by Denise Daye
Six months…What are six months? You wouldn’t even have to talk to him at all…
Frustrated at herself for even thinking such an outrageous thought, she turned the keys. Surprisingly, her car started immediately. She smiled. The day might still work out. Stepping on the clutch she slowly eased the pressure. The car bucked forward, the engine rattled and wheezed, and then died.
Ava slammed her fist onto the steering wheel. The earsplitting sound of a car horn pierced through the air. BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP.
She prayed silently, and then out loud, that the noise would stop when she removed her hand; but of course, it continued, the honk tearing through the quiet air.
BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!
Flapping her head onto the steering wheel in pure frustration, that thought kept crawling back into her head. This time, it was even louder than that darn car horn.
$10,000,000 would certainly get this car fixed…fixed? Get a new one. One of those SUVs with enough room in the back for the donation drives. Hell, $10,000,000 would even get the church its own van for those donation drives…
Ava almost felt as if she was betraying herself, but the marriage to Benjamin Radcliff started to seem less and less crazy. And that never-ending, earsplitting, horribly embarrassing beeping in the background pushed the very thought closer and closer to reality.
Benjamin slammed the door to his room so hard the walls shook.
“Damn it!” he muttered and stared at the crumpled paper in his shaky hand. Relax, Ben, relax. He exhaled and moved his eyes to the first line of words on the paper.
Marriage…
“Ugh!” he cursed again. Marriage? He shivered at the word as his body trembled with rising rage. He crushed the paper and tossed it in a corner, ripping off his shirt so hard the buttons flew off, scattering around the room with soft taps and rattles.
“This is crazy, Grandpa,” he scoffed and paced, strands of hair falling over his pretty face. He stopped right in front of the mirror and stared at the angry reflection looking back at him, his eyes hard and his face crimson. It has been a long time since he had been this angry. Years and years, now that he thought about it a bit more. Memories from his childhood flooded his head, pushing to the fore an incident he’d long forgotten.
He’d been eight or so and he had brought his bike to a school barbecue. It was a nice bike, but that year dual suspension mountain bikes were the fad amongst his friends—why, only the heavens knew, as no eight-year-old was actually using their mountain bike on an actual mountain. But mountain bikes were cool now and all his friends had brand new ones—the latest models too. It only seemed normal that he had to ditch his old bike, especially as he knew they could afford a million of them. Yet, when he asked, his father he said no.
“Life is about consistency and making do with what you have sometimes.”
At first, he was furious, even more so when his friends started to make fun of him. But after his father had explained it again in more detail with a loving hug, telling him those were always free, he actually didn’t care so much anymore, and his anger turned to dust.
Then his father had died that very same year and his grandfather and mother, who were never around any longer, would never say no to him again, no matter the price tag.
Benjamin stared at the paper in his hand, the very source of anger.
“Marriage to Ava Burns, the gardener’s daughter,” he mumbled as the memory of her hanging over the gate, leaves sticking out of her hair, creeped back into his mind. Unbelievably enough, no matter how severe his current situation, couldn’t help but laugh.
“I am glad you find this amusing,” his mother said walking in before she knocked.
“People usually knock and then enter, if the voice on the other end tells them to.”
“I’m your mother.”
“And I’m a grown man. It’s strange enough that we billionaire families live together in mansions like some tribal families in bamboo huts. Let’s not remove the doors of the hinges too, now.”
His mother rolled her eyes. “Well I am glad to see you worry about a knock on the door but laugh about a marriage to a peasant girl.”
“Peasant girl? What is this, 16th century Europe? Besides… it’s not like there is anything we can do about it.”
That was the truth. His grandfather might have been a bit crazy when he made this will, but he was no fool. This testament would be virtually impossible to fight in court, Benjamin had no doubt about it.
Lucy nodded. “Unfortunately, you might be right. Soooo…” Lucy stopped mid-sentence.
“Soooo what?”
