"Sir, I heard something about you and Claire being betrothed a long time ago. You were both in love and had almost gotten married," Rex said immediately they stepped into Bruce's compound."Why are you suddenly saying this?""I wanted to know if it's true, because if it is, are you sure your plan would work without feelings springing up—""We never loved each other. I thought I did and I thought she did but I was wrong.""So you're saying—""Just mind your business," Bruce said sternly. He looked forward to the door before him and pushed the door open."Are you done making a whore your wife?" Claire, who was seated on the sofa, asked and Bruce glared at her."The earlier you workers know your place, the better."Claire rolled her eyes."There are tons of respectable women out there, despite how you feel that all women are a bunch of deceivers. You could have picked any of them but no, you decided to go for a whore." "Why are you being stereotypical? They are humans like you, aren't t
"The wedding of the century. No, the wedding of all centuries. Bruce Ace, the former most eligible bachelor is now married to one Claire who used to be his P. A. What do you think of this, Tim?""Bruce Ace getting married all of a sudden is quite strange. He is drop-dead gorgeous and rich, but strongly misogynistic. Marriage was definitely the last thing we expected. His marriage to this P. A. of his must have been beneficial to him one way all the other?""But this girl is basically a nobody. How is marrying his P. A. beneficial?""Or maybe he loves her. There are several clips of them acting all cute. Bruce even smiled. The only time I have seen him smile is in those videos.""Mom, what are you watching," Claire asked as she walked into the hospital room.She could hear the conversations ongoing on the TV from outside the room."They are talking about you," Angela, Claire's mom said, smiling. "You managed to make the richest man in the world fall in love with you. Other ladies were
"What do you mean by ‘you want your mother to stay with us’?"Claire looked at Bruce without saying a word. He was fuming, clearly angry about what she had suggested. It was her mother's idea. Their operation ‘make Bruce fall in love with Claire' had begun. Her mother, Angela would have to live with her and Bruce to make sure nothing went wrong."No, I won't let that happen.""I want my mother to stay with me after she gets out of the hospital. I'm the only family she has. If she doesn't stay with me, who would she stay with?""I can arrange a nice apartment for her. Even if she wants a mansion, I would get it for her, but she's not living in this house.""Not everyone is interested in your money, Sir Bruce. I'm doing this for my mom and she can't live without me.""She's not staying and that's final.""In that contract of yours, isn't it written that me getting married to you would come with the benefit of my mother being taken good care of? What better way can this happen than her l
"I am certain a beauty such as yourself can spare to spend time with a beast such as myself. If not, then it is not right to spend your time in your mother's quarters. Why not move to a house with her and marry her?" He blurted. Bruce was aware that he spoke out of line due to anger and when Claire and her mother came to view, he could not keep his anger bridled, neither could he ignore the fact that they were supposed to pretend to be so in love. Claire's mother let out a gasp but did a quick job of hiding her facial reaction."Son, I did not mean… you do not mind me calling you my son, do you?" Claire's mother asked, inquisitively waiting for a reaction. She wanted her daughter to know all his touchy spots. Is this one of them? Bruce kept a blank face. The red of his anger had dissipated slowly and Claire finally left her mother's side. She took off her robe and walked gingerly towards the enormous bed. She had spent a considerable amount of time wondering how she was going to shar
"How I do what? Eat waffles? You just pour the honey over it and take a bite. That is all there is to that." Her mother gave her an easy smile and continued her meal. Her disposition to their situation was alarming. They were in the house of a man who could have them killed or publlicly tarnished for the slightest reason and her mother was making comments about croissants. That felt weird. The maid at the end of their table stood awkwardly, making her presence known by the noise of her shuffling feet."Mother, you baffle me. You were asking if I would be okay sleeping in the same room as my partner just last night. Now, the breakfast is delightful… it is all rays of sunshine and love. The switch up is giving whiplash, mom." Her voice was low and she was trying hard not to let out any information that might cause the maids to have ideas. "Look, Claire, we are already here. You took the opportunity to save me and we are here…" Claire raised her index finger to indicate that her mother
"I never paid you to think, did I?" Bruce asked Rex. Rex was in no position to cajole him to make a relationship work. After seeing what great lengths Mr. Archibald had gone to get him into a union for an heir, Rex was supposed to know better than to question his decisions in his relationship."No boss. My apologies." Rex knew he was not supposed to interfere in his boss's affairs but someone had to give him a nudge in the right direction and Mr. Archibald was no longer available to do that.Bruce took quick strides into his office. He had spent half of his day at the office thinking about the devil he knew currently taking space in his house with her mother. He wondered what they could be doing. Every now and then, he had called for Rex to show him footage from the mansion's security cameras. Rex knew his boss was just being anxious and nothing else. Claire and her mother could not come up with any plans as long as they were in his house. They had tight security and the most loyal, tr
Claire wondered what Bruce might be up to this time. What was behind that door and why did she not realize it was there all this time. She was hesitant to follow him into the adjoining room."Oh come on, Claire. If I wanted you killed, you would be dead a long time ago. I would not wait till you turned my staff against me before I did that." Bruce gave her a bone chilling glance. She walked quickly after him as he stepped into the room. The other room was simple. A king sized bed, a massive closet, and bathroom. The adjoining room was next to someone's dream apartment. The decor was flawless. What was the need for this? The thought ran through Claire's mind."I will be sleeping here from now on. That room will be there for your mother's eyes. She is going to think we sleep next to each other at dusk and wake up next to each other at dawn." He explained all of this and went into the bathroom to have his bath. He had started peeling off his clothes when he realized Claire was still there
"Spill it, mom. I need all the help I can get." Claire did not have the time for her mother's theatrics. Her mother cleared her throat and then drank some water."I was thirsty, excuse me. I think it is time you went on a vacation.""A vacation?" She asked her mother. She was not expecting her mother to come up with this. How was a vacation supposed to fix the gap between her and Bruce."Yes, a vacation. You could go to a faraway country, sign up for couple's activities you two could do together and just enjoy a different country together. He would have no where to go if he is in a strange country.* Her mother smiled mischievously like she had just come up with a master plan. Claire looked at her mother for a while."What if he refuses to agree to this plan of yours? What then?" Claire was not convinced about her mother's plan. There were many loopholes in the plan. Each hole had a lot of what-ifs. She needed a sure solution. This was the best time to consult her friend's psychic, Cry