26 HARD CONDITIONS
ARIEL’S POV
Mason stepped foot inside the hospital room, his hands deep in his pockets. He was wearing a leather jacket, and the smile he gave me was clearly fake.
What the hell was he doing here anyway? He was the last person I expected to see.
“You’re still alive!” Mason smirked. “That’s nice. I don’t know how this plan is going to work out without you.”
“I literally went through hell earlier today. Can you please give me a break?”
He laughed. “Breaks are for babies.”
I shook my head and let out a weary sigh. “I’m being serious here.”
“And do I look like I’m joking?” He raised an eyebrow, and I turned my face away. “How was your elevator experience?”
I gave him a quizzical look. “Why are you asking me that?”
“I just want to know if you and Luke did–you know, the whole relationship stuff.”
I stared at him for a few seconds, then replied, “No, we didn’t.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Why would I lie to you?”
Mason chuckled softly. “You have thousands of reasons to lie to me.” He moved closer to the bed. “I know you hate me and that you don’t want to follow this plan of mine. But what can
you do?” He shrugged. “You have no choice.”
“You are the most heartless person I’ve ever seen,” I told Mason, my tone cold.
“Oh really? He laughed again. “What about your ex–husband? Oh, sorry, your husband–to- be?” He had a mocking grin. “I mean, he did a lot of terrible things to you, right?”
“Yes, but at least he’s better than you. He tried to save my life today.”
“He did?” Mason’s eyes widened.
I remained silent, choosing not to tell him anything about what happened between me and Luke in the elevator.
He nodded slowly. “I can see the chemistry developing. Just what I wanted. But we still need to act fast. I want to see Luke completely ruined as soon as possible.”
“In what way did he offend you that you’re going through all these measures?” I inquired.
“You’ll find out as time goes by. But for now, just do as I say without any questions. You have three days to get Luke to marry you.”
“Three days?” I exclaimed. I couldn’t believe what he was telling me.
“You’re right, three days is too much. Two days.”
“No, no, no,” I said, getting up from the bed. “How do you expect me to get Luke to marry me within three days?”
“Two days, to be precise,” Mason whispered.
“Even ten days is too little. Do you even have any idea what we’re talking about here? That man hates me so much. There’s no way he’s ever going to marry me.”
“And yet he tried to save your life in the elevator.”
DEMANTOL
I couldn’t help but sigh. “Oh, please, he could have done that to anyone else.”
“That is none of my business. Just do as I say, alright? You don’t want to lose these two little adorable children of yours.
Great, he had to bring my kids into this conversation again. I was really annoyed by this. But what could I do? Absolutely nothing. If I tried to act smart, he might just kill my little babies, and trust me, I didn’t want to sign up for that.
“If you’re going to help me, then you won’t be threatening to murder my children.”
“Sorry, miss, but you can’t tell me what to do. I’m the one who calls the shots around here. And once I make a decision, it’s final. You have no choice but to follow it if you don’t want to face the consequences.”
Mason walked to the door and turned around with a plastic smile. “Have a nice day, and remember, you have two days.” He left after that.
I sat down on the bed, covering my face, thinking about how I was going to handle this one. He told me to get married to Luke, and I should do that in two days. Like, how in the world is that even possible? How am I going to convince Luke to marry me?
- me.
I arrived home, only to be welcomed by my grandfather. He was standing outside, having a chat with one of his friends. They seemed to be having a great time.
I approached the two of them, wondering why they were at my house. This wasn’t a normal visit; it had a specific purpose because my grandfather barely paid me a visit.
- me.
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