The Man I Shouldn't Love

Amy's P.O.V

Phew!

Yep, that was the sound of me after successfully moving my ten pound suitcase into my childhood home. A.k.a - my parent's home.

At twenty-one, entering my final year of college, my life should have been mapped out for success. I was supposed to be focusing on final exams, project work, completing my application for The Herbert Wige Fellowship program while trying to ignore how my oversized cardigans never quite hid the heavy curves of my body.

Now before you judge me, Judge Judy, I have just been dumped by my boyfriend and he is now set to marry a billionaire's daughter. When I confronted him, he said I couldn't offer him what she could.

You know what, he was right.

So, yeah, I will be finishing college from home after which I plan to disappear to a place no one knows me.

The moment I stepped into the foyer, the rich scent of a gourmet dinner hit me.

Mmmmm, I licked my lips. Finally, a good homemade meal.

Just then, my seventeen-year-old brother, Josh, who had just graduated high school, sprinted down the stairs. The moment he saw me, he screamed, "Dad, Mum! Your adopted child is here!"

"Screw you, Josh!" I retorted. "If anyone is adopted, it's you."

He blew raspberries at me. I threw my arms around his neck and tickled him. He hated it. I loved it.

My father, David Sanders, met us in the hallway with a wider than normal grin. Before I could even ask what was going on, he pulled me into a tight hug. "There she is! Perfect timing, sweetheart. Come into the dining room. We have exciting news to share with you."

I followed him, my brows furrowing. My mother, Phoebe, was already seated at the table, practically vibrating with excitement.

"Amy, sit down," Mom said, her voice trembling. "Your father just received the official confirmation this morning. He has been selected for the senior diplomatic advisory council. It's a prestigious, four-year overseas government assignment."

I froze, my hand dropping from my thick glasses. "Four years? Overseas? Where?"

"Tokyo," Dad said, his eyes shining with pride.

Dad and Mom held hands and giggled in each other's face for a weird one minute.

Did I ever tell you my parents were high school sweethearts? Yep. Dad was captain of the football team and Mum, cheerlead captain. Both of them, two times home coming king and queen. They still have the perfect beauty standard society endorsed. Little wonder I was nicknamed 'adopted girl' in high school because how could someone like me come from someone like them.

"And I'm going too," Josh chimed in, offering a dramatic sigh. "Apparently, Tokyo has better arcade culture, so I've agreed to bless them with my presence."

"The timeline is incredibly tight, Amy," Dad continued, ignoring Josh. "We have to be on a plane by the end of next week. Josh will go to college there."

"Next week?" My mind raced. I was thrilled for him, but a sudden weight settled in my chest. Great. Everyone is going to Tokyo to eat authentic ramen while I stay behind to battle college professors and exams. "I am so happy for you, dad."

"Thanks darling," dad said but then his face fell flat. "We will be giving up the house-"

"What? Why? Where will I stay?" I started to panic. "I can't go back to my college dorm."

"Everything is handled, Amy. We would never leave you stranded," Dad assured me. "I-"

Footsteps echoing from the adjacent formal living room interrupted him. A tall, imposing figure stepped into the dining room, and my breath seized in my throat.

Stanley Pearson - Hotel and Luxury Hospitality mogul, cutthroat investor, and my father's best friend of thirty years.

Oh fuck me!

A rush of heat flooded my face, and I instinctively smoothed down my cardigan and adjusted my glasses.

For years, I had buried a consuming teenage crush on this man. At fifteen, I had first noticed the way he carried himself. At seventeen, I had fallen hopelessly in love with him from afar. He was the standard against which I compared every guy at college, and none had ever measured up not even 'stab-me-in-the-back' ex.

Ley was a walking, talking hazard to my emotional stability. Yep, I had nicknamed Stanley, Ley.

It had been four years since I last saw him. But time had only made him more devastating. His suit highlighted his broad shoulders and lean frame. His dark hair was styled perfectly, and his piercing gray eyes held me in a chokehold.

"Stanley," Dad beamed, standing up to shake his hand. "You remember my daughter, Amy."

Stanley turned his gaze toward me. I braced myself, my heart racing, praying he would see me differently now. Please don't look at me like I'm a human-sized dumpling.

