Married to my Suspect

DANIELLE'S POV

I closed the file I'd been ordered to organize earlier that morning and stood up, stretching my back and groaning from sitting for too long. I knocked on my boss's office, and when there was no response, strange since I hadn't noticed him going out, I opened the office and entered. I was just going to drop the file and come right out, I told myself.

After the day I'd been interviewed, this was the first time I was entering his office when he wasn't in, and even though it wasn't my first time in it, it was still so unfamiliar. His words came back to me. ''I respect privacy, both mine and yours, so I'll try not to invade your space, and you shouldn't invade mine either. Just do the things I tell you to, and we will be fine."

I scoffed at his words. Which secretary was banned from entering her boss's office anyway? Since I was inside already, I was going to make the best of it.

I checked through the window, and seeing no sign of my boss, I walked deeper into the office, taking note of the neatness and organization. He must be a neat freak, since no one else was allowed into his office; I held that for future reference. I'd been working for my boss for over three months, and still knew nothing about him-not really an oddity in my life since I didn't make it a habit of mine to get close to people I got to know corporately, but my nosiness wasn't letting me settle for that.

He was the handsomest man I'd ever seen; I didn't care that handsomest wasn't a word. It was what I chose to describe him as. He was tall with gorgeous blue eyes, a bit too young to be in his position in my opinion, and way too quiet. Other than greetings when he arrived and demands he needed, which was mainly done through the intercom, I'd never seen him talking to anybody else, not on the phone and not physically, which made me very curious about what kind of man he was.

I briefly glanced through his table and moved towards the organized folder cabinet, but suddenly turned back towards the table. That couldn't be.

Sure enough, I picked up the beautiful green and golden fountain pen that had been next to the remote on the table, my eyes blurring at the influx of memory.

I could hear Daddy screaming, a sound I had never heard before, and it was suddenly cut off.

The man came closer and squatted in front of me, my eyes meeting his masked one.

"And who do we have here?" He asked, caressing my cheek.

Whimpering, my eyes followed the click sound of the pen in his hand, and he laughed and pocketed it when he saw the direction my eyes had gone.

"There's no need to be scared, little girl. I'll make sure you don't remember anything."

He grabbed my hair, which Daddy had carefully packed for me with my favorite bow, and the bow fell and broke. He released my hair, patted it, then bent and picked the bow up.

"What do we have here? How beautiful."

That was the last thing I heard and saw before Mummy's screams woke me up. The man was gone, but Daddy's body was still where it was, and he was just staring at me. My eyes recognized the blood, and I passed out again.

I shuddered and fingered the pen, seemingly the same one I'd just seen in my memory, when the sound of a footstep alerted me I was about to be found out.

I contemplated remaining in position and confirming where he had gotten the pen since I'd searched around the world, almost, and found nothing like it, not since that fateful day, but my courage failed me. I hid under his desk, realizing what a stupid mistake I had chosen to make as I watched his expensive shoes enter the office and start towards me, and I stopped breathing.

"I'll come and see you guys soon, I promise. Relay that to dad as well."

Was that my boss's voice? It couldn't have been because I'd obviously heard the smile in his voice, something I didn't think he was capable of, as he always had a frown on his face. Not even when there was something to congratulate in the office, something we'd been experiencing fairly well. Was he talking to his family?

That question was answered as a feminine, mature voice laughed. His phone was on speaker.

"You have to. I've missed your face, and that's not healthy for me as your mother." The voice paused. "And bring your wife or partner along."

I started shaking as he stopped right in front of his table. Any further step forward, and he would see me.

"If I'm coming, I'm coming alone." He replied. "I thought we had an agreement."

The woman paused and cleared her throat. "That was before.... that happened. You're the only one I have now."

I felt the entire atmosphere tense, the tension coming from the man feeling the office. "I'll see what I can do." He replied, and I began praying, tears almost sliding down my cheeks in fear. I should have just stayed calm and confronted him rather than participating in this suicide mission. Or I shouldn't have entered his office in the first place after I'd realized he wasn't in.

My phone started ringing from my desk outside, and I tensed even further, if that was possible, waiting to get caught and planning the best way to react and apologize and hope he understood. As if that was going to be possible. No reasonable person entered their boss's office after warnings not to, and even if they did, I was sure it would be his first time seeing a secretary hiding under his table. I was definitely going to get fired after this.

