The first step Amelia took outside, all she could think of was freedom. It would have been great if this was her leaving the mansion completely and not coming back for any reason, but it was just a visitation to her future in-laws. She stepped into the tinted glass while Ava sat beside her. Her mother sat in the passenger’s seat and her father was the designated driver for the day.
Inside the car felt more suffocating than anything for her, being in close range with her family and knowing there was no means to escape was suffocating. She held her chest and stared outside the window wanting to avoid any means of conversation with any member of her family.
“Did I tell you that I met Mike yesterday?” Ava said in a low voice. Amelia ignored her. Ava never spoke to her not to talk about giving her updates about what was happening in her life. So, she had no idea why she was suddenly telling her about this. “We met at a club and he is such a gentleman; the perfect guy for me.” She paused as if she was waiting for a reaction from Amelia. Yet, Amelia continued facing the window but closed her eyes. For some reason, she felt betrayed by Mike. She knew he wasn’t hers to claim but at least he was supposed to properly reject her before moving on to her sister.
“He bought me a drink and we danced together afterwards.” Ava let out a dreamy sigh, “It was heavenly. If we finally pick the date, I wouldn’t mind you being my bridesmaid.”
Finally, she was able to capture Amelia’s attention. Amelia's gaze flew from the window to her sister who was smirking at her. She knew at that moment that she had fallen into whatever game Ava was playing.
“I don’t want to be your bridesmaid. You have millions of friends; one of them could act as your bridesmaid.”
Ava shook her head, “No. I will prefer you. I want to see your look when they pronounce us husband and wife.” She grinned. It was obvious that Ava was on cloud nine and Amelia doubted anything would make her sad at that moment. She decided to ignore her. Just then their car stopped, and she gazed back at the window to see if they were finally there. Her father rolled down his window and the next thing she saw was a security man talking to him and asking various questions. She ignored them and started thinking of ways to run away doing this visitation. If she could successfully run away from here, no one was going to blame Loveth. She would be free and they won’t be anything making her feel guilty. She nodded, this was the perfect moment for her to escape. A moment she must not miss.
Mike gazed at the amount of food in the dining. Normally, they ate large but not to that extent. The chef had finally outdone himself and his mother had participated in monitoring every food prepared and dished. His mother doesn’t participate in cooking, so it was suspicious. He knew it wasn’t because they wanted to celebrate his return back to the office. They hadn’t even congratulated him. The only one who thought he deserved congratulation was his sister. Yet, he couldn’t shake off the fact that something was wrong.
Sharon was in the living room watching some sort of movie that he wasn’t interested in. He tried getting her attention after many trials. “What’s going on?”
She looked confused, “What do you mean by what’s going on?”
He pointed towards the dining, “Why is there so much food on the dining table?”
Sharon sighed, “Oh! Didn’t Mum and Dad tell you?” He wore a blank expression on his face. “I guess they forgot. Your fiancée and her parents are coming.” She glanced at her watch. “They should be here anytime soon.”
Mike's gaze dropped to his trouser. He was in jogger trousers and he had tossed any shirt on. He wasn’t looking presentable, and the idea of Amelia seeing him this way does not sit well with him in any way. He heard the intercom ring, and without knowing what he was doing; he started running towards his room. He didn’t stop until he shut the door behind him, and took in deep breaths. He wanted to look good for Amelia, so he started searching for clothes in his wardrobe. He settled for a blue shirt and black trousers, to him, it didn’t look too formal neither did it look casual. It was just the perfect look he was aiming for. By the time Sharon dropped by his room to call him for dinner, he had already sprayed perfume and was certain that he looked presentable enough for Amelia.
Unlike other times where he would ask Sharon to leave first, this time he followed behind her immediately, trying not to walk faster than Sharon. The moment they got to the dining table, his gaze searched around until they found Amelia. She was looking at the empty plate in front of her as if it was the most fascinating thing she had ever seen. For some reason, he felt as if she was trying to avoid his gaze. Ava on the other hand was waving at him slowly. He moved to his seat opposite Amelia, and besides his mother and Sharon.
