Hayley
My alarm goes of at 4am and I press snooze. I do this two more times until I can’t put of getting out of bed any longer and finally pry my eyes open at around 5am, give or take a minute…or five. To say I love sleep is an understatement but unfortunately with my shifts at work, its really hard for my body to adapt to any sort of regular sleep pattern. I don’t have time to grab breakfast as I rush out the door at 6am but this isn’t anything new.
I get to work and two people have called in sick with the flu. We are so short staffed. My day goes by in a blur as I handle queries and try to process as many urgent patient samples as possible.
By the end of my shift , I’m mentally and physically exhausted and all I want is a hot shower, food and my bed. In that order. The last thing I’m prepared for is to see grandma Helen waiting for me outside my office building. How did she even know where I work, let alone where I park?
“Gran?”, I ask confused.
“Hello, dear…how are you?”
“I’m ok gran, are you ok? Did something happen?”, I ask worried.
“Actually, I was hoping I could talk to you. I know you must tired after a long day at work but this is rather time sensitive”, says grandma cryptically.
“Erm…sure", I reply, not having a clue what’s going on.
She signals for her driver to follow us as she gets into my car. She directs me to a quaint coffee shop of the beaten path, where we both order something hot, she a cappuccino and me a hot chocolate. I feel uneasy as I wait to hear what this could possibly be about.
“I’m going to cut to the chase Hayley,” she begins.
“ I am very impressed with the caring young women you have turned out to be. You have shown up for an old women without knowing my background or if I could offer you anything in return. Well it turns out, I can offer you something. The most precious thing in my life in fact and I hope you will accept and appreciate it".
Huh? “ Gran? I don’t need or want anything from you. I'm here with you because I care about you and I enjoy your company”, I say wondering what has gotten into gran.
Gran smiles “ I know that dear but just hear me out…you are such a lovely girl, you shouldn’t be alone. I see the sadness in your eyes when we walk past the couples on the beach. I don’t know what put that hurt in your eyes, but I also know the way I’ve seen you look at my grandson and I think he could make you happy. I want you to give him a chance"
Wait. What’s going on now? Seriously, what’s going on. She’s seen me “looking” at her grandson, I cringe and wish the earth would just open up and swallow me whole.
My cheeks are crimson as I stare at her embarrassed, “ As flattered as I am gran, your grandson is in a whole other league from me and I'm sure he sees things differently from you.”
“Nonsense Hayley. I know my grandson and I know you’re what’s best for him.” She holds her hand up as I’m about to open my mouth and I firmly close it.
“Now I am about to ask a lot from you and I want you to think about your life and if you’re really happy where you are. Doing the same thing day in and day out, refusing to let any member of the opposite sex in. I know you’re attracted to my grandson and I can vouch for his character, I did raise him after all. He will not hurt you intentionally. I'm asking you to not only take a chance on him, but also on me and trust that I have both your best interests at heart”.
“Gran…”, I begin “I'm not going to lie, your grandson is hot and whether I’m jaded or not, I would have to be insane not to want to date him….but that’s not how life works and whether you want to accept it or not , we truly aren’t even in the same league”
“So you agree that if there was a chance, you would be interested in my grandson?” she persists.
“Well ofcos I would, who wouldn’t gran..but…”
“That’s all I needed to hear. Now listen carefully. Trust me. I’m on your side. I’ve already spoken to Xander and he’s agreed to marry you but he doesn’t know that I know him better than he knows himself sometimes. He’s going to offer you some sort of contract marriage, the details I can’t be too sure about. What I do know is that it will be of benefit to you and will include keeping me in the dark about the ‘fake’ aspect of the marriage.”
I must be more exhausted than I thought, “Gran did you just say marriage?” I ask. This conversation is so beyond me right now, I don’t know what to do or say.
Gran explains to me that apparently I am the grand daughter-in-law she wants. That she believes once Xander gets to know me everything will fall into place as she puts it, but he needs to believe he is in control. She is convinced he will offer me a contract marriage to placate her and try and fool her into believing he’s really trying to obey her wishes. She wants me to accept and do nothing more than be me and allow her to do the rest. If it doesn’t work out, what do I have to lose she says?
I won’t lie that I haven’t dreamed that this would happen to me while reading my romance novels but its so unlikely its almost like a dream. My heart beats faster just thinking about Xander and the possibility that he could actually be my husband. Sure he’s gorgeous but its more than that. The few minutes I saw him interact with his gran, told me the type of person he is and I'm impressed by that. By him. I definitely don’t think I would fit into in his life or world but grans right. I've been hiding myself away from life and relationships since my breakup which was years ago. I'm never going to get another opportunity like this. If I’m going to crash and burn why not do it with Xander?
In that moment I decide, no matter how ludicrous the situation may be, I'm going to take this opportunity and run with it and before I can change mind I say “Ok gran, I’m in".