Stanley offered a polite nod. His expression remained entirely unreadable. "Of course. Hello, Amy. It has been a long time. You've grown up."

Are you fucking kidding me? You've grown up? Translation: Hello, child whom I am socially obligated to acknowledge. A sharp prick of annoyance sliced through my nervousness.

Before I could salvage what was left of my reputation, another figure stepped out from behind Stanley.

I stopped breathing. The blood completely drained from my face, and my glasses suddenly felt heavy on my nose.

Quinn Heather - A breathtakingly beautiful woman who looked like she walked out straight from a magazine.

But that wasn't what made me freeze.

Quinn was a year above me in high school. She spent two solid years making my life a living hell. She was the one who had nicknamed me 'The Human Eclipse' in the cafeteria.

Yes, I know, I have too many nicknames.

No. Way. Out of all the billions of women on this planet, he picked the head demon of my high school nightmares?

She slipped her perfectly manicured hand effortlessly through his arm. Her flawless, designer dress highlighted a slim, athletic physique. Her blonde hair fell in perfect waves, and her smile was dazzling.

"Amy, this is Quinn," Mom introduced quickly. "Stanley's fiancée."

The word fiancée felt like a slap on my face.

Quinn looked down her nose at me, her eyes lingering for a second too long on my thick lenses and folds. A cruel, familiar glint flashed in her eyes before she covered it with a tight, performative smile. "Ah, so this is the little college student we've heard so much about. It's so sweet to finally meet you, Amy. Stanley speaks highly of your family."

She's pretending she doesn't know me, I thought, my jaw clenching. Classic Quinn.

"Nice to meet you, Quinn," I managed to squeeze out through my teeth.

Mom ushered them to the table.

"As I was saying, Amy," Dad continued. "We have to give up the house. It's the government's."

I frowned, adjusting my glasses and was about to argue when my dad raised his hand and stopped me.

"I spoke with Stanley and he has graciously agreed to step in."

My eyes snapped to Stanley. He was calmly pulling out a chair to sit.

"Stanley has a massive estate just twenty minutes from your university campus," Dad announced, a look of profound relief on his face. "He has plenty of room, top-tier security, and a full staff. He is the man I trust more than anyone else in this world."

A cold dread began to mingle with a sudden, fierce heat blooming in my chest.

Dad smiled warmly, delivering the final, inescapable truth. "You'll be moving in with Stanley next week."

Now, this is where I should have said: Oh fuck me!

I looked across the table. Quinn's perfect smile had completely vanished, her eyes narrowing into something dangerous as she stared at me. She clearly didn't want her old victim anywhere near her billionaire prize. But it was Stanley's reaction that held me captive.

His gaze locked onto mine with an intensity that burned right through my glasses. For the first time that night, he wasn't looking through me. He was looking at me.

Then it dawned on me, I am about to spend some time in a close space with my longtime crush... I didn't know when a smile formed on my face.

Amy's P.O.V

O.M.G

When the gates of the Pearson estate swiveled open, it was like heaven's gate opening. My jaw dropped at its magnificence. Up ahead, the massive stone mansion loomed. It was an architectural perfection... just like the man who owned it.

I steered my dented Toyota Camry down the winding cobblestone driveway, my hands gripping the steering wheel tightly.

Here's a little gist: Ley came from old money that dated as far back as the Victoria era. So, back when I was seventeen I used to dream of being Mrs. Pearson and giving birth to children to fill all twelve rooms. We didn't have to work nor did the kids go to school, we just stayed in our mansions, ate from a table overflowing with all kinds of food and drinks then spent the evening in the flower fields.

Okay, I heard you, fantasy right? Well don't blame me I was only seventeen. Now, I am twenty-one. I am a woman and have more realistic romantic expectations.

I killed the engine and sat there for a minute, pushing my thick glasses up my nose and taking in a deep breath.

You can do this, Amy, I told myself. It's just a temporary arrangement so your parents and brother can live their best lives in Tokyo.

Before I could even reach for my car door, a uniformed butler appeared, swinging it open with a polite bow. "Welcome, Miss Sanders. Mr. Pearson is currently in a meeting, but he instructed us to help you settle in. Follow me, please."

