Contractual Obligations

Four Years Later

Looking back on Sebastian and Lily Miller’s marriage

By Elana Marsh

It’s hard to forget when Sebastian asked Lily to marry him. Her Instagram was awash with beautiful photos of them, ranging from their first date, up until she saw her gorgeous three-carat diamond ring.

What was even more surprising was her family’s support. It was no secret to the LA crowd that Allen Roberts, owner of Electronic Point, has had issues with its main competitor, Miller Industries, for many years. Mr. Roberts has willingly called for the boycott of the monopoly-in-the-making, and a surprising number of people listened.

But after Lily and Sebastian’s love story, both Mr. Roberts and Mr. Miller set aside their feud, and Mr. Roberts even agreed to let Miller Industries buy his company, as long as the two entities kept their respective names. Both had credited their children’s love for the end of their disagreements.

Since then, Sebastian and Lily have been living the life of their dreams. They vacation together regularly, and Lily has found herself at the helm of three million followers, a threshold she just cracked this week.

Many have asked, what’s next? When will Sebastian and Lily finally have children to round out their perfect family? Well, an insider tells us they’re ready to start trying very soon . . .

100 comments

Bulldog1996: Was it a slow week or something with celebrity news? Who cares about these two?

SebandLily4ever: Um, I do! I’ve followed them since the BEGININNG. You just don’t like love when you see it.

BamaFan01: She’s hot tho. Damn, and she used to be a model? Dude lucked out.

My haven was the coffee shop on the north side of Los Angeles, the one with the flowers growing out of the walls and only a select few tables.

Jessie and I met there every Monday. It had been hit or miss lately since she had been working on her dissertation, but I still came by the shop dutifully on Mondays.

Today, I saw Jessie’s red hair the moment I walked in. She was working on her laptop. I let out a breath of air, feeling a little unfairly annoyed. Jessie didn’t have much time for me anymore, but she was diligently working on her master’s degree to better her future; I couldn’t be mad at her for that, but it didn’t lessen the blow of moments like this.

I bought our coffees and sat quietly next to her. I chewed on the inside of my cheek, regretting not bringing my own laptop to work on. I had a meeting with my father-in-law after this, and I didn’t want to risk bringing my own personal device to a business meeting—no matter what it was about.

I was more nervous about it than I was letting on. Usually, Miller Industries kept me out of their business. I was their show pony, and Sebastian’s arm candy. All of my assignments were trickled down through calendar invitations with Sebastian. It wasn’t normal for me to have to go into the office.

I hadn’t told Jessie yet. Mostly because she was busy, but partly because I was holding onto the hope that this wouldn’t be that big of a deal. Perhaps I would be told to dye my hair, or to lose a little bit of weight.

I could handle that.

Unless it was something serious.

“Sorry.” Jessie’s voice pulled me out of my worrying thoughts. “I saw you come in. I just needed to finish this paragraph.”

I nodded and slid her drink over to her, my leg jiggling under the table.

“This is great,” she said after taking a sip. “Thank you.”

“Yeah, no problem,” I replied distractedly.

“Is something going on?” she asked, her eyebrows furrowed. “You look . . . nervous.”

“It’s nothing . . . maybe,” I said. “I don’t know what it is.”

Jessie’s eyebrows rose.

“I’ve got a meeting in an hour at the Miller’s corporate office.”

“Oh,” Jessie said, “are they about to swindle you into another five-year contract?”

My stomach tightened. “No, I don’t think so. I won’t say yes this time.”

Jessie gave me a look that told me she didn’t believe me.

“I really won’t. The merger is done. I get my inheritance in a year.”

“They can still withhold it.”

“We have a contract,” I said, crossing my arms. “And there wasn’t anything in it about additions.”

“You’re really going to trust them?”

I didn’t have anything to say to that, but even if they tried to push me into another contract, I would be able to say no.

A lot had changed in four years, including my situation. Gone was the girl who had no opportunities and didn’t know what to do. If my dad kept my inheritance, it wouldn’t break me.

