Chapter 5 A One-Year Marriage

"If you refuse to marry Kathryn, Nathan, I'll disown you on the spot." Eunice hurled the ultimatum with blazing resolve, and then added icily, "I've already got a great-grandchild coming. I don't need a useless grandson cluttering my house."

Vince observed the formidable old matriarch and, in his mind, offered her an enthusiastic round of applause.

Nathan's expression darkened like a brewing storm. His grandmother's sudden moves hit him squarely, a dull ache blooming at his temples.

Images flashed through his mind-Kathryn had drugged him, used him, and planned to flee overseas with his child.

Any single offense would have warranted severe punishment.

"Grandma, I will not marry her."

"You brat, I'll knock some sense into you myself today!" As she spoke, Eunice rolled up her sleeves and lunged after Nathan, swinging without mercy.

Nathan didn't dare to strike back. He only sidestepped, afraid she might lose her footing or exhaust herself in her fury.

The spectacle left Kathryn rooted in place. She never imagined the cold, ruthless Nathan would allow an elder to chase him down like this-it felt oddly human.

After a moment, she stepped in and gently clasped Eunice's arm, speaking softly. "Eunice, neither of us wants this. Please don't force it."

At the thought of losing the granddaughter-in-law she had already claimed in her heart, Eunice grew flustered and quickly switched tactics. "Kathryn, dear, hear me out. I know you can't stand this wretched grandson of mine."

Nathan said nothing. Was this really his own grandmother? Did she have to humiliate him so publicly?

"I'll support you completely!" Eunice announced with conviction, and then sighed. "But give Nathan one real chance to take care of you. Try a one-year marriage. If you still can't stand him after that... Then dump him without mercy!"

Nathan's eyes flew wide in disbelief.

Kathryn laughed outright. For a fleeting second, it felt as though she were the true Walker heir-and Nathan the outsider.

"Eunice, I don't need him to take care of me."

Eunice had anticipated the rejection. She leaned close and whispered into Kathryn's ear, "Before your mother vanished, she called me. She asked me to ensure you married Nathan, bore his heir, and then I was to pass a special keepsake on to you."

Kathryn's smile froze.

She never imagined her own mother would orchestrate her life so thoroughly.

Was she truly her mother's daughter at all? How could her mother sell her out so completely?

Noticing Kathryn falter, Eunice turned her sharp glare on Nathan and issued a fresh threat. "Marry Kathryn, or I'll transfer every asset I own to her and disappear into seclusion on Hisdon Mountain. I'll never return."

Nathan felt as if the breath had been crushed from his chest.

There was no counterplay left to him. He couldn't sacrifice the family's entire inheritance, nor could he bear the thought of his grandmother isolating herself on that desolate peak.

Vince, having watched the confrontation unfold, knew the outcome was sealed. He mused silently that age only seemed to sharpen some people's blades.

Eunice beamed with satisfaction. Grasping Kathryn's hand, she steered her toward the exit. "Come along. We're getting your marriage registered."

Thirty minutes later, Eunice clutched the newly issued marriage documents, her smile radiant with triumph.

"It's done. Since you're officially husband and wife, take Kathryn home and start learning how to be a family." Before departing, she cast Nathan a final, unmistakable warning. Then she bid Kathryn farewell and returned to the Walker Estate.

With no alternative, Kathryn slid into the car beside Nathan. A weight of regret pressed down on her; signing those papers already felt like a mistake.

She stole a glance at his impassive profile and ventured cautiously. "Listen... you don't want this any more than I do. Why don't we go back and file for divorce right now?"

Nathan's lips twitched in disbelief. It dawned on him that she truly had no desire to marry him-and the realization hurt more than he had anticipated.

"If you're set on divorcing, tell my grandma yourself. I'll accept whatever decision she makes."

Kathryn sagged against the seat, muttering, "With your influence, you could handle it discreetly without dragging her into it."

She wasn't naïve. Pressing the issue through Eunice would cost her whatever her mother had left in the older woman's care.

"So you could run off with my child after all that plotting. Ingenious," Nathan sneered, his dark gaze openly hostile.

Kathryn bristled at the accusation, hands snapping to her hips as she shot back, "Hey! How dare you say that? You didn't seem to mind any of it last night, did you?"

Unlike him-she had endured pain, pleading for him to stop to no avail.

Nathan said nothing.

A hint of unease crossed his features as memories of the previous night resurfaced. Against his will, he recalled that it had been... pleasurable.

Silence stretched between them. Kathryn replayed her own words and realized just how daring they had sounded.

Her phone rang abruptly. She checked the caller ID and saw Cillian Jenkins, her mother's assistant.

After she listened to the report, Kathryn's brows knit together. She replied coolly, "Wait for me."