My mind remains utterly blank while I stare at the evil duo. Mason's knuckles turn white as he fists his hands, his jaw clenching impossibly as he glares at William and Kristian.

"With all due respect, Mr. William Wright," Mason mutters through gritted teeth, his eyes bulging with anger. "But what the fuck?" his voice raises.

I instantly grab his fist, giving it a squeeze to remind him to shut the hell up.

At last, I find my voice. "I don't understand how marriage has anything to do with our partnership. We can sign a contract, or discuss giving you shares."

"True, but no offense Gracie, you're a Stewart too, that man's niece, hence I don't trust you. This marriage will not only make it impossible for you to double-cross us, but it will fix my son's reputation, too. I don't need your money or your company's shares. This is what I want in return for my unconditional support, as you bring down your uncle and avenge all the wrongs he has done to you and your family."

The smug smile plastered on Kristian's stupid face tickles my palm to slap it off of his face.

"No," Mason shakes his head defiantly. "This is absurd and you, sir, have gone mad. My sister won't ruin her life-"

"Mason," I cut him off sharply and turn back to William. "Is this offer negotiable?"

During these four years, I've come to realize, you can't change someone's mind if they're set on doing something they believe will have the maximum profit for them. And a man like William is impossible to sway, no reason to waste my breath on that either.

"No, I've told my lawyer to prepare the contract and we have it with us. Of course, you're free to check it with your lawyer, add clauses to it, but the marriage part is a must. If you refuse to comply, we don't have a deal."

I grab Mason's hand, ignoring his wide eyes. "I see. Excuse me and my brother, we need to discuss this matter in private." I raise to my feet, pulling Mason with me.

"Of course, take as much time as you need." William smiles at me, although it doesn't hold an ounce of kindness.

Kristian's eyes follow me like a satisfied hawk eyeing its prey.

At least, on the bright side, I didn't let Mom witness this mad offer of his, otherwise, she would have brought hell down on him.

I drag Mason out of the room with me, and just as the doors of the conference room shut, he shouts, "What the fuck?"

"Not now," I snap and let go of his hand, marching to the closest empty room, making him follow behind me.

He slams the door shut. I walk to the other side of the small meeting room, pushing aside the blinds, and gaze at the busy street underneath, bustling with life, people, and their troubles.

"Don't tell me you're considering this bullshit," Mason's voice draws my attention away from the busy street and I turn to him.

I shrug and lean to the wall next to the window. "You have any better options?" I cross my arms in front of my chest.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me now!" he bellows.

I roll my eyes. "Jeez, stop being so dramatic."

"I'm being dramatic? That asshole has the nerve to say something like that and I'm being dramatic! At this point, I don't even know what's worst! Him offering that shitty deal or you considering to accept it," he yells, a vein standing out on his neck as his face flushes with anger.

I huff and pinch the bridge of my nose.

"Can't you see how much it sucks! He wants to use you for his son. He wants you to give yourself and five years of your life up for his asshat of a son." He waves his hand around as he rages on.

I stare at the oval glass table placed in the middle of the room as I shift my weight from one foot to another, the heels beginning to hurt my feet.

"Is this why you didn't want Mom to be here? Did you send her away so she wouldn't be here and you'd be able to agree to whatever they asked?" he asks with disbelief.

I latch my gaze to him. "Yes."

His jaw goes slack, for a beat, he looks defeated but soon he gathers himself and spits, "Did you know he was going to demand this?"

"No, but I was expecting it to be something ridiculous, not in this context or this extreme, but certainly something hard."

Long moments of silence stretch between us while my mind mulls over the deal.

He loosens his tie from around his collar, as he plants his other hand on his hip. "Are you really considering agreeing to this madness?"

I sigh and push myself off of the wall. Throwing my hands up, I counter back, "What else do you offer?"

He purses his mouth and glares at me. "Putting an end to this fight?"

"You cannot be serious! After everything he did to us, and we've done to reach this point, you're telling me to give up?"

"Yes!" he shouts.

I place my hands on my hips and glare at him. Unbelievable.

"It's not worth it, Gracie. This fight is not worth ruining five years of your life." He points at the door and goes on, "Marrying that asshole? I can't believe you're even considering it."

I glower at him before stepping to him. "After everything I've done, every hard choice and every sacrifice, this is where I've reached, where we've reached. And we both know, we won't be able to bring Benjamin down, at least not on time. On top of that, didn't you say Benjamin is after buying our shares? Trying to do the same thing he did to our Dad? He's going to ruin us again, and if we don't move quickly, we're done."

