Capítulo 2 Aurora

2

Deep breaths.The home office door in front of me is shut. Waiting for me to knock.

The empty hallway and quiet in the house make me aware of every single squeak, every murmur and quiet whisper in the house. The silence consumes me whole, and it brings out monsters that reside in the darkest parts of my mind, ones I don't ever want to face ever again. The reasons that pushed me out of this house.

Tugging down the sleeve of my pink puffy shirt, I glance at the black leather trousers and strappy hot pink heels. I am ready to enter the office, clean and presented well. I don't like wearing black, but it must be done for this occasion. The curiosity within me expands, but I tamp it down, knowing I will be out of here within ten minutes.

I knock twice on the door as I flick my hair over my shoulder. Let's hope the curls didn't get ruined in the rain. It took too long to style my hair.

"Come in." Father's strong voice spikes my heart rate.

I take a deep breath once again, hearing my heart pounding in my ears. Twisting the knob, I walk inside with a brave heart, preparing for whatever absurd lecture he is about to give me.

I stop in my tracks when I notice he has a guest sitting in front of him. "Close the door, Aurora."

I shut it softly behind me and walk towards the table. My heels click on the wooden floor, but my focus is on the man sitting in front of father. I don't recognise him from the back of his head.

He sits tall, sharp, as if in a meeting despite being in my father's home; technically, he is in an office of sorts. His pressed black suit stretches across his broad shoulders, and one of his hands rests on the side of the chair while the other is raised slightly as he runs his finger across his jaw that comes into view as I step closer.

My eyes flick between my father and the man, and I realise how small my father looks in comparison to this man.

The way the unknown man is sitting, so confident, so sure, makes me slightly nervous. My stomach twists as the man drops his hand and I catch the glint of a diamond-and-gold watch on his thick, yet manly, wrist.

"Sit down. I have something to tell you." Father motions to the chair.

I slowly take a seat while avoiding eye contact with the man, whom I am suddenly incredibly aware of.

I nod at my father and lean back in the chair, putting my left leg over my right. Sitting with my legs crossed makes me feel powerful. I can never afford to appear weak. Even if my heart quivers when I get belittled by my own father under the disguise of receiving 'advice' or 'guidance' I don't need.

The man next to me does not move an inch, but the sudden waft of his strong cologne surrounds me with a soft embrace that whispers to deliver anything my heart may desire.

Leather, masculine, and dark smoke.

"I'm listening."

Father smiles at me, and it makes me wince. He definitely wants something.

"What do you need?" I ask before he can speak.

The man next to me raises his leg to put his ankle over his knee.

"If you'd let me speak..." Father narrows his eyes at me in silent warning. "Well, first, meet my new business partner." He motions to the man sitting next to me.

That sentence alone makes me sit up straight. The absurdity of it makes me hyper aware of everything happening.

"Remo Cainn. Mr Cainn, this is my daughter, Aurora Torre."

I feel his intense gaze before I even turn my head.

The first thing my eyes land on is the haunting dark eyes of the man.

I take in his sharp cheekbones, the beautiful strong structure of his face. The defined eyebrows and the dark lashes that fan over his pitch-black eyes, which are currently hyper-focused on me, keep me entangled in a trance I am suddenly unable to pull myself out of. His face looks like it is carved from smooth stone, a Greek statue standing under thundering rain, lightning flashing on the most beautiful statue known to mankind. Remo Cainn has the very beauty archaeologists use to describe the most stunning Greek statues.

My own part in surprise when I notice his lips, because they are a blush pink colour, my favourite, and not to mention just how delightful they look.

His posture and big body make the chair look small. From the sharpness in his face, the structure of his features, and the way his shoulders are broad, I assume he must be in his mid-thirties.

The one thing I cannot take my mind off is how handsome, how mature, and how strong this man looks. Even without the suit highlighting his muscles, I would know he works out hard because of the faint muscle structure under his clothes.

His eyes watch me as if they are gripping my heart in their cruel hold and not willing to let go. The ink black hair that's slicked back brings out his handsome features.

