Chapter 2 Serious Expression

Jake prayed that his presumption had been wrong but there Stella Peterson stood in all her glory.

"Are you fucking insane? I told you not to use her passcode unless I'm inviting you over and you need to prepare in advance." He attempted to shove the tall woman out the door.

"That's what I should be asking you!" She screamed at his question only.

Her nails dug into the palm of her hand at the thought of him spending the night with that stuck-up brat Clara.

It was the weekend!

Jake was supposed to be with her.

How could Clara be so selfish and plotting as to keep him all to herself?

Enraged she stormed to Clara's bedroom where she found her passed out in the queen-sized bed like she figured she'd be.

"Dumb bitch!" Stella swore at the sleeping form of Clara making her stir at the loud noise.

Jake panicked and covered her mouth.

Both of them stood still as they watched Clara roll onto her side and face them.

However, at the realization that her eyes were still closed, Jake blew out a breath of relief.

Stella just huffed.

"Come on, babe. Let's get out of here before you do something you'll regret."

Clara, somewhere between being awake and asleep, heard the endearment spoken by Jake's voice.

She smiled against the pillow a little because of it.

"Whatever," Stella flashed his hands off her but allowed him to bring her to the living room and away from Clara.

However, her next words had the woman more cognizant of her surroundings.

"Just so you know, if this happens again, I won't be held accountable for what I do. You're mine, Jake Mallion. And I don't like sharing what's mine." At the end of her speech, Stella slammed her lips against Jake's.

Finally coming to her senses, Clara forced open her eyes, holding back an excruciating headache.

Her vision cleared to a dark room.

However, the woman was sure she had heard Jake's voice so she went in search of him.

Her feet halted at the end of the hallway when she could make out the figures of a man and a woman kissing passionately in her living room.

What the-

Numb to the core, Clara looked at the two of them in shock as she realized it wasn't just any man but her man.

The anger inside her began to boil.

It heightened upon noticing that the woman was someone she knew too.

Stella freaking Peterson.

Her certified understudy in the acting industry.

It wasn't until recently she had made a name for herself and look at what she was doing with that newfound reputation.

Dragging it through the mud.

A part of her considered confronting them.

To storm over there and slap Stella across the face and deliver a double dosage to Jake as well.

However, she never operated like that.

She was the type of woman who was rarely impulsive.

Even in heart-wrenching scenarios like this.

It took a lot for her to lose her composure and she realized that because of what Jake had done, he didn't deserve to get satisfaction from witnessing that side of her.

"Stella, stop fucking with me." The man warned through clenched teeth after pulling her away from sucking his face off.

"What? Are you scared we'll wake your little ice princess?" Stella teased with a sense of aggravation, "You're gonna sign your marriage license tomorrow anyway so why don't you give yourself to me tonight, hmm?"

"Babe, you're gonna be the death of me. I swear to God."

Stella batted her eyelashes at him.

"Okay then, but let's go to your place." He easily surrendered.

Clara could hear the smile in his tone and it made her heart ache even more.

"Fine..." She agreed unwillingly. "But you have to go down on me first." The dark-haired vixen nudged the man's chest towards the door of Clara's apartment.

As soon as the man turned to leave, Stella was coy enough and screamed, "Go ahead and sign those papers tomorrow, you brat! But just know Jake's mine. Always has been and always will be. Oh, and did you know? I'm currently bearing his child. I'm pregnant!"

Clara felt her heart stop.

"Stella, are you insane?" She heard Jake hiss before grabbing the girl and pulling her towards the door. "What if she hears you?"

It wasn't until Clara heard the front door slam shut that she felt her world come crumbling down.

How...how could he do this to me? She thought feeling as if she was suffocating.

Two years ago, Clara was once America's youngest top actress. But, because of this man, she gave up everything, handing over her hard-earned position to Stella.

Clara shook her head in disbelief as she started pacing the length of her living room.

The vicious giggles of Stella still echoed inside her head.

This was, without a doubt, the second most devastating thing that had happened in her entire life.

