Chapter Two

   Jack hung his jacket up in his walk-in closet as he mulled over the activities of the day. He had surprised himself when he'd proposed to Lisa his own version of marriage. Sure he'd known what he needed to do, his mother wouldn't stop reminding him of it and he'd long-drawn that contract but he didn't know who he was going to give it to just yet until he saw her. Even bent over, she'd been a sight to behold but when she turned around, his mind was made up. He had been going over his options, considering all the girls that he thought were prospects but his heart just wasn't in it. He didn't want to fall in love, didn't need to. It was too much trouble to go through and still end up disappointed. His mother wanted him to get married and bear children and that was what he was going to do. Who he did it with or how he went about it wasn't really her business. He could understand his mother's persistence however, time was of the essence. 

   He'd been more than generous to Lisa and he quite honestly, he'd expected her to take the offer. He hoped that she would, he didn't want to have to make her. But she was going to marry him, he'd made his choice and there was no going back on it. She didn't realize it but he always got what he wanted and he wasn't about to start slacking.

    Jack called his best friend and employee Ben, he still needed that background check on Lisa. He usually wasn't that careless but something about her made him want to move things along. 

"I need to know everything there is to know about a Lisa Mayowa. She works at the wuye branch and HR gave me her number and address so of course, I'm not talking about those. Hospital records, past relationships, former employers, everything you can find."

"Is she in trouble?" Ben asked. 

"No man, I think she's the future Mrs Lawson."

"Got it." Jack and Ben had discussed Jack's plan to contract a woman to be his wife so he knew exactly what Jack meant when he said that. Ben was the only one Jack had told and intended to tell about his plans. 

   Jack remembered that he'd failed to give Lisa his personal line so he decided to text her and let her have it for when she was ready to give him her answer. Also for an excuse to talk to her. He'd enjoyed her company and that kiss, he hadn't expected it to be so good. And whether she liked it or not, she'd reacted to him. He knew he was pushing her too hard and too fast but there was not a lot of time to play around the issue. 

   Jordan literally dragged Lisa inside. Their apartment was on the ground floor and Jordan had been watching Jack and Lisa's exchange from the window.

"Okay, what was that about?" Jordan was almost bouncing up and down from her excitement. 

"What?"

"Oh come on, don't give me that. I saw you and the Jack Lawson kissing!" 

"Keep your voice down!" Lisa hissed. 

"Okay okay, so tell me. What happened?"

"He asked me to marry him." Lisa thought it was best to get it over with. It was weighing too heavily on her chest and she couldn't tell anyone else, Jordan was the only person she trusted. 

"What?!" Jordan almost screamed. 

"Keep your voice down!"

"Have you been seeing this guy without telling me?"

"No! This was our first date, I promise."

"Well explain it to me then."

Lisa told Jordan the story of their rather strange encounter then date and all the details of Jack's proposal. 

"Oh my god!" Jordan exclaimed when Lisa finished. 

"My thoughts exactly."

"So what are you going to do?"

Lisa sighed. "I don't know. It's a tempting offer but it seems like I'm selling myself if I take it. And I don't know this man. Everything I've heard about him makes him look like a terrifying human being, to be honest."

"I can see why you would even consider it, I know everything you have been through but Lisa, are you sure you can handle him? I hear he's pretty intense."

"I don't know. To be honest, I don't think that I can."

"I'm here for you babe, whatever you decide. Just be sure that you think it over carefully. If at the end of the day you still want to go ahead with it, I'll support you a hundred percent."

"Thanks, dear." Lisa hugged her friend. Jordan had stuck with her through the worse times of her life, she was the kind of friend that people prayed for. When Lisa had been drowning, Jordan came and picked her up and gave her the opportunity to start over. The apartment they were living in and everything that was in it,  Jordan had paid for. Lisa promised to pay back once she started receiving a salary but Jordan wouldn't hear of it. She insisted that Lisa was like a sister to her and she would do anything to help her out. 

   Lisa's phone vibrated with a text message. She looked at it, it was from an unknown number. 

Got home safe. Text me on this number, Jack. 

