As soon as Adrian got to Julian Moore's house; he didn't sit down immediately. He came in restless; pacing around the living room.
The city was beneath the floor to ceiling windows of the study, orderly and distant, as though it had been arranged specially to seek some sort of approval. Vehicles moved in unison. People shrank into irrelevance. He loved this view any other day and it was what brought him tranquility. Today, it was far from it.
Julian had already spread the documents across the table.
They didn't exchange pleasantries and small talk. That signaled that the meeting wasn't their usual routine.
"You should've been here earlier," Julian mentioned, adjusting his glasses.
Adrian loosened his necktie slowly. "I came the moment it stopped being noisy."
Julian sighed a signal of warning and unrest. "It stopped about two weeks ago. I'm surprised you just didn't hear it."
Adrian turned around.
Julian tapped a folder with his finger. Damien Laurent's name was glaring in bold letters, printed in black ink. Adrian felt his chest tightening; not from fear. Never. It was irritating. How dare he? He was daring him by touching something that wasn't his.
"He is testing your perimeter," Julian continued. "Maybe this is more than business. It's you."
Adrian finally sat down after pacing all along.
"Someone knows that you're marrying your secretary to gain foreign acquisition." Julian continued. "That made your private life relevant. Relevance becomes a leverage."
Adrian leaned his back against the couch, crossing his arms. "This marriage feels airtight."
The sound of the notification on his phone distracted him from the conversation he was having with Juian. It was Elena. She had sent a screenshot from a message she got from an unknown number. He couldn't even comprehend what he was reading. He handed it straight to Julian.
Julian took a deep frustrated sigh. "Who else knows about this aside from Maggie?" He inquired,
"Nobody." he answered firmly.
"You sure?"
"Oh wait! Her family knows of course. I specifically walked into her telling her brother about it."
"This blackmail doesn't seem like what her family would do. They know what you're capable of." Julian continued.
"So what do you think I should do from here?"
"Don't try to let this out to the press. Lay low. Show her affections like a husband or a real fiancé."
Hmm
Why does he have to do this with a woman who has personal problems of her own. If she wasn't as professional as she is, he would've stepped back and possibly involve Maggie in finding another woman as an arranged wife. He didn't have that luxury of time. He needed to strike before Damien Laurent moved beyond what he already had.
Phew!
"All right. I think I should move her to one of the penthouses in the city. Far from where she could discuss her life with people who could tell what's going on." Adrian said.
"Perfect!"
Adrian didn't think of what he said at all. He just let those words slip out of his mouth in his defense. He felt a pulse of something unsettling in his chest. Not fear but it was heavy. It was a looming sense of responsibility that he wasn't used to. He was used to protecting his assets, buildings, and money. He wasn't used to protecting a whole human, let alone his staff.
"Prepare a confidentiality signature for her. I'll move her tonight." He said while he grabbed a folder to leave.
"Adrian," Julian called out just as he reached the door. "Don't forget that she might also be the one setting you up. I'm just saying you know. If you're sure of her, just make sure she's as airtight as she knows you are."
Adrian didn't look back. He vanished into the cooling New York. The air was crisp enough to bite through his thin shirt. He checked his phone again. No messages from Elena. No updates from Damien.
______
While he drove home, the part that exhausted his brain the most was how to start to show her affection pretending to be an intentional fiancé. If he didn't know what was already at stake and the growth wasn't worth it, he would've ended this madness. He ordered roses for her and had it delivered to her immediately.The next morning, Elena got to Adrian's pen house in New York. It was her first time in any penthouse – Adrian's Penthouse. It was magnificent. Her mouth was agape when she stepped out of the tinted black limousine that he ordered to pick her up. Funny how she's not in her right state of mind to fully feel the ambience of the building. There were better things to worry about.
She walked up to the elevator and she got into the lounge where Adrian had been waiting for her. He saw distress in her eyes and his emotions weren't tugged at all. He had himself to worry about.
"Good morning, sir."
"First, you'll stop calling me sir." He replied coldly.
Elena nodded affirmatively. She didn't have that energy to argue nor probe why.
"Thank you for the roses." She thanked him.
"It's part of the new agreement. I hope you don't take it as a thoughtful gift."
He began to explain to her how she had to move to one of his houses to keep their agreement airtight and to avoid threats from people who wanted to ruin their deal.
He saw her face changing.
"Is there a problem?"
"Everything is happening so fast. It's quite overwhelming to process."
He flared his nose, gazing around the lounge to avoid awkward silence. He didn't know how to react. He wasn't forcing her. But she needed him too. It's very much consensual.
"I'm handing you the keys to the apartment before you leave today. And as soon as the wedding is sealed, you get the keys to your art gallery too."
This piece of information lifted her mood. He could see that she looked better than the way she was when she came in.
Pheeeew!
One day he'll be over this.
She had one more question to ask him.
"What am I to do in your house when I can't be around your office anymore?"
"I've asked my butler to get your canvases. You could go back to painting." He replied in a husky voice.
His demonstration didn't go unnoticed by Elena.
Her passion walking back to her life at the cost of what she's not fully aware of. What doesn't come with its price? Absolutely nothing. She was willing to take the hit.
Her phone beeps.
The strange message.
"I know you're up to something. See me at Columbia Street. Block 10. 4pm."
Her heart skips again.