Page 14 of Wife Unwanted
A few minutes later, he was gone, leaving me alone with Nolan Hawthorne. My sixth sense was telling me somehow this man had orchestrated this. He wasn't a god, but he was certainly a malevolent force.
"Now that it's just us two, why don't you have a drink with me in my study?" It wasn't a question, it was a command. I didn'tknow what else to say other than to agree. I got up and followed him to an oak and sailor themed room with a single bookshelf in one end and a desk on the other end. In the middle was a set of black leather sofas and a table with a decanter and two glasses. Nolan went to the table, poured the drink into the glasses, and offered me one. At this point, with all the wine I had drank all day, I should have refused, but I didn't want to find out how he would handle the rejection, so I accepted it.
Nolan took a sip of his and smiled. "If I had any idea that you were working this hard, I would have forwarded you the money sooner. My son seems quite taken with you." He scoffed. "He's very predictable."
"I'm sorry, Mr. Hawthorne, but I don't think I can continue with our deal."
He frowned. "Why?" Then tilted his head. "If you want more money, it can be arranged, but you have to pace yourself. If you're successful, you'd be marrying a billionaire."
"I am serious. I want nothing to do with your plot. I am not seeing your son because I seduced him or whatever you may think. He came to me. He sought me out and I should have told you this before." I shook my head, trying to think of a way to explain myself. Not finding any, I said. "You can keep your money. I'm leaving Carey. Find someone else for your schemes."
Nolan's mood darkened. "What's the problem? Carey can't perform in bed, is that it?"
I blushed. "No! It's got nothing to do with that at all."
"You've developed feelings? What's the issue?"
"I don't want to lie to him! It feels wrong."
"Well," he took another sip, "Plenty of relationships are built on lies. You'll get over it."
"It doesn't matter. I don't want to be with him."
"Tell that to your mother. I am sure she would be happy to learn she can't get on that new clinical trial because her daughter was morally incorruptible."
"How do you know about that?"
He scoffed. "I make it my business to know about the people I deal with."
As though he planned it, or maybe it was fate, my phone rang. It was my mother. I thought to put it on silent, but with her condition, any call might be the last.
"Answer it," he said. I turned away from him and answered the call. My mother was on the other end, sounding happy. She wanted to thank me for arranging the new hospital and getting her on the trial. I did no such thing, but I had a good guess who might have. When the call ended, I turned to him.
"Why are you doing this?"
He shrugged nonchalantly. "I only want what's best for the wife of the man who once worked for me." There were many words I wanted to throw at him, but I was too angry and scared to say anything. Sensing my emotions, he added, "I want you to marry my son."
I guffawed. "Marry Carey?" The man in question clearly wasn't looking for a serious relationship, let alone marriage. Nolan Hawthorne was known as a pragmatic man, but at that moment he was downright delusional. "Why?"
Nolan sank down on the large sofa and motioned me to do the same. I thought of refusing him, getting out of this room and running away, but I was curious, so I sat down. Swirling his drink, he said, "You fit the bill."
"The bill?"
"Working class family. Working class job. Educated. Pretty, but not too beautiful. Black, but not too, you know. Zero scandals, at least none I could find, which means none that any oppo researcher can find. And the cherry on top, you two havea great story. Two people who grew up together and ended up falling in love."
"Oppo research?" I tried not to think too hard about the part where he mentioned, not just my race being a plus, but my also being biracial, making me the perfect wife for Carey for some reason.
"You'd be the perfect wife for a billionaire son running for office."
I frowned. I had to admit I didn't keep up with Carey Hawthorne and his career, but I saw nothing that suggested he was thinking of politics. "Carey wants to run?"
Nolan made the barest nod that suggested to me it wasn't as clear cut as Nolan was making it out to be. He said, "That's his career path," as if it were immutable. "He's going to run for DA, then it's either mayor or senator after that, maybe governor and hopefully president in the future."
It was my turn to drink. I took a healthy gulp of whiskey and it lit a fire down my throat. "And you want me to tag along throughout all of that?"
“You underestimate yourself Thalia. You would make a fine first lady. While, of course, you are rough around the edges, with a few tweaks, you could be the next Jackie Kennedy.”
I simply glared at him, wondering if he has truly lost his marbles. "It doesn't make sense to you now, but trust me, when I say this, you and my son make a good-looking couple."