"Sounds like you need to get the phone." He said, cutting her off as she started speaking, and he dropped the call. I started coming out when he remained frozen in place. Had he seen me and was waiting for me to stop embarrassing myself?

Just before I came out, I heard him leave the office, and I remained where I was. I peeked out to confirm he had actually left and took my first breath since he entered the office, wiping my sweat.

Taking one last look at the pen, I tiptoed out of the office and melted into my chair. That had taken almost ten years off my life.

I tried to get back to work but couldn't get the pen out of my mind. I had to ask him, but I doubted I was ready to hear the answer. There was no way that pen didn't mean what I thought it did. I'd searched through all means I'd managed to find, but there had been no trace of that pen anywhere.

"Can't you just let it go and let him rest in peace? It's been years, and I hate the fact that you're still torturing yourself." I shook my head to remove my mom's words to me during her last visit when she'd seen the case files I'd been unable to hide well. I couldn't let him go to rest. I was going to find whoever was responsible and make them regret what they had done. How would I be able to live with myself if I couldn't do even that?

JONATHAN'S POV

I needed to clear my mind, and going for a drive seemed the best option right now. I'd inputted the floor for the garage when I realized I'd forgotten to grab my keys from my office.

I punched the elevator wall in frustration and changed the floor to the gym. Punching a few bags would calm down the raging flood in me a little. Something that always occurred whenever Ethan was mentioned or referred to.

DANIELLE'S POV

"Can you stop that, please?" The voice brought me out of my reverie. I turned to Lucas and shrugged in confusion.

"Stop what?" I asked distractedly.

"That. The pen." I looked down at the pen I'd probably been clicking for the past half hour and dropped it on the table.

"By the way, what's the deal with you? Why do you look like a zombie? He said from my desk, pointing at my eyes.

I was in my apartment and didn't need anyone to tell me I looked like trash. There were tons of papers strewn around my room, and different case files opened. Since I'd seen the pen in Jonathan's office, it hasn't stopped eating at me. Actually, that wasn't true. Since I'd experienced the murder, I hadn't been the same, and the presence of that pen had thrown me brutally head first, right into memories I would rather forget.

"Nothing." I stood up and went into my pantry, grabbing a bag of chips. I opened the bag, and Lucas grabbed it from me.

"Are you sure nothing is wrong? Is it your job? Your boss?" He asked pleadingly, but I simply shook my head and grabbed my snack back.

"Not really." There was nothing else I could say. This was my battle to fight, and I couldn't bear to involve him, even though he might be the only friend I had.

We'd met in college when I'd tutored him for some courses in his freshman year, and since then, he'd stuck to me like a glue. Something I would have preferred not to have happened. We had attended different colleges but our apartments had been close to each other and that was how he had gotten to know I was a tutor

"Fine. Do you want to grab something to eat? A sandwich? A hamburger?"

I thought for a minute and shook my head.

"I'm not hungry." I responded, lifting the chips, and he nodded.

"Fine, have it your way. You'd better appreciate me and my presence because I'm going to get married very soon, and you'll begin to miss what you never had." He jokingly commented, pointing between both of us, and suddenly, it was like a spark of a bulb in my mind.

"What did you say?" I asked excitedly, different ideas running through my head.

"I was joking." He deadpanned, but I could no longer hear him. Why hadn't I thought of that earlier? Everything I needed had been dropped right in my lap.

I stood up and started cleaning up my room. My room wasn't always a mess. Who was I explaining to anyway?

Lucas watched as I cleaned up my apartment and shook his head, muttering something.

"What did you say?" I asked, not bothering to lift my head from the trash bag.

"Looks like you're fine now I'm off. I have a lot of things to do."

I watched him leave, feeling no regret. He'd seen me on my way home after work, and recognizing the look I'd had on my face, he'd followed me home to cheer me up and, thankfully, had given me exactly what I had needed.

THE NEXT DAY

I wiped my sweaty palm on my pants as I waited for my boss to come back. I'd given him the notice for the emergency meeting, and I knew he would be arriving soon. I'd gone through everything that could go wrong, starting with wrong timing and, God forbid, him coming back to his office with somebody else.