The next day, as planned, Clara drove to the marriage license bureau with a dark cloud hanging over her head.

She sat in her Mercedes Maybach with her head against the steering wheel.

Taking a deep sigh, she decided to give Jake a call.

His female assistant answered. "Mr. Mallion just escorted Ms. Peterson to the hospital due to her complaints about not feeling well. He said to tell you if you called that he has to, um, cancel the plans you had together."

That's it, Clara thought livid.

She had called the bastard to have him confess and beg for forgiveness. To ask if this was what it had come to.

Everything couldn't have been more clear in her eyes.

"Would you like to leave a message-"

"No, thank you." Clara hung up the phone abruptly.

In a moment of seeing nothing but sheer anger, she threw the phone on the pavement out the car window, watching it smash into a million pieces.

A passerby hopped away terrified at the indirect assault.

"Ahh!"

Clara covered her mouth in shock. "Oh my god! I'm so sorry!"

The woman gripped her purse against her in fear, her eyes wavering, and began to powerwalk away with a look of judgment.

"Crazy rich people." She mumbled not so softly.

Clara sighed as she stared at the broken iPhone.

It pinged with a message and a sardonic smile came on her face.

What a surprise.

It wasn't dead.

She stepped out of her car and slipped on her sunglasses. They were to conceal her eyes which were swollen after the sleepless night she had.

Clara bent down to retrieve the damaged phone but at that moment, her eyes were drawn to a lean figure approaching.

He had the kind of face that stopped you in your tracks. She guessed he must be used to that, the sudden pause in a person's natural expression when they looked his way followed by an overcompensation with a nonchalant gaze and a dismissive smile.

Her eyes sparkled at how the grey suit enhanced his fit body. It was brought off by a pair of freshly polished black leather shoes which looked brand new.

As his face came more into view, she noticed his bone structure was perfectly symmetrical.

It was manly.

His well-defined features inclusive of sexy lips were enough to bring any woman to her feet.

Clara recognized this man, he was the CEO of Royal Entertainment-Nicholas King.

When she was out and about in the social events, they had crossed paths once. They hadn't shared a word. They just stood in the same room for a few hours.

Is he also registering his marriage today?

A part of her was curious to see who the woman was to have tied down a powerful man like him.

"Mr. King, Miss Hamilton has not arrived as yet. It's been half an hour. Sir, I think she has schemes with her family to try and sabotage you." The gentleman who looked like his assistant reported behind him.

"Call her family and tell them this marriage is no longer in the works. If their daughter can't even be on time for the registration of it then what's the point?"

"Yes, sir." The assistant complied.

Then he gave him a rather grave look.

"Unfortunately, the chairman of this company keeps pushing to work with a family man. I'm afraid of the heights he will go to convince the board of your illegitimacy again because you're unmarried, despite all that you have achieved."

"You're telling me," Nicholas chuckled coldly.

He released a sigh as David's expression became more defeated.

"I'm sure there's a woman from a socialite family out there who's willing to marry me. Find anyone...anyone but her will do." He spoke plainly as if he was talking about ordering clothes online.

Though there was no chance in hell that suit of his wasn't tailor-made.

Isn't he- isn't he being a bit impulsive? Clara asked herself with her mouth wide open.

Of course, he was aware of his social standing.

Nicholas King was a man of great reputation.

He could get any woman he wanted without much effort. After all, he was one of the most sought-after bachelors in New York, not to mention the whole country.

Was he under so much pressure that love wasn't even going to be considered when dealing with marriage?

Her guess was right based on the unbothered expression on Nicholas' face as his assistant scanned through his phone.

He looked like he just wanted to get this over with.

Suddenly, a horrible idea came to Clara's mind.

It was driven by the bloodthirsty need for revenge and before she knew it, Clara was stopping Nicolas King as she seized his hand.

The man looked down at the small lady before him, wondering who could be disrespectful and clueless enough to block his path.

