Page 91 of Hired Husband

Icicles shot through my veins and my stomach bottomed out. “What are you talking about? I thought he already got the bid.”

“In principle, yes, but the board is expected to make its final recommendation next week,” he explained. “I’ve been trying to convince the directors that Isaac’s proposal is the better investment, but I’m not sure there’s anything else I can do.”

I stared back at him for a long minute, then laughed, my head shaking from one side to the other. “So this is a negotiation. You told David I wouldn’t marry him, but he couldn’t accept that answer, so he countered with something he knows you want, which is for Isaac to build your compound.”

“I’m not negotiating. I simply told him I would relay all relevant information to you and this is part of it. If you marry him, his company will withdraw, and since we had no other bids, Isaac’s design will be approved by the board.”

“A marriage proposal tied to a multi-billion-dollar development?” I pushed to my feet. “Either way, David wins and we lose.”

“It’s not about losing, sweetheart.”

I threw both my hands out to my sides. “Really? Because it sure as hell feels like I’m losing no matter what I decide here.”

“David believes both outcomes benefit everyone involved.”

“Oh, well, how generous of him. Why didn’t you just lead with that?”

My father pinched the bridge of his nose. “Sweetheart, the only reason I’m bringing this up is because it’s not an unreasonable proposal.”

“No,” I snapped, my hands flying to my hips. “It’s entirely unreasonable, but none of you can see it because it’s about money. Just like everything always is. I’m so fucking sick of it.”

Dad sighed. “Is there any point admonishing you about your language?”

“No, because I really am sick of it. Everything always comes back to money. Every conversation and every decision comes back to leverage to make more of it. Every relationship has to benefit someone’s portfolio.”

“That’s not fair.”

“No?” I snorted. “A man is trying to trade an industrial development contract for my hand in marriage just because his father made some stupid financial decisions and lost all his—let’s say it together now—his money. He lost his money.”

“No one is trading you, Jasmine, and yes, okay. David’s family is in trouble, so he’s trying to help, but⁠—”

“He’s not trying to help. What he’s trying to do is find the easy way out. That’s either by tempting you into making me marry him if he lets Isaac have the contract, or taking the contract from Isaac with a vastly inferior design simply because he knows you and your board members.”

“He’s not tempting me, Jasmine.”

“Oh, but he is,” I argued. “He knows you brought Isaac here all the way from Chicago to design something you actually wanted to build, something that would put GlobalStar’s Sharm operations on the map internationally, and he knows you want Isaac’s bid to win. That’s why he pitched his proposal the way he did.”

“Isaac’s design is better than David’s. We’ve already settled that, but it doesn’t mean I’m tempted to go against your wishes.”

“I don’t care about David,” I said sharply. “I don’t want to marry him, but Isaac deserves better than this. He worked damn hard on that design and I want him to have what’s fair.”

“So do I.”

My eyes rolled. “Sure, as long as your board wants it too, right? It doesn’t matter that Isaac is genuinely talented or that he actually cared enough about your stupid complex to turn it into a work of art. All that matters is the money, and now, because of that, David has you by the balls.”

“Jasmine,” Dad warned, his voice low. “You will not⁠—”

“Okay, I’m sorry I phrased it like that, but it doesn’t make what I said any less true.” I held his gaze. “David has leverage over you because your board didn’t care about the bigger picture. Isaac is a truly passionate engineer who pursued a career in something he has a talent for, and then we have David, who hired a bunch of hicks at the last minute and somehow still won.”

Dad remained silent, evidently realizing this wasn’t a fight he was going to win, so I went on, the words tumbling out of me in a steady stream. “When Isaac’s family lost everything, he didn’t take shortcuts to try and get it back. He worked hard. He found what he loved and he went after it with everything he had. He’s probably still paying off the student loans for that decision and yet he’s never complained.”

I inhaled a deep breath. “In his hands, this development could’ve been a significant milestone for our entire country. Like the Aswan High Dam. Instead, it’s going to be just another industrial complex, exactly like so many others around the Gulf.”

“Yes.”

I scoffed. “It’s not fair. How is any of this fair? Life has been a bitch to Isaac ever since he was a teenager, but he’s never let it get him down. He just keeps going. He keeps working hard and he keeps dreaming. If anyone deserves something good for once, it’s him. Not David.”

When I finally ran out of steam, Dad studied me for a long moment. “Do you love Isaac?”