HayleyI have been living my life in the shadows for awhile now. It’s still a struggle to forget all the hurt I’ve felt from past betrayals. It feels like everything bad that could happen, happens when you let down your guard and choose to be happy, or at least that’s been my experience. So why am I agreeing to gran?Why am I feeling a little excited about this? Like life is giving me a second chance.I'm still lost in my thoughts when my phone begins to vibrate and Ava Max “On me" starts playing. I stare at the screen a little blankly not recognising the number. I'm about to put the phone back down when gran exclaims "What are you doing, answer it. It’s probably Xander! I gave him your number this morning”.“What??? No. No way!”, I say throwing the phone on the table. This is all happening way too fast.Grandma Helen promptly presses answer and puts the call on loudspeaker befo
Hayley You make a spur of the moment decision and then the next morning it hits you…like what have I done? I've already met with gran Helen again. We’ve gone over a plan of sorts. I'm to meet Xander later. Play it by ear and basically agree to whatever his proposal might be. Gran and I spoke about my family this morning and what I would say to them and we both agreed it would be best they think this marriage is real. How I'm supposed to convince them of that, I have no idea, especially after my anti social life-style these last few years. All of this is assuming Xander is even going to propose marriage! What if gran has it wrong and he has something completely different that he wants to talk to me about? That would be the biggest joke of all I think as I chuckle to myself like a lunatic. I’ve been standing in front of my white built in cupboard for the past hour and getting more depressed by the minute. Nothing looks good on me!
XanderI'm early. I always am. In business it has proven to give me the edge. It’s one of the reasons I hold multiple investments and businesses and the reason I’m a billionaire at twenty-seven. I'm never flustered because I am always prepared. I wasn’t born into money. Everything I have, I've worked damn hard for, that’s why now, I play as hard as I work. I've earned it.So for Gran to want me to settle down at 27 has had me in knots. I can’t just do as she says but I can’t jeopardize her health as well. I’d never forgive myself if I refuse the women who has never asked a thing of me and then something happens to her. That’s why I decided to go with the flow but on my own terms. If gran wants me to marry, the girl of her choice, I will, but it will only be until I’m sure gran is out of the woods health wise and long enough to convince her I’ve tried to make this marriage w
Xander “I'm all ears", she says as she leans forward to give me her full attention and inadvertently pushes her breasts together giving me a glimpse of them over the top of her dress. Well fuck me. Does this girl know what she’s doing to me? I try to bring my attention back to her eyes but damn is it hard with those plump twin peaks begging for my attention. “Erm yeah…” I say as I try to get a grip. This is not going how I planned. I knew we had chemistry from the day at the doctor’s room, but this is ridiculous. I feel like a horny teenager. “…I have a business proposition for you", I say as I force myself to snap out of it. I can’t go down this road with Hayley, not if I want this plan to work. “A business proposition?” “Yes…like I said, my gran thinks highly of you and I think highly of her so I'm hoping we can reach an agreement that will be mutually benef
XanderI am laying on my king size bed thinking about my night out, more accurately I’m thinking about my future wife to be. Eyes open or closed all I see are Hayley and those “fuck me” heels she had on. I imagine my hands peeling of every layer of clothing until all she has left are those heels wrapped around my waist.The effect she has on me is not what I expected and I have a feeling the next few months are going to be interesting. I stare at my phone and decide to message her, I can’t seem to help myself. I need to know where her heads at. She responds and we decide to meet tomorrow to go through the terms of the contract. I find myself looking forward to seeing her and that worries me. Besides barely knowing her, I know I can’t afford to mix business with pleasure.I wake to sunlight streaming in through the French windows overlooking the property’s vast gardens. I haven
Hayley After lunch with Xander, which was awesome by the way because I love being around him, I know I have to deal with my family. I get home, greet my fur babies and try to mentally prepare myself for the talk I know I need to have with my family. A clap of thunder resounds and I look out the window just as the heaven’s open up and rain begins to pelt down furiously. My already fearful heart stresses even more “Dear God please don’t let this be a sign" I murmur to myself. Mum and aunt come home around the same time, both drenched to the bone and I order pizza as I wait for them to bath and warm up. When we are all in our pyjama’s in front of the television with the heater blazing its warmth over us, I decide to start my well rehearsed speech. “So I need to tell you something.” I say as they both look at me expectantly. “Well, I’ve been seeing someone for a while no
Hayley As we make our way up the front steps, the front door opens to reveal a smiling Grandma Helen. She steps forward and crushes me in a warm embrace “Look at how beautiful you are!” She beams “Hi Gran” I smile a little overwhelmed. Xander places his hand on my lower back as he ushers me into his mansion. My mouth drops open as I enter a foyer the size of my entire house. There is an oval table with an exquisite bouquet of pink and white flowers with bright green foliage that sits at the foot of twin staircases on either side. Above the entryway hangs a large crystal chandelier catching the light at different angles creating an array of mini rainbows. An elderly man in his fifties approaches us “ Good afternoon Sir, Mam…can I offer you some refreshments?” “Hayley, this is Charles he oversees the day to day running of the house.” “Nice to meet you Charles, I’m fine for now thanks.”
XanderDinner was a success. Everyone got along and we were comfortable around each other. Gran is happy. I can see it on her face and I know I’m doing the right thing. Hayley’s here today. The both of them really get along. We are meeting the wedding planner. Thus far everything’s been done via email but gran insisted with just weeks away from the wedding Hayley and I had to make final decisions in person…so here I am on a Saturday morning when I could be out shooting hoops with the guys.The wedding planners name is Mindy and honestly I was expecting someone older. I knew the minute she smiled at me she was going to be trouble. She uses every excuse to brush up against me and seems to only have eyes for me. She completely ignores Hayley and only addresses me. I won’t stand for that. I’m about to give her an earful when Hayley interrupts her.“Excuse me Miss S