THE REJECTION

Chapter 4

"We're here." Brent's voice pulls me from a troubled nap.

I lazily open my eyes, and I glance outside the small window in the first class cabin.

It's quite dark beyond the glare of the airport security lights. It's night already.

I let him take my hand when I sleepily stumble around, and we are quickly whisked through airport security. We find a chauffeur waiting behind a private gate and Brent gets in the car after me.

I lean back against the seat as the car cruises down the highway. There's nothing much to see at night but I hope the day will bring more excitement. I only get to go on honeymoon once in my lifetime, so the least I can do is to enjoy it.

Brent stays quiet throughout the drive. He is busy typing away on his phone and I assume that he has important business to take care of.

We are shown to our room when we get to the hotel, and I look around the posh room with a small smile.

It's like nothing I've ever seen before.

The bed is huge and heart shaped and the couch is made of pure leather. The windows are massive, and the curtains have been drawn to reveal the city beyond. There's a champagne bottle and two flutes placed on a glass table, a small banner placed beside them.

"Congratulations, Mr and Mrs Miller." Brent reads the banner before he shakes his head. "Mommy dearest went out of her way."

"Why is she doing all this?"

He lifts his eyes from the banner to look at me.

"Excuse me?"

"Why does she want you married and having kids so badly?"

"She just likes to be in control of everything."

"Including your choice of a life partner? That's wrong."

"I know."

"So why are you agreeing to her whims?"

"They feel that it's time their only son settled down to run the family business. I'm not interested in that, but they're pushing me to do it anyway."

"And what does that have to do with you getting married?"

"Well, my mother thinks that a nice beautiful girl will tame me. I'm always on the move. I like my life, and I try to live it as best as I possibly can. They hate it when I keep travelling, so they want me to settle down and be a business person like them. They want me to have a wife and kids, and wear those sickening suits everyday, sit behind polished desks in top floor offices and make deals."

"That doesn't sound so bad."

"Are you kidding me? That sounds annoying."

"What have you been doing before they decided to make you settle down?"

He shrugs.

"Partying, mostly."

"Partying? Didn't you have enough of that in college? You used to party all the damn time."

"How do you know that?"

"Oh, come on. You were best friends with my best friend back in college. I literally lived next door from Clay, and I attended all the parties that you guys threw."

"You did?"

I nod.

"Yup."

"How come I never noticed you?"

"How could you? You always had a myriad of girls flocking around you. Or maybe, you just weren't interested in me."

"Mh. That makes sense. I was pretty much spoiled for choice back then."

He hands me a glass of champagne before he walks to the mini bar to get himself a whiskey.

I take my time sipping the champagne before I reply.

"Look at you now, honeymooning with me. Nature has a way of humbling us, don't you think? Your parents literally paid a lump sum for you to get married. What happened to those girls?"

"Oh, I haven't lost my charm. They are still there."

"Are they? Then why are you letting your parents push you around?"

"Why are you using that judgemental tone? You're no better than me, Cami. We're both here because of money. My parents are threatening to cut short my finances if I don't man up, and yours are raising their family with the money they got from selling you to me. I could ask you the same question; why did you say yes?"

"I have no idea."

"It's simple. You did it for the money. Me too. Now let's push the judgement behind us. Anyway, if we're going to fool people that this marriage is not a sham, we'll have to figure out how to make it work."

"Do you have any ideas?"

"Several."

"Do tell. But before you do, know that I'm not having sex with you just because your Mom wants grandchildren."

"In that case, you take the bed. I'll take the couch."

"What?"

"Camille, it's not like we're in love. We don't have to share a bed. And we don't have to pretend at the moment because my parents are not here. We are free to live the next three days without portending that we care about each other. Just take the bed."

I shrug.

"Fine."

"Once we go back home, try and avoid talking about this marriage with my Mom. She'll ask a lot of questions, and your only job is to make her believe that it's working, and we're trying for babies, even if we're not."

"Fine. Anything else?"

"Yes. Please don't make this marriage awkward for me. Don't touch my phone, don't ask questions."

"I won't touch your phone but I'll definitely ask questions. Question number one. Do you have someone else?"

"Does it matter?"

"Of course it does. You are married now; convenience or not. So, do you have someone?"

"I'm not answering that question."

"I'll take that as a yes."

"Why do you sound offended? Cami, I didn't even know you until last week, so you can't be offended that I had people in my life. I wasn't just seated waiting for you to come along."

"Then why didn't you get married to her?"

"My parents didn't approve. They chose you because they know your parents and they believe that you are a decent person with a good upbringing."

"Here is exactly what we're going to do. You're going to drop that woman and try to make this shit work. If you don't, I'll file for a divorce first thing after we get back to the city. That way, you'll be able to screw around all your want."

He shakes his head.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say that you're jealous."

"Say whatever you want and while at it, get me another drink."

He rolls his eyes before he refills my glass.

"Go easy on that." He cautions me.

"It's my wedding night and my husband is already cheating on me. Give me one reason why I should go slow on the drink."

"You didn't actually expect me to fall in love with you at first sight and make our honeymoon all hearts and flowers, did you?"

"It doesn't matter." I take a big gulp before I place the glass on the bedside stand. "I don't think I can go through with this. You are not the person I want to wake up next to for the rest of my life."

"Then why did you say yes?"

