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Wife

┗━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━┛

Chapter 15: Wife (Rose's POV)

I could feel Kai's gaze on me as we stood in an uncomfortable silence on the rooftop while the party below us continued in full swing. 

A small sigh escaped me as I spun around and slumped against the railing, my eyes drifting to Kai's. "Quit staring at me, Mr. Warner, it's impolite." 

"I'm simply trying to understand how someone so stubborn and unwavering gave up so quickly." 

My eyes followed his movements as he reached into the inner pocket of his coat and pulled out a brand new pack of cigarettes, one settling between his lips before he set it ablaze. "I didn't give up. I told you—" 

"You had no choice," he cut me off, a cloud of smoke slipping past his lips. "So you keep saying. There's—" 

"Always a choice?" I scoffed. "No, Warner, there isn't. There are times when we don't have choices, and our decisions are made for us, forcing us to do things that aren't even for our own benefit, only someone else's. Excuse me for choosing a miserable life over death." I watched him, rage bubbling within me as he snickered quietly, tapping the ashes off of his cigarette butt. 

I bet he's so amused, the sadistic fuck. 

"What happened to Nikolai?" he asked. "I thought he was your knight in shining armor, your one-way ticket out of this world we live in." 

My jaw ticked in annoyance. "Don't rub salt in the wound. I knew it from the start; setting me up for all those blind dates was just a trap. My father was going to make sure it was you from the very beginning. It was just about how long it took for me to crack." 

"You cracked rather quickly," he said, nodding at me, "evidently." 

I stared at him in disbelief. "He threatened my life rather quickly," I mocked. Pausing for a moment, I eyed him, partly in suspicion, partly in curiosity. "No one's holding a gun to your head, demanding that you marry me... so why are you agreeing so easily?" 

He exhaled yet another puff of smoke before scratching his temple lightly. "Is this not a threat?" He arched a brow at me. 

Clicking my tongue in annoyance, I rolled my eyes and stared at him expectantly, awaiting my answer. 

With one final drag, he stumped the cigarette beneath his shoe. "I have enough on the line that I can't risk losing." 

My eyes narrowed in doubt. I couldn't understand what was so important to Kai that he was willing to accept defeat and marry me just so he could keep it. 

"I would much rather have you as my wife and keep it all than lose it all over something so trivial." 

"Marriage is trivial to you?" I asked in disbelief. 

"It's hardly a marriage, love, this is business. Strictly an alliance." 

In confusion, I eyed him as he stepped forward and smoothly looped an arm around my waist, swiftly pulling me flush against him. 

"Not to mention..." he began. 

"What are you doing?" I questioned, my hands resting on his arms. 

"Having you as my wife might not be so bad," he continued. 

I suppressed a snicker. "Then you're certainly underestimating me." 

"That's a challenge I accept," he smirked, brushing his knuckles softly against my cheek. 

We both stood utterly still, our eyes never wavering even as we heard the door crash open behind us, followed by the sound of rushed footsteps. My breaths slowed as I held his gaze, hyperaware of his arm still holding my waist. 

"It doesn't have to be an alliance our families own," he said, "we could have our own." 

I took a small breath, lifting my brows at him. "An alliance between you and me?" I whispered. 

"If you'd like that," he said, his voice low. 

"Rose!" 

My hands slipped off his arms, and although his hold on my waist loosened, he never let go entirely, even as I turned to glance over my shoulder. I stared back at my mother as her eyes darted between us in shock and surprise. 

"Get back to the party," she said sternly, "your father's looking for you." 

"Really?" I asked, moving away from Kai. 

His fingers grazed the bare skin of my back, tracing a quick circle over my tailbone as he withdrew from me. 

Turning away, I faced my mother. "I'm sure he'd be happy to find me here instead," I said, walking ahead and brushing past her without another word, heading back downstairs. 

