.”

“You’re driving. How will you shoot?” she asks, passing me the gun.

“I’ll improvise.” But first I need a less populated place. I speed toward an industrial area. I can’t be associated with this shooting. “You need to take the wheel from me.”

Her eyes widen. “What?” Her voice shakes with disbelief.

“We need to change seats.”

She looks at me with horror in her eyes. “Are you out of your mind? How?”

“Take the wheel.” She does, and the bullets start again, making her duck her head. “We need to be quick. You need to leap over into my lap quickly. Your left leg first.” She rises from her seat and puts her left leg over but her dress is too tight for her to spread her legs, so I take the material, tearing it and making the slit up to just a little under her butt.

“What are you doing?” I don’t answer as I switch places with her. I pull on the seatbelt, buckling her in just as the bullets rain once again.

“Just keep driving.” I take the gun and open the window, firing back. They sway a little, but no damage is dealt. They have machine guns, and my Glock is nothing against that. I can only hope Gabriel arrives on time.

“Turn right,” I say, the rain of bullets still hitting us. I change my magazine and once again return the fire.

A car appears from the opposite side and starts firing, but not at me, at them. The cavalry is here. I exhale and lean back in my seat.

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