Marrying the Cold CEO

Chapter Seven

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We will be attending Senator Black's Charity Benefit Dinner. Be ready by 8pm.

I stared at the old message that had soured last night's mood and followed well into the relaxing Saturday I had planned to spend cooped up in my apartment that was not so relaxing anymore.

I knew Damien's lack of communication since the dinner party from hell a week ago was only a small reprieve. Time was flying by and my mother had taken over my fiancé's responsibilities by ensuring to nag me about every little bit of the wedding details.

I however, was not as forthcoming with suggestions. It wasn't my wedding after all but rather a partnership between the Maximiliano's and the Aleksandros family. I was simply collateral damage in the whole deal and as such, I would not be as willing to take part in such a shame of an arrangement.

You've already sold my soul to the literal devil…least you can do is handle the rest and leave me to lick my wounds and plan my next steps…

Leaving our arrangement was not an option. Despite all their shortcomings, I loved my family and was loyal to them. I wouldn't have made the deal I had made with my mother if I didn't, although I suspect she never would have let me stray too far away from her control.

That's just the kind of woman Elena Maximiliano was. That was how she was raised. To be in control of all things, including her daughter's future. A future she had secured with a man I had been running from for ten years.

Damien's demands to be the perfect fiancé and wife were expected. I would be falling back into a life I had run from for five years. I knew it was the inevitable outcome for me and yet the condescending way that he spoke to me still irked me to no end.

I knew he couldn't help it. That was just how he was, but it didn't mean that I did not have the right to be angry and frustrated. He expected me to fall in line, to follow his commands, and although I had spent the day coming to terms with being exactly that for him and for my family's future, my stubbornness seemed to win out as logic and emotion clashed ruthlessly within my mind.

Showing Damien weakness was a grave mistake, one I could not afford to ever make again. Yes, he was scary and a callous business man. Many quaked under his presence and the way he carried himself. Brilliant but terrifying, it was the perfect mix for business adept man that had made Adetos into the empire it was.

But he won't be a business man with me, at least not entirely. He is to be my husband and if I want any semblance of normalcy with him and respect, I must be able to match him and make him respect me back.

It was a daunting thought, standing up against him. It was something I had failed to do ten years ago. But I was not that scared little girl anymore. No, I had grown. Matured and let life guide me through situations that strengthened me. Maybe it was preparing me for this very fate. And I would not squander all the lessons it had taught me.

I have faced off with cold-blooded killers, ruthless criminals and have come out on top. Damien may be worse, but he is not a mountain I cannot conquer.

And so began my quest for acknowledgement and respect, with my first step being ignoring him and his demands. He needed to learn that I would not leap and jump at every one of his orders. He would learn. I would win the battle, but the war was the most important thing.

Starving a man who exercised control in all things from receiving any sort of attention or acknowledgement was a blow to his ego and destabilised him enough to take attention. He would be pissed at my lack of communication. Heck, he might as well go wild on me but honestly, I was teetering on the edge of my own madness at this whole arrangement.

He wants to control me, then he needs to give something in return, even if it means his sanity.

Finally taming the last strand of my curly hair into a messy but elegant bun, I applied the last layer of harlot red lipstick whilst ignoring the buzzing of my phone. Damien's last text from five minutes ago was still open and read with no response and his irritation seemed to have built and shifted into calls.

I'm downstairs. Be here in the next few minutes or I'll come get you myself and trust me, You do not want that Gianna.

His threat had sent a thrill through me and anxiety unfurling in my stomach, but a wave of calm confidence and reassuring energy overflowed as I gazed at my outfit for the night and the decision to fight against him.

Strapless, floor-length evening gown whose cosseted top worked well to enhance my generous breasts and push them up into a sexy showcase but not slutty. The rhinestones in the dress glimmered under my bedroom lighting, making the black dress stand out as did the thigh-high slit that bared flesh and showed off the strappy red peep toe heels I had chosen.

Seeing the bold color, not only on my lips but my shoe choice did the part it always did. It made me feel brave, enough to stand strong against the man who seemed to believe he would control me- own me.

You can do this, Gia…You can show him that he may have ownership over you on paper but he will never possess your soul and your body…

Taking a deep breath, I grabbed my red clutch bag and placed my phone and extra toiletries inside before making my way to the elevator that dinged open at my approach. Pushing the ground floor button, I busied myself with ensuring I was as put together as possible, the elevator mirror granting me a full view of my appearance.

My diamond bracelet glittered under the light, an expensive gift from my father that brought a genuine smile to my lips. Apart from it and a pair of matching diamond tear drop earrings, they were the only jewelry I had donned for the night. My engagement ring was glaringly missing and with good reason.