Remo Cainn, looks like a monster hidden under all the beauty he has."Nice to meet you," I offer first, since he doesn't seem to want to talk.

His jaw ticks, but his face shows indifference.

Okay.

Turning back to my father, I see him blink as if trying to clear the awkward silence between us and nods at me with a professional and well-rehearsed smile.

"Since he is my business partner, I want to introduce an idea. I think it will be a good opportunity for not only both of us but you as well. You have a fashion line, right?"

I slowly nod. Nothing coming out of my father's mouth is making sense.

"I am proposing the idea of an arrange marriage between the two of you. We will be able to benefit from this publicity stunt and also keep our businesses merged together," he says this in one single breath, all while stealing mine away. He straightens up like this is the best idea he's had in his whole pathetic sixty-year long life.

"What?" I blanked out, I think, or maybe I have something in my ear.

What did he say?

Marriage? Me and the man next to me?

"I don't think I heard you corr-"

"We're arranging a marriage between you and Remo Cainn to secure our assets," Father says.

I blink.

My world stopped for a moment. Or maybe I just didn't hear him correctly.

"You have enough money, Dad. Sure, your business sales have fallen over the past few months-"

"Watch your-"

"But that doesn't mean you can throw me into this to save yourself. I have my whole life left ahead of me. I'm in no hurry to get married, and I'm sure Remo Cainn, here, isn't happy about this either. You think marriage is such a simple thing?"

My father shakes his head, and a shadow falls on him. I think I'm the only one who saw it.

That's when I realise my life is spiralling out of my control. My world tilts and the ground beneath my feet disappears, and I get swept away. I'm falling.

Just because I live my own life, make my own money, it clearly doesn't mean I get to try to get out of something my father is clearly set on.

My hand tightens around the edge seat of the chair, my hold so tight I feel my nails digging into the wood.

"You are doing this, Aurora," he says firmly, and his sentence ends there, sealing my fate.

I am left sitting with my heart in my throat. Tears burn the back of my eyes, but I blink them away.

Why is life always placing broken pieces of me in front of me and leaving me to put myself back together? Whenever I am back on my feet, whenever I am finally content, something pushes me back down, and I have to climb back up with a bruised body, bloody fingers, and a bleeding heart with a knife lodged inside of it.

And I can't complain, because then I seem ungrateful for what has been given to me. I have to shut up and deal with it all while the knife inside my chest is being twisted and blood pools at my feet.

This is not the first time my father had done something like this, and I hate him for it. I will never forgive him for turning a blind eye to what has happened to me in the past, but it hurts just as badly to see him not look at me twice as he commands me to do this.

"No. Whatever you want, it's yours; but you don't get to force me into this." I stand up, and my chair flies back, barely missing getting tipped over.

It seems my father has made up his mind but also has a backup plan before I can voice my disagreement.

"Remember what is at stake." His words make my whole world stop around me.

There it is.

The same threat I get every day.

Every. Single. Day.

The one mistake in my life I regret.

The money I am trying to pay him back, but my business just took off. It has only been two years since my business sales have shot up, and here is my father, already demanding me to give him his money back.

He doesn't need the money.

He just wants to keep control over me.

Taking a sharp breath in at the hurt I feel deep down, my eyes turn to look at the man who has been silent this whole time.

It seems he wants this to happen. He is sitting here just watching this fall, watching my freedom slip right out of my hand.

"But... why? Why do you need this?" I whisper, looking into my father's eyes, trying to understand what led him to this situation.

He fidgets in his seat, his eyes flickering to Remo before falling on me again. A shadow of fear passes across his face, and I only notice it because it's something I have never witnessed before.

There is something they aren't telling me.

"To save my failing company."

That's not true. Despite Glamorous not doing well in the last few months, it's not failing or experiencing large losses. It shouldn't mean my father needs to arrange a marriage to save the company that is merely losing thousands compared to the millions it makes.

"I can't afford to sell off my assets to save it because it will decrease my own value. Mr Cainn invests in businesses, so I asked him for help, and he accepted."

I suck in a shaky breath, unsure of where this story is going.