I barely managed to steal a final glance at Kai as I turned the corner for the elevator and saw him greet my mother with the same charm and ridiculously attractive arrogance he showed the rest of the world. 

When I walked back into the main hall, I knew I had to avoid my father, and frankly, there was no way of doing that. So I left, leaving everyone uninformed. 

There was one thing I knew when I left the party that night: my mother wouldn't be able to resist telling my father what she saw on the rooftop, even if what she saw was insignificant and meant absolutely nothing. 

I hoped to avoid my father for the next twenty-four hours, just long enough to buy me some time for Kai and I to set our own conditions and establish our rules clearly. But what I woke up to the next morning proved me wrong completely. 

I had woken from my alarm at ten that morning and took my time freshening up before heading down to the kitchen to prepare some breakfast for myself. Only when I did... 

"You're awake." 

A loud gasp escaped me, and I physically stumbled back from being startled. Stopping in my tracks, I turned to face the living room, my eyes going wide. "What the hell, Dom?" 

Rising from the couch, he crossed the foyer and made his way over to me. "I didn't want to wake you up but I would have to within ten minutes." 

"How did you even get inside?" I asked in confusion. 

"I know the passcode, remember?" 

I opened my mouth to argue. Then closed it. 

He's right. 

"We're going out for brunch. You're coming with me. Be ready by eleven." 

"Brunch?" I followed him into the kitchen. "Says who?" 

"Our father." 

"Why?" 

"For a meeting." 

"With who?" 

He sighed in annoyance as he settled at the island, sitting on a barstool. "The Warners." 

My entire face fell. "The Warners," I echoed slowly in doubt. 

"Rose," Dom said, shooting me a pointed look. "You didn't seriously think Mom could keep it to herself that she saw you alone with Kai, did you?" 

I scoffed in response, "No, but I didn't think we'd be having family meetings and planning weddings within twenty-four hours." 

"Nobody's planning weddings," he reassured me. "Our families are meeting just to... talk." 

"Talk?" I asked incredulously. "Seriously? Dad said that, and you believed it?" 

He shrugged. "We'll find out. Start getting ready, please." 

I let out a loud groan in frustration and threw my head back, trudging up the stairs. 

During the drive, I realized that our families had arranged for the brunch to take place at The Grayside Estate, and once I realized that I knew pretty quickly that this brunch was taking place after a golf game between my father and Kai's father, which meant they were already ten steps ahead. 

"Oh god, help me," I muttered as Dom and I approached the table reserved for us in the garden. 

"Smile," he whispered. 

"Believe me, Dom, I'm fucking grinning," I gritted out, plastering a smile to my face as I hitched my sunglasses up to my head. 

"You're late," was the first thing my father said to me. 

I glanced at the third empty seat, which was undoubtedly Kai's. "Looks like I'm not the only one," I replied quietly. 

The anger flickered in his eyes as I extended my hand to Kai's father. 

"It's lovely to see you, Mr. Warner," I smiled before greeting his wife as well. As I retreated my hand, I caught the way her nose scrunched up, and her faux smile twitched at the sight of me. 

Fan-fucking-tastic. 

I moved toward my seat, my movements stilling as I noticed Kai approaching it, stopping just behind it and pulling my chair out for me. Hesitantly, I sat down. 

I grew impossibly still in my seat, practically freezing, when he leaned down, lowering his lips to my ears. 

"Hello, wife," he whispered with a smirk before straightening up to greet everyone. "My apologies if I'm late," he said, rounding the table and taking his seat directly across from me. 

Wife? 

His eyes met mine as he slid his sunglasses down to his nose, his lips twitching in amusement at my reaction before he took them off entirely, hooking them onto his shirt. 

I waited until all eyes were off us, and conversation resumed around the table. My brows twitched as I mouthed to him, "Wife?" 

And what did he do in response? Kai. Fucking. Winked. 

What the hell did I just get myself into?

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Chapter 15

I'm here, I'm alive!

next ch: familiar