Arranged to Marry Her Ex-Billionaire Lover

Chapter 7

*Flashback* 10 years ago

Jinn

Standing in front of the massive building of the Wilson group of companies, I filled my lungs with a long breath. I was only twenty but I had already graduated with honors from Harvard. Due to my impressive academic records, I had managed to skip a couple of grades at high school, and here I was to attend an interview for the position of Personal Secretary to Noah Wilson. 

I could have easily joined my grandfather’s business but I wanted to make my own name in the business world. And for the same purpose, I did not use my surname. Instead, I used the name Jinn Leonie, my grandfather’s first name. I must say he had a hand in forging my documents using his powers and I couldn’t be any more grateful to him for that.

Reaching the reception desk, I inquired where the interview was happening to the young receptionist seated there. When she gave me the direction I took the elevator to reach the ninth floor. I stepped out when the elevator came to a halt and took one of the empty chairs in the corridor where the other interviewees were waiting.

This was my very first interview and I sat there feeling overwhelmed to even breathe properly. I very badly wanted this job since grandpa had only given me a month’s time and in that time if I didn’t get myself a decent job, I was to join my family business.  The reason behind that was my grandpa didn’t want me to be sitting ideally at home.

After a good one hour of waiting, my name was finally called, making my heart drop to my stomach. Bracing myself, I stood up straightening my suit jacket before knocking on the door of the conference hall.

When I heard someone call me in, I plastered a confident smile on my face and entered inside, where I noticed three men in their late forties or even early fifties seated across the desk.

The man seated in the middle of the other two was Mr. Wilson, the CEO. I got to know it from the name board placed in front of him.

Greeting them all, I handed him my file as he stretched his hand out. The interview went on for about fifteen minutes or so and from the pleasing look that all the three gentlemen were throwing at me, I knew I would grab home a job today.

“Do you have any work experience?” The man on Mr. Wilson’s right was asking me but the sound of the door suddenly barged open startled all of us.

“Sorry to interrupt guys but I need to talk to my dad..” All four pairs of eyes turned back to the person. A girl not more than eighteen or nineteen years of age walked into the hall, her whole existence screaming riches and luxury.

“Dahlia, how many times have I told you not to disturb me when I am at work?” Mr. Wilson reprimanded, bringing his spectacles down.

“I wouldn’t have come here if you hadn’t forgotten to keep up your promise..” She crossed her arms over her chest and to say I was unaffected would be a complete lie.

Without my permission my treacherous eyes cascaded down her slim figure which was clad in a white sleeveless T-shirt and mini- denim shorts, leaving very little for my imagination. My mouth went dry when I got a glimpse of her toned long legs.

For the first time, my eyes met with hers and I should say I haven’t seen such mesmerizing pair of light green eyes before in my entire twenty years of existence. She was quite attractive - slight, pinkish skin and a mane of chocolate brown hair which was straightened to perfection but out of all those traits, the dimples on both her cheeks were the most alluring to my eyes.

She had a small, innocent face with a tiny nose but fuller pink lips. She had applied a sufficient amount of makeup but I knew she would be even more breathtaking without it.

Her curves were delicate yet they were to my liking. What caught my attention more was her grapes scent that wafted into my nostril. It caused my heart to skip a beat.

What the heck!

This wasn’t the first time I was checking out a girl but this was definitely the first time my heart was going haywire for a girl.

I found her loud and overbearing voice strangely attractive. I didn’t realize I was staring at her so openly until her beautiful eyes landed on me.

As soon as she noticed that I was staring at her, she turned flustered for a brief moment but regained her poise the next second. I concealed my smirked, knowing my effect on the opposite gender and how I used it to my advantage every now and then.  

“What promise?” Mr. Wilson's voice pulled me out of my stupor and I immediately lowered my gaze to the paperweight that was placed on the desk.

“You promised to take me and Angie to the art gallery today..” I didn’t look up from the paperweight, for some reason finding it too interesting.

“I am sorry darling.. It totally slipped out of my head. Can you take your mum instead?” Mr. Wilson asked and now I saw the girl staring back at him with narrowed eyes.