"It's a decision that cannot and will not change." He slams a hand on the table, making me flinch.

He's taking away my freedom, taking away the one last thing I had left for me. I wish he could just-

Only then does my mind click.

This is it. This is what I could use to get away from my father and escape him and this hell he created for me. This is my chance to be able to use this marriage to my advantage. My father is talking about this marriage being good for his image, but this could be good for my image, too.

Holding back the smile at my train of thought, I blink, dragging the chair back to its original place and sit back down, looking at him as if I feel dejected.

I don't know the reason, and they may never tell me, but that doesn't mean I should be the victim in all of this. I can definitely make use of this information.

Some sort of stupid excitement bubbles inside of me, and I suddenly can't sit still.

"What about Ambrose? Why can't you marry her off?"

Father's eyes flicker to the man next to me once more, but he quickly averts them and focuses on me. It may seem like I am still trying to get out of this but not anymore. This is the opportunity I've been waiting for. This is the key to my freedom.

I can do this.

This is exactly what I needed.

"No," Father denies.

"Why me?" Upon my question, I feel my skin tingle in awareness. He's watching me. Remo is looking at me now, and something hot weaves around my chest. I force myself not to look towards him.

"One or the other," Father answers, but there is no strength behind his words.

"How long?" That is the big question, because although this is no fairy-tale love, or beautiful love at first sight, I need to know when I can end this.

"A year."

That is far less than I thought.

"We can blame it on something like the marriage not working out." My father has clearly thought about this, and that makes me realise that he could be in more trouble than I thought.

Turning towards the man on my right, I grab my purse off the ground and stand up.

"Who are you?"

His eyes watch me, then his lip twitches in what could be amusement, but it's gone in a flash. He is just so hauntingly handsome that I desperately want him to speak. To say something.

"Why have I never seen you before?" I press further, feeling proud that I am not backing down in front of this man.

He dips his chin before slowly getting up from the chair. He keeps going until he is standing at his full height, towering over me. My head falls back as I look at him.

He takes a step closer to me as he puts a hand in his pocket before raising the other hand. I watch as his finger comes into my view, then he flicks a lock of hair away from my face, his eyes focused on that movement before they slowly slide to me. He seems in no hurry.

Something chokes me. I can't breathe. The whirling, dark depths of his eyes and the force of them paralyzes me.

My eyes widen at his boldness in front of my own father.

"Aurora Torre." His voice is calm, quiet, but has strength that it makes my insides quiver.

My heart thumps in my chest, drumming against my ribcage. His heat wraps all around me, and the office feels all too small with him in front of me.

The atmosphere grows tense, and his inky eyes sweep over my face before coming back up to my eyes.

All I can think about is the way my breasts brush ever so slightly against his hard chest, and when he leans in, I hold my breath. I feel sort of ashamed by this when my whole life's freedom is on the line, but a voice– a whisper of a voice, of reason – asks me to negotiate while I have the chance.

He takes a step back, then he turns around and walks right back out. It feels as if cold water washes over me, making me release a big breath.

After a few minutes of standing there, wondering how my life has changed so quickly, I walk out without giving my father another glance.

"She's the one marrying him. There is no way Dad would marry me off to that man." Ambrose's voice travels through the walls as I pass by the kitchen.

I glance through the doorway and spot her leaning against the counter while on her phone.

"I'm not marrying that man. My younger sister will be the one to do so." She huffs, as if it's the worst thing ever on earth, as if she's glad I'm the one who got burnt in the end.

For me, it isn't about his age or his profession. It's about the last of my dreams getting snatched from me.

His strong features definitely put him in the good looks department, and I do find him attractive. He has a pretty face.

That doesn't make this all better, though.

"No, he's just become Dad's business partner. I'm not sure why. I thought we were doing well, but he clearly needs more money." She hums as she listens to her friend say something else.

That's when I hear soft thumps of shoes coming down the hallway from my father's office. I look over my shoulder. A tall, dark silhouette of a person makes their way towards me.

Didn't he leave?

Something tickles down my spine. I can feel his phantom eyes on me. The soft yellow lights catch the lines of his sharp cheekbone as he walks past them every couple of steps, the silence now disturbed by the thump of his expensive shoes.