But Jessie didn’t know about that, and I guarded my opportunities deep within me, even from my closest friends. I didn’t know why I hadn’t told anyone about what I was doing these days, but any time I tried, the words wouldn’t come.

Making a career under a pen name wasn’t my plan, but it had saved me in a way. I’d always written, but something changed after the honeymoon, and my misery crafted a story so bold and dark that I’d gotten a book deal off it, and now a TV show. I’d declined all interviews to stay anonymous, but it seemed to only fuel people’s interest in the series despite no one knowing who the author was.

I was lining up to be the next George R. R. Martin.

Especially if I didn’t get off my ass and write my last book.

“So . . .” Jessie was saying, clearing her throat. “What do you think it is?”

I shrugged, leaning back in the wooden chair. “Don’t know. Maybe a new vacation for Sebastian and me to take?”

Jessie rolled her eyes. “Like that’s so bad. I’d kill for a vacation.”

The vacations Sebastian and I took weren’t vacations. Sebastian stayed locked in meetings all day, while I staged perfect Instagram shots to keep up the farce that we were madly in love. Then, we’d take loving photos at sunset and sleep in opposite rooms from each other.

We used to sleep in the same room, but I couldn’t manage it when he would come home at ten every single night. My heart told me he was with someone else.

I made an excuse that I slept better on my own.

I didn’t say anything to Jessie though. While she was going into debt for her degree, I was complaining about being on the beach and making Instagram posts for my job—even if I was miserable. I didn’t want to complain about my “easy” life, not when I knew how hard hers was.

“There is one thing they might ask,” I said, the knot in my stomach returning.

“What?” Jessie asked. “Nude photos?”

“A child.”

For the first time, Jessie was shocked. Really and truly shocked. Her eyes bugged out, and her stress vein on her forehead bulged. “Like you . . . have a child?”

“It’s been a popular comment. A news article reported on it.”

“They can’t do that. You’d say no, right?”

“Of course I would.” And I meant it. My own family hadn’t been loving. My mom was distant and image focused. My dad was always at work. The idea of repeating that, especially with a business-minded man like Sebastian made me sick to my stomach.

But to Jessie, I had a reputation of being my family’s perfect little daughter. The Lily she knew had no other options and would say yes to anything.

And I was still working on being someone different.

In my head, I’d say no. I’d tell them off and run into the sunset with my middle finger raised to the world. But in reality, I had a lot of loose ends to tie up before I was ready to do that.

I really hoped they didn’t bring it up.

“You could leave you know,” Jessie reminded me. She told me this every time she saw me.

“I know, and I will.”

I believed it, and I was getting things in order to leave in a year. But Jessie didn’t know the details, so when she shook her head and turned her focus back to her laptop, I couldn’t blame her.

She hadn’t believed me in a long time.

Miller’s corporate office was a sleek high-rise nestled in the center of downtown. It was supposed to be the best addition to the LA skyline.

I thought it was the ugliest thing I’d ever seen.

It was a tall box with windows on all four sides. That’s all it was—just another building that sat half empty and bore the Miller name. It took over the place of a small park and gave back an eyesore to the city.

Parking was atrocious, and I wound up having to walk half a mile in the heat before I got to the lobby. I’m pretty sure Martin Miller would actually murder me if I showed up looking anything less than perfect, so I stopped in the lobby bathroom to cool off before heading to the meeting.

My husband and I met in the elevator.

Sebastian still looked the same as his wedding day. His facade never cracked, and I had to wonder if he even had emotions, or if he was a robot built by his father. We had been married four years, and we never really talked. I don’t think he was very interested in getting to know me anyway.

The only surprising thing in our marriage was the random sex we had.

What happened on the honeymoon took a long time to happen again. It was months of radio silence and awkward glances at one another. But eventually, after what I could guess was a bad day at work, Sebastian came home and kissed me, and it devolved from there.

It had been going on like this for four years. I never knew when he would initiate it, and I rarely did. I figured it was when he was between other women.

I glanced at him there in the elevator, clutching my designer bag like a lifeline. He didn’t look at me, not once.

