Sophia’s Point of View
For a moment, it was as though my refusal froze the air around us.
Then the stranger straightened from his reclined position, blinking once and breaking the spell.
“What?” He said with a deep voice thick with confusion.
Looking at the bafflement in those steel gray for some reason I felt inordinately pleased that I had refused him.
“I refuse to be a pawn in your scheme against the Baxters,” I told the stranger matter of factly. “If you want to take vengeance on them, you can do it yourself.”
The stranger looked at me and the sides of his lips twitched ever so slightly. Then he stood and leaned in slightly, his eyes never leaving mine.
That heady mix of cedar and mint hit me once more as he spoke in a hushed whisper.
“You are an enigma, Miss Evergreen,”
I felt something drop onto my lap but I didn’t look away from his eyes lest I lose this staring contest we were in.
“Call me when you change your mind.” He said then he pulled away leaving the room almost as quickly as he had entered without even a backward glance at me.
As I stared at the closed door, I fully processed what he’d said. He said to call him when I changed my mind.
When not if. How could he be so confident that I would change my mind? Amidst my current emotional turmoil, I felt a slight curiosity about the long gone stranger.
I looked down at what he had dropped in my lap. It was a business card.
I read the name on it and my jaw dropped.
His name was Reid Prescott.
Reid Prescott? As in the owner of Prescott Enterprise, one of the biggest business conglomerate giants and the owner of the company Tina worked at?
How could someone like that want to marry me and what did the CEO of Prescott Enterprise have to gain by taking down the Baxters?
My head spun and I didn’t know if it was because of my new discovery or because of the fact that I was pregnant.
Good lord, I was really pregnant. What on earth was I going to do now?
The rays of the sun peeked through the blinds and although the day was just starting, it felt like mine was already over.
“Sophia!”
The door of my room slammed open as Tina ran in, her dark brown eyes full of concern.
“Tina,” I began to speak only to be interrupted by Tina’s sudden tight hug.
She pulled back long enough to examine my face, her worry only seeming to double.
“I was so worried, Sophia. What happened? How are you?”
Indeed what had happened.
This time a day ago, I had been certain of a promotion, an advance, a step in solidifying my control on my life but here I was now jobless with a baby on the way.
I met the gaze of my friend.
“Kate happened.”
Tina’s brief furrowed in confusion that slowly cleared up as I began to explain what had happened. How Kate had framed me and gotten me sacked.
I didn’t tell her about the pregnancy and the stranger’s proposal though. I could barely believe either of those things had happened to me.
“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine,” Tina said optimistically but I could see the worry for me in her eyes. “You’ll get another job, Sophia.”
We both knew that finding another job with this kind of stain on my reputation was next to impossible now but I still appreciated her efforts to make me feel better.
I placed my hand on Tina’s.
“Thank you for being here for me. I-”
My words were abruptly cut short when my phone suddenly began to ring. It was an unknown number.
“Hello?” I asked uncertainly.
“Good day Miss Evergreen,” A crisp feminine voice responded. “Are you the guardian of Aurora Evergreen?”
Mom.
My heart raced in my chest and my words couldn’t come out fast enough.
“Yes, she’s my mom. Is she alright?”
“You need to come to the hospital now.”
With those words, my world tilted off its axis.
Nothing could happen to Mom. I couldn’t lose her on top of everything I was currently dealing with.
When I reached the hospital, I could never have expected the news I got.
“If you don’t commence payment tomorrow, we will be forced to discontinue treatment and discharge your mother.”
Yes, the Baxters had finally done it as I had suspected that they would.
They’d stopped paying for Mom’s hospital bills.
“Tomorrow?” I echoed. Without a job I couldn’t afford a week of her treatments much less the monthly payments that the hospital required.
“Please this is on short notice. I need more time.” I pleaded but the attendant was immovable.
“I apologize, Miss Everdeen. There is nothing more we can do.”
As I walked out of the hospital, I hated myself, hated my life. Tomorrow Mom would be discharged and I didn’t even have a place for her to stay.
Not to mention that without her treatment, Mom’s condition would deteriorate. My hand drifted subconsciously to my belly. Even for my unborn child, I had nothing to offer them.
While I definitely knew Tina would let us stay with her but how long could I continue mooching off her?
“If revenge isn’t a strong enough motivation for you, Miss Evergreen, I will pay you fifty million dollars if you decide to marry me.”
I recalled Reid Prescott’s words from earlier on. Fifty million dollars.
I didn’t know what his motivations were for wanting to marry me and help me get revenge on the Baxters but for fifty million dollars did I really care?
I swallowed hard then I pulled his card out of my pocket.
Reid Prescott picked up on the first ring.
“Hello.” I said and although it was the first time I was calling him, Reid Prescott seemed to recognize my voice immediately.
“Miss Evergreen?” He asked but I had a question of mine already.
“Is your offer still on, Mr Prescott?”