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CHAPTER 2 Forced to Marry Her

Marcus POV.

Grandfather!

I was stunned to see him in front of me and with the look on his face, he looked like he had expected to see me like this. As if waking up with a stranger in bed and discovering that we actually had sex wasn't bad enough, my grandfather just walked in on us.

It made no sense to me that I had arrived at the event with Rose and now, she was nowhere in sight. I checked my phone but there was no missed call or text from her which was very unusual, and the worst part was that when I called her, her line wasn't connecting.

"Grandfather… I… I can explain. It's really not what you think." I stuttered as I tried to piece the right words together but the words just weren't coming to me.

Of all the people who could walk in on me, it just had to be the man who held my future in his hands. He was already skeptical about handing over the company to me since he felt I wasn't ready yet and wasn't in support of my relationship with Rose. I was still trying to convince him that I was ready, that was the reason I threw the party with top business associates and managed to secure a deal.

I gasped. The deal! I was talking to a partner of his last night about a partnership with the company but I don't exactly recall the outcome of the discussion because, for some reason, I had drank too much and lost my mind.

I am not a light drinker so I am still amazed at how one or two glasses of wine had ruffled me up this bad.

"We need to talk, now." Grandfather said with a gruff voice as he looked the woman beside me over and stormed out.

I knew it was over for me and my dreams to inherit the company. He would never let me live down the fact that I had been so careless and irresponsible at a public event.

Without a word, I followed him out into the hallway but just like I had expected, he didn't stop there, he walked into the next room and I followed after him. Our family, the Wrights, had too much at stake to be having private conversations that involved family out in public hallways.

That's one of the many reasons Grandfather is really big on being responsible in public and one of the main reasons I knew he would never let me lead the company, not after what just happened.

But I wasn't going to give up, at least not without a fight. Rose and I deserved a chance at this.

"Please let me explain, I really don't know what happened. One minute I was down at the party and the next I was waking up next to her without a single clue what had…"

"Shut the door." His impatient voice cut me off as he strolled over to one of the sofas in the room and took his seat.

He crossed his leg tentatively and looked way too relaxed. For a man like my grandfather, the calmer he is, the worse his rage, so his case was like the calm before the storm.

He commanded me to come and sit directly in front of him and I obeyed without a second thought. My grandfather is basically the founder of my family's fortune and he ruled with an iron fist for years. He is way older than he looks but the fact that he put so much effort into looking like a mafia boss most times got people confused about his real age.

"I know what you did with her and as we speak, there is a picture going around the internet, and the article is claiming you're a cheater and a womanizer." He began, calmly.

"What!"

"Someone took a picture of you entering her room last night. A video was taken too and it was obvious you were drunk. The writer of the article confirmed it wasn't the room you booked with your so-called girlfriend so people are currently just assuming and letting their imaginations run wild." He explained further.

"What the… so you're saying that they are destroying my reputation on the web-based on their personal beliefs?" I was enraged at the thought of netizens dragging my name through the mud for a mistake.

They might not know it but things like this cost big companies like ours severely. Scandals cause a huge drop in stock prices and sometimes a company might not be able to recover from the fall, that's why scandals are handled with such sensitivity.

"We really can't afford to go through something like this when your inauguration is around the corner." Grandfather said and for the first time since he walked in on me, I sensed emotions in his tone, concern was evident on his face too.

"What did you just say?" I glanced up at him sharply as soon as I processed what he had just said. "Did you just say inauguration?" I asked again and he nodded with a thin smile.

"Yes Marcus, I have thought things through and I think you're ready to run the company but…" his voice trailed off.

"But what grandfather? I promise to do anything you ask of me and to give this my best shot. I would be well-behaved and…"

"That's not the problem son."

"So what is it?" I asked, exasperated.

"You can't become the head like this, the board would never agree to it. There is a very active scandal going on and we can't just let the bloggers keep going on and on about it."

"We could take the videos and pictures down. We could sue anyone that tries to put them back up, that should be enough to scare them and keep them under control."

That was a good plan. I mean, who would dare or be stupid enough to choose to go against my family?

"That won't work, Son. The publishing house that put it up is unknown and we can't sue anyone yet."

"So what do you suggest we do?" I inquired and he sighed heavily.

"Marry her." Grandfather stated boldly and I was left dumbfounded and confused. I was certain I had not heard him right or he was probably talking about the wrong girl but he repeated it again.

"Marry the girl you spent the night with and claim your inheritance. You need it Marcus and you don't have much time."

"What are you even saying? She is just a stranger and I am certain she would never agree to something preposterous like this."

"I thought you might say that." He said as he pulled out his phone and sent a text to someone. Shortly after, the door opened and grandfather's personal bodyguard led the strange woman from last night in.

"What the heck are you doing Grandpa?" I thundered angrily when I saw her stroll inside.

"Taking advantage of the situation in favor of my company and my grandson." He turned to her, "What do you say dear? I am sure you have been briefed by my assistant, would you like to be my daughter-in-law?"

This was absurd and I expected nothing more than a blatant rejection from the woman but to my surprise, after a few seconds of silence, she actually agreed.

I was dumbfounded.

"Now, it's left to you Marcus, would you take the way out that I am offering you or would you give up on your inheritance instead?" Grandfather asked me as his gaze held mine.

"This…I don't even know what to call this. I have a girlfriend you know and I am more than willing to end up with her if you just give me your approval."

"Oh please… that wench took the money I offered and disappeared without a second thought."

"What… what are you talking about?"

"Whoever took those pictures of you wanted to make a move towards her for more information about our family in exchange for money but I was faster and smarter so I got to her first." He smirked but when he saw the look on my face, his smirk disappeared and he continued.

"Luckily for me, she took the money I offered and left the country without a word. My men escorted her to the airport and watched her leave." He added with a tone that sounded like he was happy that he had been right about Rose.

I didn't believe him.

"Rose would never." I immediately jumped to her defense.

"Believe it or not, that's your business to deal with but right now, I suggest you make a decision. Your inheritance or a woman that wasted no time at all to abandon you?"

I glanced up at the stranger who was seated beside my grandfather and then at him. Everything was happening way too fast and no one was giving me an opportunity to think things through.

"What if I say no to the marriage and yes to my inheritance?" I asked him and with a straight face, he said;

"Then get ready to face the board on your own." With that said, he got up and made for the door but just as his bodyguard pulled it open, he paused but didn't turn around, "you would never win against them without a good excuse. The only way to make the scandal go away without a messy trial is to marry her."

All these years, I had worked so hard for my inheritance and now that it was finally within my grasp, it felt like it was slipping right out of my reach.

"Wait!" I called out and he stopped, "I agree." I mumbled and he turned around sharply to face the woman with a smile.

"I didn't quite catch your name love." He said to her.

"Amo…" she paused, "Amora, Amora Clark." She continued.

"Well Amora, you're now a Wright. Welcome to the family love." Grandfather said to her before he walked out proudly as if he had just achieved the greatest feat of all time.

It was hard to read the expression on her face so I couldn't really tell what she was thinking.

As the door slammed shut behind him, I locked eyes with Amora and I felt so angry that I had been trapped in a deal I didn't want.

"Even if we get married, I would never fall in love with you Amora." I declared harshly and stormed out of the room.

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