“Are you going to do it? Marry her? Have her move into our home? Use our money? For six months?”
Benjamin let out a loud sigh. “What choice do I have?”
His mother threw her hand up high into the air as if she was addressing the Almighty in person. “Why is this happening to us? Why! Out of all the women… Why the gardener’s daughter!”
Benjamin grabbed his car key and walked out. The last thing he wanted to do right now was witness his mother perform on her personal stage.
“Where are you going?”
Far away from this house. Far away from the mansion and the estate. Far away from you.
“I’m going for a drive.”
Why her? He wondered as he ignored his mother and strode down the hallway. Why tie me down with marriage? Why Ava? Was this revenge for his wild lifestyle? Punishment? He didn’t even want to think about the gossip this would cause throughout the city. Everyone with a name and bank account worth mentioning would be talking about nothing else. He would become the joke of New York. And what for?
“A billion dollars, you idiot. That’s what for,” he scolded himself as he walked out of the mansion. If that is what he had to do to stay Benjamin Radcliff, billionaire and real estate empire heir, then that is what he would do. Besides, Ava was at least easy on the eyes. Her fashion sense was awful, and she wore an aura of righteousness that always made him feel guilty, but it could be worse.
Or at least that is what he thought until he pulled out of the driveway and passed Ava’s empty car, which screamed an endless, earsplitting BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP into the world as if announcing the apocalypse.
His phone vibrated as a text came in. He glanced at his cell’s screen. Amanda. He didn’t even have to read the supermodel’s message to know what she wanted. Ben let out a long, painful sigh. He hadn’t even thought about the implications, but his days of casual romance would be over with as well. He would be a married man soon; even without his grandfather’s demands that outside relationships were off the table, Ben would not sink as low as cheating on his wife, even if the marriage was a sham.
Second by second, the real extent of his situation hit Ben more and more—like a tsunami. He shook his head wildly. “Six months? Six months of this!”
He kept his hands steady and tried to focus on the road. The wind picked up and blew against his face as he drove faster.
Mr. and Mrs. Radcliff… Life was a joke…
A
va woke up that morning with a heavy heart. Her mind was cluttered with doubts, questions, and fear.
I have to tell Dad about that meeting. It was all she could think about. Yesterday had stretched on longer than she wanted and all she craved for was to talk to her father and get the whole thing off her chest, but every time she had opened her mouth nothing came out.
When she got up and found her father in the kitchen. He was sitting at the table leaning over a newspaper with an empty stare, slowly rubbing his wedding ring as he always did when he thought of her mother. He looked up at her.
“I was hoping I’d see you before you left for work.”
“Me too,” Ava said handing him a cup of coffee. She took in a deep breath for courage. Now or never. “There is something I wanted to talk to you about.”
“About the meeting?”
Rubbing her hand
s together, she exhaled deeply. “...Yes...” She watched him take a sip from his coffee.
“Is something wrong?” he wondered.
“No… Yes… Kinda. I… well, it’s hard to say, Dad. Even harder because I am seriously considering doing it.”
Her father smiled innocently. “So? Are you gonna do it?” His voice had a youthful excitement to it.
“Wait. You already know about the offer?”
“Yes. It is a blessing, Ava.”
“Really?”
She was shocked. Almost speechless.
“Of course… who would not want to—”
“Marry Benjamin Radcliff?” “Accept a job at the Radcliff non-profit.” They both finished the sentence at the same time.
“Marriage?” “Non-profit?” They both blurted simultaneously again and exchanged confused looks.
A loud knock at the front door interrupted them. With a bit of relief, Ava rushed to the door to silently thank whoever just saved her from this awkward conversation. That is, until the door opened and nobody less than Benjamin Radcliff in real-life flesh and blood was standing in front of her.
He smiled at her as soon as he saw her. “May I come in?”
Ava stepped out and closed the door behind herself.
“What do you want?”