I halt at an arm's length away from him, looking him dead in the eyes. "I'm not going to let him snatch everything away from us. This is the final step I need to take to bring Benjamin Stewart down, and I will take it."

"There has to be another way," he quietly says, averting his gaze from me.

"Well, there isn't. At least not as effective as this."

"I cannot let you ruin your life."

"It's only five years," I argue, my voice softening as I tilt my head to one side.

"Combined, it'll be ten years of your life wasted on fighting this battle." His eyes snap back to me. "How can you expect me to agree to let my little sister ruin her life? Haven't you already done enough? I'll find another way."

I sigh and retreat a step. "Mason, I want to, and it's not that bad." I force a smile, trying to lighten the mood as I lightly go on, "Maybe I'll manage to bug Kristian enough to make him divorce me... like that, the contract won't be breached either."

He shakes his head and rolls his eyes.

"Come on, we're talking about Kristian, I bet he won't be able to last in this deal longer than a year or two. Then his father won't be able to do anything about it either, because the contract will be breaking from their side. A win-win case for us."

"But what if it doesn't turn out like that?"

I flip my hair behind my shoulder and grin at him. "We'll add a clause that while Kristian and I together." I air quote the word 'together' before continuing, "he won't be allowed to be with other women. Watch him breaking this deal this quickly." I snap my fingers together and quirk an eyebrow at him.

He watches me warily. "And what if it doesn't work out like that? Five years is a long time Rae, what if he changes his mind, refusing to get a divorce from you? So many things can wrong."

"We'll fix them when they do go wrong, why worry about it from now. We'll do something about it at the right time."

"Give me some time, I might be able to find another way."

"Mason we both know you won't."

"I can't just stand aside and let you ruin your life," his voice raises again, but this time with desperation.

I sigh and approach him, tightening his tie. "Stop thinking like you're not doing enough, Mason because you are. You're giving your hundred percent just like me. This company never would have reached so high in such a short time if it wasn't for you. Don't blame yourself, and don't feel guilty. This is my choice and you would have done the same if it was offered to you."

He sighs, his shoulders dropping, his gaze searches mine. "You do know how wrong this is."

I take a step back and push my hands into my pockets and look away. "It doesn't matter, it's the easiest and the fastest way." I look him dead in the eyes. "It's worth it Mason. With this single choice, we'll achieve what we've been working for, for so long."

I walk around him, going straight to the door. I guess I knew my answer the second William offered this deal.

Just as my fingers furl around the doorknob, Mason's voice stops me.

"And what about Spencer?"

I spin on my heels on time to see him slowly turning to face me.

I carefully school my expression into utter blankness. "What about him?" I keep my voice steady, even though that's anything but how I feel. My heart pounds harder and louder in my chest while I struggle to breathe in and out in a normal rhythm.

A sad smile curls Mason's mouth. "You haven't moved on from him yet... is that why you're agreeing to this?"

"I've moved on from him," I snap, sounding way harsher than I intended to.

A knowing glint sparks in his blue eyes. "Can you really stand to be his sister-in-law?"

The phrase freezes me. No, up to this point, not for a second did I consider this aspect of it.

Damn.

Spencer's sister-in-law.

From lover to sister-in-law. Fuck.

Pain shoots across my heart, as my chest tightening and bitterness rests at the back of my throat.

I force myself to shrug. "I can. And it's not like I'll be seeing him every day." I drop my gaze to my beige stilettos, fighting against my better judgment as I struggle to make myself believe these words too.

"Gracie-" Mason starts but I shake my head and look at him.

"I can do it. I will do it. It's been five years, Mason. I know what I'm getting myself into... and this time I'm prepared for it."

I don't wait for an answer, I pull the door open and stride out.

"But are you really?" Mason's question comes from behind me but I don't stop.

Unease settles in me, making me second guess my words and my determination.

All I can do is, hope that I'm right and I can handle it.

❦ ♥︎ ❦

Do you guys think she'll be able to handle it? =)

Thanks for reading this chapter, I hope you enjoyed it (don't forget to vote if you ^^)

I've been thinking about having a Tiktok account... (no I don't even have a personal one) but I thought it might be cool to have one specifically for writing and you know for my books and all... Idk, do you guys think it would be cool? Or not? I mean I couldn't work out with Instagram and I've been on it ever since I was 13 so I really don't know xD social media is not my thing lol but I want to try Tiktok too xD

Anyways, the next chapter will be up tomorrow.

Stay safe, lots of love, happy reading ♡