my meetings for today?" I turned to my personal assistant/secretary, who happened to be one of my closest friends.

Savannah Keahi and I met when she was a freshman and I was a junior during our undergrad years. At first, her bubbly and intrusive personality weirded me out, but she began to grow on me and I haven't been able to shake her off since.

Even though I would never tell her—knowing she'd never let it die down—I am forever grateful to have her as my support system throughout all the shit that's been going on for the last few years.

Since she was there through essentially everything, she knew what I needed and when I needed it.

Now, more than ever, I needed that support.

"Well, it's currently ten-twenty-six and your next meeting is scheduled for eleven-fifteen. So, you have approximately fifty minutes to relax and talk to your bestie. You are so very welcome, handsome," she replied, leaning back in her chair and giving me a toothy grin as if she was pleased with her work.

I stopped at her desk that was conveniently placed in front of my office. "You do realize that the main part of this job is working, right?"

She waved her hand, dismissing my words instantly.

Most people would think twice before acting like this in front of the CEO of the company that you were employed at but not Van. "Working, shworking. What's life if you don't have some fun? Plus, I've been working enough. I think I'll be pretty good for the next two hours."

"Interesting," I feigned compliance. "And your idea of fun is gossipping with me. Someone who honestly couldn't care less." I raised an eyebrow in her direction. Trying to figure out what goes on in her brain will age me fifty years.

"Of course, Jace," she sat at her desk and motioned towards the open chair in front of her, "Chop chop, we don't have all day."

"No, we just have fifty minutes that you so conveniently planned"—I smiled before continuing to my office—"Next time, why don't you schedule meetings around some more and give yourself the whole day off."

"Really?" Her naive eyes lit up in excitement.

"No," I deadpanned, my face dropping while I shut the door.

"Hey! No fair. I have very serious things to discuss with you. In fact, they can be considered business-related," she retorted, opening the door and ruining my last chance at peace for the day.

I released a heavy sigh, realizing that nothing was gonna stop her. "What do you wanna talk about?"

She gave me a quizzical look as she plopped down on the sofa that I was just about to lay on. "You seriously don't know what I'm gonna ask you about."

"Savannah, the last time I tried figuring out what you were thinking about, I passed out from exhaustion. Out with it before I kick you out. And, don't test me. I have a long day planned." I replied, settling in the chair that was not as comfortable as the damn sofa.

She took in a deep breath—something that meant nothing but trouble for your ears—before continuing, "You just left after the meeting last night!"

"And?" I knew precisely what she meant, but I had no urge to defend or explain my actions.

The request from last night was still ringing in my ears, Alex's voice keeping me up all night.

Marriage. The word seemed like a mockery considering the circumstances that he and I found each other in, but I still accepted.

"Bitch, you're engaged. You're freaking engaged to the Kimberly Astor. Kimberly freaking Nyla freaking Astor. I've had the biggest crush on her for the longest time. But don't tell Niamh. Wait, she's on my list, so Niamh already knows. Oh my god, she's on my list. You're not supposed to meet anyone on your list," Savannah ranted, shaking in excitement.

If I wasn't used to her antics, this would be alarming to the average person. But I was surprised she wasn't shaking faster.

"What 'list'?" I asked in confusion, finally processing her words.

As expected, her inability to keep a conversation on track had me reeling to understand the progression of everything she was saying. I thought she would berate me more about the sudden engagement to some heiress, but I was as informed about it as she was.

When her wide eyes met mine last night, I knew I was in for some sort of verbal vomit, which is precisely why I bolted out of the meeting room as soon as it was over.

She looked at me in shock. "Seriously Jace"—she shook her head—"Nevermind, it's like a hall pass for people you're allowed to sleep with when you're in a relationship. Normally, you choose people that you would never meet. But someone must be looking out for me up there because Kimberly freaking Astor," she sighed my future fiancée's name before squealing.

"Are you seriously admitting to me that you want to sleep with the woman that I'm technically engaged to?" Confusion seemed to be the trend of this conversation. As it always is.

"Well, I'm not actually gonna do it." She shot me a look before the utter look of glee took over her features. "But have you seen her?"

She stumped me there. I tried avoiding tabloids and blocked out media coverage if it wasn't business-related.

According to the meeting yesterday, Kimberly Astor has a knack for being the favorite subject of the paparazzi, something that I was not excited about.

But my complete distaste for tabloids means that I don't think I've ever officially seen what she looks like. If I have, I probably don't remember. And, after the meeting, I went straight home and sat in silence, taking this all in.

