The Billion-Dollar Marriage Contract

by Alyssa Urbano

“This is all going so fast. Can’t you give me some time to think about it instead of forcing me to Greece?”

  “I can’t. I’ve waited for a month already,” he groaned.

  She sighed.

  “Then at least give me tonight, I have a night out with my friends. I’ll take as many bodyguards as you want. Just let me go.”

  “Tell me where you’ll go and I’ll drop you there and pick you up myself. And you must always be within the line of sight of your bodyguards.”

  She nodded but sighed and rolled her eyes, “Fair enough.”

  “So what time are you supposed to be there?”

  “Around two hours from now.”

  “Great.”

  He grinned and took her hand.

  “Where are we going?”

  “Dinner, of course.”

  Nikos didn’t let go of her hand as they made their way from the penthouse suite to one of the most elegant restaurants in his hotel. It was always full and you had to have reservations a long time prior to eating there. Unless of course, like Nikos you owned the hotel.

  Like a perfect gentleman, he helped her to her seat. The waiter introduced himself and they were handed their menus.

  “I’ve heard of this restaurant for a long time now but it’s the first time I’ve actually been here.”

  “This is a great place. It is owned by Antonio, by the way. His restaurants are in all of my hotels. Antonio is an excellent chef and a businessman. We started this when we were fresh out of college.”

  “Wow. I never knew Antonio was a chef.”

  They placed their orders and resumed talking. Nikos told Cassia all about Antonio, his wife and their newest addition to the family. He told her how adorable baby Anton was and how he drove his parents crazy.

  Cassia laughed and she realized she was really enjoying herself tonight. Nikos kept on entertaining her with his brilliant stories about his travels, the business and almost everything else under the sun.

  She was never bored and she found herself wanting to visit the places he’s been. He told his stories so vividly that it was as if she was experiencing it firsthand.

  She also marveled at how fun it was to eat dinner and talk. Usually, when she was with Hector, she was silent as he had to talk to somebody on the phone. If he was not on the phone, he was busy checking his emails. They never really talked.

  Cassia glanced at her watch and saw that it was almost time to go to her friends.

  It was true what they said: time really flew when you were enjoying yourself.

  December 23, 2013

  Club Harmony

  New York City

  “I’ll pick you up at exactly 2AM. Would that be all right?”

  She nodded.

  “Have fun then. And please always stay where your bodyguards can see you.”

  Cassia nodded and watched as Nikos sped off in his black Lamborghini.

  She hurried inside the club and was met with the loud music and crazy lights. She went through the throng of people who were grinding at each other on the dance floor. Several men stopped her and asked her to dance, but she just smiled and shook her head.

  She and her friends had a VIP booth on the second floor of the bar. Cassia evaded more men asking her to dance and quickly climbed the stairs. She entered the VIP room reserved for them and breathed a sigh of relief when the music wasn’t so loud anymore and she could hear her own thoughts.

  Going to clubs and dancing wasn’t really her thing.

  “Earth to Cassia,” her friend said as she waved her hand in front of Cassia’s face.

  “Hmm?” she murmured distractedly.

  “You’re zoning out. Repeatedly,” Arlene, another one of her friends and most loyal customers pointed out.

  “Oh, sorry. It’s just that I really have a lot of things on my mind right now.”

  She thought of Nikos and how much she enjoyed their dinner. She kept on telling herself they had nothing in common but it turned out that they had a lot. They never ran out of anything to say and she found herself immensely enjoying his tales.

  “Humph. Maybe in your head, you’re still in bed with your handsome hunk of a husband,” Arlene giggled.

  A few weeks ago, Cassia’s concerned friends called her and she told them every single detail of what happened when she and Nikos were kidnapped.

  She frowned and then snorted, “I’m not.”

  Arlene raised her eyebrows and then leaned closer and stared into her eyes.

  “Did he finally send enough flowers to make your house and your shop collapse? What is up with you guys now? Did you forgive him?” another long-time friend named Isobel asked.

  Cassia sighed and took another sip of her cocktail.

  “Aha! I knew it!”

  “So, spill.”

  Cassia rolled her eyes heavenward.

  “I don’t have anything to spill.”

  “Clearly, you do,” Jenna disagreed.

  “Cassia, come on! Are we not your friends? Tell us what’s bothering you! Maybe we’d be able to help. We’re also married, you know,” Arlene persisted.

  “Yeah, we could give you great advice,” Isobel quipped.

  “You’re not married, Isobel! How can you give her advice?” Jenna laughed.

  “I’m not. But I know that men are devious little creatures. Also, I know how much pain they can bring and I’ve dealt with it. So if that’s what is happening to our friend here, I think I can give pretty good advice in that area.”

  They were all silent after that for they knew Isobel’s past.

  Cassia sighed. “Thanks, Izzy,” she said affectionately.

  “Don’t keep us in further suspense!”

  “All right, all right...” Cassia murmured under her breath. “It’s just that...I don’t know what to do with Hector anymore and Nikos just complicates everything!”

  Isobel scoffed. She really hated Hector right from the start.

