Chapter 11
DEX
I send the heiress a text, because my father is moving way too fast. Either she knows something I don’t, or the old man is withholding something from me.
I look up to find her walking towards me. She looks sad, and it makes my stomach tighten. She’s away from her family, and everything familiar. Dropped into the Knight family like a grenade, and I have to suffer the consequences.
This poor woman has no idea of what she’s walking into. I remember her conversation with her parents. How much she loves them. How much she cares. How she’s doing this for them.
Jesus.
She’s in for a shock.
Her eyes, no longer dazzling, but a more muted dull tone now, fix on mine, and I swear my heart flips a little. I can’t remember the last time that happened and it startles me in a way I’m not prepared for. I didn’t expect to feel anything, yet something about the way she moves, the way she looks at me, makes my stomach knot. My heart begins to race in a way I don’t understand. I haven’t even seen this woman naked, and already she’s having an effect on me.
She crosses her arms. “You needed to speak to me.”
“We need to get our stories straight, get to know each other,” I say. “I need to get you a ring or something.”
“I believe its customarily a ring.” Her expression is guarded, like she doesn’t quite believe me. “I can use something I have from my jewelry collection if that makes it easier for you.”
“We need to play the part, so I’ll buy something appropriate. I mean, we’re getting married, aren’t we? It’s the least I can do.”
“Yes, we are.”
I scratch my ear, glance around the marble floored lobby. Wave at some people I know. “I don’t know anything about you.” My gaze meets those sparkling green eyes again.
“You don’t,” she agrees, a little too quickly. “And I don’t know much about you, except that you didn’t want this.”
“Well, you picked me. It’s crazy, but here we are.”
She exhales, eyes flicking away momentarily before coming back to mine. “I picked you because… because you didn’t fall all over me.” I let her words sink in, and try to understand. “I’ve had it all my life,” she says, something raw and honest in her expression. “I’m sorry if you think that’s arrogant. It’s just… you’re different . You didn’t stare at me like I was a commodity. You pushed back. You asked questions.”
She stops like she’s said too much, but I already get it. Guilt gnaws at me like a starving rat. I wince, thinking of the Brazilian Beauty Queen label I tagged on her, and in doing that, I reduced her to something plastic and pretty.
Men want to fuck her.
Women hate her.
It must be awful for her that people only see her as a beautiful face and body. They dismiss her as vapid, but the more I’m getting to know her, Daniela is anything but that.
I don’t know whether to pity her or admire her for putting herself out there like this. For stepping into what’s basically a cattle market.
“Why the rush?” I ask. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”
She puts a hand to her chest, expresses surprise. “No.”
My gut tells me not to believe her. “Your father’s company, AO Eletronica, is in good shape?”
“Yes.” She pauses. “My father wants the credibility that comes with having an American co-partner and your father wants a share of the South American telecom market. What better way to do that than with a strategic alliance? Besides, it’s been months since your father first approached us, and my father didn’t want to lose this opportunity.”
I study her for a long second, try to find cracks, a sliver of information she lets slip. But she’s good. “I understand your disdain for me, Dexter, but we are businesspeople. If we look at this as a business deal, we’ll be fine.”
“Then we should get together and try to get our stories straight. Like the old man advised us to.”
“Why do you keep calling him old man?” she asks innocently. “Do you have no respect for your father?”
“Welcome to the Knight Family.” I get ready to leave. “I have a meeting I need to be at. I’ll pick you up from your hotel at seven?”
“Seven is good.”
I check my phone, a habit as easy as breathing, to see an email from my father. He wants us to meet in the conference room later this afternoon.
Great. I can hardly wait.
I’ve been focused on urgent emails and tasks for the last few hours, and now make my way to the conference room to see what the old man has to say.
The Italian Knights are already there. Rio nods as our eyes connect. Matteo keeps tapping the pen on the table. Enzo sits there, quietly. He also nods when I catch his eye. The only one who doesn’t acknowledge me, or Jett or Zach, is Matteo. That asshole has an attitude.
“What’s this about, Dad?” My eager younger brother asks, as the old man walks in, his movements sharp and precise.
“This is about something Jett should have done, but didn’t,” my father replies smoothly.
Screw him. I wish he’d stop poking his finger at Jett, but I have a feeling he’s about to announce the marriage of convenience.
Jett leans back in his chair, unimpressed. “Let me guess,” he says flatly. “You’re still bitching about the arranged marriage. The one I wanted no part of.”
“Doesn’t matter now,” my father says coolly.
I sit up and exhale, wanting to steal the old man’s thunder. “Because I agreed.”
No reaction from Jett or Zach. They already know.
“You’re actually doing it?” Matteo asks, his brow lifting a little. “Agreeing to an arranged marriage?”
“Shut up and listen,” Rio mutters.
Enzo stares at me quietly.
I feel the weight of all their gazes. Weighing. Assessing. Judging.
