Chapter 5 Court Session 1

FLASHBACK

"Come here, Dera," her dad gestured for her to come, and she walked closer to him. She sat beside him on the sofa.

"Dad, why did you call me here? I really have work to do, you know," she pouted cutely, and her dad ruffled her hair.

"Do not enter any marriage without knowing everything about your spouse," he paused and looked at her. "You know you're the only child I have ever, so no matter what happens, do not enter any type of marriage, because marriage is sacred," he said, and she nodded and hugged him.

"I love you, Dad," she said, unlocking from the hug. "I love you too, my princess, so now go do your assignment," he said and stood up.

END OF FLASH BACK

"Dera, brace yourself; you're doing this because of Mom, not because of anything," she slapped her cheeks lightly on the road, and people turned to look at her like a mentally deranged person.

She walked home and found Luciana still watching a movie. She pulled off her sneakers and placed them neatly in one corner of the sitting room where shoes are kept before slipping into her flip-flops. She sat beside Luciana and stared at how concentrated Luciana was on the Korean drama she was watching, named "Penthouse: The War of Life."

"I don't even know where to start telling Luciana about my ordeal," Cherry thought.

"Jun Dan-tae is the most wicked man ever. Imagine how he can be so cruel to kill his own wife," Luciana hissed in anger as she threw a chip into her mouth, her eyes glued to the TV.

"I really pity this innocent girl called Bae Ro-na and her mother. They have suffered greatly from Jun Dan-tae and Seo-jin's hands," she blinked repeatedly, not minding if Dera was there or not.

Dera bit her lips as she stared at Luciana, contemplating whether to tell her or not.

"It won't be nice if she eventually finds out herself or if someone eventually tells her," she said inwardly.

She faced Luciana again, taking a deep breath in and out before starting.

"Luciana," she called slowly, and Luciana turned to her.

"Hey, what's the matter with you? You don't sound okay. What's the problem?" She asked, concentrating fully on Dera.

"I have something to tell you."

"What is it, Dera? You're scaring me. Just say it already," Luciana said, and Dera took a deep breath and shut her eyes before opening them and starting.

"I'm getting married tomorrow," she dropped the bombshell, her voice filled with hesitation.

"What!! You must be joking, right?" Luciana laughed like a manic who just escaped an asylum.

"Wait, let me finish," Dera cut her off. "I'm getting into a contracted marriage with Henry Royals."

"Henry Royals! Are you high? Dera? or are you on drugs?" Luciana asked, not ready to believe what Dera said.

"He offered me a contract to be his wife for six months, just so his mom will let him be. After the six months, we both will get divorced and go our separate ways," she bit her lower lip hard while Luciana burst into another fit of laughter.

"I think you're high, Dera, because how on Earth is what you said possible? Henry Royals of all people? That dude hates everyone, and ladies are included, so how then is he getting married to you?" Luciana asked, furrowing her brows, still not believing what Dera said.

"That's none of my business. If he hates everyone or not, it's not my problem. After all, I will be able to pay for Mom's surgery," she muttered, and Luciana sighed making Dera looked at her. "Hey, what's wrong with you?" she asked.

"I bet you won't be able to leave after those six months. I have watched movies and read books about contracted marriages. The female lead and male lead are going to fall in love with each other and then get married legally," she scoffed, and Dera shook her head.

"Then stop reading such books and stop having such a mentality because it's not happening with me, okay? So be rest assured. Moreover, you know his phobia for people, right? He isn't going to fall for a middle-class lady like me," Dera said, and Luciana sighed.

"So how much is he paying you?"

"Twenty million dollars," she whispered into Luciana's ear.

"Wow!! That's a really huge amount," Luciana eyes widened, and her mouth hung open.

"So, my baby is going to become a millionaire soon," she gushed, and Dera smiled.

"That reminds me, Luciana, how's Redmond? Is he talking to you?" Dera asked, and she sighed.

"How I wish I could control my heart, Dera. I would be the happiest person on Earth. I fell for a cold-blooded monster who doesn't talk to people, let alone be friends with them," she paused and looked at her friend

"I'm so fed up, Dera. I wish I could just get rid of the feelings I have for him, but I can't because my heart keeps beating whenever I see him. And you know the funniest part? I would take almost one hour to dress up and put on makeup just for him to look at me, but that monster wouldn't spare me a single glance," Luciana said, fighting back the tears threatening to fall.

"Hey, it's okay. He's going to love you, okay? Stop going the extra mile; just be yourself and don't waste your time making up," Dera pulled Luciana into a comforting hug.

After hugging for a few seconds, they both disengaged, and Dera spoke first to lighten the mood.

"Dad called this morning; Mom has only one week to live if she doesn't undergo the surgery as fast as possible. That's the reason I accepted the contract."

"I clearly rejected the offer yesterday when he came to the bar, but when Dad called this morning, I had to run to his house to tell him I agree already," Dera explained as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Don't cry, okay? You were the one consoling me just a few minutes ago, and now you're crying," Luciana said, patting her head.

"Thanks for coming into my life, Luciana," she hiccuped.