Lisa programmed his number into her phone but did not respond to the text. She would text him back when she had an answer. It sounded like complete madness, the idea of marrying Jack Lawson. His kind didn't mingle with girls like her. He was supposed to be with girls that drank champagne out of gold-rimmed champagne flutes and wore pretty cocktail dresses. Girls who attended charity balls and benefits and had memberships to exclusives clubs. What was he doing mingling with a girl who had next to nothing? No one knew who her father was, she didn't know him herself. She had never attended prestigious schools or hosted any house warming parties. Everything she'd gotten out of life she'd worked extra hard for. It didn't seem like it was the right fit, marrying someone like Jack just didn't fit into a life like hers. There was also the issue of her past, surely Jack didn't want something like that tainting his near-perfect standing in the society. 

   Lisa decided then and there that she was going to tell him no. There was no way marriage with a billionaire was in the cards for her. She would work hard for her money, she could only hope that he let her keep her job. She needed it more than he knew. 

   Jordan sat quietly with Lisa, giving her the moral support she needed to deal with what she was dealing with. But she saw that Lisa was overthinking and worrying so she felt the need to lighten the mood. 

"Was he at least a good kisser?" Jordan wiggled her eyebrows and Lisa laughed. 

"Very good." And Lisa thought that he was, she had lost herself in the kiss for a minute. Then she'd remembered all the reasons why kissing Jack was a horrible idea and pulled away. 

"I can't do it Jordan, I can't."

"Then don't. You don't have to."

"Should I tell him right now? I was supposed to have my answer in two days."

"Sleep on it. If you still feel like this in the morning then tell him right away, don't wait."

"Okay." Lisa saw the sense in what Jordan was saying so even though she didn't think she was going to change her mind, she agreed to give him an answer in the morning. 

"But what if I lose my job?" Lisa was scared. 

"He can't fire you over this."

"He can. I don't have the money to go against someone like that."

"We'll figure it out, don't worry." 

   Lisa hugged Jordan and retired to her room. In all her 28 years of life, she had only watch that sort of thing in the movies. It was like her own Cinderella Story, except there was no love involved. She wasn't about to marry someone she didn't even know. It didn't matter what he was offering, she couldn't sacrifice her happiness for money. 

  When she'd left for work, her only plan was to excel and impress her bosses. Never in a million years did she think she was going to be considering marriage with the biggest boss of them all. Marriage! Never in her wildest dreams. She undressed and sat in front of her mirror to remove her makeup before bed. She stared at the woman she'd become, she had come a long way. She of all people knew how one mistake sent you spiralling and she wasn't about to make one of those again. Marriage was supposed to be between two people who loved each other, not based on some contract. That night, Lisa fell asleep with thoughts of Jack Lawson on her mind. 

   Jordan was the first one out of her room the next day. She made breakfast for herself and Lisa, her friend would need her Daily dose of caffeine when she came out. She had big decisions to make and Jordan was going to do her best to be supportive.  

   Lisa finally came out of her room looking tired. 

"Did you get any sleep?" Jordan was worried, Lisa didn't look like she'd gotten any rest.

"I tried. Finally slept around 4 am. Hope you had a better night?"

"Sure did. Made you coffee and some pancakes."

"Aren't you the sweetest?" Lisa poured a cup of coffee for herself.

"Don't get used to it." Jordan joked and they laughed. 

"I'm going to tell him today, I can't go through with it." Lisa looked serious again. 

"Are you going to text him?"

"No, I should call him. I'll call him from the office."

"Okay then, eat up. I'm going to take a bath and head out. You know how my boss is."

"Have a good day at work," Lisa called behind Jordan, she was already on her way to her room. 

   Lisa finished breakfast and went to get ready for work as well. She took a quick shower and dressed up. Dressing up for work was one of her favourite things about each day. She loved how the clothes looked on her and how she could be a different person every waking day. This day she chose a burgundy pencil skirt, paired it with a baby pink chiffon top and finished the look with a pair of black pumps. She applied a little bit of makeup and was out the door. The day could go really good if Jack took the news she had and left things as they were, or really bad if he decided to use his position to punish her. She wasn't looking forward to giving him the news but it was something she had to do. 

   Lisa got to work before most of her colleagues as usual. She went straight into her office and set up for the day. She looked at the time when she was done, it was just 8 am. Was this a good time to call Jack or was it still too early? Would he be at work yet? The apprehension was killing her and she couldn't bring herself to start work for the day. 