The shadows surrounding him make him look like a dangerous predator patiently stalking its prey in the darkness. My apprehension rises, and I don't know if that's a good thing. I turn around quickly, holding my breath, as if he might hear me and pounce on me or his heavy eyes will sharpen if I make a single noise.

Something like fear pricks in my heart, though I'm curious. It's an intense feeling, having his eyes on the back of my head as I make my way outside, hearing the faint sound of his shoes follow slowly.

As soon as I step outside the big main doors and into the cool air outside, the lingering smell of rain fills me.

My eyes scan over the driveway, from my white Range Rover to the one parked next to mine. My lips part, and my eyes widen. The black Range Rover from last night.... it was him.

It was Remo Cainn coming over for dinner, possibly to set up this arrangement.

But why did they let me leave last night when he was coming over, anyway?

Getting into my car, I start it, and just as I am reversing out of the driveway, Remo walks out. He watches me, and once more, that same feeling forms inside of me. My stomach twists under his intense gaze. He's watching me like he's buying time, like he is letting everything fall into place and is watching his plan perfectly align. His hands are in his pockets, but he doesn't make a move to walk towards his car.

Why do I feel this way around him?

I can't even pinpoint if it's good or bad.

I pull into traffic and dial Kamari.

"If this is actually happening, then you might as well take advantage of it. Set your own rules, demand things, and enjoy your life. Rich husband? Who wouldn't want that? You said he was handsome; until we have a good reason, we shouldn't doubt things." Kamari's all-too-reasonable voice comes through the speakers in my car.

"What was his name again?" Kamari asks a second later.

"Remo Cainn."

Rapid clicking fills my car, then I hear her gasp.

"Why have I never heard of this man? He looks...he looks scary but hot. I don't know how he even managed to meet your father, but this... He's hot as fuck Aurora," Kamari says.

She should be going out any second now with Ruel to an event she told me about. There are so many that I can't keep track.

"Marry him. What bad will it do? In bed, he might even-"

"Okay. I'm hanging up now. I'm here at the gallery. Nice to catch up to you."

Kamari laughs on the other end. "Okay. Bye!"

"I accepted it. In a way," I blurt out right before she is about to hang up. I bite my lip, waiting for her reaction. "I love you. Bye," I continue quickly.

"Wait-what?" she shouts, but I laugh and hang up.

I have a gallery viewing to get to. I wanted to buy some pieces for my home, but now I realise that home may not remain mine for much longer.

I walk through the gallery doors and into the showroom, but my mind is elsewhere.

What did Kamari say Remo did?

I need to talk to him. And soon. Before it's too late to null this marriage. My father kept me in the dark despite involving me in his mess.

Taking my phone out, I dial my secretary.

"Claudia, can you make an appointment with Remo Cainn?"

She types something in her computer, then I hear her suck in a sharp breath.

"Aurora, if you are thinking of selling your business, please don't. I love working for you and the number of opportunities you present me with. You're an amazing person, and I would hate for this to be-"

"Claudia. What are you talking about?" I frown as I walk past a couple standing in front of a painting, then go to the back, where there aren't many people.

"You said to contact Remo Cainn?" she asks.

"Yes, I did."

"Doesn't that mean that you are thinking of investment from Remo Cainn?"

"What? No. I just need a meeting with him. I am not selling Blushing. You know I love my company. Why would I do that?" I say.

I blink, tightening my grip on my phone.

"He's the owner of the Giorgio Vino, the wine company that manufactures its grape wines from Italy. You know, the wine that is found in almost every luxury hotel and all the top restaurants."

I stand in shock as I digest. I don't read the news enough to know this-I am too busy making my designs-but this information is new to me.

Remo Cainn is the owner of Giorgio Vino? The multi-million-pound business owner based here in London? What had my father done to gain the attention of this powerful man?

"Please, just make an appointment with him in the next week, or maybe even the upcoming few days. Move my schedule around if you can," I tell her.

I need to meet with this man without my father there.

And I need to do that fast.