I will hang onto my freedom for as long as possible before the engagement is made public…

I knew tonight was probably a soft launch for our 'relationship' and I knew that Damien might not take my rebellion from wearing his ring too well, but I was past the point of caring. If I was going to show him that I meant business, I needed to make a loud enough statement.

The doors dinged open, revealing the lobby of the lavish apartment building that I lived in. Daventry was one of the most exclusive buildings in New York with branches beyond the Upper East Side. It was owned by Real Estate Royalty with few units, two massive apartments on each floor, a penthouse and the most exclusive tenants.

From celebrities to millionaires, they catered to an elite level of clients, one of whom was my mother. My fight to move out and away from her had been harrowing after my return from Harvard. She could not understand my aversion at living at Casa Maximiliano in New Jersey or rather, one of the many mansions we owned in the Hamptons.

I wanted to stand on my own two feet, away from her control, as I took my place in a job she found less than desirable. And so the compromise was this. Living in the best, most secure and exclusive building I could ever stay in. I had hated her intervention at first, but the place quickly became home and some of the tenants became friends. I did not intend to give up my apartment and the connections I had made here, married or not. We will have to figure it out, one way or another.

Besides, it's not like many billionaires out there live in the same house as their wives. Such is upper society life- dirty and gritty when you peel back the expensive layers and uncover the bullshit.

Of course I had always hoped to have a different sort of future. A husband who, despite being affluent or not, would not succumb to the standards and example of other rich men. A happy marriage with children, a love that consumes and transcends everything. A Boundless and Unbreakable love.

It was a far-fetched dream I knew would never be a reality. Not when I had Maximiliano as my last name. My mother had hit the final nail in my coffin by fulfilling the stupid betrothal promise and signing my life away to him.

Damien can do whatever the hell he wants after the wedding, as long as I get to live my own life on my own terms…including staying right here…

I contemplated this thought even as I passed Kevin, our door man, a kind smile that he returned before setting my gaze on beyond the glass doors. My heart was heavy but all those thoughts seemed to wither and disappear once our gazes met and a charge seemed to fill the air around me.

Dressed impeccably as expected, Damien stood at the threshold of the building, his black tuxedo form fitting on every muscular curve of him. He was a true Adonis, crafted and carved by the gods of his home country themselves.

Piercing cold blue eyes assessed me with the same intensity I assumed I granted him and although the glass doors still separated us as Kevin pushed them open, the energy between us was still potent. He stood tall at 6"3 with raven black hair that was shaved at the sides and slightly longer at the top- an elegant and very sexy fade for a breathlessly handsome man who seemed to leave pedestrians gawking at his beauty. He was a tanned Greek god and painfully handsome.

Not that he noticed. No, he was staring straight at me, a blank expression on his features but his eyes, those fathomless, bottomless blues seemed to say so much more, silent messages I could not comprehend.

"Have a wonderful and enjoyable evening, Miss Maximiliano. "

Kevin broke our stare on, affording me a kind smile and respectful nod to my silently brooding fiancé before he returned to his station within the building. For a moment, I wanted to run back with him to the safety of my space. Of my home, but I steeled my spine and ignored the chill that traveled down my spine at his assessment that certainly wasn't from the cold.

Placing a kind smile on my lips, I willed myself to look away from his mesmerising gaze that seemed to hold me in place and, instead, turned to his companion who I recognised as my visitor from a week ago who had delivered my engagement ring.

An unorthodox marriage proposal that probably would have Elena and Aimi putting him in his place with colorful words whilst Ayana granted him a cold and unamused glare…

My friends would lose their minds were they to learn the truth behind one of the grandest gestures one could ever receive. Which was why I would ensure they would never know. To keep the peace.

As far as they were concerned, Damien took me out for a fancy, private dinner and proposed in candle light and an orchestral serenade of our favorite song, Until I found you by Stephen Sanchez which earned me cute aaws and tearful hugs.

I could cut the man some slack, though. He had delivered flowers with the ring and my favorite, red roses. How he had known that small detail about me was a mystery that I filed away as I focused on greeting the kind, older gentleman before me.

"Hi. My name is Gianna, but please, call me Gia. Thank you for last week and for coming today. I apologise for keeping you waiting. I'm afraid the notice about this event was pretty last minute so I had to finish up on a couple things first."

The last statement was not a true reflection of the relaxed Saturday I had spent binging my favorite shows and eating my weight in white chocolate-covered strawberries. My mother would probably have had a stroke if she knew of all the junk food I'd consumed before the evening event today.