"Because I thought you were reasonable. I imagined that we'd somehow make it work, but I can't do it if you'll be having some side piece. I won't let you disrespect me. I'm not that desperate, Brent. Drop that girl or I'm gone."

"Are you really willing to face all your many siblings and explain to them that they can't go to those prestigious schools they're used to just because you're not willing to share me with someone else?"

"That's enough." I pluck off my wedding band and I place it on the nightstand. "You can explain to your Mom that she needs to buy you a new bride. Just tell her that you misplaced the other one."

His mouth hangs open when I get on my feet. I walk confidently towards the door, my head held high. I'm never sharing a man with another woman knowingly.

Not even when the man is Brent Miller.

Just like I expected, I feel a hand being wrapped around my wrist. His grip is a bit on the painful side but I don't wince, mainly because of his expression.

His eyes are blank and stone cold.

"What do you think you're doing?" He asks calmly, but the grip on my hand says otherwise.

"I told you. I'm leaving."

"Your parents obviously didn't tell you about the contract they signed."

"What contract?"

He forcefully rolls the ring down my finger.

"The moment the wedding happened, you got stuck with me until I decide otherwise. You can't file for a divorce and you can't leave me. Your parents and your family lawyer signed that when the money was transferred, so it's a legal document now."

I stare at him for an entire minute.

"What?"

He shrugs, stepping away and lowering himself onto the couch once more.

"I told you. Parents suck."

I feel dizzy.

My Mom... She'd never do that to me.

"She would, and she did." Brent tells me.

"I said that out loudly?"

"Yeah, you did. Cami, I'm not the bad guy here, and I'm not trying to hurt you. I promised your Mom that I'll take care of you and that's what I'm going to do. Get into bed and catch some sleep. We'll talk in the morning."

I'm feeling so weak.

My Mom signed a legal document, sealing my fate with Brent without consulting me?

I release my breath in a whoosh.

"I'm tired, so I'll take a shower before I go to bed."

"That's okay."

He gazes at me as I let the gown drop but he doesn't bat an eyelid. I take off my bra, then I step out of the dress before I walk slowly towards the bathroom.

I just don't care. I'm spending the rest of my life with him, no compromise or I'll land on the wrong side of the law, so him seeing me naked is the least of my problems.

Plus, I'm in good shape and I'm very comfortable with my body.

I stand under the cascading water, eyes closed, mind wandering. I can't get over the fact that my parents sold me to slavery, and that Brent has another woman despite our unnatural arrangement.

By the time I step out of the shower, Brent is snoring softly on the couch.

I stare at him for a whole minute. He's quite good looking. He's never had to work hard or do any manual jobs, so his features are a bit on the soft side. He's more of cute than hot.

I cover him with a shawl before I lie on the bed. I turn off the bedside lamp then I pull the covers to my chin.

No matter how much I try to relax, sleep won't just come. I'm too worried about this marriage thing to calm down.

After tossing and turning for hours, I get out of bed and I turn on the lamp. I choose a pair of shorts and a long sleeved shirt from my suitcase, then I switch off the light before I sneak out of the room.

I understand that the beach is close by so I'll just take a walk on the sand and calm my nerves before I try to fall asleep.

The elevator pings, and I step out when the double doors open.

The hotel lobby is deserted. I look around and when I spot the restaurant, I quickly head there. I just changed my mind about going to the beach.

There are several couples seated at the corners, but they're all busy drinking and swapping saliva.

Good for them.

Other than them, there's a guy seated all alone, his fingers playing with the glass which is still halfway full. He is totally preoccupied.

I sit on the high stool by the bar, and I ask the smiley bartender for a shot of tequila.

"Rough night?" He spares me a friendly smile as he places the glass on the counter.

"Literally." I reply before I bring the glass to my lips. I close my eyes, and I swallow the tequila in one gulp.

"Well, that's kinda obvious from where I'm standing." He pours me another shot, and he watches me with a raised eyebrow as I gulp it down. "More?"

I nod.

"Please."

"Wanna talk about it?"

I shake my head before I swallow the third shot of the liver eating poison.

"No."

"Look, um.."

"Cami."

"Cami, nice name."

"Yeah, I get that a lot."

"So, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. I am not a lightweight, so don't worry about me. I'm sober and I'll still be okay five tequila shots from now."

"I assume that you're here with your better half?"

"Worse half. And why would you assume that anyway?"

"This is like a couple's hang out joint. Honeymoons, vacations, anniversary getaways.. They all happen here." He nods at the room. "You see these people? They are all newly married and as you can see, they can't keep their hands off each other. That's why I'm curios about you. Where is your husband."

I force a smile.

"Can I have something stronger?"

"Something stronger than tequila?"

"Yeah. I can't sleep, so I'm kinda trying to pass out."

He shakes his head.

"Sorry. I can't do that to you."

"Well, then pour me another shot."

"That tequila is going to hit like a ton of bricks once it kicks in."

I stare at him.

"Good."

I bring the glass to my lips, and I gasp when someone grabs my hand halfway up.

I glance at the Rolex watch and the golden cufflinks, and my eyes trail to the fingers that are bound around my wrist.

He has a shiny platinum wedding ring on his finger.

I slowly turn around when he takes the glass from my hand and sets on the counter, and I stare at his face for an entire minute before I raise an eyebrow.

"Who the hell are you?"