  “What did Hector do now?” Arlene asked in an irritated tone.

  “Besides never being there, you mean?” Isobel interjected.

  Cassia rubbed her temples. “I don’t know what to do anymore. I thought he was the perfect guy—“

  “Excuse me, Cassia. Pardon the interruption but...he’s not.”

  “I agree with Isobel. You were just too blind to see all his faults.”

  “We’ve told you this over and over again. You keep on telling yourself he’s great but he’s not. First of all, he’s never there for you. When you guys talk, it’s always about him.”

  “Plus the fact that there’s just something evil about that man,” Isobel shuddered.

  “True. When you look at his eyes, it’s like he’s hiding something deep, dark and sinister.”

  For another ten minutes, her friends continued to rant about how they hated Hector and outlined his faults. For the first time, Cassia listened to them and compared what they were saying to the things she experienced when she was with him.

  All of it was the truth.

  She had her eyes closed during their relationship and now they were finally opened. It seemed she was wrong about everything and she kept her eyes and ears shut during the entire relationship. He stayed by her side throughout the years but he was preoccupied with his own business. He wasn’t there or he was late during her accomplishments but she was in every one of his.

  Then, there was the issue of his temper.

  “I swear he’s bipolar or maybe he has multiple personalities,” Isobel pointed out.

  “How come?”

  “When we’re with him, he’s like sweet and all. Then he gets this call and he flies into a rage! So scary! Then, it’s like he switches off everything, and he’s back to being sweet. It makes me feel like he’s just acting.”

  Jenna was right. That always happened. There was even one time that Hector slapped her. He quickly apologized and told her that it was an accident. She believed him but since then, she did everything not to rile his temper.

 
Cassia sighed. She truly had to end things with Hector. There was simply no future for them and it looked like she was just convincing herself he was perfect all along.

  “You all know how my marriage started, right?”

  Cassia decided it was finally time to talk about Nikos. She needed some advice on what to do about him. He was the only aspect of her life wherein she couldn’t think rationally.

  “Yes, we do. Which brings us to another important topic. Have you forgiven him? Has the relationship between the two of you gone from enemies to lovers?”

  “It’s not like that...I don’t really know what’s going on right now,” Cassia groaned.

  “So spill the story,” Isobel said with a wave of her hand.

  “On our tenth wedding anniversary, we had dinner and he told me that he wanted us to start being a true husband and wife. He wanted us to start living together and for me to provide him with an heir. I threw it back to his face and laughed. Then we got kidnapped.”

  She breathed in deep before continuing

  “...I’ve spent time with him on the island and found out several things from our past. All of it was a lie and a misunderstanding caused by my grandfather. He orchestrated all this and we were both victims.”

  “Victims? What about what he did to you after your wedding night? He slept with another woman, remember?”

  “No. He didn’t. Marietta climbed into the bed just as he was showering. It was his grandfather’s suite. He didn’t know she was there.”

  Her friends looked at each other as if they did not know what to say. Some looked as though they weren’t sure if they would believe what she just said.

  “When we were together it resurrected feelings I’d buried deep. I felt things I shouldn’t. When I look at him now, I see the guy I fell in love with ten years ago. Sometimes it’s also as if he’s giving me a promise of what’s to come if only I gave in and decided to stay with him for good. It freaks me out because I like it! I like how being with him feels! It’s bad because when I’m with him, I forget the past ten years and instead hope that I’d have ten, twenty, maybe even a hundred years with him if I could...”

  Cassia’s words trailed off and she found that all pairs of eyes were on her. Her friends knew exactly what she was feeling, especially the married ones. They knew that when love hit, it hit hard. Love made you forget past mistakes and gave you hope for the future.

  “So what’s the problem dear? What’s holding you back?”

  “A lot of things! I still have Hector to consider—“

  The moment she said Hector’s name, everyone else groaned.

  “We’re done discussing him. He’s old news,” Arlene declared.

  “You deserve someone better and I think if you open your heart. Nikos is that someone,” Jenna told her.

  “Amen to that,” Isobel replied.

  She raised her glass in a toast.

  The others also raised their shot glasses and drank. When the alcohol was done burning a path down their throats, they turned back to Cassia.

  “What do I do?” she moaned. She covered her face with her hands and wished that the ground would just swallow her right now and end her torment.

  Her friends waved their hands towards a passing waiter and ordered another round of shots for all of them. When the new batch was placed on their table, Isobel leaned forward and looked her straight in the eyes.

  “Life is a gamble. There are no sureties. If you want something badly, you’d have to trust your heart and your instincts and then take a leap of faith,” Isobel lectured.

  “Wow, wise words, Izzy!” Arlene interjected and all of them laughed.

  Isobel just rolled her eyes. “As I was saying, what I suggest is for you to give him a chance. Say, give him two weeks and lay down your rules. If by the end of two weeks, you find out that you’re really incompatible, leave and never look back. At least you tried. But if he makes you fall in love with him again and everything’s great...then it’s happily ever after for you guys.”

  Isobel had a point.

  But if she opened her heart and gave Nikos another chance, she’d be vulnerable to another wave of pain! Then what if it all didn’t work out? What would happen to her then?