“And how are you going to make it up to us?” Her bow-like eyebrows shot up in questioning.

“I will deposit two thousand dollars into your account and you can spend it as you wish..” Her dad proposed and instantly her lips split into a loveliest grin I have ever seen.

“That will do.. Thanks dad.. I love you..” Before leaving the hall her eyes landed on mine with a friendly smile, “I hope you get the job..”

“Thanks..” I watched her hop out of the room, leaving me slightly flushed.

God, what the heck is wrong with me?  

After several more minutes and a hell lot of questions, Mr. Wilson shook hands with me, “We think you are perfect for the job, Mr.Leonie. You will be starting from this Monday and you need to be present here at nine..”

“Thanks Mr. Wilson. I am looking forward to working with you..” I shook hands and left the room with a bright glint of achievement in my eyes.

Present

This is nothing less than an ill-fate to end up getting engaged to the same woman you loved once but then spent years trying to hate her after she dumped you.

Dahlia Wilson

The woman that I loathed from the deepest pit of my heart for being an immature, condescending, materialistic, self-centered spoilt brat, the list could go on and on forever. 

All she ever cared was only and only about herself and everyone else meant just a sacrificial goat in her game. She would stoop down to the lowest of the lowest and throw you into a running bus if it benefitted her in any way.

I am more shocked at her audacity to come back into my life after everything she put me through. I wished to walk out on her face but I couldn’t do it how much ever I forced myself to. My grandparents would be heartbroken if I did something like that. I did not want them to end up disappointed when they find out what a cunning woman their dear Lia is.  

I still don’t understand how she managed to fool them into believing that she was a good-hearted and kind woman like they claimed. In addition to betraying, she must also be good at deceiving people.

I sat on the couch, distractedly talking to Zayn and grandpa. My eyes were glued to Dahlia who sat with my grandma and some of her friends that I haven’t seen before. The guy and the girl next to her looked simple and nothing like the circle of rich friends she had ten years ago.

When all the guests had left after the engagement party, my grandparents had insisted we all, including Lia to spend the night in our family mansion. 

I observed how hard she was trying not to look in my direction but her eyes every now and then took a secret glance at me.

I had to admit she looked a lot different from what I remembered. All her chubbiness and irritating cuteness were gone and were replaced by a more matured look. Her makeup was kept minimal, which itself was very surprising to me.

This was not how she used to talk with people. There was no arrogance in her tone like before. Her voice was low and lacked the usual confidence in it. Her smile looked genuine and sweet but who is she trying to fool? She can make everyone fall into her trap but not me.

I ground my teeth together, burning in anger when I watched her having a chat with grandma as if she is the most innocent woman to ever walk on this earth.

I was so frustrated to the point that I was minutes away from pulling my hair. So many questions were reeling inside my head and I desperately needed answers to them. No matter how much I gave a thought about it, I couldn’t apprehend how someone like Dahlia ended up becoming a caretaker to the elderly. I mean, as much as I know her, she wasn’t capable of caring for anyone except her own self.

“Ahmm.. Hmm..” I gazed up when someone cleared their throat beside me. “..I can see you are drooling at her..”

I made a cringe face and turned away when I found Alana standing there with a teasing smirk on her face. Much to my chagrin, she wasn’t going to stop and took a place next to me on the couch.

“What? Don’t act as if you aren’t attracted to her beauty, cuz. It’s crystal clear that you aren’t able to take your eyes off her..” She prodded my shoulder with hers and I huffed in annoyance.

“You should go talk to her and get to know her more, Jinn..” Alana said suggestively when I tried to turn a deaf ear to her.

“Maybe your right. It’s time I go talk to her..” I stood up abruptly and strode straight to where Dahlia was sitting with my grandmother. Her eyes widened when she saw me taking long strides towards her. Under my calculative gaze, she nervously gulped and slowly got up to stand in front of me.

From the corner of my eyes, I could see my grandma grinning like a Cheshire cat to see me making a move to talk to my ‘lovely fiancé’. Her friends had an agitated look on their faces, making me wonder if they knew of our history. Without minding anyone I grabbed Dahlia’s elbow.

