Sentenced to Marriage by MadlainQ novel Chapter 22

Our date 

Benjamin drove us to the Lan Diamond Tower‘s underground parking lot. It was after eight, and most of the employees were already gone. Of course, Aren was still working in his office, spending his fourteenth hour answering calls and emails and dealing with all sorts of problems. I thought of going upstairs to meet him, but Neil insisted that I stay in the car until his boss was ready to come down. 

“Your car will be here in five minutes. You will switch cars and wait for Mr. Lan,” he informed 

1. me. 

“I thought that Benjamin would be the one to take us there,” I said, suddenly feeling anxious. 

“No. Marcus will be the one to take you to your date. He‘s Mr. Lan‘s private driver,” Neil explained. I smiled faintly, feeling that my recently gained confidence was leaving me. I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. I wanted to be courageous, but my little inner introvert made me feel awkward around new people, and I think I had already exhausted my daily limit of meeting new people. 

“Relax.” Neil patted my hand. “You look like the lottery‘s main prize, and you have the ultimate power to bring every man to his knees. Just believe in yourself a little more.” He winked at me. 

I tried to smile, but his words couldn‘t silence my restlessly pounding heart. There was only one person who could calm me down, and that was Aren. For some reason, I would believe him if he told me that I would do just fine. 

“Your ride is here,” Neil said, pointing at the black limo, parking next to the Bentley I was in. 

All I needed to do was to step out of one car and get into another, but even so, Neil got out first and stood in the space between the two doors to cover me from any surveillance as I switched the vehicles. I couldn‘t understand why everything had to be so carefully planned. Was all that secrecy necessary? We were going on a date, not breaking into a bank... right? Although I had all those questions swirling inside my head, I didn‘t ask any. I bet that even if I asked them, Neil wouldn‘t give me the answer I wanted... 

I stepped inside the car and made myself comfortable on the cream leather seat. I could see something that could be a satellite phone, an LCD screen, and a minibar with a filled wine fridge. I bet this car had many more hidden gadgets prepared for the businessman‘s comfort. I could easily picture Aren working while sitting in that seat with his laptop. “Good evening, Ms. Bell. I’m Marcus, Mr. Lan‘s driver,” the man behind the wheel greeted me in his deep, bass voice. 

I could only see a glimpse of his face in the mirror‘s reflection, but I would say that he was more fitted to be a bodyguard than a driver… He must have been around 6.5 feet tall since his chauffeur‘s hat was nearly touching the ceiling. As his deep–set eyes and dark brown pupils gave him a piercing gaze, his brown complexion, emphasizing his white eyeballs, made that gaze even fiercer. 

nur date 

“Good evening, Marcus. It‘s lovely to meet you.” I smiled nervously, trying to remain composed 

I saw his eyes brighten as I replied, and I heaved a sigh of relief. I was already stressed out. It was good to know that Aren‘s driver wasn‘t as intimidating as I initially thought... Marcus drove through the parking lot and stopped in front of the CEO‘s private elevator. I almost jumped in my seat when the floor number screen turned on, showing that the elevator was on the move. I held my breath, observing the count down. My heart nearly burst out of my chest. Why was I so nervous? I had never felt this kind of excitement before, not even on my first date with Callan. I knew that it was all a part of a show, that it wasn‘t a real date, but was it bad that I enjoyed it? The elevator door opened, and Aren walked out in confident strides. He was wearing a black suit and tie with a dark purple shirt. His thick black hair was sleekly combed. His intense gaze was fully focused on the car door, as if he could already see me despite the tinted window. I gulped as he got inside. His intoxicating perfume reached my nostrils in a flash, pushing me to follow my most primal instincts. I fisted my hand, letting my nails hurt my palm just to regain an ounce of control over my lustful body. I exhaled slowly, hoping to slow down my erratic heart rate, and raised my head to meet his eyes. What I saw in his eyes made me lean back Keeping his eyes on me, he hit the button, lifting the screen between the driver and our seat. 

“You make me want to forget about the date and rip that dress off of you right now,” he said, his eyes piercing right through me. 

I couldn‘t breathe. My mind went blank, formally declaring capitulation. I could not believe how defenseless I had become. His predatory stare at me was a weapon that could shatter every wall I had ever built. Usually, in this kind of situation, it was my rationality that yelled at me, waking up my inner strength. This time, I was left without my logic. I dropped my guard. I wanted to submit to him. Screw the consequences. 

Aren leaned over me, keeping his eyes locked on mine. I thought that he was going to kiss me, but he only smirked before whispering, “Just admit that you want it too. It’s getting harder to control myself...” 