“Do you know what this is about?” I asked. My voice was even, but my heart was beginning to pound inside my chest.

“No,” Sebastian said.

“Really?” I asked, genuinely surprised.

He glanced at me, his face conveying nothing.

“I would have put a subject line if I had known,” he replied.

“I’m sure it will be amazing news as always.” It was a struggle to use my light, airy voice these days. I had to really work to make sure it didn’t escape as sarcasm.

A familiar emptiness settled into my chest at the return of the silence in the elevator. We’d never connected beyond a physical level, and every time I was reminded of that, I felt an ache beneath my sternum.

It felt like something was wrong, like I’d missed something in my four years of marriage. But as my hope for us died out, this painful throb in my chest only intensified.

The elevator doors opened, and we were finally on the top floor. The city skyline, obscured with smog, stretched out;  I admired the view for a moment through the floor-to-ceiling glass doors.

LA was home. I had lived here my whole life and never really thought of living anywhere else. I liked the hustle and bustle. I liked knowing where I was going. I liked the warmth. Plus, my one and only friend was here, even if she was busy these days.

Martin’s secretary led us into a meeting room. I saw my father-in-law sitting at the end of an obscenely long table, with my own father to his side.

Oh no. The only time these two were in the same room was when they were discussing one thing:

Sebastian and me.

My dad was a short man with a balding head. He had been under more stress since the merger, but according to stocks, the company was doing well. Sebastian and I were the social media love story that got people buying from either Electronic Point or Miller Industries.

I knew my dad still saw Miller Industries as the enemy. We were a small-time electronics distributor who struggled to establish contracts with companies like Samsung and Apple. Miller Industries owned a large chain that everyone knew.

While we added cities, they tried to stop us from moving up. My dad had been managing a few locations by the time I was born, and my mom was already trying to get her body back up to her standards by the time I was walking. I was just a burden and a way to make money since I was attractive enough to be a child model.

Now Miller Industries was in every major city in the country. My dad’s locations still held our name, Electronic Point, but we were a part of the Miller Industries family.

Just like I was—or I was supposed to be.

Even though my face didn’t show it, I was panicking. I was begging every god out there that I wasn’t about to be shoved into another contract, one that was more binding than I had been given four years ago.

“Son, Lily,” Martin started, a smile on his face. “Happy anniversary.”

Was it our anniversary? I needed to post on Instagram if it was. Shit, was that was this was for? Was I about to get yelled at for not making a social media post?

“Thank you,” Sebastian said, his voice even.

“Yes, thanks,” I said, putting on my trademark model smile. “It’s so nice to be remembered.”

“Of course. How could we forget?” Martin asked. “But of course, we didn’t bring you both here just for this. It’s unfortunate that I must spring this news on you now on such a joyous day.”

News? What news?

“It’s fine,” Sebastian said. “We are always available.”

Ugh. More like he was always available. It wasn’t like he had a life outside of work.

“Thank you, son. This is exactly why I want you for this job.”

Sebastian looked at his father expectantly. I braced myself.

“We are opening a new corporate office in Nashville, mainly for Electronic Point. I am moving you to the location for a year to oversee it as the CFO of the company.”

I blinked. CFO? Sebastian was currently only a director. This was a huge promotion. I glanced over at him, noticing his expression was not one of pride or excitement.

It was panic.

Why would Sebastian panic about a promotion? This is what he worked all of those long hours in the office for. This was what he wanted.

“And Lily,” Martin said, giving me a smile that was anything but kind, “this is a great opportunity for you to prove to the masses how devoted you are to your husband. Moving across the country is a huge commitment.”

I turned to him, unable to believe my ears.

I was expected to go too.

My entire body wanted to revolt. I didn’t want to leave. My life was in LA. All I had known was in LA. My dad’s company hadn’t even started on that side of the country—so why were we opening an office there?

I wanted to scream and cry and do everything I should do, considering I was being screwed over.

But I was supposed to be composed. A model daughter. A model wife.

No emotions.

“This . . . is a great opportunity,” I said.

Anxiety bubbled in my stomach.