I heard footsteps approaching and internally apologized to Lucas, who I was about to use as my scapegoat. I dialed his number. I'd considered making it a fake and just talking to an empty phone, but the chances of the phone ringing while I was pretending were too risky to ignore, so I had dropped that option.

"Hello." Lucas greeted, and I winced. The footstep was coming closer.

"Oh my God. I don't know what to do." I wailed into the phone, and I could hear Lucas confusion and fear.

"What's going on? Talk to me." He sounded like he was walking.

"I'm sorry." I whispered. "My mom, you know how weak she is. She has promised to try to kill herself again if I don't get married. What if she does it this time? I don't really understand her psychology, but I'm really scared this time." I squeezed some tears out of my eyes and stood up as my boss just passed me without a word or expression and entered his office.

I melted into my seat; I'd awfully read my boss wrong.

"Danielle. What the heck are you talking about? Your mom said what?" Lucas demanded, and I started feeling guilty, knowing I'd scared him.

"Sorry. I wanted to do something. It's not true."

"What exactly isn't true, and what exactly are you doing? Aren't you at work?" I could hear the panic in his voice, and the guilt continued rushing in.

"I can't explain right now. I'm fine, and my mom is fine. I'll explain later. I'm sorry." I apologized, whispering, and dropped the call as Jonathan came back out with a file.

He dropped the file on my table, and his eyes slid to my phone. I followed his gaze and flushed. "I'm so sorry for using my phone during work hours, sir." I apologized, and he simply stared at me.

"Uh, I swear, I don't use it normally." I continued talking when he didn't stop staring.

He shrugged. "You're fine. As long as it doesn't affect my work. Organize this file and send it to the planning team within thirty minutes. I need it as soon as possible."

I nodded, and he went back into his office, and I sighed, staring at his closed office door. I'd read him awfully wrong and assumed he would have said something. Any other person would have. With his behavior, though, it was pretty silly of me to assume he would have cared. I had given him the perfect opportunity to please his mother, and he had ignored it. Or had I overestimated myself as a catch? I sat down and opened the file. At least I still had my job, but now I needed another way.

JONATHAN'S POV

I pressed the intercom to summon my secretary and watched as she entered my office, bringing with her a file I'd given her that morning minutes ago.

"You called for me, sir." She said and dropped the file on my table.

I picked it up and opened it, seeing how organized she had arranged it. Since this company had been founded, she was the best secretary I'd ever had, very efficient, and she wasn't as nosy as the other secretaries I'd fired had been. I couldn't really blame them; I had allowed Julie to recommend them to me, and I still regretted that decision. But that wasn't what I had called her here for.

"Have your seat." I said, gesturing to the chair in front of my table. She sat without a word, but I could see her confusion. This was the first time I was talking to her without involving an administrative duty, the way I would have loved for it to be, but I needed to have this conversation with her even though I was hoping she would reject my suggestion.

I opened my drawer and brought out the file I'd prepared and slid it towards her. She eyed it suspiciously but didn't touch it.

She took a deep breath. "Did I do something wrong, sir?" I watched as she fiddled with her fingers.

I shook my head, wondering for the first time what she thought of me. So far, I'd not given her any chance to imagine. "No. Open the file."

She continued eyeing the file suspiciously. "Are you firing me?" She asked again, and I hid my smile. Perhaps I should have told her directly rather than drawing it out like this, but I was glad I did since it gave me the chance to see what she was like when she got flustered. With how little fin I had in my life, I was enjoying it.

I slid the file closer to me and opened it, taking out the contract I'd written and legalized the day before. "I couldn't help but eavesdrop on your conversation yesterday."

I watched as she cast her mind back and, remembering what I was talking about, she paled.

I quickly put my hands up to calm her down. "You didn't do anything wrong. Like I said yesterday, you can do whatever you want as long as it doesn't interfere with my work, and so far, I've been very satisfied with your work."

She smiled slightly and then, letting the curiosity take over, leaned towards me. "The conversation." She reminded me, and I nodded.

"I couldn't help but hear that you needed to get married, and you sounded so distressed about it. I came up with a solution, but you can always say no."

She nodded and flushed, looking down, so I could guess she was embarrassed. "There's no need to get embarrassed. I understand trying to please your parents." I could understand it really well. There were just some things I couldn't say no to my parents about, but probably not for the same reason she had. "I'm also in the same boat you are, and I need to get married. We can make a sort of arrangement where we both please our parents and give them what they want while not bending ourselves down."