   Jack woke up feeling bored as usual. The only thing that excited him to think about was Lisa. Everything else wasn't new. He'd done very hard work, gone on very lavish vacations and partied with the best of them. At 35, there was nothing in life that he hadn't seen. The prospect of marrying someone exciting seemed appealing to him and Lisa seemed to fit the part. She was sassy, he could see. She had held back because he was her boss, he knew that. He was going to enjoy pushing her, he wanted her to be herself around him. That way, what they were going into would be less boring and would feel like less of a chore for him. He had taken to avoiding his mother's calls, he knew exactly why she was calling and he didn't have an answer for her yet. He always called her back after she'd tried to reach him for days and when he did, he would rush the conversation and hang up before she had a chance to go into the reason why she'd called. He understood her but she needed to be a little more patient. 

   He freshened up and headed out to work. He liked to stay actively involved in the running of his company so that meant that he showed up on time and did the work. He could afford to pay someone to do the hard work but then he would be even more bored than he was. Life would hold no meaning. 

   It was 8:45 am when he walked into his office. Majority of his staff was already seated at their stations, that was how he liked it. Company hours were 9 am to 5 pm but they all knew he showed up 15 minutes to time every day and they also knew how it would look for them if their boss showed up before them. Jack paid all of them well for the work they did and they took their jobs seriously. He wasn't in his office for more than 10 minutes when his phone started to ring. Normally, he would be annoyed but the caller ID almost made him smile. 

"Lisa. It's early, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I want to talk to you about what you told me yesterday."

"Can it wait?"

"This won't take long, I just wanted to tell you what I've decided."

"I thought we agreed you'd tell me after two days?"

"I already made up my mind."

She was going to reject him, Jack could feel it. 

"Come to the office at Maitama, I'll be expecting you in thirty minutes." He hung up. 

   Lisa was a little confused by his reaction but she could tell that was an order from her boss. She informed her colleagues and then she was out hailing a cab that would take her to Maitama. 

   Once she walked in, a receptionist told her where to go, it was like they were expecting her. She rode the elevator to the top floor and a secretary took her to Jack's door. She knocked once and walked in, following what the receptionist or perhaps secretary had told her to do. 

   Jack was on the phone when she walked in, he gestured for her to take a seat and held up his finger, telling Lisa he'd be just a minute. After what seemed like an eternity to Lisa, Jack hung up and sat down facing her. 

"Good morning Sir."

"Call me Jack."

"With all due respect, I can't do that."

"Why's that?"

Lisa hesitated. Jack hoped that his presence will help change her mind and he was happy to see her hesitation. 

"I can't do this, any of it." Lisa watched as Jack's whole demeanour changed when she said the words. But it was something she had to do. 

"I'm sorry Sir, I can't accept your offer."

"Why's that?" Jack sounded pissed. 

"It's too much to handle and it's just not right."

"So it's not good enough for you?" 

"No, not at all. It's very generous, it's just..."

"Not good enough for you." Jack interrupted. 

"That's not what I'm saying."

"Go back to work, Lisa."

   And just like that, he was done with her and she was dismissed. Lisa got up and went back the same way she came. At least he'd told her to go back to work. That had to mean that she still had a job right? 

    Jack called Ben once Lisa was out the door. He could barely contain his anger as he talked to his friend. "Where are you on Lisa's file?"

"I'm on my way to your office actually."

"Hurry up then."

"Jeez man, who pissed in your cereal?"

"Just hurry up." Jack hung up. He felt like punching a hole through the wall but he was at work, he had to coordinate himself. He had been so sure that Lisa would take his offer, what girl wouldn't? But then she'd come into his office looking as gorgeous as she was and turned him down. He was so mad but somehow he managed not to scare her. Points for Jack, the thought bitterly. 

   Ben walked into Jack's office ten minutes after their phone conversation. 

"Took you long enough." Jack grabbed the file Ben had in his hand impatiently. 

"What happened?"

"She turned me down," Jack said as he opened the file and began to absorb all the information that Ben could gather on Lisa. 

"Wow." Ben knew that Jack was obsessed with overturning decisions. He rarely took no for an answer and this was just going to be another case of Jack trying to prove himself. 

"Maybe that's not such a bad thing you know? This girl has been through so much, maybe just find someone with less baggage and more within your class."

Jack could see what Ben was talking about, Lisa's file did carry some pretty heavy things. She had a rough past but somehow even that didn't change his mind. 

"It's more than money. I don't need a girl that has money, I have all the money I need."

"You've read that, do you want to get involved in all of that?"

"Ben, you know there's nothing inside this file that could touch me."

Ben sighed, there was no reasoning with Jack when he set his sights on something.

"You don't even know this girl, why is this so important to you?"