“Why would you marry someone you don’t even know?” Matteo asks.
I don’t answer.
The old man glances at his watch, like this is some quick memo about a minor schedule change. Not a potentially massive decision for Knight Enterprises. Not a huge change in the trajectory of my life.
“You all met Daniela Oliveira at the soirée last night,” he says.
“Yeah, thanks for the advance notice on that,” Jett drawls.
“She was nice,” Zach offers.
“And very pretty,” Enzo adds.
“Well, she’s not for you to look at anymore,” my father says flatly. “She’s agreed to marry Dex.”
Matteo is texting on his phone.
Enzo shrugs. “Still pretty, though.”
“That doesn’t change,” Zach agrees.
“She’ll be your brother’s wife soon,” my father says sharply. “Have some respect.”
“As if you know anything about respect,” Matteo mutters, just loud enough, and without looking up.
The old man ignores him. “I’ll keep this short. No one outside this room, apart from Daniela’s parents, can know this is an arrangement. It must appear as a proper marriage.” He clasps his hands together. “Call it an alliance if you want. A merging of two powerful companies.”
Jett exhales sharply. “What’s in it for you?”
The old man’s mouth curves. “Like I told you before, access to the South American market.”
“Access? Or, if I know you, you’re probably planning to take it over. Slowly. Over time,” Jett says.
The old man’s smile doesn’t falter. “Fifty-fifty deal. They stay married for a year. We gain insight. Access to their books, their operations. We send our people in. We have meetings. We don’t have to move there, and they don’t have to move here. Apart from, of course …” He turns to me “ … your wife .”
I feel heat course through my veins. That name. That label, sounds surreal. “She’s not my wife yet.”
“She will be soon enough,” he continues. “So the public will see a Knight marriage. This’ll be interesting. The first of this generation. Let’s make it count.”
Jett exhales loudly. “People already assume you only do things for money. I wouldn’t worry too much about your reputation.”
Paul levels him with a look. “It’s important for AO Eletronica. This must look like a genuine union. I don’t want bad press, rumors, or speculation.” He flicks his gaze back to me. “Just keep her sweet. You don’t have to sleep with her. You’ll have separate bedrooms. She’ll live in your apartment, but there must be none of your usual shenanigans. No hookups or scandal.”
Fuck.
“But I thought you said I could—”
“I don’t want anything to jeopardize this arrangement.”
Not that I was planning on doing anything. I just wanted to see why the old man has suddenly changed his mind from telling me I could have as much sex as I wanted, to being squeaky clean.
I’m not that type of guy. I don’t cheat. Even if I’m in an arrangement like this crazy one I’m about to get into. The old man’s change of heart tells me he has a lot riding on this.
Still, a whole year without sex isn’t going to be easy. Like my right hand isn’t already overworked enough.
“Prepare to clear your schedules in the coming two weeks. I’ll send out a memo about the wedding timeline.”
I tense. This shit is getting real.
“You’re getting married in Brazil,” he announces calmly, adjusting his cufflinks. “I’ll confirm the timeline out shortly.”
I open my mouth, then close it.
What the hell?
“If I’m getting married,” I say slowly, “shouldn’t I at least … I don’t know … talk to her about it?”
Paul waves a dismissive hand. “No need. This is an alliance. A business deal. Just buy a ring. Get your stories straight. The rest, cake tastings, bridal fittings. I’ve already put my wedding planners on it. I’ll speak with Daniela’s parents. They’ll handle the rest.”
Jett lets out a dark chuckle. “How romantic.”
Paul ignores him. “Get it done. Get it over with. Plenty of photo ops. The press will love it.”
My pulse hammers in my ears. The break-neck speed of this gives me whiplash. “We’ll leave in the family jet. All of us.”
There’s a chorus of objections from the brothers. The old man’s expression hardens. He levels each of us with a stare. “I know that as a family—”
Scoffs. From Rio. Matteo. Jett.
He ignores them. “We are a family,” he states coldly. “Bound by blood.”
More scorn.
Rio tilts his head, eyes sharp. “We only ever have meetings when it’s about business. And once in a while, you throw some food on the table at your place to make it look like a family gathering.”
The old man gives a tight smile. “Isn’t that enough?”
“It’s a long flight to Brazil,” Matteo moans.
No one says anything.
But the weight of everything, the wedding in Brazil, the flight, being cooped up together, hangs heavy in the air.
***
DANI
I shut the door to my hotel room, pressing my back against it as I exhale. My heart is racing.
I’m meeting Dexter for drinks tonight and all I feel is apprehension. But that little conversation we had, just me and him, without his father, without anyone else, it was … nice.
Bearable.
I need to stop thinking about him like that. He doesn’t want this. I get that. He has no ulterior motive for doing this. I’m helping my father, but he doesn’t seem to even like his father.