Once everyone was seated, they started dishing out the portion we could finish at once. Just so he could talk to Amelia, he kept asking her to pass the food in front of her to him. Every time she paused to glare at him, he smiled. There was no conversation in the dining; even Ava was quiet, although she kept winking at him and making sure she made eye contact with him.
After dining, his parents and Amelia’s parent left them alone because they had something to discuss in his father’s office. He had a feeling it had a lot to do with the stupid proposal they had come up with. He doesn’t know his parents that much, but he knows that they hardly go against what their minds had been set up on. He just prayed their mind was set up on Amelia; even if their mind wasn’t set up, there was no way he was going to marry Ava. He would find any means to make sure that Amelia ended up as his wife.
He tried moving close to Amelia but was intercepted by Ava. “Didn’t I tell you that we would meet again handsome?”
He ignored her and tried to get to Amelia who was been overly quiet sitting on the sofa. His sister had left the room immediately after dinner ended. Ava tried to touch his chest, but he held her hand. “If you try to touch me again, I will make sure you regret it.” She was stunned and he used that opportunity to excuse himself from her. He moved to Amelia and started dragging her to his room. She didn’t oppose that much apart from a few glances at Ava who had finally regained her strength and was looking at them with stink eyes. As if he care about what she thought, the moment they got to his room, he locked the door behind him. He had a feeling that Ava would try to come in if he didn’t do that.
Amelia was shy. She was looking like a goat that was about to be butchered. Yet, his gaze dropped to her full lips. How would she react if he kiss her right now? Will she allow it or will she reject it? He was curious, but he wasn’t going to kiss her now. She was his, and he was going to have all the time in the world to explore every little part of her.
“Why did you drag me to your room and why did you lock the door behind me?” She asked.
He smiled, and finally, the confident girl was out. “I missed you.” He blurts out. Amelia narrowed her eyes so that he could barely see her pupil. He moved closer to her while she moved back until her back hit the door and there was nowhere to move to any longer.
“Do you know I am no longer your fiancée? My parent says you are going to marry my sister.” Her voice was low as if she doesn’t like the idea of becoming his sister-in-law instead of his wife.
“Do you want me to marry your sister?” He moved his lips closer to hers but did not kiss her. He could feel her breath on his nose. She was staring at him but she wasn’t saying anything. So, he continued. “Do you want me to kiss your sister the way I am supposed to kiss you? Do you want me to touch your sister like this?” He moved his hand to her arm slowly making goosebumps appear on her arm. “Do you want me to be this close to your sister?” He dragged her closely so she could feel the bulge in his trouser. “Do you think your sister can make me this hard?”
He was staring into her eyes, expecting some kind of response, but instead, she lifted her lips to his and captured it in a kiss. At first, he was surprised. He knew she was bold but he wasn’t expecting that particular move. Soon, he was in control of the kiss, dragging her closely as if he want her inside of him. He couldn’t get enough of the kiss, as he dig his tongue into her mouth. He held her head at the back and his mouth was consumed with her taste. She tasted like the food they had just finished eating, and also like strawberries. When he finally let her go, they were both breathing hard. He smiled at her while she looked away as if she had committed the crime of the century. “I think I have gotten my answer. Look at me, Amelia.” He held her head and make her face him. “You are going to be my bride regardless of what anyone says. I have chosen you.”
She didn’t respond. When they got back downstairs, it was just Ava there smiling at him. The moment he sat down, Ava came and sit beside him. Amelia stood up and sat opposite, even though he tried to stop her, she still stood up.
Soon their parents came back, and they insisted that the bride they want was Amelia. For the first time, he was so proud of his parents. By the time they were leaving Ava was scowling and Amelia was nervous. He had a feeling there was something going on that he wasn’t going to be pleased with, so he collected Amelia’s phone number promising to call her on her arrival home. Yet, all he could think was how nervous she seems about boarding the same car with her family.