My father warned me that a marriage without love wouldn't last when I agreed to the match arranged by my grandfather. However, he wasn't aware that what I needed to make this marriage last isn't love but a Deal.
"Ms. Vale." I tore my gaze away from the watch and raised my head as I heard his voice.
Lucas Albright.
The man I'll be getting married to in a few months.
"Mr. Albright. We meet again." A smile occupied my face involuntarily as his bright face fell into my view. Was it love? Not exactly. It was because Lucas is a man I grew comfortable with over the past eight years we've been engaged to each other.
Yes, love is a thing we lack. But does it matter? We've met once every month over the past eight years without missing a single time. And over time, we grew familiar enough that silence wasn't awkward and each other's presence wasn't a burden.
And not to mention the Deal.
Due to this engagement, my family was free from unnecessary trouble, and his gained business advantages by marrying into the Vale family, one of the few who dominates the business world. It's a win-win for both of our families.
And that's all that mattered.
"Well then, should we get going? I made a reservation in a restaurant nearby."
"Ah, sure. By the way—here." I lifted the bags filled with heirloom tomatoes and berries, my first harvest of the season. "These are for you. I grew them myself."
The moment his gaze landed on the bags, contempt flashed across his face for a few seconds. He despises that I'm a girl obsessed with farming in the countryside. I knew that. In fact, I knew it within a few months of our engagement.
And that's what made me comfortable around him—the fact that he doesn't hide his contempt. Because I understand that not many people are big fans of abandoning a high-class life to roll around in the mud in the countryside.
So, it's fine if he hates that side of mine. At least he was honest enough to not hide it from me.
I waited for him to place the bags in the back seat before we went on with our date.
It was yet another routine textbook date. Lunch, cinema, dinner, walk—and then we went our separate ways.
Just as how it's gone for the past eight years.
And I believed that this would repeat for the rest of our lives.
Just that I didn't expect this bubble to shatter on our very own wedding day.