"I know enough."

"So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to change her mind."

"And how are you going to do that?" Ben threw his hands in the air, exasperated. 

"I'll give her a better offer. Maybe this one wasn't enough to give up her life for."

"If she turned down a quarter of everything you own, it's most definitely not about money." Ben shook his head at how clueless Jack was. He'd always been one to throw his money out there and have girls run after it. He'd never taken the time to get to know a woman and maybe get her to like him for something other than how deep his pockets were. 

"What do you suggest then?" Jack didn't know what else she could possibly want. 

"Try to be a normal human being and actually woo the girl. Convince her that there's something to like about you."

"But there's nothing to like about me outside of my money."

"Jack, you can't believe that."

"I know it's true."

"Well forget about you then, try to make her feel special. Take her out to fancy restaurants, buy her dinner, send her flowers and chocolate. Girls love things like that."

"That's a painful waste of time." Jack thought romance was superficial and a waste of time and energy. He made fun of people who went through so much trouble when they could just be straightforward about what they wanted from each other. He wanted a wife and some kids mainly because his mother wanted it for him. So he was willing to make one woman's life incredibly better in exchange for those things. It was a fair enough deal to him. 

"I'm leaving if you keep talking like that."

"Okay fine, woo her. What else do I do?"

"First, convince her to go on a date with you. If she turns you down, woo her some more and keep asking until you get a yes."

It seemed like a lot of work to Jack. Why did people subject themselves to so much hell? He thought. Life wasn't supposed to be that hard, why couldn't she just take the money and do what he asked? 

"And after that?"

"Are you serious right now?"

"I don't know these things man, you know that."

"Date the girl and maybe you won't have to pay her to marry you."

"You know I don't have a lot of time."

"If you do it right, you won't need a lot of time. I have some clients I need to see. I'll call you later." Ben left Jack to the warring thoughts in his head.

   Back at the office, Lisa kept expecting someone from HR to walk in and tell her she could no longer work there. She wasn't very productive because she was worried about losing her job. By the close of the day, she was completely worn out both physically and emotionally. No one had come to fire her so that was a bonus.

   She got home to find Jordan and Francis making out in front of the TV. Great, she thought. Those were the disadvantages of living with a love-struck person. Jordan and Francis had been together for three years and still acted like it was their first month being with each other. Francis was almost always around when Jordan was home and the other times, they were at his place. 

   Lisa tried to sneak to her bedroom without interrupting them but they heard her and broke apart. 

"Hey, you." Jordan greeted. 

Lisa smiled at them. "Sorry I interrupted." She was teasing them and they all laughed. 

"Lisa my first love, welcome home. You know I've missed you, you left me at the mercy of this crazy one." Francis dramatized like he was in a medieval play and Lisa laughed while Jordan rolled her eyes. It was a long-standing joke between the three of them. 

"I'm back now, she can do you no harm." Lisa played along. Her mood was instantly better within just 5 minutes of being around her friends. 

"You can have him, he's annoying anyway." Jordan stood, grabbing Lisa by the arm and dragging her towards Lisa's bedroom. 

"So?" She asked once they closed the door behind them. 

"I told him. I tried to do it over the phone but he made me go to his office."

"Wow... Did he take it well?"

"I don't think so but he told me to go back to work so I guess I can still keep the job."

"Then it didn't go too badly. I'm happy for you." Jordan hugged Lisa. 

"Okay, go back to your boyfriend before he starts wondering what we're doing in here."

"Oh please, he'll be fine."

   Jack got home by 8:40 pm. He'd had a shitty day and he had a certain Lisa to blame for it. He couldn't remember the last time someone looked him in the eye and said they couldn't do what he was asking them to do. That was a very long time ago. His whole adult life, he had worked very hard to get everything he had and he was ruthless because of it. He always got what he wanted, regardless of who he wanted it from. Then came Lisa. He didn't think it was an offer she could refuse and she'd sat in his office with her puckered lips and told him no. Even in his anger, he could still appreciate how incredibly sexy she was and his body still reacted to her in a way that baffled him. He had always been in control of his sexuality, sex was never factored when he was making decisions. He'd told himself that too many great men allowed sex to ruin their lives, he wasn't going to be one of them. Yet when he saw Lisa, he couldn't control his body as much as he would've liked, and it wasn't as though she came bearing good news. He needed to change her mind, there was only one way to get her out of his system and that was by having her.