“To ask for your hand in marriage,” he joked. Neither his tone nor his words went down well with her.
“Do you think this is a joke?”
Benjamin stopped smiling. “I don’t know, Ava. You tell me. Is losing your home and a billion dollars a joke?”
Ava lowered her gaze. For the first time, she was confronted with Ben’s side of the whole situation.
“You wouldn’t be the only one losing a home. My father has lived here for forty years. I was raised here too.”
“I know. I saw you lurking in the gardens like a stalker when we were kids.”
Ava felt the heat of anger flush on her cheeks. This guy was truly unbearable.
“I pitied you. You should be grateful that somebody was willing to spend time with you when your lonely sad face roamed the property like an abandoned puppy.”
For a moment they both exchanged annoyed looks.
“Listen,” Ben said trying to de-escalate the situation. “All emotions and jokes aside. If we don’t do this, we both will lose our homes. I will lose all I have ever possessed, and you will lose the only chance in life you may ever have to pay off your father’s debt and let him retire without the worry of having to turn every penny twice.”
For a brief second Ava flinched. How did he know about their debts? And how dare he use them so unscrupulously to get what he wanted? But as much as she hated it, he was right. Yet, she remained apprehensive. She fought with her doubts in a last attempt to stay true to herself, life without a price tag attached to herself—even if that tag was $10,000,000.
“What are six months?” Ben continued persuasively. “They will go by quickly. We don’t have to see each other besides that one dinner a week and the extra time required by the will. We can eat in silence. Play around with our phones. And before you know it, six months will be over and we both go separate ways. Rich.”
Ava bit her lower lip. He was right. Every word he said.
“What about…” she said but stopped as her cheeks turned fiery red. Ben wrinkled his forehead, no clue what she was trying to say.
“What about…you know…” she continued. “The thing…”
“The thing?”
“Yes. Men and woman… in a marriage… you know… married…”
Ben drew his brows tighter. “Emmm… what?”
Ava lost her patience. “Sex. What about sex?”
He flinched then grinned. “I didn’t really have that on my mind, but if you make it a requirement to agree to this then I will have no choice but to be your sex toy.”
Ava was ready to explode. This guy was unbelievable. “No thank you,” she growled.
“Are you sure? I would do it to avoid homelessness…” he pressed harder, his smirk growing wider.
“That won’t be necessary. This will be a loveless marriage.”
“Like countless others. So are you saying you are doing it then?”
Ava let out a loud audible sigh. “No touching whatsoever?”
“Not even in our dreams… or nightmares.”
“And I can come and go as I please?”
“Of course,” he said.
“Six months.”
“Six months for $10,000,000. Nobody has to even know about it.”
Ava slowly started to nod. “All right.”
Ben drew in a quick breath as his eyes widened. “Really?”
“I think so.”
He threw his head back in relief. “Well, in that case, take Thursday off, because we will be getting married.”
The air grew thick and awkward. Neither of them had words after it was said out loud like this.
A noise from the house distracted them. “Who is at the door?” her father’s voice asked, stepping outside. When he saw Benjamin, he smiled and reached out a hand. “Benjamin, what a surprise.”
“James. It’s been a while,” Benjamin cleared his throat. “I am sorry, but I have to go.” He nodded at the estate. “Things to do…”
“I’ll see you Thursday,” Ava said to Ben to give him permission to leave.
“Thursday,” he mumbled and left.
“How very, very unusual for him to show up at our door,” James said, watching Benjamin growing smaller in the distance. “I wonder if that is connected to the, well, how did you put it…marriage?” His head tilted to the side as he rubbed his chin. Ava buried her face into her palms. This would be the strangest, most difficult conversation she would have ever had in her life. But it had to happen. Now, not later.
“Let’s go inside, I will explain everything to you over a hot cup of coffee…” They both started walking inside. “Or wine,” she added dead seriously.
Thursday arrived.
