Chapter 6: Don't Play Pretend
"Young Madam, I just know you'll be a devoted girl and will definitely help our family through this crisis! Thank you so much!" Manon made a 90-degree bow.
Fleur retracted her gaze from Olivier to eye the two old ladies in front of her.
To recluse for two years, have a vegan diet, meditate every day...and to help the Martinez family ward off this 'disaster'.
She caught a glance at the embroidered shoes by the hospital bed. People who still had those on at this age were likely old-fashioned, and, as what Fleur thought, difficult to get along with.
She did not respond to Aunt Manon's question. Instead, she met the Old Madam's solemn gaze.
"Grandma did you..." Cry? Throw a tantrum? Threaten to commit suicide? "...make a fuss?" Fleur euphemised.
If the old woman had tried committing suicide, she could understand why Olivier was in such a hurry to find someone to sign up to be his wife. This other reason though, a family crisis predicted by some 'diviner'...was too absurd.
"Are you willing to help us?" Grandma asked. Her tone carried mild suspicion, much like Olivier himself.
Before she could respond, Olivier slid open the balcony door and came back in. "Grandma." He held Fleur's hand, which was, to Grandma, a very intimate gesture.
But to Fleur, that gesture felt like a statement of control.
"She is willing to help us."
Grandma seemed to look more lively upon hearing that. Her strict demeanour softened up too. "That's good, then. You can send her over to me in a week. I will return her to you after two years' time." "Okay." Olivier paused before continuing in a resigned tone, "Grandma, I've already agreed to your request. Don't do anything silly anymore, I cannot take it."
"If you had listened to me earlier on, it wouldn't have come to this."
"Yes, yes, I should have listened to you," Olivier replied in a more reserved, respectful tone.
Back in the elevator, Fleur put a hand into her pocket while squinting at Olivier.
"Mr Martinez, did you just use me? Am I just some doll to help clear your family's bad energy?"
"I thought-" Olivier's eyes were two dark pools. "-you'd imagine a worse outcome the moment you saw that blank sheet of paper."
But how on earth could Fleur ever imagine this would happen! Two years was such a long time! What was the use of trying to get close to Olivier if she had to stay away from him for two years?! "Fleur Leroy," Olivier said, voice cold as ice. "Did you really think what happened last night was an accident?"
She stared at him, saying nothing.
"I would never have been in your room if you hadn't opened the door for me."
Fleur then smiled. Out of sight, her pocketed hand curled into a tight fist.
"Are you saying I set you up?"
"To be precise, I'm saying, you had someone help you set me up."
A strand of Fleur's hair fell to shade her eyes, preventing the calculated depth within to be discovered.
"Say, you are smarter than you like! Well if you've already figured that out, would you like to know why I set you up?"
"No."
"Don't start. I gave you the opportunity to write whatever terms you wanted, now we have a marriage certificate and you're able to come so close to me. Don't play pretend with me. Do what I tell you to do."
Fleur forced a bright, lovely smile. She was beautiful even without the help of makeup, clad in a black chiffon dress that accentuated her figure.
Hers was an aggressive beauty if any.
She strode towards Olivier, dripping with a charm that could easily captivate most men. "The phone call just now was from your lover, right?" Olivier kept his lips shut. From where he stood, he could easily see Fleur's body beneath the material of her outfit.
"You already have a girlfriend, and yet you signed a marriage agreement with me. Clearly, I have some valuable use to you, isn't that right? You said I could list down any conditions, yet you didn't even fulfil my first condition last night."
He never carried her into the car after all.
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"If you know I deliberately approached you but you're still not stopping me from getting close, surely I'm more of use to you than just helping calm your Grandma. I'd say I could even reject this ridiculous request of yours."☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