Something suddenly occurred to me, and I glanced sharply at her. "Do you have a partner? Someone you are in a relationship with?"

She shook her head, already looking hopeful. "Not at all. I've not really been interested in entering the dating scene, as I wanted to take time to focus on my career." She glanced at me quickly, as if she had shared more than intended.

"Then that's good. This is a contract I drew up, go through it and let me know what you think."

She nodded and slid the document closer to her, squinting her eyes to read it. Watching her, I couldn't help but ask. "Do you use glasses normally?"

She nodded. "Sometimes, but only when I've strained my eyes. I can see well without it most times."

I nodded, taking that in. That meant I'd made her strain her eyes more than normal. With the fact that I kept to using physical files in addition to cloud storage, I could imagine how. "Wear your glasses next time when you're working. There's no point in straining your eyes."

She glanced at me, searching my eyes, and I stared at her while she searched. When she didn't find what she was looking for, she went back to reading the document.

I turned on my system and continued what I was working on while she read the document, and after a while, she tapped the table. "What if I don't agree with some of the terms?" She asked.

"Then you'll tell me what you want, and we'll come to a negotiation. Does my offer seem reasonable to you?"

DANIELLE'S POV

I pretended to be lost in thought, all the while my mind was doing somersaults because of how excited I was. My plan had worked. I'd seen his behaviors towards his employees that had hinted that maybe he wasn't as cold and aloof as he liked to carry himself, and thankfully, I'd been right.

I realized he was staring at me. Right, the offer.

"It works for me." I said in a forced bored tone. I'd tried to get a read on him, but he was perfect as keeping an expressionless face. "Do you do this for every damsel in distress?" I tried to joke, but my voice came out flat.

He glanced at me, his fingers hitting the marble table in a non-rhythmic motion. I noticed he did that when he was thinking. It reminded me of the way I clicked pens when I had one with me.

"I don't see you as a damsel in distress. I'm a businessman, and when I see a business opportunity, I grab it. I see this as an opportunity for us to do what we need to do as well as still keep our independence. We'll be working together, you're not doing anything for my good, and if you don't see it as a favorable opportunity, you can choose to reject it."

Reject what? When this was what I'd worked for. I kept my expression bored and nodded, trying to come up with a question. Going through the contract, he'd covered nearly everything. From how the wedding would be to how the marriage would be, especially in relation to our roles as employer and employee, and with how thorough he'd been, I couldn't ask for more.

How soon would I find out what he was hiding? Because I was 100 percent sure that pen was related to my father's death, and I was going to find out how he was related to the pen, but I couldn't ask that. "According to the contract, you mentioned that we'll have to live together; what happens to my home then?"

"You can keep it. It doesn't stop being yours. Even though this isn't the traditional arrangement, I put a plan for at least a year. It will be better to keep it so you have a place to go when the contract is over."

I nodded. I should still be able to pay the rent, even though I hated the fact that I would be paying for a space I wouldn't be using, but that meant I had to get whatever I needed before a year was over. "Alright." I glanced through the contract again and could only appreciate the terms and conditions stated. They were all things I could live with. The separate bedrooms made me the most happy, though. The only downside was the fact that I had to accompany him on business functions, but I could use that to my advantage as well. There was nowhere better to get good gossip than at rich people's events.

"I would like to sign a prenup." There hadn't been anything about that, but there would surely be wagging tongues. I just needed to figure out his connection to the pen and my father, and the contract would be over, hopefully. I wasn't delusional that it would be that easy.

He nodded. "Fine. But during the course of the marriage, I will take care of your financial expenses."

"I can take care of myself." I protested.

"I don't doubt that. Let's meet for dinner after work to work out the details."

"Alright Sir."

He brought out a file from his cupboard. "Give this to the design team and schedule a meeting with the suppliers for tomorrow."

I nodded and went out, knowing I'd been dismissed. Ecstasy and guilt were running through me, but I ignored the guilt, I DID IT. I felt my eyes water. "I will find your murderer and make sure you get the justice you deserve, Daddy." I promised. This was just the beginning, but I wasn't going to give up.

I closed the door and bumped into a woman, wincing as the cup of coffee she'd been carrying splashed on me. I looked up at her to find her glaring at me.