"Thank you," I squeaked, grabbing my oversized canvas tote bag and hauling my ten-pound suitcase out of the boot.

"Oh, you can leave that," he turned to me with a smile that says you clearly aren't a trust fund kid if not you would know. "The maids will bring them in."

Okay... Mansion... Maids... My teenage dream... Stop it Amy! Focus!

As I entered the grand foyer, Quinn descended the curved staircase. "Oh, look who has finally arrived! We've been waiting for you, darling," she spoke with her usual fake politeness.

She stepped off the last stair, gliding toward me with her arms slightly open. For a terrifying second, I thought she was going to hug me, but she simply patted my shoulders gently. "You look..." her sharp eyes travelled slowly from my messy bun, past my thick lenses, down to my oversized cardigan and baggy jeans. "Well, you look alive." She finally let out.

Well you look plastic, Quinn.

"Amy, darling," Quinn purred. "I've asked them to set up the finest room for you. I specifically chose that room for you. It's completely tucked away from the main hustle and bustle of the house. Stanley is under an immense amount of pressure with work right now, and the main wing gets so loud with executives and late-night calls. I knew a quiet, secluded space would be much better for your studying. We wouldn't want you to feel overwhelmed."

Oh please, you just want me in the furthest corner of this mansion so I can stay completely out of ley's sight. What do you have to be afraid of? I am just an amoeba right?

"That's very thoughtful of you, Quinn. Thank you," I muttered.

***

I skipped dinner entirely, terrified of running into them at a formal dining table. Instead, I spent hours staring at my laptop, trying to draft my application essay for The Herbert Wige Fellowship program. But by midnight, my brain was fried, my throat was parched, and my stomach was making noises that sounded like a dying whale.

I needed water. And maybe a slice of bread.

Slipping out of my room, I crept down the dimly lit hallway and into the kitchen. I could hear muffle sounds of people arguing. I tried to give them their privacy, which was unlike me but as I opened the fridge, I heard the door to the home office slam open.

I could hear Quinn and Ley in the hallway now.

"I don't give a damn about that, Quinn!" Ley's voice echoed with frustration.

Oh crap! I gave in to the temptation, crept to the door of the kitchen and stuck my ear to it.

"Our public image is the business, Stanley!" Quinn snapped back. "People are watching us. This marriage is supposed to solidify your new resort spot, and you are treating me like an inconvenience. You need this wedding just as much as I do."

What followed was a receding footstep towards the main door, then the aggressive sound of the door slamming.

My heart began pounding. It was never a marriage of love like Quinn wanted us all to believe. Holy Moly. The realization sent a strange, forbidden jolt of electricity straight to my core.

Needing fresh air to clear my thoughts, I left the kitchen and slipped through a set of glass French doors leading out to the backyard.

The night air was a gentle breeze rustling the perfectly manicured hedges surrounding the massive, illuminated infinity pool. I walked out onto the stone deck, only to gasp quietly and freeze.

Sitting at the edge of the water was Ley.

And oh, sweet heavens, he was shirtless. Sitting there in just his dark trousers, his bare, muscular back was turned to me. In his hand, he held a crystal glass of amber whiskey, his gaze fixed blankly on the moving water.

I should have turned around. I should have sprinted back to my room. But, I was just a girl who was in love. My feet were glued to the stone. My eyes traced every line of his physique, my inner mind screaming in absolute chaos. The crush wasn't dead. It was fully alive.

"It's impolite to spy, Amy."

Ley's baritone voice broke the silence, making me jump. He didn't turn around. He just took a sip of his drink.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, awkwardly tugging at the hem of my baggy T-shirt. "I wasn't spying. I just... I couldn't sleep. I wanted some ;....,air." I walked a few steps closer, stopping just a few feet away from him. "I heard the door slam earlier. Are you okay?"

Ley finally turned his head, his piercing eyes locking onto mine. Up close, he looked completely exhausted. The sharp lines of his jaw were tight with tension, and a few dark strands of hair fell over his forehead.

"You shouldn't eavesdrop, Amy," he said coldly, turning his gaze back to the pool. His voice was a flat wall, shutting me out. "Try and get some sleep. Don't you have school tomorrow?"

School? What am I? Seventeen?