Benjamin sat in the study with his mother. He’d been pacing for the past twenty minutes, only deciding to sit down at his mother’s insistence.
“Where is he?” he asked irritably, peering through the window before taking his seat.
“Calm down, son. We have bigger problems than that. It’s that Ava we have to worry about.”
Benjamin folded his arms, leaning back. “I don’t think she’ll show. She’s got pride. People who ‘work with society’,” he paused, punctuating the air with his fingers, “always seem to think they’re above everyone else.”
“Anyone can give the homeless some bread,” Lucy rolled her eyes.
“I don’t think it’s that simple.”
“Whose side are you on?” His mother waved a hand in front of herself.
“The side of a billion dollars,” Ben smirked.
Lucy grew quiet, smoothing her skirt with a dull look in her eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Benjamin wondered, noting the look of disgust in her face as she got lost in her thoughts.
“You mean besides the fact that my son is getting married to the gardener’s daughter?”
Ben frowned. “Yes, besides that fact…”
Lucy bit her lip so hard it bled a little. “Alright Ben, I will tell you. Besides the fact that this sham marriage will result in a stranger being in our house, who knows what type of people will start lingering around here. Have you ever considered the possibility that she is not aiming for the ten mil at the end of the six months but rather… well… ALL of the estate?”
Ben looked at his mother long and deep. With Lucy Radcliff you always had to fish for the hidden words in between the lines. He sighed and stroked his chin.
“You are worried I will break the rules? Disappear for weeks in Vegas or something”
Lucy stayed quiet.
“That I can’t keep my pants zipped for six months? Like a dog chasing everything
that’s not up the tree by the count of… one?” His voice shook a little. He was more hurt than angry. Sure, he wasn’t exactly the model son from next door, but he also wasn’t Charles Manson. What did she think of him? For weeks he had stood by his grandfather’s side, not going out once. Did that not prove that he wasn’t an out-of-control teenager on an overload of testosterone?
Lucy continued her silence, angry at his words but a bit embarrassed about her own too.
Impatiently Ben rubbed his hand on his leg, checking the time on his cell once more. “If Ava thinks she has a shot at my inheritance, she will be horribly disappointed.”
Lucy’s face was a contorted mask of hate and anger, her voice sharp and acidic. “Damn right this street girl will be disappointed. There is no way I’ll call myself a Radcliff and then allow some… some nobody reap what she did not sow. I won’t just let some stranger waltz in and take everything away from me.” Her eyes narrowed and her lips pressed tight gave her a devious image. “I’ll make those six months a living hell for her…”
Ben was about to remind his mother that it was his inheritance, not hers, when the door opened and Walter stepped in next to a court clerk, followed closely by Ava Burns. A heavy curtain of thick, unbreathable air filled the room in a matter of seconds. Ben rubbed his neck, Ava stared onto the marble floor, while Lucy tightened her face and looked at Ava, making sure the girl saw the contempt in her eyes. Ava tried to ignore it and sat down at a chair in front of the desk.
Benjamin quietly took a seat next to her. He sat on his chair without turning as the clerk seated himself in front of both of them. He peeked over at Ava. Was she scared? Angry? Maybe her face would give away what she thought. She looked… different, in a way. Pretty. She was wearing make-up and a cute, white, summer dress. Her blonde hair fell over her shoulders. Did she dress up for the wedding? He looked away, feeling a bit ashamed that although his wardrobe was worth more than her entire house, he was only wearing jeans.
Walter, once again, thanked everyone for coming. He introduced the court clerk, a middle-aged man who kinda looked like a giraffe, and then even tried to make a joke about some charities becoming millions of dollars richer if they hadn't shown up, but no one laughed. He shrugged and admitted, perhaps speaking to himself, “Excuse me… I’m a lawyer, not a comedian.” He then handed things over to the city clerk, who was mumbling the usual meaningless words before things would actually proceed to the important part of the whole ceremony. The signing of the marriage license.