CHAPTER FOUR
DOMINIC
A smirk tugged at my lips when I heard her decision.
"I'll get Ethan to send the contract terms to you." I needed to be sure she understood what she was getting into.
"Can we talk about it tomorrow?" she inquired.
"Yeah. We'll meet at my villa by 9 a.m. I'll send Ethan to pick you up."
As soon as I ended the call, I let out a heavy sigh and slumped onto the couch in my office. I had left Sylvania to attend to some official duties back at my headquarters. It had been a long day.
It was about to get longer.
My phone beeped. I stared at the screen—it was my mom.
"Hello, Mom."
"Leah said she's been calling you and you've ignored her. What's wrong with you?" she scolded.
My jaw clenched, and my palms folded into fists.
"I don't want to speak to her," I said through gritted teeth.
"Why?" Her voice softened. She knew better than to push me.
"That's my business." My tone was final. "I'm getting married to Anastasia Hughes."
She gasped.
"What do you mean? I don't want her as a daughter."
"You don't have to see her." I was already bored with the drama. "Let's talk later, please."
I hung up before she could say anything else.
My mom and Leah had a beautiful mother-daughter relationship. They were like best friends. I understood why she was upset.
That was her business, though. I was done with Leah. Nothing and no one, was going to change that.
I still had things to attend to and didn't need distractions.
I grabbed my car key and walked out of the office. The drive to my Estate was cool, artificial lights blending beautifully into the darkness. I liked night hours; they helped reduce the attention I constantly received.
Once, someone honked at me for no reason, and when I stopped for him to pass, he drove up with a grin and delivered a business pitch. Since then, I didn't drive during the day unless my security convoy was with me.
Night hours made things feel… a bit normal.
I finally arrived at the estate.
My Villa stood at the end of the estate so that I'll have to drive through the other villas to get to mine. I parked at the garage and walked in, nodding at every greeting I received.
I wanted to be left alone so I dismissed all the servants.
I went straight into my soundproof room. I found my EarPods and put them on. It was time to make the call.
"Dominic Bernardino," the strong voice echoed.
"Yeah. He sent a threat earlier." I reported. I ran my hand through my hair. I could hide it from the world, but not from myself. My thudding pulse meant one thing—fear.
This threat got to me.
"You're sure it's him?" he asked, pausing long enough to make me rethink. "From what we've gathered… he doesn't send threats, he acts." His voice was steady.
"Yeah. I had my doubts. There's only one way to find out."
I needed to get this out of the way.
"What's your plan?"
"I'm getting married to Anastasia Hughes. I believe I can get some information about him from her." I said dryly.
"They broke up." His tone, flat.
"Yeah. More reason she'll talk. When a woman's heart is broken, she'll do anything to ruin the man who broke it."
"You want to use her anger and quest for revenge to bring him down."
A pang of guilt moved through me, but I waved it off. "You got it." The marriage was a mutual benefit.
"Let's see how it goes."
I hung up, showered, and surrendered to nature's call. By 11 p.m., I was asleep.
Four hours later, I woke up. Yeah—I had to compromise with nature.
I reviewed the contracts we signed, and the investments finalized over the week. I also went through the reports from the company heads. Everything was smooth.
I called my lawyer and informed him about the marriage so he could bring the court to us for a courthouse wedding.
"Hey, I'll need you to go pick my fiancée," I told Ethan over the phone.
"What the fuck." He cursed. "It's 5 a.m." He half-yelled.
"Okay. Read through the documents I sent."
"I thought you did that already?"
"Yeah. I need a second reading."
"I swear, I'll give you a sleeping pill one day," he murmured.
"Did you say something?"
"No. I'll do it," he replied grudgingly. A smirk crossed my face.
He can't sleep while I'm working."
"Get her by 9 a.m.," I instructed and ended the call.
After a few more hours of work, I checked my time—it was 8:30. I showered and wore a black shirt over black pants, then walked down to the living room. After some minutes, he arrived—with her.
She looked… different.
She wore a short red dress and stilettos. Her lips were tight, her hands firm. No quivering. No sweat.
"Hello, Anastasia Hughes," I greeted formally, my face firm and unreadable. Without sparing her a glance.
"Dominic Bernardino." Her tone was exaggerated with fake politeness.
I raised my head to her and studied her for a while. "You're interesting."
"I'll shut the door behind me, so no one disturbs you," Ethan said, reminding us he was still there.
I nodded, and he left.
"Let's have a seat, Miss."
I sat at the head of the dining table; she sat on my right. I waited for the cook to serve our breakfast and leave.
"I believe you went through the contract." I sipped my hot chocolate.
"I did." She still didn't look at me.
"Any questions?"
"Yeah. A lot." She flipped through the contract.
"I'd like to have my own room."
"The room is yours as well."
"I can't share a room with you."
"That's what couples do," I replied, giving no room for contention.
"Okay… what do you mean by 'you wouldn't do what I don't want you to do'?"
I hadn't meant to sound flirty. I was only assuring her nothing would happen even if we shared a room.
"Do you have any serious questions?" I dodged her question.
"Why is there CCTV in the room? I need privacy."
"There's no CCTV in the bathroom."
She sighed and face palmed. What the hell was wrong with her?
"What do you mean defying your words will have consequences and I can't do anything or go anywhere without your approval? I have a personal life."
"You don't have a personal life. That's the first clause in the contract. You live how I tell you to for the duration of the contract."
Her eyes widened. Her lips parted in disbelief.
I held her gaze. Those eyes—they held secrets. Secrets I intended to unravel.
"I will decide the consequences depending on your actions."
She looked away, teeth gritted.
"This is ridiculous." She met my gaze. "I want my personal room."
"No. We'll move on to signing the contract. My lawyer will be here to get us married."
"I insist," she said, still managing to stay calm.
I liked the attitude. It made her… interesting.
I sighed. "Fine. You'll only be in your room when I'm away."
She shot me a glare. "Fuck you," she muttered.
"I heard that."
She rolled her eyes.
"Fine." She couldn't fight anymore.
We signed the contract. Soon after, my lawyer arrived and married us—with a ring and all.
Anastasia Hughes was now my wife.
"What's going on here?" I raised my head to see my mom glaring daggers at Anastasia.
"Hey, hubby." Leah said from behind her.
I recoiled, disgust rising in my chest.
Why did she come with her?
I sank into my chair. I was in for more drama.
"What are you
doing here?" I asked. She flinched but quickly masked it.
"I brought your real wife," my mom answered.