"Why are you doing this?" The words left my mouth before my brain could stop them. Irritation overrode my caution. "Treating me like I am still a child. You can talk to me like an adult."

Stanley paused. The glass stopped halfway to his lips. Slowly, very slowly, Ley set his glass down on the tile. He turned his entire, broad, bare-chested body toward me and stood up.

He moved closer, towering over me. "You think you're an adult because you turned twenty-one, Amy?" he murmured, his voice becoming dangerously dark.

"Yes," I breathed, my heart racing at top speed. Up close, the heat radiating from his bare skin was intoxicating. My eyes instinctively raked over the defined planes of his chest and abdomen before snapping back to his face.

"You don't know anything about the world I live in," Ley said, his eyes suddenly dropping to my lips before locking back onto mine. "You are here because I promised your father I would keep you safe. Safe from everything. Including me. So, stop provoking me, and go to bed."

But I couldn't move. The sheer physical proximity and the raw, forbidden tension stretching between us made my brain short-circuit. He was right there. The man I had wanted for years was looking at me with an intensity that made me feel entirely exposed.

Driven by a sudden, reckless wave of desire, I leaned in.

I tilted my face up, closing the distance between us, my eyes fluttering shut behind my lenses as I reached for a kiss. I wanted to shatter the boundaries. I wanted him to see me as a woman.

For a heartbeat, Ley didn't pull away. I could feel the scorching heat of his breath against my skin, the sudden, sharp intake of his air as his entire body went rigid with shock, and something deep, dark, and ravenous.

Amy's P.O.V

Oh Damn!

For one beautiful, terrifying second, the entire universe shrank to the heat radiating off Ley's bare chest. My eyelashes brushed against the inner rims of my glasses as I tilted my face up, my lips parted, completely ready to throw my entire future into the fire for a single taste of him.

Then, a harsh, buzzing sound vibrated violently against the deck.

Bzzzzzz. Bzzzzzz. The light from Ley's phone illuminated the dark.

The spell shattered into a million pieces. Ley snapped his head back, pulling away from me so fast I actually stumbled a half-step forward.

What? No... No... Go back to the moment! Mother Earth please rewind time. Please!!! Just one second more.

The desire that had clouded his eyes vanished instantly, replaced by an impenetrable wall of professionalism as he snatched the phone up.

"Pearson," he spoke into the receiver, his voice completely stripped of the warmth that had just been melting my bones. He listened, his jaw hardening.

I stood there, frozen, my face burning with a mortifying mixture of rejection, humiliation and slight anger, because; Who the fuck calls by this time of the day, interrupting a sacred moment.

Without waiting for him to finish his call, I turned on my heel and sprinted across the deck, through the glass doors, and down the long hallways. I didn't stop until I slammed my bedroom door shut, collapsing onto the mattress. I stared at the ceiling for hours, my pulse racing.

I almost kissed him, I thought. And it looked like he wanted me too.

***

I like to pride myself as a girl's girl. Going after a married man or a man about to wed was never on my bucket list.

TBH, I did feel a bit bad. And that's why I spent the next afternoon holed up at the university library until the librarians literally started turning off the lights around me.

When I finally returned to the mansion, it was eerily quiet. There was no sign of Quinn, which was a huge blessing, I didn't want to feel like I was just as bad as she was.

As I passed the double doors of the home office, I stopped.

Ley was sitting on the edge of the leather sofa, his head buried in his hands. The room looked like it had been hit by a hurricane of paperwork. His suit jacket was thrown over a chair, his tie was loosened, and his dark hair was completely disheveled where he'd been running his fingers through it.

I hesitated by the door, nervously tugging at the strap of my bag. I should have walked away. But seeing him look so completely human, so utterly defeated, tugged at a part of my heart I couldn't ignore.

"Stanley?" I murmured softly.

He lifted his head, his eyes heavy with exhaustion as they focused on me. There was no coldness in them today, just a deep, weary vulnerability. "Amy, you're home."

"I hope I am not interrupting your work," I stammered.

He leaned back into the sofa and let out a sigh.

"You... you look like you haven't slept since yesterday."

"That's because I haven't." He let out a short nervous laugh. "Cons of being an investor."

I took that as an invitation to join him. "What is the issue, maybe I could help."