"It's fine. What are friends for?"

"You're not just my friend; you're my crazy elder sister," Dera said, and they both burst into laughter.

"Hey, stop laughing like that; it's really scary. I don't want to be having weird and scary dreams, okay?" She said, and Luciana smiled before returning her gaze back to the TV.

After watching "The Penthouse" for some minutes, Dera got really tired and yawned loudly.

"Are you okay?" Luciana asked, her eyes glued to the TV screen.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just tired," she said and stood up, heading to her room. She didn't have a good night's sleep because she was thinking about the marriage contract Henry had offered her. She dropped her bag and phone on the bed before walking to the bathroom to take a cool shower.

After bathing for ten minutes, she came out and wore a pair of shorts and a big white hoodie before lying on her bed to rest. She couldn't rest because she was thinking about how to cope as a wife, something she wasn't expecting or prepared for. Everything just filled her head so much that she couldn't even close her eyes for a few seconds.

"How on Earth am I supposed to cope as a wife, for Christ's sake? This is not what I planned for myself. I planned to have a bright future, be the CEO of my own company, have a lovely husband, and cute kids," she muttered, turning from one end of the bed to another.

"And to make matters worse, a billionaire for crying out loud, the top richest man in all of Georgia," she said, ruffling her hair, making her look like a witch. Her hair was scattered all over the bed as she kept rolling from one end of the bed to another, like a child throwing a tantrum over a candy.

"Why did my life end up like this?" she muttered, biting her lower lip. The fact that she was getting into a contracted marriage the next day was driving her crazy-marrying someone she didn't know, a complete stranger.

"God! I might go crazy any moment from now," she said, throwing her legs in the air.

"After signing the contract tomorrow, I'll have to start living as his wife and behaving like his wife during occasions. But when we're at home, we'll be strangers," she ruffled her hair for the umpteenth time.

"How am I supposed to cope as a contracted wife? I won't be able to work anymore. I'll be stuck in the house from morning till night. My goodness! I might go mad or lose my mind before the six months are over," she sighed and used the pillow to cover her face.

"What if, in the process of being his wife, I fall in love with him and he doesn't feel the same way about me? Then I'll be the one with unrequited love! Oh my gosh!"

"Dera, you can't and you won't fall in love with Mr. Henry, okay? He's above your level, and moreover, we're worlds apart, from different socioeconomic statuses. So brace yourself and never mention the word 'love,' not to talk of falling in love," she shrugged, breathed out, and stared at the ceiling.

NEXT DAY

Dera groaned as her phone kept ringing. She was about to ignore it when she mistakenly saw the caller's ID; it was Henry. She sprang up immediately and picked up the call.

"Good morning, Mr. Henry," she greeted, bowing as if he was there with her.

"Enough of the greeting. Come straight to my house, and then we will proceed to the court to get the paperwork done," he hung up as soon as he finished, without even waiting to hear from her.

"That cold man," she gritted her teeth and grumpily walked to the bathroom to take a shower.

After thirty more minutes, she was done dressing and doing her morning routine. She carried a small handbag and her phone, then walked downstairs. She met Luciana setting the dining table.

"Good morning, Luciana," Dera greeted.

"Good morning, Dera. How was your night?"

"Not good at all. I was just thinking of how to cope with being a housewife to a cold billionaire. Luciana, I will just die of boredom," Dera pouted, and Luciana smiled.

"Come here," she gestured, and Dera walked up to her. Luciana hugged her while patting her hair.

Luciana was more like a sister than a friend to Dera because she had done practically everything for her. Though Luciana was three years older than Dera, she saw her as an elder sister she didn't have.

"Stop being sad and just have breakfast, okay?" Luciana disengaged from the hug and pulled out a chair for her. Dera sat down, and they started eating immediately. Dera hadn't had a proper dinner last night because she lost her appetite due to the marriage issue.

After a few minutes, she finished her breakfast, stood up, wiped her lips, and gave Dera a peck on her cheeks before walking out of the house. Dera boarded a taxi straight to Henry's house and arrived in less than ten minutes.

The gate man already knew she was coming, so he immediately opened the gate for her, and she walked into the house. Henry was seated on one of the sofas in the living room, with his legs crossed on the other. He looked breathtaking in sweatpants and a hoodie.

She walked in but was lost in thought. She never expected Henry to be in the living room, so let's just say he caught her off guard, and she almost jumped out of fear. She held her chest and was breathing really hard, her heart racing as if she had run all the way to his house.

He looked up from the book he was reading and saw her holding her chest, trying to catch her breath.

"Did I startle you that much for you to be breathing so hard?" his husky voice echoed in the living room.

She didn't say anything; she just walked to one of the sofa facing him and sat down quietly.

"We're leaving by 10:00 am, so get ready," he said, and she nodded. She knew she was lying; she wasn't prepared at all. She felt like the ground should open and swallow her rather than entering into a contracted marriage. But she was left with no option other than to accept the fact that she was going to live under a man's roof and become his legal wife for six months.

"Calm down, Dera. It's just for six months, okay? Get yourself together," she said inwardly, trying to calm herself.