  “But...I can’t...it’s hard. I don’t want to be hurt again.”

  “You know...the guy is trying and you’re putting up this wall because you’re afraid to get hurt. It’s not fair to him, Cassia,” Arlene told her.

  “There’s never a constant thing in life and love and you can never predict what will happen. All you can do is give it a chance and hope that everything works out in the end. We told you to give Nikos a chance and that chance entails you removing all negative thoughts regarding your relationship. Remove your biases, my dear, and the happiness will follow,” Isobel advised.

  Her friends all had a point.

  After everything that happened, it was really hard to trust Nikos. She felt as though everything was too good to be true and that if she so much as blinked, all of it would change again. But Nikos was really trying while she was too afraid to give him a chance.

  Could she take that blind leap of faith and hope that he was there to catch her?

  “So what’s it going to be?” Isobel asked.

  “You’re right girls. What else do I have to lose other than my heart which I already gave him ten years ago, anyway? So I’m thinking that I’m taking that leap of faith. You’re right; it’s time to settle down.”

  The girls shouted their glee at that statement, and they congratulated their friend by downing another round of shots.

  “Okay then, we have something else to celebrate tonight! Drink up, me hearties yoho!” Isobel imitated Captain Jack Sparrow from the Pirates of the Caribbean.

  At this point, Cassia’s stomach hurt from laughing so much and her heart truly felt light. It was as if a huge burden had been taken off her shoulders.

  “And then we go dancing!” Jenna shouted.

  Her statement was met with another round of giggling and shouting. This time, Cassia giggled and shouted along with them.

  She just couldn’t wait to take that leap of faith with Nikos.

  CHAPTER 20 - FALLING

  “I cannot believe that it’s been a month and we still do not have them! How many times must you fools fail before we finally get Demakis so we can stop hiding?” Sebastian growled.

  “Boss, his security is tighter. Even his wife’s. If we try, we are going to lose more men and only risk exposing ourselves.”

  “I have trusted you for too long now and all you did was fail. I’ll just do things myself!” He turned and grabbed his phone.

  “Get everyone ready, we’re flying to Greece. It’s time I took things in my own hands.”

  December 23, 2013

  Nikos’ Car

  Near Fifth Avenue

  “Had fun, agapimeni?”

  Nikos took her hand and lifted it to his lips as he waited for the light to change.

  “Lots and lots,” Cassia tried to keep her voice from breaking.

  She shuddered as Nikos kissed her wrist.

  “Good. I’ve asked your assistant to pack your things. They are waiting for you at the airport. I asked regarding your schedule and so far you do not have anything. But if you need to work or something comes up, the jet is at your disposal.”

  Nikos ran his hand through his hair and placed it back on the shift as the light changed. “I want to take you somewhere you’ve never been. But the 100th anniversary for Demakis Shipping Corporation is in a few days and we have to be there.”

  “Okay,” she replied with a shrug.

  Nikos looked dumbfounded. “What? No argument?”

  She rolled her eyes. “None. Would you like me to give you one?”

  “No! It’s just new. That’s all. I quite like it,” he grinned.

  “One month, Nikos. I am giving you one month. I am putting my full trust in you and willing to give whatever we have a try. If by the end of one month
we still don’t work out, you have to let me go.”

  Nikos’ smile widened.

  “One month? You’re mine by that time, glikiamou. I accept your challenge.”

  He turned those green eyes and their full ferocity bore into her. She saw his joy reflected in them and her heart skipped a beat.

  “You better not hurt me, Nikos. This is the last chance.”

  “I won’t.”

  He sealed his promise with a kiss.

  December 25, 2013

  Nikos’ Home

  Island of Skorpios, Greece

  “Wake up, Cassia...it’s Christmas!”

  Cassia groaned and rolled over. She was not really feeling well this morning. Her stomach churned and she was nauseated. It was definitely something she ate last night at the Christmas Party they attended. Or maybe she caught some kind of stomach bug?

  “Come on, glikiamou. You’ll miss all the presents I have for you.”

  She felt the bed dip and Nikos was sprawled beside her. Then, she felt his lips trail a path across her neck while his finger drew lazy patterns on her hip. Her cheeks flamed when she recalled what they did last night.

  She groaned and tried to cover her face with a pillow. The pillow had Nikos’ scent and it was enough to set her blood on fire. He nibbled on her earlobe and she shivered with desire.

  “All right, I’m up,” she sighed. She moved slowly to keep the nausea at bay.

  “Great!” Nikos sped off across the room and brought back several items which he dumped on the bed.

  “First things first.”

  He handed her an envelope. When she opened it, it was filled with different cheques addressed to the charities she sponsored. The amount on the cheque made her eyes wide and knocked the breath out of her lungs.

  “Nikos...this is...I have no words! Thank you!” she stammered.

  Before she could stop herself, she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. The world tilted to the side and bile rose in her throat but she didn’t care.

  He laughed at her enthusiasm. “There’s more.”

  He gave her a small box. She tore the wrapping paper and opened it. Inside was a key.