Chapter 2 A Date In Hell

"Ready for your date tonight?" My older sister Eliana peeked inside the room while I was straightening my hair at my vanity.

"This is just stupid, Eliana, and you know it. Please help me out and talk to our father so I don't have to go on this disastrous date, " I said, setting my straightener aside.

Eliana Sinclair, my only close family member in this house, is three years older than me. Lorenzo Sinclair is the oldest one of us and the most arrogant and ruthless one. Eliana and I usually don't have that close of a relationship with our brother or our father.

But I can tell he would prefer Eli talking to him rather than me; he despises me. He only talks to me when he wants to order something. Just like today, I was instructed to go out with Matteo for some kind of 'bonding,' which was also communicated by his right-hand man rather than my father himself.

"You know I can't get you out of this one, Ari. You're the one who bailed on most of the engagement ceremony. You have no idea how angry Father was." She closed the door behind her and took slow steps towards me.

"I think I did pretty well after being informed about my biggest life decision a week before the ceremony." I sighed.

"You should try giving Matteo a chance. Maybe he's not that bad and would let you pursue your dreams." Her tone was soft and sweet as she tried to comfort me.

When I finally faced her, I shot up from my dressing stool in horror.

"What the hell, Eliana? What did that bastard do now?" I touched her eyebrows gently, and she winced, which indicated it was a recent bruise.

Eliana has been trapped in an arranged marriage for the past two years. Her husband is unbelievably manipulative and abusive. After one year of marriage, he slapped her and apologized. But when he realized that no one cared about that as long as he was providing for her, his behavior changed drastically, and hence a new bruise every week. This one was quite visible even though she tried to hide it with her makeup.

"It's nothing, Ari. I just hit my head on the table while I was picking up my spoon." She attempted to brush my hand away from her face with a faint smile on her lips.

"Aren't you tired of making excuses every other day?" I was done with that piece of trash, "That's it; I'm going to confront our father to settle this for good." I said and moved towards the door.

My heart burns whenever I see my sister suffer alone. My father and brothers refuse to back her up, claiming they are husband and wife, and whatever happens between them is a private matter. Not anymore, when he's publicly leaving severe marks on her. Before I could reach the door, Eliana stopped me by placing her back on the door.

"Stop it, Aurora! Nobody is going to listen to you. The blame will fall on you instead, and you have enough on your plate already." Her wide eyes begged.

"The blame should fall on father, Eliana. He's the one who arranged the marriage between you and Viktor. This is exactly why I'm afraid of Matteo. I'm afraid my fears are coming true, Eliana," I was also pleading for the freedom we both deserved.

We both stared into each other's eyes, each of us pleading in our way. And just when I thought she would say something, a knock on the door interrupted us, and we both immediately took two steps back. Our housekeeper gently stepped inside, her gaze lowered.

"Mr. Sinclair is requesting the presence of Aurora in the living room. Mr. Giordano's driver is here to pick you up," she informed me.

"I'll be there in 10 minutes."

With that, she left the room, and Eliana followed her, leaving me in the room alone with my thoughts. Nothing good ever comes from confrontations within this family; I should have learned that lesson by now. I can't believe I'm going on this golf club's first date with my 'fiance' and a living nightmare, Matteo Giordano.

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The sky was radiant today, the perfect weather to play golf in this vast green field. Yet here I am, with Matteo telling me how to play golf like I've never played it before. I'm ten times better than him, but he refuses to acknowledge that.

"And that's how you execute a perfect shot."

It wasn't even in the hole.

"I didn't make it, but my form is better than yours, if I'm honest." He gloated.

All his forms were bizarre and terrible.

I wanted a break to escape from his horrible comments, which were sexist and mocking me about my game. So that's why I handed my golf club to the caddie near me and made my way towards the beverage cart to grab a drink. Matteo continued to play, or maybe he didn't even notice my absence because he was so full of himself. I grabbed the water bottle from the cart and was about to open it when I noticed the shadow on the ground.

"Enjoying your cute little date, I see,"

I turned around to find Nikolas Salvatore staring down at me. He is wearing a white polo shirt and straight pants, his eyes hidden behind the sunglasses, and his hands in his pockets. For a second, I thought I was seeing things because he never contacted me once throughout the whole week. And here he is, standing in front of me, his presence as captivating as ever.

"You're not dead, I see," I countered back.

"Already wishing I was dead? I thought you would be the only person praying I would be alive since you need me so much." His sarcastic tone pissed me off.

"That's where you are wrong, Nikolas. I don't need your charity. I just wanted to make a good deal with you first before exploring my other options." I folded my arms across my chest and glared at him.

"And who do you plan to trap in your plan next?" He asked.

"Lev," I answered.

"My younger brother?" He scoffed at my reply.

"Yeah, Lev Salvatore. He has a great, lively, and easy-going personality. I think he would be a better partner than you." It was not my plan, but I just wanted to piss him off.

The smile on his face wiped off immediately. I thought it would be satisfying to make the great Nikolas angry, but I was wrong. His sarcastic and calm demeanor immediately shifted to something cold. Nikolas's gaze would have struck me like a thunderstorm if it weren't hidden under the sunglasses.

"Let it be your last warning, Aurora: stay away from me and my family. I promise you, I'm not that patient when it comes to hurting someone close to me." He took a step closer to me. "Don't let me get involved in this game of yours. Or else you will regret the outcome."

The one thing that annoys me is that he thinks he can threaten me after completely ditching me. I don't owe him a favor, nor do I deserve to be treated like that. It was a deal I offered, which he didn't take, and that's where it should end.

"You think I'm playing some sick game, Nikolas Salvatore? I'm not some pawn you all can control and manipulate. You don't have the right to threaten me when you don't even know me. The least you could do is show some dignity." I stood my ground.

"Oh, I do know types of people like you, princess. You take pleasure in making a fool out of others. At least you should have kept the honor of Sinclair's name." He snapped.

I was about to say something when I realized what he had just said. Making a fool out of others and not keeping my family's honor? I don't remember us having a conversation where I did something like that to make him this angry. I thought it was just about him taking advantage of my situation.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I sounded as confused as I looked.

Just when he opened his mouth to say something, he stopped and looked right behind me. I instantly knew what was wrong because Matteo must have finished playing and made his way toward the cart. As soon as I turned around, Matteo's smile dropped as he saw Nikolas behind me.

Oh no, this can't be good. They are bitter enemies. What if Nikolas says something about my plan to Matteo just because he's pissed at me for some reason? What if Matteo says something to Niko that would add fuel to the fire? I don't have a good feeling about this at all.

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