I was meeting her tonight, so I had no intention of trying to stalk her on social media.

"No." The one-word answer had Van clutching the sofa as if I told her I killed puppies for fun.

"She's a half-Spanish goddess with a body and face I'd kill for," she sighed. "Shit, am I drooling?" I let out a small huff, amused by the girl sitting in front of me.

"Well, according to Alex, I'm going to meet her tonight. Apparently, they're doing a family dinner to solidify the engagement," I stated, getting up to get back to work.

The frown that fell on her face indicated that she wasn't very pleased with my answer. "Jace, you looked miserable when you walked out of the meeting. Are you sure you're okay with it?"

"Yes. I owe Alex everything. He seemed enthusiastic about the prospect, so this is the least I could do for him," I replied, not knowing what to say. I still wasn't entirely sure about how I felt regarding the situation. It was all very new and very foreign.

She followed me to my desk, leaning forward onto it. "That's not what I asked."

"Van, I don't really know what to feel right now. Business is business and with everything going on, I don't really have time for a relationship, so I guess this is the most convenient way to go about it," I replied.

Mom's been on my case about trying to cut back on my workload and have a more social life, so this weirdly worked out. Although, I'm assuming an arranged marriage isn't how she expected me to go about this.

But beggars can't be choosers.

I didn't have to particularly have a good relationship with my wife. As long as we could remain civil and have a strong business partnership out of it, I'd be fine.

Love and all that other shit is overrated.

Savannah opened her mouth to reply but was cut off by the sound of the phone. Seeing that it was from the receptionist's desk, I answered the call and put it on speaker. "Yes, Zina."

"Hello, Mr. Kingston! I cried calling Ms. Keahi, but I don't think she's at her desk." Savannah sheepishly smiled at the glare I sent her. "Ms. Kimberly Astor is here to see you. I know she doesn't have a scheduled appointment, but would you like me to send her up?"

Shock was clearly evident in both of our faces, but you can clearly tell someone was more excited than the other.

What was she doing here?

"Thank you and... send her up," I replied and ended the call.

What the hell?

♕♕♕

KIMBERLY

This was completely and utterly unsettling. When you walk into a place that you've walked into a million times, there should be a sense of comfort and familiarity.

Wrong.

Walking into Kingston Industries was—as I said—the most unsettling feeling ever.

Not much has changed, but ever since I found out that Jace Kingston took over, it doesn't feel the way it used to. Alexander Kingston practically raised me and loved me like a daughter. Technically, raising all of us was a group effort, but I give credit where it's due.

Ever since the incident that had me tip over the point of insanity, Alex treated me more like a daughter than my own father. He stuck by me through thick and thin and never made me feel less of myself.

So, imagine my shock when I found out that he has a twenty-eight-year-old son.

After my conversation with Vivi last night, I got to work and did my research on this mysterious new man to find absolutely nothing of substance. It's like he randomly showed up in the public eye a year ago.

Since my social media stalking was a failure, I turned to my trusty best friend and cousin to get as many details as possible. Ash cursed me out for calling him at three in the morning without an emergency, but after some careful blackmailing, he obliged.

Alex's two daughters—making them Jace's half-sisters and two people I insanely loved—didn't know him all too well, making their information a repeat of what I got from Vivi and Ash.

The information from all of them was still not enough, but the one other person I could turn to was the last person I wanted to go to. But I had enough to paint a very vague narrative.

Apparently, on Jace's twenty-seventh birthday, Alex revealed that he had a son who he took under his wing to train in the business world.

But, according to Vivian, they had only met a few years prior to the reveal and kept it a secret from practically everyone. I knew that there was no way that Alex would leave a son behind and keep him hidden, which led me to the conclusion that he didn't even know that he had a son.

Most of their history was kept under wraps, which I had no intention of intruding on if they didn't want to share. Since I was about to be this man's future wife—a fact that still had an unsettling grip on my guts—I was obviously a tad bit curious.

"Hello, Ms. Astor! What can I do for you today?" Zina—one of the main receptionists at Kingston Industries—asked with a bright smile. I've been here to bother Alex more times than I can count, meaning that I had a pretty good relationship with Zina.

"Hey, Zina! How many times do I have to tell you to call me Kim?" I teased lightly.

Zina was definitely a lot older than me, even though she didn't look it, but hearing her call me Ms. Astor always made me feel awkward.

She gave a teasing smile at one of my many attempts to be more casual with her. "You can tell me as many times as you'd like, but I'd still forget with old age.

"Nonsense, you don't look a day over twenty," I replied, winking for extra measure.

