Chapter 4 *In Third Person Pov*

George Augustine leaned back in his office chair, tapping his fingers rhythmically against the polished wood of his desk. His sharp eyes remained fixed on the large screen before him, where multiple news headlines flashed.

"Tony Ajayi humiliates fiancée at the altar."

"Wedding called off?"

"Influencer Layo Walter left heartbroken _ what went wrong?"

"Layo breaks silence. 'Still standing"'

George smirked." Interesting".

He had met Layo once, briefly at a high profile charity event months ago.

She had been drapped in an emerald green gown, her confidence magnetic. But what he mostly remembered more was her laugh, rich, full of life. Now somehow, the same woman was the centre of Lagos gossip and for the first time in his life, George seemed to be intrigued by someone else's drama.

His office door swung open.

"Sir, Barrister Williams is here," his assistant Kunle, announced.

George nodded, pausing the screen as Barrister Williams stepped in.

His lawyer carried a thick folder, his expression unreadable.

"Tell me you have good news Barrister Williams," George said, already knowing he wouldn't like the answer.

Barrister Williams sighed. "It's about your father's will."

George clenched his jaw. "What now?"

"The board isn't budging. They're enforcing the clause. You really have limited time, George.

If you don't get married within the next few months, you'll lose full control of Augustine media enterprise and the entire empire.

A muscle ticked in George's jaw.

He had spent ten years proving himself in the business world, pulling Augustine Media out of the old fashioned, sluggish corporate structure his father has favoured and transforming it into a modern aggressive powerhouse. The idea that a group of greedy old men sitting on the board, men who resisted every bold move he had made could dictate his future was likely infuriating.

"I don't have time for this Barrister Williams," he muttered.

Barrister Williams shrugged. "Then find a wife."

George exhaled sharply rubbing his temples.

A wife??? Marriage??

The word alone likely left a bitter taste in his mouth.

He had loved once, deeply, foolishly. TASHA.

Her name still carried weight in his mind, a name he spent years trying to erase from his thoughts.

She had been his world once, the only woman who had ever made him think of something as foolish as forever. He had imagined a future with her, believed in the illusion of love, of trust. Until she shattered it. Until he found out that her heart was never his alone.

The betrayal almost destroyed him, not just in emotionally but in business as well.

Back then, he had been willing to risk it all for her. His judgement had faltered and in the corporate world, one wrong move was all it took for the sharks to circle. His enemies had waited for him to stumble, and Tasha had been the perfect distraction.

Now, he had no interest in love, commitment or anything remotely sentimental.

But power? Control? Those were the things he couldn't afford to lose.

His father had been a traditional man, obsessed with legacy. The will was proof of that.

He had built Augustine Enterprise from the group up, and despite trusting George's capabilities, he had still written an outdated requirement for succession, Marriage.

He believed that a man who could manage both home and a company was truly capable of leadership.

George surely thought it was all bullshit.

His father had married three times and none of this marriages had been happy. Yet, here he was being forced into the same trap for the sake of a corporation he had already dedicated his life to.

He needed a solution, fast.

His eyes flickered back to the screen where Layo's face still lingered on the paused headline.

She was beautiful, that much was obvious. But more than that, she was resilient.

The way she posted herself despite the humiliation spoke volumes about her character. She surely understood public perception and she knew how to handle the media.

Women like that surely triggered him.

An idea likely began forming.

A marriage of convince? No complications, No emotional attachment, Just business.

And from the look of things, she was already in the public eye, already accustomed to media scrutiny. She fitted perfectly.

George leaned back, a slow calculated smile forming.

"Find me everything there is to know about Layo Adeshittu Walter," he said to Kunle .

His assistant hesitated.

"Sir, do you mean_?

"YES." His voice was firm this time.

"She is going to be my wife."

•••••••••

Later that evening,

George sat alone in his penthouse, with a glass of whisky in hand.

The city lights of Victoria Island stretched out before him twinkling like shattered diamonds.

His mind was likely still on Layo.

He most probably assured himself that the marriage will be nothing more than a transaction. He would offer her something she needed, and escape from the shame of being abandoned at the altar. In return, he would secure his inheritance and silence the boards doubt about his stability.

It all did make sense.

But somehow, he likely felt the slightest silver of doubt. Perhaps because the last time he let a woman into his life, it nearly destroyed him.

Tasha's betrayal had taught him that love was nothing but a liability and weakness.

But, this was different, it wasn't love. It was strategy, he must have assured himself.

He took another sip of his whisky, solidifying his decision.

She would be a fool to refuse his offer.

George has always been one to get whatever he wanted. And when it came to women, he was a pro. Women flocked around him and could sell themselves just for him to look at them, let alone talk to them.

He was one of Lagos' fine boyz perhaps, the best of them all hence bagging a woman was a child's affair.

To him, women were nothing but trophies to boost the image of men.

After Tasha, he likely regards all women as same, selfish and disloyal and swore off everything that had to do with that gender. But, here he was being forced to get married.

But he would likely do anything for control and power.