I didn‘t say a word, and that was the one foolish thing that saved me. I stayed silent, not because I didn‘t want him, but because I was in a state where I could either moan, groan, or throw myself at him. Only when he leaned his back against the seat could I breathe and think again. 

“By the way, you are astonishing tonight,” he commented suddenly. 

I blushed and lowered my gaze like a dumb teenager. “Thank you... You also look extremely handsome...” I muttered, not daring to look into his eyes. He chuckled and gently grabbed my hand. “Don‘t worry. This date is not some kind of test you can fail. If something goes wrong, remember that I‘ll be right there beside you.” His words placed an uncontrollable smile on my face. I knew that it was a pretended date planned to spread rumors and become a basis for our upcoming engagement. Yet it made me feel like a Cinderella on the way to the ball. It was already a magical evening. 

Our limousine arrived in front of one of the current hottest restaurants, called Coeur de 

Romarin our presence was instantly noticed by everyone around. There was a long line of people, but, as expected of amullibillionaire, Aren Lan needed no reservation. He walked out of the car and lent me his hand to support me. As I stepped onto the sidewalk, he placed his hand on the small of my back and led me to the entrance. As soon as the concierge saw us, he bowed down, ready to receive us before everyone else. I felt awkward getting that privilege, but I did everything I could to stay calm, acting as if I had gotten used to this kind of treatment 

As we stepped inside, the host of the restaurant led us to our table upstairs, I could see that he was nervous as if he was receiving some huge celebrity or a president. Aren kept a deadly serious expression while we were following the host. His sharp eyes looked around the room as if he was expecting something bad to happen. Nonetheless, when he felt my eyes on him, he turned to me with a warm, breathtaking smile, 

We were led to a table with the most extraordinary window view. Aren rushed to pull out the chair for me, and then made sure that I would sit comfortably. I kept asking myself if it was truly happening since it felt like a dream, the most romantic date that I had ever been on 

The set of dishes that Aren had chosen for us was made of ingredients that I couldn‘t even recognize. Nonetheless, it was all amazingly delicious, just like the wine he ordered. I swirled the red liquid while looking at the incredible night view. The corners of my lips stayed curled throughout our dinner. For the first time in my life, I felt pampered. If it was only a sweet dream, then I wanted to stay in this fantasy a little longer. 

“Did you enjoy the dinner?” Aren asked in his smooth, velvet voice. 

I grinned. “I loved it.” 

“Now I can feel that the meal was worth the money I paid.” He chuckled. “Because I said I loved it?” I raised one eyebrow, amused. “No… because you smiled at me.” He smirked. The words sent an electric wave through my body. I knew that he was a smooth talker, but his way of teasing started to become dangerous. I needed to get an advantage in this game. 

I leaned forward, playfully exposing my cleavage. “So... do you bring all your girlfriends here?” He grinned, his eyes drawn to my curves. “It‘s convenient. It is my restaurant after all.” “Of course, it is...” I muttered under my breath. I should have known that the restaurant was his, but his misleading reply pissed me off. Now, all I could think of was how many girls had been sitting with him at this table. Somehow, the night no longer felt special or magical. 

“I do not date in public places,” he explained suddenly. 

“No?” I asked, surprised. 

He leaned forward and reached for my hand lying on the table. “I like my private life to stay private.” He lifted my hand slightly and started brushing his fingertips across my palm. I swallowed and took a deep breath. “So, why did you decide to present our “special” relationship to the world?” 

“I need someone to see me in a relationship, and I need that someone to know how special you are to me.” He lowered his head to place a sost kiss on my land. 

I gasped as his lips stroked my skin. I jerked my hand away from him, which instantly painted an evil smirk on his face. It was official: I sucked in this game of his. How could he possibly be so smooth? Still, I tried to save at least some shreds of my dignity and pretended to be unmoved. 

“So, this “date” is a message, a bait you are sending to someone in your family?” I guessed. 

“You are absolutely correct.” He gave me a warm smile while slightly narrowing his eyes. “What?” I leaned back, trying to read him. He shook his head. “I just thought that... big money suits you.” 

That comment quickly wiped the smile off my face. 

“Did I say something wrong?” 

I took another sip from the glass. I knew that he didn‘t mean anything bad, but I couldn‘t change the fact that this one wound within me was never healed properly. 

“You don‘t like rich people, do you? Is that a reason for it?” he asked warily, without a shade of arrogance. A breathless laugh slipped out of my lips. “Do you really want to know?” “Yes, I do,” he replied. 

I had never talked about my relationship with Callan. Not even those whom I called friends knew what had happened between us or what our relationship looked like. Perhaps it was time to change that and tell someone. 

I drank the rest of the wine I had in my glass. “A few years ago, I dated a guy named Callan Garrod...”