"Flatter me all you want, honey. I'm still not handing over my infamous Red Velvet Madeleines recipe," she laughed, booping my nose.

"Dang it. You figured me out," I laughed before continuing. "All jokes aside, is Jace Kingston in?"

She dramatically started fanning herself. "You mean that handsome man. If only I was twenty-five years younger... I'm going off tangent. He should be in right now—if this schedule is correct—I don't believe he's with anyone right now. Do you want me to call ahead?"

"Yes, please," I responded sweetly.

As she made her call, my thoughts drifted to the events of last night and the afternoon. To say I was pissed was a severe understatement. The thought of Dad coming to my apartment in the afternoon—knowing exactly what the day before marked the anniversary of—completely aware of this plan that the board had.

It would've been one thing if we were both blindsided by this information, but he was sitting there, explaining it to me as if it were his plan all along. I honestly wouldn't be shocked if it wasn't.

I was embarrassed by how I let it get to me last night, but Vivian—as she always does—had an excellent point.

Although, a large part of me felt betrayed by Alex. Dad and I had a tense relationship, which wasn't an obscure piece of information for anyone. But Alex knows me. He understands how I feel about marriage and how I was not willing to partake in a relationship anytime soon.

Zina gave me a thumbs up, letting me know that I would be able to meet with my fiancé.

God, saying it felt incredibly weird.

I walked up to the elevator, anxiety slowly starting to seep in.

This was my first time meeting him and every part of me was nervous about what was going to go down. I'm normally very good at keeping my emotions under control, but what if he resents me for putting him in this situation.

This marriage was brought up because no one trusted me to make decisions on my own anymore.

As much as I didn't want to marry him, there was a chance he felt the same way and was forced into this too.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't even realize that I ended up on the floor with his office. I exited the elevator with bated breath and reminded myself that I could do this.

You got this, bitch. You're a ball-grabber. You're a control-taker. You're fucking scary.

The matra ran through my head as my red-bottoms clicked the marble floors.

My outfit was slightly on the dramatic side—a modern rendition of Cruella de Vil's iconic outfit, according to Vivian—but I looked hot. A half-black and half-white suit dress that ended mid-thigh, paired with my black Louboutins and a simple makeup look consisting of a dramatic wing and sultry red lipstick, matching the bottom of my heels.

I'd wanna fuck me.

I was a firm believer in looking good equating to feeling good. It created the external support needed to keep up the façade I had as my foundation.

Looking ahead, there seemed to be someone new behind the secretary's desk, outside of Jace's office. I was so used to Alex's personal assistant being there all the time that the sight of someone new sent a pang through my heart. Things are different now.

If I wasn't mistaken, he probably took the CEO's office and Alex moved into a different office, either on the same floor or another.

"Hello, I'm here to see Jace Kingston. I believe Zina called ahead," I stated, mustering up my signature smile.

That proved to be a mistake because the girl in front of me started hyperventilating.

She was beautiful, to say the least. She seemed to be Polynesian—I assumed, considering how many models I met during my time—with her distinct features and tan skin. But that sun-kissed skin of hers was going to turn blue if she didn't start breathing.

"Oh my god! I knew you were coming, but still. Oh my god. Oh no! Jace's gonna get mad at me for being unprofessional, but oh my god. It's really you. A part of me thought everyone was just pulling my leg, but oh my freaking god. I'm Savannah Keahi and I'm Jace's personal assistant and I'm like extremely in love with you. Don't tell my girlfriend. Who am I kidding? She already knows, but she's so not gonna believe me," Savannah started rambling in one breath.

If I didn't cut this girl off quickly, she was going to stop breathing.

I laughed at her antics before opening my mouth. "While I'm completely honored, I'd prefer if you didn't pass out on me."

Her cheeks reddened at my words and the once outspoken girl became shy. "Jace's right. I do have a problem. Don't tell him that though. Don't tell him about any of this, if I'm being honest. He's expecting you, so you can just walk right in."

I thanked her and turned around to walk towards the office. I was about to step off before I turned back around. "Can I see your phone real quick?"

She quickly handed her phone over with no questions and I went to the camera. I sidled up next to her and took a picture of us before handing her phone back. The shock on her face was enough to make me crack up again.

"God, I am so in love with you," she sighed dreamily.

"There's proof for your girlfriend. Bye Savannah, it was nice meeting you!" I responded, finally making my way to the office, bracing myself for a meeting with my future.

***

savannah is literally the cutest y'all. also, i love jace sooo much.

fun fact: i changed his name from jaxon to jace.

love, zia.