He looked at me for a long moment, probably wondering what help a 'little girl' like me could offer, then he shook it off and decided to give it a try.

"Well, I made a bad investment a year ago," he narrated, "Bought a group of luxury historic hotels in Europe. But after the deal went through, I found out the sellers lied. Those hotels were used for massive, illegal money laundering. Now, the courts have frozen all my bank accounts during the investigation. I have exhausted the spare money I had and can't pay my global hotel staff or suppliers. I am facing total bankruptcy unless I am able to find a loophole that will cause the court to unfreeze even if it is one account."

I looked at the folders on the floor. Frozen bank accounts. Court orders. Fake business contracts.

"Well, I'm studying corporate law and topping my class," I bragged. "If you don't mind, I can take a look at the documents."

He stared at me, completely shocked. For the first time in his life, he wasn't looking at David's chubby little daughter with glasses. He was looking at an intelligent, capable future lawyer offering him a lifeline."Sure."

I walked fully into the room, forgot about my usual shyness, and sat on the rug.

For the next two hours, the awkwardness from our near-kiss at the pool was gone.

We worked side by side on the floor. Every time our shoulders accidentally brushed, a tiny jolt of electricity shot through my skin, but I forced myself to focus on the numbers. I cross-referenced the court's freezing dates while Ley checked his international bank accounts.

Suddenly, my eyes caught something. "Wait, look at this. The court order says they can only freeze your domestic business accounts in America while they investigate. But the branch in Europe pulled funds from your offshore accounts. They had absolutely no legal right to touch your international cash yet."

Ley leaned over my shoulder to look at the paper. He was so close I could smell his perfume, and his warm breath tickled the loose hairs near my ear. He examined the line, and then he looked up at me, his eyes shining with admiration.

"You're brilliant, you know that?" he said softly, the deep tone of his voice made my heart flutter. "My whole legal team missed that. You've just bought me breathing room."

I felt a massive blush creep up my neck. "Well... I told you, top of my class."

We shared a smile. I could have sworn the earth stood still at that moment and sparks began to fly in the air.

"Stanley, darling! You will not believe what my designer just delivered!"

The high, piercing voice shattered our bubble like a brick through a window.

Quinn swept into the living room, flanked by two assistants carrying a voluminous garment bag. She stopped dead in her tracks the moment she saw us. We were sitting on the floor, surrounded by folders.

A flash of rage and jealousy crossed Quinn's face before she instantly covered it up with a forced smile. "Oh, am I interrupting a little... charity session?"

She strutted across the room, deliberately wedging her slim body right between us on the floor, throwing her arms around Ley's neck. She pressed a possessive kiss directly onto his lips. Ley went rigid, his eyes snapping to mine over her shoulder with a look of intense discomfort, but he didn't push her away. He couldn't.

Okay, girl, so subtle. I rolled my eyes so back, if it could talk it'd asked me to stop. I scrambled to my feet, picked up my bag to leave.

"Amy, you should see this." Quinn gushed, signalling to her assistants to unzip the garment bag to reveal a breathtaking, intricate lace wedding gown. "The designer finished it early. This is just one out of the three dresses I will be wearing. What do you think?"

Ley frowned, untangling her hands from his neck as he stood up. "Quinn, this is not the time. I am in the middle of a bankruptcy here."

"Oh, don't be so dramatic, darling, that's why you have." Quinn laughed, a cold, calculating sound.

Then, she turned her sharp eyes directly toward me. As she walked over to me, her smile widening into a trap.

Okay, bitch, what's going on?

"Amy, sweetie," she took my hands into hers.

This is getting creepy as fuck.

"Since your parents are away and you're living under our roof, I want to make sure you feel completely included in our beautiful new family."

I gripped the strap of my bag, a heavy dread pooling in my stomach. "Quinn, really, you don't have to-"

"Oh, but I absolutely insist!" Quinn interrupted, clapping her perfectly manicured hands together. She looked directly through my glasses, straight into my breaking heart, and delivered the ultimate insult. "Be my maid of honour."

I looked past her at Ley. His face had gone completely pale, his eyes wide with a mixture of shock and profound apology as he stared at me, trapped by the social obligations of his empire.

Now, this was definitely where I should have said: Oh, fuck me!