Sebastian glanced at me. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was pissed. Maybe at his father, or maybe at me. I didn’t know.

But then he turned back to Martin and said, “It is. Thank you.”

“Here are your moving plans. Sebastian, your expectations for the new office are included. Lily, your plans should look the same. Be sure to read these carefully.”

Ugh. I took the papers and planned to throw them out the moment I could.

My dad’s eyes met mine, and my lip wobbled for a second. He knew what this was doing to me. He knew I hated this marriage, and he knew I was going to run the minute I was out of it.

Even if I was in Nashville.

I had so much to figure out. I had to make sure my agents and editors knew I was moving. I’d have to get a new PO Box and make sure I seamlessly transitioned so no one else found out my pen name. I couldn’t put my book series, The Fair Originals, at risk.

I made plans in my head of how to move things secretly. I was so busy thinking that the rest of the meeting went by in a blur of male voices. I was barely able to follow Sebastian out when it was over.

“Will you be ready by tomorrow?” Sebastian asked. I blinked, trying to mentally save my plans in my head so I wouldn’t forget.

“Ready for what?”

He sighed. “Were you not listening to me when I said we need to find a house immediately? Nashville is a seller’s market. It’s going to be a challenge purchasing a house.”

“Why are we purchasing?” I asked. “We’re only there for a year.”

“Allen insisted,” Sebastian said, his voice tense. “We need to look like we’re setting down roots.”

“My dad’s buying it? Why wouldn’t you?”

Sebastian gritted his teeth. “Were you really not listening?”

I shook my head.

“I told him I could, but he told me it was a moving present.”

I tried not to balk at how Sebastian could buy a house outright. He made a lot of money as a director. I had no idea how much he would make as a CFO.

“I am assuming you’ll have opinions on where we live,” Sebastian added.

I couldn’t care less, if I were being honest.

“Sure,” I said. “I’ll be ready by tomorrow.”

“I feel the need to remind you that this is not a good time to set up the perfect Instagram shot. We’re there to find a house, not pose.”

“I understand,” I said, smothering an indignant reply.

“I’ll have my assistant book us a flight.”

A ball of cotton found its way into my throat at the mention of his assistant. I wasn’t foolish enough to think that Sebastian wasn’t sleeping around, and Heather was definitely one of the women he saw. She looked at him like he was the sun and the moon.

I never paid attention to him looking at her to see if he felt the same.

“Okay,” I said.

There was a beat of silence in the absurdly long elevator ride.

One question rattled around in my head, begging to be asked.

“Are you looking forward to this?”

He paused, and then turned. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was angry.

“It’s like you said. It’s a great opportunity.”

It didn’t sound like he believed his own words. A glimmer of undesired hope bloomed in my chest.

“A great one to exercise control, perhaps.”

Sebastian turned to me again, looking alarmed.

“I . . . mean your control. Of an office. You’ll be in power.”

Sebastian’s shock cleared, and his expression folded into the one I knew well. “Of course.”

“Sebastian!” Heather said, running up to him in her designer heels. I wondered if Sebastian bought those for her. She was a natural blonde, unlike my dyed hair, with a heart-shaped face and black-rimmed glasses. “I hear you need me.”

That was my cue to leave.

I didn’t say goodbye to either of them. I power walked out the door, trying to think about my writing, but my mind could only think about my husband.

I wondered if Heather would be sad he was moving.

He didn’t feel anything for me, that much was for sure. If there was someone he did feel something for, I bet it was her.

But I had too much to do to dwell on that. I ignored the familiar ache in my chest and tried to keep calm until I was in my car.

And that was when I let the tears come.

Photo: the Nashville skyline in the sunset.

LilyRMiller: I just got the best anniversary present I could ask for! My husband and I get to move to a beautiful new city for a fresh beginning. Stay tuned as I explore all of the amazing things Nashville has to offer!

SebandLily4ever: YESSS! I’m close to Nashville so I can come and find you!

RealBarbaraRoberts: I am going to miss you so much! *five crying emojis*

MartinMiller: Glad to provide such a great opportunity…