She was of the opinion that any event that required me to squeeze into a form-fitting dress needed me to starve myself beforehand to ensure that my curvy figure was more defined and gorgeous. All the women in the Maximiliano household were proud of their Hispanic genes and how bodies were curvy in all the right places but that didn't mean family hikes and jogs were out of the equation.

My grandmother's absence as she spent her time back in Barcelona had been the only reprieve from the extreme workout regimes she always puts us on. And so when she was away, mother and I preferred not to carry on with the program. It was one of few things we agreed on.

"Its quite alright. I'm Mark, Mr. Aleksandros' Head of Security and trusted chauffeur for the night. It's a pleasure to meet you. Once you're both ready, let me know so that we can proceed to the venue."

With a kind smile to me and a respectful nod to his boss, he retreated into the car, leaving me at the mercy of the man who had not since taken his eyes off me. It was unnerving, to feel his gaze scorch through every part of me and leave my skin blazing. No one had ever made me feel like this, evoked such emotions and reactions from my body. It was as impressive as it was terrifying.

"Are you going to stand there and gawk or are we going to get this night over with? I thought you didn't like to be late."

I found my tongue, summoning every bit of my resolve to meet his blue gaze. He was silent for a moment, raising a brow in question before his cool, deep voice pierced the night and left goosebumps in its wake.

It has to be the cold night air…ain't no way he has that much of an effect on me, right?

"So your phone does work. It seems my second gift is unnecessary, though it would have been the courteous thing to do to at least respond to my messages. Whatever little game you're playing is not amusing, Gianna."

Wait, second gift?? What the hell is he on about?

I barely had time to process his words before his condescending tone brought back the annoyance and fire in my veins, scorching through me as I levelled him with an unimpressed glare that seemed to take him aback.

"I assure you, Mr. Aleksandros, that I have no interest in playing games or doing anything else with you. As we discussed last time, this is a business deal and nothing more. However, don't be foolish enough to think you can order me around. I will not jump at your every whim and desire. I am not one of your subordinates and neither am I like the women you're probably used to. I will not kiss your ass. If you want us to attend a social gathering, then inform me of it early enough and with ample time to prepare and consider whether I would like to accompany you."

"I am just as busy as you are, so respect my time and we should not have any problems moving forward. Now, let's get this night over with. I prefer to enjoy my freedom as much as I possibly can away from you before I am chained to your side forever by a f*****g business deal and archaic tradition."

With the resolve still pumping through my veins and confidence leaking through every part of me, I stepped forward to open the door to the sleek, black Rolls-Royce Ghost that would be our ride for the night, but Mark was already out of the driver's seat and opening the door for me as efficiently as expected of anyone working for the Aleksandros family.

Returning his kind smile that showed no indication that he had heard or acknowledged my little outburst at his boss, I took his offered hand as he helped me settle into the plush, white leather seats. He closed the door after my thanks and I took that moment to amass my courage and finally look at Damien after my confidence had waned and my senses had returned.

Holy s**t…I can't believe I actually did it…I stood up to him…and survived….

The last statement was yet to be determined as I watched him make his way down the front of the car to the other side of the back door, Mark following close behind. His expression was blank as always, revealing nothing of his true emotions. He was a blank wall, unreadable. I could see why he had become a household name in the business world in such a short period of time.

He paused at the door for a second, letting Mark open it for him before he settled beside me, seeming to bar the cold air from filtering in through the open door. Silence stretched as Mark closed the door and settled on the driver's side before we were well on our way and pulling into city traffic.

I could feel his gaze on me, the charged air within the car giving me pause as I steeled my spine and turned to meet it, preparing myself for whatever verbal lashing he had in response, but instead, all I could do was try not to choke on my lost breath as I let the fathomless depths of his gaze consume me.

Many claimed that Damien was incapable of any other emotion other than cool, cold and calculated. They did not know the depths of truth in their statement. But I was starting to realise that I was wrong too.

Things had changed in the last ten years since I had seen him. He had become a master at controlling his emotions, the ones he could comprehend at least. You could not tear down his walls, even if you wanted to. Instead, he allowed you to see what he wanted you to see.

And there was more…so much more than what had been ten years ago. Too much for me to truly comprehend. However, one emotion stood out amongst the rest. One I latched onto even once he turned away from me and focused his gaze on his vibrating phone.

Pride…He was impressed…but there was danger there too. I had won my first battle against him but I probably wouldn't get away with it either…

Ah hell…let the war begin…

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