Xavier’s point of view.
“Mike put the search on hold, I will call you back,” I said to Mike and ended the call.
I looked at the woman in front of me and was confused.
“Why?” I simply asked.
“Because you need a bride and I need a groom.” She said waving her hand all over her wedding gown.
“Where is your groom?” I asked her.
“He stood me up.” She replied.
She looked tough and her voice was strong and steady but I knew she was not in any way steady.
I had dealt with a lot of people as a businessman, man so I could easily read people’s emotions
She was indeed beautiful.
Perfectly structured body, Hazel eyes with long wavy brunette color hair.
It made me wonder who would have been so stupid enough to stand up to a woman as gorgeous as she. Even my supposed bride was nowhere near her when it came to beauty.
I also began to wonder why I was acting interested in her.
My getting married was strictly for business reasons and I had no intentions of getting to know anything personal about whoever I was getting married to except if she was fertile enough to get me an heir.
“Alright, I will agree to marry you on one condition,” I told her.
“And what is that?” She asked me.
“Our marriage is a contract marriage and it will last only for a year during which you must give me a child,” I stated the rules.
“And what if I am unable to give you the heir before the one-year expires?” She asked raising her eyebrows.
“Then the contract gets annulled and you will pay me a compensation fee of twenty million dollars,” I said.
I watched her eyes widen in shock at the amount I called.
She looked at me and swallowed hard as she began to weigh her options in her mind.
“And if I give you a child, what happens?” She asked again.
“Simple, the marriage would still be annulled and you will be given a compensation fee of a hundred and fifty million dollars and you will be well settled with a house and car of your choice and even after that, you will be put on a monthly payment of five million dollars for five years after which our agreement comes to an end,” I explained to her.
She breathed in and out as she thought about it again.
“But there is a clause,” I told her.
“And what is that?” She inquired.
“You will sign an agreement form not to have anything to do with me or the child after the one year and you will never lay claim to the child else you will be slammed with a lawsuit that you will never be able to win,” I revealed to her.
“Wow, so businesslike.” She commented.
“Exactly! Everything between us would be strictly business even when we sleep together, it would be strictly for the sake of childbearing.” I said.
I watched her blink her eyes rapidly as her face suddenly turned red.
Somehow, it felt so cute watching her blush in such a manner and I had to resist the urge to scoop her into my hands and kiss that redness away.
I shook my head in annoyance to clear my head.
“Are you okay?” She asked me.
I’m sure my change in expression must have caught her unawares and made her feel uncomfortable.
“Yes, I’m okay,” I said as I flashed her smile.
I wondered what was wrong with me and why I was so bent on making her comfortable.
This was not part of the plans and this strange beautiful goddess here was making me feel like a teenager again and I was not happy with it.
I tried to be stern and businesslike with her but still, something in me wanted to draw her into my arms and take away her pains with kisses and cuddles while I listened to her story.
“When do I sign the contract?” She asked startling me.
“Don’t worry, the documents are with the judge and we will sign them together as we sign the marriage form,” I explained to her.
When I told my grandfather about my plans, he had decided to draw up the contract by himself and one of Mike’s uncles was the judge who would be in charge of the wedding.
“Alright! Let’s do it.” She agreed.
“What is your name?” I asked her.
“Jessica, my name is Jessica Blackwell.” She said.
“I’m Xavier McCartney.”
***
I decided to call Mike to tell him to stop the search since I had already gotten a bride.
“Hey, man! I’m so sorry I have been unable to get a replacement.” Mike panted immediately when he picked up the call.
“It’s okay Mike, I forgive your incompetence, I already got myself a bride,” I announced to him.
“Wow, really, so fast? Where did you meet her?” He asked in a rush.
“Here at the courthouse but it’s a long story and I will explain it later,” I said.
“Alright, so how is she? Is she beautiful?” Mike asked.
I took a look at Jessica again and answered Mike.
“She is stunning and gorgeous,” I said.
***
When I ended my call with Mike, I gestured to Jessica for us to enter the courthouse.
Uncle Fabian was the judge.
He was my favorite amongst all of Mike’s uncles and he was the closest to all of us.
My grandfather chose him as the judge to oversee the wedding because he was the one we trusted to keep it confidential.
“So let’s begin!” Uncle Fabian said with joy as he ushered us into his office.
As I said earlier, it was a very private wedding so there was no need to use the main hall.
We exchanged vows and rings and it was time to sign the documents.
Without going through it, Jessica and I both signed the documents.
I was about to hand over the documents to Uncle Fabian when Jessica caught a clause in it and she drew my attention to it.
The duration of our marriage arrangements had been changed from one year to…
“Five years!” Jessica and I both screamed.
***