His eyes widened slightly at her beauty and grace when Clara took off her sunglasses. Her hair flowed behind her with a light caress of the wind and she looked up at him with daring eyes.

"Will you marry me?"

The assistant on his phone who had overheard this couldn't help but choke.

He scrambled clumsily for a hold of the device that almost fell from him due to shock.

Clara stood strong with confidence oozing from her figure.

She was not going to falter.

It had taken all her courage as well as pride to do this.

Nicholas who had been sporting a pair of raybands removed them, revealing a pair of dark almond-shaped eyes; the colour of coffee as he looked at the little lady before him. After a short moment, he turned to his assistant asking, "What is the meaning of this?"

The fellow, scared for both him and the lady, scurried over after quickly finishing up the conversation with the Hamiltons.

"Miss, I would advise you to step aside-wait. Aren't you Clara Raymond?"

An odd sensation filled Clara's chest.

Something she only felt years ago when she had been in the spotlight with a reputation that made her feel self-important.

"Yes. Yes, I am."

The assistant startled Clara when his stern guise transformed into that of an excited fanboy.

"Oh my god! Can I get your autograph? I've been a fan of you since you debuted in Monster in Me. I cried for an hour straight after you had died in that car accident. It felt positively unfair that you had to undergo so much and end up"

"David."

The strict voice of his superior had the rambling man coming to a halt.

The assistant cleared his throat with a blush dusting his cheeks.

"Um, I apologize for my sudden...burst of excitement. I'm just a huge fan you see."

Clara laughed softly.

"It's alright. I've had worse experiences."

The man rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "But Miss Raymond, why haven't I seen any current works from you? I heard rumors that you're retiring. Is that true?"

Clara swallowed harshly at the personal question.

"Uh..."

"David," Nicholas had interrupted with a deep voice. "Before your little chit-chat, I had asked you what the meaning of this was. Are you well acquainted with this young lady?"

David took a step back.

"Well, not necessarily, sir. This is Clara Raymond."

"Who?"

Clara felt a punch delivered to her ego.

After all the joy she had experienced a moment ago from David, it didn't take long for Nicholas to hammer her down to size with one single word.

David stared at his boss in disbelief.

"Only the best movie star to walk the planet!"

The heat from before reached Clara's cheeks.

"If that's the case how come I've never heard of her?"

Her lips pursed at the arrogance in his manner of speech.

It had a way to break a girl's spirit.

"I've retreated from the industry for a while. Only focusing on a few modeling jobs here and there." Hearing the woman speak up for herself pulled Nicholas' attention onto her.

He gave her an obvious scan from head to toe. "And why are you suggesting that I take your hand in marriage?"

"Because I heard you need a wife."

His eyes darkened. "Who sent you here?"

Clara held up her hands in mock surrender.

"I simply overheard you."

"So you were eavesdropping?"

"No! I was simply-" Clara sighed. "Okay, maybe I was eavesdropping but does that matter? I need a husband as much as you need a wife at the moment."

His dark eyebrows sloped downwards in a serious expression.

His sarcastic smile had drawn into a hard line across his face. "And who told you that you were a suitable candidate for that position, little girl?"

Clara's nostrils flared.

"First of all, I am not a little girl. I am a twenty-five-year-old woman, thank you very much. And secondly, you didn't seem to be picky about your bride a minute ago. A socialite? I'm right here. My family background might be satisfactory as well." She didn't mean to brag but the degrading treatment of this man was getting on her nerves. She was starting to second-guess her impulsive actions. Just as she was about to tell him to forget it, he spoke up.

"Run a background check on her. I want to know every single detail in the next twenty minutes before we do this," he ordered roughly to David who nodded in compliance.

"Any objections?" His intense eyes locked Clara in.

She faltered for a moment before a smile blossomed on her face.

"Right now, no. As for the future, I make no promises."

Nicholas licked his lips, trying to quell the interest that sparked inside of him at that.

"You're going to be a hard case, aren't you?"

She shrugged.

He ran a hand through his hair before looking up to the sky. "What the hell did I get myself into?"