At least he’s doing it, because yesterday, he was against it and today, he agreed.
And me?
I need this to help my father.
I need this so I don’t end up marrying Oscar Ramos.
Now that it’s official, now that Dexter and I are getting married, it’s finally time to tell my best friend. I glance at my phone. Missed calls. A string of messages from Raquel, ever since I texted a few days ago that I was in New York, but I never told her why.
I video call my parents first, taking a deep breath. “Papai … it’s going ahead.”
“Meu amor, we know!” My mother’s voice bursts through the speaker, filled with excitement. “This is wonderful news! Have you got a picture of him?”
“No, M?e, but I … I will.”
“Is he good? Is he kind?” my father asks. His voice is quieter, careful. I hesitate to answer. “Which son is he?” he asks.
“The second one. Dexter Knight.”
“A photo, meu amor,” my mother begs.
“I’ll send you one later, M?e. We’re meeting this evening.”
“You are?” My mother clasps her hands together, eyes shining like I’ve just won a Nobel Peace Prize. “This is so much better than we thought!” She sighs happily. “Arranged marriages do work, Daniela. So what if you didn’t date him first? Do it the other way around. Equal minds, equal hearts. Love will soon follow.”
I swallow. She doesn’t fully understand why we’re doing this.
“And his father?” my father asks.
“Paul Knight is drawing up a contract,” I say carefully. “He said we’ll both have a chance to review it.” I look at my father, for some input, but he’s quiet. “But Dexter and I thought we needed to be involved from the start.”
“It’s not necessary, not now. Don’t complicate things, filha.” His voice is firm. “You and Dexter, you both just focus on the romance.”
My stomach tightens.
“Papai,” I start. “There’s no romance here.”
“There must be something if you’ve agreed to meet him,” my mother says lightly. I close my eyes. I don’t know how to explain to them that this isn’t a love story.
Just as I begin to question myself again, about what I’m about to do, I hear a ping on my phone. It’s Raquel. Again. I read her text.
If I don’t hear from you soon, I’m heading out on a search and rescue mission.
I quickly say goodbye to my parents, and tell them to get some sleep and that I’ll call them tomorrow. Then I to call Raquel because I can’t stall her any longer.
She picks up on the first ring.
“Daniela, where the hell are you?”
“I’m in New York.”
“I know you’re in New York, but where? Seriously, you’ve been acting weird for the past few weeks, and I … I don’t know. Is there something going on that I need to know about so I can help you through it?”
I laugh, remembering our late-night talks in college, the boyfriend drama, breakups, tequila-fueled pep talks in the early hours of the morning.
“I’ve met someone,” I say. “And we’re getting married.”
The conversation falls silent.
Then, “You what? ” Her shriek is so loud I have to move the phone away from my ear.
“I love him,” I blurt out.
How easily that lie fell from my lips.
“You’re getting married?” Raquel repeats, slow, like she’s making sure she heard me right. “And this is the first I’m hearing about it?”
“It’s… complicated.”
“Complicated how?”
I inhale a shaky breath. “It’s been an on-and-off, international kind of thing.”
“An on-and-off, international romance?” Raquel echoes, incredulous.
“He was in Brazil a few weeks ago. Over a month ago, actually.” Another lie. I hate myself.
“Aha. In the summer you said something was going on but you weren’t sure what.”
I swallow. That was when the whole Jett situation was happening. “Things are clearer now,” I say quickly.
“Things are clearer now? What the hell does that mean?” Her voice sharpens.
“We had … uh … things to sort out.”
“So, let me get this straight. A few months ago, you weren’t even sure what was going on, and now you’re in New York, about to get married?”
“We haven’t set a date yet,” I admit. “But it’ll probably be soon.”
“Are you pregnant?”
“No!”
“Is he holding a gun to your head?”
I roll my eyes. “Raquel!”
“I’m just checking! You drop off the face of the earth, then out of nowhere, you’re engaged?”
“I-I love him,” I insist, the words making me shiver.
“You’re stuttering.”
“It’s cold in New York.”
“You stutter when something isn’t right,” she says. “You know what? I’m coming to see you.”
“No. No! Don’t do that. Please don’t do that.”
“Where are you staying?”
“How about I come and see you before I head home?” I suggest.
“We’ll see about that. “I have to go now.”
“Me too. I’m meeting Dexter this evening.”
“Dexter?”
I wince. “My fiancé. ” I stare down at my ringless ring finger.
“Dex-ter,” Raquel repeats, drawing out his name. Suspicion drips from her voice.
A text comes through. From Dexter again. “The Bluebell Manhattan,” I murmur, reading it out loud. That’s where he’s taking me. Another text message pops up.
And I have the ring
My breath catches in my throat. I need to be careful.
“I have to go,” Raquel announces, “but we need to talk, and soon.”
My heart sinks.
Lying to my best friend is possibly harder than living with Dexter will be.
Possibly.