“Excuse me, grandma, I need to talk to her for a sec..”

“Sure Jinny..” I heard her say but I didn’t wait for her reply as I already began to drag my darling fiancé upstairs to my room.

I heard Dahlia hissing behind me, probably from how tight I was hold her wrist but the hell I cared about it. Compared to the amount of pain that I desired to inflict upon her, this was nothing. She had so much more to see living under the same roof as me and no one but she herself bought it upon herself.

Once we reached my room, I slammed the door shut and shoved her harshly, causing her to stumble back a little but she held on to the nightstand for support. Her eyes began to reflect sheer terror when she saw me moving towards her in slow yet steady steps.

“Dahlia Wilson..” A strangled noise escaped my lips, something between an angry groan and a humorless chuckle. “..How nice it is to see you again!!”

“Jinn.. I-I did not know you were Leo’s grandson..” Her big green eyes stared at me in horror.

My eyebrow flickered and I forced a one-sided smile, “Ohh, really?”

“Yea..” She added quickly.

“And what makes you think I would believe you?”

“I swear, Jinn. I had no idea that I will be marrying you when I agreed to Leo's proposal..” She spoke taking small shaky steps backward.

"So you mean, you didn't know you were working for the Mancini couple?" No matter what I couldn't believe her words. 

"Yes, I didn't know.." She answered maintaining a straight face and I couldn't stop myself from snorting at her in mockery. 

“And yet you agreed to Leo's proposal? How desperate were you to get married, Dahlia? Huh, tell me..”

My anger shot up to another level when she wasn’t going to say something. I hauled at her arm and watched her wince when her back harshly hit the wall behind her. Our bodies were so close that I could smell those familiar grapes scent emanating from her which once I adored so much, “Answer me damn it..” I roared.

I noticed her lips wobbling and her eyes becoming clouded. I gripped her chin to crane her face up to make her look at me, “Are you crying? Really? I thought you could only make others cry.”

“Jinn, you are hurting me..” Both her hands came up to hold my wrist, struggling hard to let me release her but I had no intention to stop.

“So, if you don’t want me to hurt you, even more, you will have to answer me. Why the f**k did you agree on marrying me? I want to know the reason now..” I rasped through gritted teeth but with all the force in her, she loosened my hand from her chin and pushed me away.

“I don’t have to answer you anything, Jinn. This marriage was purely Leo’s suggestion and I agree I had my reason to accept his proposal but I don’t think I have to detail you about it. However, if you despise it so much you are free to walk out of it any minute..”

The nerve of her..

“Reasons?” I snorted, “What better reasons could you have other than money? I am sure you only agreed to it for something in return from Leo..”

Her silence and lowered gaze proved my claims to be correct. “Just like I thought.” I mumbled more to myself, “How shameless are you, Dahlia?”

My jaws ticked and I drove a hand into her hair in indignation. “How much money do you need? I will give you two times more of that but just get the hell out of my life..”

I could see more fresh tears clouding her green orbs and slowly make their way out of her eyes which she quickly wiped before it could reach her cheeks.

“I’m sorry, that’s not an option..” I heard her utter feebly.

“When there are so many men out there for you to marry, why me Dahlia?? And for f**k’s sake don’t give me that bullshit that you didn’t know you were getting engaged to Jinn Mancini..” I groaned angrily, trying to keep my voice down. “There is no way this is all a coincidence. You knew it right from the beginning, didn’t you? Maybe you even planned for it to happen this way..”

Just for a nanosecond, her moistened and gloomy eyes bore into mine as if she was hurt by my words or something. And strangely I felt an agonizingly stabbing pain in my heart to see her like that but I reminded myself of all the miseries she put me through and how hard I tried to put myself back into one piece. 

"You made a huge mistake by coming back into my life, Dahlia. I have spent years hating you and now I will spend the rest of my life punishing you for what you did to me. That's a promise. Now get the hell out of my sight..” I pushed her away and walked out.