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It’s terrifying.
I only like revealing parts of myself that will make people happy. Currently, that seems impossible.
“He…um, it’s just, I—I don’t actually want to marry Lance. We have an arrangement.” The faint whisper doesn’t even sound like my voice. Regret envelops me. I haven’t told anyone that my marriage to Lance is a sham.
“I wouldn’t want to marry him either after what he did out there.” Matthew’s brows furrow. My eyes are on his lips.
Oh my goodness.Pull yourself together, Molly.You’re soon-to-be Mrs. Bradbury-Greene. Not some girl with a monster-sized crush who’s incapable of articulating one rational thought.
“It’s not like that. I mean, I know about the caterer, the waitresses, the old flames,” I explain. Matthew stares at me, stark, cold judgment burning in his eyes. “But we’ve worked something out.”
How could he understand what it’s like to be in my Hangisi jewel buckle pumps?
It’s silly. I have everything I want, but the pressure of the Greene legacy constantly rests on my shoulders. If only I had a sibling my parents could pawn off for their business proceedings—though I’d never wish this kind of life on someone else.
“Molly,” Matthew says in a low voice that makes my bones tremble. He touches my arm, lighting up my skin like a city regaining power. “Please help me understand what’s going on here.”
“Our families set up our marriage.” My mind races, and the words come pouring out. “I have to tie the knot before my twenty-seventh birthday. It’s a Greene family tradition and the only way I can access my trust.”
And I need that money. Without it, I may never have autonomy. It’s my only opportunity to have something for myself. Open my own business and follow my own dreams. A piece of me my parents can’t control.
A fifty-million-dollar reward for a loveless marriage doesn’t seemthatbad.
When I look up at Matthew again, his face is entirely unreadable. Great. He probably just thinks I’m a spoiled rich girl. Maybe I am.
“I see,” he begins. “Wouldn’t your parents want you to be happy? To not marry someone you don’t want to? Surely there are alternatives.”
Does that truly happen? Are there parents out there who prioritize the joy of their children above their own needs? I doubt it.
It’s the burden of being a Greene—in a world filled with riches, we’re not meant to feel the luxury of genuine happiness.
“No alternatives. At least, not any my parents would approve of.”
Matthew’s eyes narrow. “Why do they have toapproveof your husband?”
I need to rejoin the party. Chaos must be ensuing out there, but I can’t move.
“A clause requires it,” I reply.
“Uh, okay. That’s a bit strange.” Yup, that does it. Matthew won’t look at me the same ever again. At least I’ll be quitting ORO after my wedding and can hide from this mortification forever.
“I know it probably seems that way, but my great-grandparents, Oliver and Clara, got married at twenty-seven and opened the first On Cloud Nine resort together. It’s tradition to follow in their footsteps. As a wedding gift, all the Greenes receive a trust.”
The tradition is dated, and quite unreasonable, but their intentions were good.
Fall in love. Begin a life of commitment.
The hopeless romantic in me has always thought it was sweet.
“Okay, I hear you. Except why Lance? Doesn’t the fact that he just publicly humiliated you cancel out the whole approval clause?”
“I wish. The Bradburys are helping us fund a large resort expansion on the Gold Coast in Australia. Besides, I’m really just trying to get my fifty million dollars.”
He pauses, scanning my face. I look away, nervously rubbing his handkerchief between my fingers. “What’s more important to you?”
“Huh?”
“Your family’s business or your trust?”
